Politics of Benin century until the colonial period, the Kingdom of Dahomey (whose borders encompassed more than present day Benin) was ruled by an "Oba". The French were the colonial power from 1892 to 1960, when independence was finally achieved. Between 1960 and 1972, a series of military coups in Benin (known until 1975 as the Republic of Dahomey) brought about many changes of government. The last of these brought Major Mathieu Kérékou to power as the head of a regime professing strict Marxist-Leninist principles. The Revolutionary Party of the People of Benin (PRPB) remained in complete power until the beginning of the
History of the Kingdom of Dahomey him with significantly more power and money (the title "chacha" remains an important honorary position in Whydah to this day). In 1823, Ghezo led armies against Oyo and was this time able to end the tributary status of Dahomey and permanently weaken Oyo. Two major changes occurred in the 1840s and 1850s which significantly altered politics in Dahomey. First, the British who had been a major purchaser of slaves began taking an active stance in abolishing the slave trade in the 1830s. They sent multiple diplomatic parties to Ghezo to try to convince him to end Dahomey's participation in the