History of the Kingdom of Dahomey and the French took over the Kingdom of Dahomey in 1894. The throne was vacated by the French in 1900, but the royal families and key administrative positions of the administration continued to have a large impact in the politics of the French administration and the post-independence Republic of Dahomey, renamed Benin in 1975. Historiography of the kingdom has had a significant impact on work far beyond African history and the history of the kingdom forms the backdrop for a number of novels and plays. Prior to the centralization of the kingdom of Dahomey, the evidence suggests that the Abomey
History of the Kingdom of Dahomey area (or were possibly a result of intermarriage between the Aja people and the Gedevi). The Palace in Abomey was established in the early 17th century. The foundational king of the Kingdom of Dahomey is often considered Houegbadja (c.1645-1685) who built the Royal Palaces of Abomey and began raiding and taking over towns outside of the Abomey plateau. At the same time, the slave trade began increasing in size in the coastal region through the Kingdom of Whydah and Allada and trade with the Portuguese, Dutch, and British. The Dahomey Kingdom became known to European traders at this time as