Proponents of the Nri kingdom have promoted it as the oldest kingdom in present-day Nigeria. It is an ancient kingdom with origins in Nri in Anambra state in present-day Nigeria. The Kingdom of Nri served as the religious and political center for the Igbo people of eastern Nigeria.
According to their
belief, the sun was the dwelling place of the Supreme Being and the light its
symbol. Practices initiated by the Nri Kingdom formed the nucleus of the Igbo
culture, traditions, and belief system.
Some records show that
the kingdom had existed since the 9th century and this can be
buttressed with the discovery of royal burials and artifacts dating to the 10th
century.
The kingdom was led by
a priest-king (Eze Nri), and though they had no military powers they were believed
to possess spiritual powers. They also had divine authority to administer
justice on behalf of the people. In essence, the Eze Nri was upheld more as a spiritual
being than as a traditional ruler.
People believed the
Eze-Nri descended from above to establish a society on earth. The Eze-Nri also
managed trade and diplomatic relationships with neighboring tribes.
Interestingly the
Kingdom abhorred slavery and absorbed and set slaves free once they entered the
territory of Nri.
Outcasts and a class of
people called osu from other communities
were equally integrated into the Nri society through ritual oaths. In the Nri
Kingdom status was inconsequential as everybody was treated equally.
The kingdom thus
expanded rapidly not by force but by a personal conviction of safety and
acceptance.
The Nri tradition also
promoted its belief system through the use the ritualistic ozo traders. They
traveled from one community to the other spreading the practice of Nri.
Notwithstanding its
influence, the kingdom did not have domineering control of all Igbo
communities even at the pinnacle of its powers.
Nonetheless, its
religious practices and cultural and administrative activities still influenced distant Igbo communities, the Benin Empire, and the Igala people. The Nri Kingdom
is recognized as the cradle of Igbo society, ideology, and religious
practices.
The Kingdom
The foundation of the Nri
Kingdom is traced to Eri, a man whose origin is yet to be factual asserted. One
ideology emphasized that he descended from the sky as a divine being to
establish peace on earth. The other states Eri was the 7th son of
Jacob called Gad. Gad they claim, left Egypt when he sensed persecution would
be meted out against the Jews people living in Egypt.
According to oral
narrations, Eri’s sojourn took him through many regions, peoples, and tribes.
Eventually, he settled in a location referred to as Aguleri in present-day Anambra
State Nigeria.
Nri, his first son who
was also a spiritual priest like his father later left the group and settled in
a place now called the Nri Kingdom. He practiced his faith and also engaged in
farming and hunting just like his father. Historians have postulated that the
Igbo race thus spread from here to form new settlements and practiced the
rituals associated with the Nri Kingdom.
From this spot, Nri
built a kingdom that was considered the most peaceful in Africa as they
maintained a policy and philosophy of harmony, peace, and justice. They abhorred
violence and considered it an abomination to the land that would take spiritual
cleansing to restore.
Government
In Nri Kingdom and much
of other parts of Igbo land governance was democratic, theocratic, and highly
decentralized. For this reason, Igbo communities were more republican than
feudalistic or autocratic.
The system they
operated on made oppressive and absolute power impossible. The leading figure
in the kingdom known as Eze Nri possessed mystical powers but had no military
powers. The Eze Nri ruled uniquely by his spiritual capabilities and ability to
control trade and maintain control of power.
The essence of Nri
Kingdom was predicated and established on the ritual powers that sustained it.
As a religious-political institution, the kingdom thrived and espoused its
belief systems. And these belief systems required that their followers accept by
the rules of the faith.
The people also yielded
to the Eze N who is likened to or perceived as a heavenly representative on earth.
In the Nri Kingdom, it was rare to come in contact with or see the Eze-Nri as he lived in
isolation from the people.
Unlike other kingdoms
during the era, the Nri Kingdom is probably the only kingdom that was
peculiarly committed to living in peace among themselves and with their
neighbors. The violence of any kind was totally abhorred and considered an
abomination. In some instances, whole communities were isolated from the larger
group for sacrilegious acts.
Various traditional and
spiritual practices were prevalent in the kingdom. For example, the tender part of
the palm tree known as omu in their
local dialect formed an integral part of their ritual practices. It could be
used for protection from evil spirits and as a sign of justice.
Violators of the
traditions or specific taboos were either excommunicated from the community or
punished accordingly.
No records of the kingdom carrying out executions or committing defaulters to prisons exist.
Effective ways to
conduct administration, and the ability to manage segmented and autonomous peoples were developed by the internal mechanism of the Nri Kingdom.
Economy
The enthronement of
peace made progress inevitable as it allowed trade to thrive. Agriculture also
played a significant role in bringing prosperity to the kingdom. The currencies
used for trade were armlets made from gold, copper, and bronze.
International palm oil
trading was also a significant source of income for the communities that made
up the kingdom. Thus the Nri Kingdom maintained robust financial growth.
The Isusu practiced across some cities in Nigeria was the banking
system used during that era in Nri Kingdom.
Unlike other kingdoms
that flourished from Slavery during that era, the kingdom was an exception. A
slave who luckily steps his foot on Nri automatically becomes a free man.
The founder of the
kingdom Eri is recorded to be the originator of the 4 market days (eke, orie, afo, nkwo) still operational
across Igbo land.
The Nri priest
understood the movement of heavenly bodies and used it to calculate the lunar
months correctly. In the ancient Igbo calendar invented by the Nri Kingdom, a week had 4
days, a month consisted of 7 weeks and 13 months made a year.
Bronze casting was also
practiced widely within this kingdom in what is today referred to as Igbo-Ukwu. Archeological findings within
the Igbo territory have unearthed bronze artifacts dating back to the 9th
century. The findings further accentuate their belief or hypothesis that they
had the earliest civilization and are thus the cradle of human existence.
The fall of Nri Kingdom
The kingdom had a rare
tradition of ascendency to the throne. A seven-year period must elapse before a
new king is installed in the case of the death of an Eze-Nri. Within this period
spiritual consultation is employed and expectations of divine signs to determine
the right person to succeed the deceased king.
To consummate the
installation of a selected king, part of the ritual process involved a journey
to Aguleri in Anambra state.
He would also have to
sit on the throne of the founder of Nri which is at Obu-Gad in Enugwu Aguleri.
After a period of 7 days of ritual activities, he is then ready to go back to
Nri for a symbolic burial and digging up.
The process according
to its proponents would impact in him some supernatural powers beyond human
understanding. This is needed to indeed divinely empower him with wisdom to
rule his kingdom effectively.
From the fourth to the
ninth Eze Nri the kingdom had peace but from the tenth to the fourteenth conflicts
began to emerge.
This arose partly from
the rapid encroachment of the slave trade and the concomitant financial rewards. This
greatly affected the spiritual and religious integrity of the kingdom which eventually wilted down its influence on the people.
Secondly, hostilities from the Benin Empire and the Igala race against Nri Kingdom intensified in the 18th century
By the 18th century, the
kingdom had declined considerably until 1911 when the British had fully taken
over the territory now known today as Nigeria. They forced the reigning Eze-Nri
to denounce his religious practices, which unfortunately brought the popularity and acceptance of Kingdom of Nri to an end. Physical relics of that
kingdom are the remnants of the Igbo-Ukwu artifacts.