This play is about the war between Ìjàyè and Ibadan in 1860.
The Alaafin of Oyo depended on Ibadan and Ìjàyè for defence. The ruler of Ibadan was named Basorun (or Prime Minister) while the ruler of Ìjàyè , Kúrúnmi, was named Aare-ona-Kakanfo (or Generalissimo).
In 1858, Alaafin Àtìbà sensed he was about to die and called his leading chiefs to get them to acknowledge the crown prince Adélù as his successor. This was contrary to tradition, which required the crown prince to commit suicide on the Alaafin's death. Ibadan supported Alaafin Àtìbà's move while Ìjàyè (under Kúrúnmi) opposed it. This led to a war between Ibadan and Ìjàyè . They camped on either side of River Ose.
Initially, Ìjàyè had the upper hand especially when its Egba allies supported it. Things changed when the Ibadan warriors discovered from their witch-doctor that the Ìjàyè will be destroyed if they cross River Ose. The Ibadan charmed the Ìjàyè to ensure this. So the Egba and Ìjàyè warriors ignored Kúrúnmi's warning and crossed River Ose to capture the "fleeing" Ibadan warriors. Thousands of Egba and Ìjàyè warriors were killed in the river. Kúrúnmi's 5 sons were killed while manning Iwawun, a town under Kúrúnmi. Kúrúnmi committed suicide while the enemy were setting the city wall on fire, to avoid capture.
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