The twelve Royal Palaces of Abomey are located on an area of more than 45 hectares in the centre of the former capital of the West African kingdom of Dahomey. The kingdom was founded in 1625 by the Fon people, whose representatives made the future Benin a powerful military and trading state. From 1625 to 1900 12 monarchs succeeded each other at the head of the kingdom of Abomey. Dahomey conducted trade on the controlled coast until the late 19th century with European slave traders to whom they sold prisoners of war.
The complex consists of ten palaces, most of which are built next to each other according to the principles of architecture and cultural traditions of Ayah Fon. The palaces were intended for various ceremonies, with a maximum capacity of up to 8000 people at a time. They not only housed the centre of government of the kingdom, concentrated the advanced techniques of crafts, but also stored the treasures of the kingdom. The complex is divided into two parts, as the palace of King Aqaba is separated from his father's house by one of the city's main thoroughfares and residential areas. These two areas are surrounded by partially preserved blocks of walls.
The monarch's palace was a two-storey building called the "kauri house". The palaces share the same infrastructure, each surrounded by walls and built with three courtyards. The use of traditional materials and multi-coloured bas-reliefs are important architectural features.
Today, the palaces are no longer inhabited, but the houses of King Gezo and King Glele are furnished with a Historical Museum, whose exhibitions illustrate the history of the kingdom and its symbolism (voodoo), resistance and the struggle against colonial occupation for independence. The complex is now well protected, besides the museum includes ritual sites, tombs of kings and is the site of traditional ceremonies.
