IN THE BEGINNING 

Several books have been written on the history of various kingdoms and the Great Ughele kingdom has not been left out. History has it that Owhowha was brave, insightful and adventurous man, who with followers migrated from the far East and founded settlements and villages along the bank of the Delta Niger River. A few of the areas he founded which are still occupied by his offsprings are Uduophori, Odorubu and Ofoni. Those villages constitute the present day Ughele-Urhie (Ughele on-the riverside), which is part of the Great Ughele Kingdom. Owhowha had three sons; Ughele, Ogor, Agbarha and a daughter Erhiarha. History has it that the only daughter; Erhiarha got married to Efeh and they begot Orogun. Owhowha further migrated into the hinterland and settled at 0go Oviri (the present site of Ogor technical school) with his large family and from here the family expanded and these children further migrated and saw the formation of the great kingdoms of Owhowha and these are: 0gor, Agbarha, Ughele and Orogun. Tne Great Ughele Kingdom as the family grew, there was an apparent potential for disagreement and is served as an impetus for the inert tendency for migration to rear up in the family and hence Ughele migrated from 0go-Oviri to the present day Ovwodoawanre and from here the Great Ughele Kingdom had its foot hold with Ughele as the first king, He reigned over his kingdom from 1400 to 1460 until his death when his son Inarhe, the heir apparent to the throne succeeded him. From this beginning, the kingdom has had an uninterrupted reign of the successive kings, lyaseres (Prime Ministers) and lzomos -Maternal brother to the kings the mode of succession was sacrosanct hence no history of interregnum. The traditional name of the king" Ajuwe" has been in use since the Inception of the kingdom. However, there were little or no documented records of events or achievements of four succeeding reigns. The reason for this dearth of information is not unconnected with the absence of the culture of writing and total reliance on the human memory and oral tradition for information dissemination. Hence details of achievements of the following kings were not sufficiently documented. These are: Ajuwe Inarhe (1461 - 1524) Ajuwe Avweresoso (1525-1567) Ajuwe Awhalde (1568 -1594) Ajuwe Arhavwode (1595-1647) However, the other reigns had historical records of the reigns. 

AJUWE ADAGWE (1648-1706) 

The prominence of Ughele kingdom commenced in this period. He consolidated the seat of the kngdom's administration at Ovwodoawaren and thence the spread of the kingdom commenced southward. Most of the current traditional customs and practices inclusive of taboos were established in his reign. History has it that he made a maiden trip to the Benin Kingdom where he was warmly received and this marked the beginning of the established fraternal relationship with the Benin kingdom. The Benin monarch presented various gifts to him and some of these are still extant and relevant in the kingdom till date. It is on record that on his way from Benin kingdom, he stopped at Ologbo, the home of the great native doctor; Azanor and came back with him to Ovwodoawaren because of his famous Ododo-kofor potent concoction and this aided him in his wars of conquest. The Ughele traditional paraphernalia of royalty inclusive of the Crown, Royal beads, Elephant tusk, Uje, Aberen, the red royal scarlet cloth and the traditional staff of office were introduced during his reigh. Of significance is the Ema traditional dance which was also introduced and this has spread into Urhobo nation and beyond. 

AJUWE USEH (1707-1757) 

King Useh had the onerous task of maintaining the structures implanted by his father and this he did successfully. As a successful farmer, he established the villages of Otovwodo as an initial farm settlement. AJUWE AKPOROBA (1758-1806) King Akporoba had three wives but history has it that the third Queen prematurely gave birth to the heir apparent-Prince Esejuvwevwo as against the expected birth of Prince Itive by the second Queen. King Akporoba was well known for his war exploits as he expanded the frontiers of Ughele Kingdom thereby getting slaves for his farm lands and his influence was felt far and wide in Urhobo land and beyond. He ceremoniously introduced the Ohonvwore Chieftaincy title and conferred same on the lyasere and Izomo at Aderhirin. Kingdom Akporoba reigned for 48years and joined his ancestors in 1806. 

AJUWE ESEJUVWEVWO (1807-1855) 

By divine instance, Prince Esejuvwevwo ascended the throne in 1807 as the 9th King of Ughele Kingdom. He was known to be a very wealthy king as he was bequeathed with so much wealth by his father-Ajuwe Akporoba. History has it that he built a wooden stronghold (bank) in the Palace where he kept his cowries (money) as this was the medium of trade in the early days. This facility he also extended to others in the kingdom and beyond and this was seen as the precursor to modern day banking. This foresight and skill in financial management endeared him to many people in the kingdom as he was acclaimed to be the richest Ughele King then. 

AJUWE OGHOGHOVWEN 1(1856-1884) 

Prince Oghoghovwen ascended the throne as the 10th Ajuwe in 1856 upon the demise of his father. He had Prince Idjesa as his heir apparent to the throne. A near approach to an interregnum was established during the reign of Oghoghovwen 1. History had it that Princes Obazenu (lyasere to Oghoghovwen 1), Imoniogharen and Itive staged a palace coup that removed Oghoghovwen from the stool and installed Prince Obazenu as the King of Ughele Kingdom and with Prince Imoniogharen as his lyasere. This act of transgression was unaccepted and there was a counter attack. In defeat Prince Obazenu and Imomiogharen burnt the Palace and fled from the kingdom. He however rebullt the burnt palace and maintained the Integrity of the kingdom until his death in 1884.

 AJUWE IDJESA (1885-1915) 

His reign was unique in the kingdom as he was the only king who had as many as 170 princes and princesses combined as his direct children from his several wives. His first son and heir apparent was Prince Oharisi. A very significant event during the reign of Ajuwe Idjesa was the advent of white traders-the Britons led by Federick Lord Lugard. They solicited the support of the kingdom to enhance their trade and sought to appoint King Idjesa as a local chief of her Majesty. However, due to sovereignty exigencies, he delegated the Iyasere, Prince Oritsejobo to discuss with them and aftermath of this was the famous treaty of 1874 between the British Government and the Great Ughele Kingdom. He continued with this style of administration in the kingdom until his death in 1915. 

AJUWE OHARISI 1 (1916-1943) 

Prince Oharisi's coronation witnessed a derogation of the traditional prerogative of the king makers. This was surreptitiously achieved by the colonial Government who insisted that the installation be done in consultation with the representatives of his Majesty, King George V of England. This installation marked the beginning of the conferment of a staff of office as a symbol of authority on a king which has become a common practice today. History has it that the heir apparent, Prince Omoraka and his younger half brother Prince Omoise died before the death of the father, hence Prince Okogbe finally succeeded his father on the throne. King Oharisi 1 was the first king to be made a warrant officer in charge of law and order for the king of England. 

AJUWE OKOGBE OHARISI 11(1944-1980) 

He had Prince Ejenavi the heir apparent from the second Queen. A significant achievement was made during his reign with the documentation of all stool lands in the Kingdom in 1951 and these were duly attested to by prominent heads of villages of the Kingdom in whose areas these stool lands were situated. It Is a historical fact that the kingdom was well recognized in the then Government of Western Urhobo in the then House of Kings later changed to the house of chiefs. The then Oba of Benin was the Chairman while the Ovie of Ughele was the vice and the Obi of Agbor was the secretary. It was also a known fact that Ajuwe Okogbe Oharisi 11 was the only Monarch in Urhobo land that had an official car. 

AJUWE EJENAVI OGHOGHOVWEN 11(1981-1991) 

Ajuwe EJenavi had the shortest reign in the history of the Great Ughele Kingdom as he reigned for only 10years. He continued with the documentation exercise of his father Oharisi 11 as he made important reforms in the administration of the kingdom. The palace court was improved upon and proceedings were documented. A palace secretary was put in place to document all palace and kingdom events and branches of Ughele Descendant Union were formed in Lagos and Portharcourt. He would have had several achievements but his short reign in office as he Joined his ancestors In 1991. 

AJUWE WILSON OJAKOVO OHARISI III JP+APJ (1992-DATE) 

Prince Wilson Ojakovo Oharisi ascended the throne of the great Ughele Kingdom on 22nd April, 1992 at a young age due to the early demise of the father as he was on the throne for only a decade. His installation was a strong departure from the past as it was treated as a 21st century with a lot of pomp and pageantry as all sons and daughters of the kingdom at home and Diaspora were in attendance as well as Government officials, the business class and the Media. On matrimony, the current Ajuwe did not follow his immediate forbearers by having harems of wives as he now has three wives. The first wife was Queen Paulina Okeotodoro Oharisi of blessed memory and has seven children made of four princes and three princesses inclusive of the heir apparent; Jeremiah Avwenaghogho. However, one of her sons passed on due to fatal car crash that claimed his life. The second wife is Queen Racheal Omoavevwere Oharisi. She has five children, three Princes and two Princesses. The third wife is Queen Gladys Oharisi who has given the kingdom four princes. The fourth wife is Queen Oghenerukvwe Oharisi and she has given birth to four princesses. As a 21st Century Monarch, Ajuwe Oharisi 111 JP+ the current Ovie of the kingdom is inevitably saddled with the responsibility of steering the ship of the state of the kingdom in tandem with present day reality and expectation in harnessing the dividends of democracy and attracting investments and social infrastructure to all nooks and crannies of the kingdom in a peaceful polity. In order to achieve this he has positioned himself positively in both social business and political circles as he is seen to be very relevant in these areas. He also has a well-structured council of chiefs that advises him on key traditional and National issues while the Ughele Descendants Union is also there to advise and resolve most local issues. With these institutions supporting the monarchy, the King is adequately supported and the growth of the kingdom will be greatly enhanced. 

HRM Evang. Dr. W.O. Oharisi 111 JP+ will most certainly be remembered by many of his people for enthusiastically introducing Christian Worship into the Royal Palace of the Kingdom after the Great Solemn Assembly in 2004.

 Ajuwe! Ajuwe!! Ajuwe!!! Okeke! Ogbodu! Opharivie! Idono Oro! Ikeberide! Okpurheveghon! Epharo no brighworighwo Wo Su Ton! Wo Riakpo! Wo Sun rhinrhinrhinrhin!!! 

References:
1. 70th birthday and 31st Coronation Anniversary Celebration Program, pg 16-21.
2. The Great Ughele Kingdom by Olorogun Miller Obrik Uloho, pg 1-2.