The Obong Okon Ita kingdom was a Ibibio nation with its seat of government in Obot Okon Ita. This kingdom was located between present day Abia and Akwa Ibom

Akwa Ibom

Akwa Ibom is a state in Nigeria named after the Qua Iboe river. It is located in the coastal South-Southern part of the country, lying between latitudes 4°321 and 5°331 North, and longitudes 7°251 and 8°251 East...

 states in Southeastern Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

. Around 1630, an Igbo

Igbo people

Igbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...

 group known as the Eze Agwu arrived around Obong Okon Ita. This caused a long term conflict and stalemate known as the Aro-Ibibio Wars

Aro-Ibibio Wars

The Aro-Ibibio Wars were a series of conflicts between the Aro people and several Ibibio groups in present day Southeastern Nigeria from 1630 to 1902...

. The arrival of Nnachi Ipia and the support of a coup by the prince Kakpokpo Okon

Kakpokpo Okon

Kakpokpo Okon was an Ibibio prince from the Obong Okon Ita Kingdom around 1690-1720. He was the son of the marriage between the king and a Igbo woman from the Eze Agwu lineage. Kakpokpo Okon lead a successful coup against his brother Akpan Okon the Obong with the support of the Eze Agwu, Nnachi,...

 against his brother Akpan Okon

Akpan Okon

Akpan Okon was the last Obong of Obong Okon Ita around 1690-1720. He was overthrown by his brother Kakpokpo Okon with the support of groups such as the Eze Agwu, Nnachi Ipia, and the Nnubi dynasty in the final phases of the Aro-Ibibio Wars. Akpan Okon's defeat was very significant and crucial to...

 the Obong (king) led to a protracted and unprecedented conflict in the region. However the arrival of Akpa

Akpa

The Ibom Isi also known as the Akpa are one of the three main lineages compromising the Aro people. They are centered in Ibom, Arochukwu in Nigeria...

 forces led by the princes Osim and Akuma Nnubi

Osim and Akuma Nnubi

Osim and Akuma Nnubi were brothers and merchant princes of the Akpa people from the east of the Cross River in the late 17th century. The Akpa people were trading allies with the Eze Agwu and Nnachi clans of the Igbo. When Nnachi called them to assist the Igbos in the Aro-Ibibio wars, they...

, helped Kakpokpo Okon and Igbo forces defeat the Obong Okon Ita kingdom. Akpan Okon was killed and his surviving supporters were exiled. Kakpokpo Okon also died in combat and his family was incorporated to his maternal home the Eze Agwu community. The remaining Eze Agwu, Nnachi, and Akpa dynasties formed the Arochukwu

Arochukwu

Arochukwu, sometimes referred to as Arochuku, or Aro-Okigbo, is the third largest city in Abia State in southeastern Nigeria and homeland of the Igbo subgroup, Aro people....

Kingdom. The Obong Okon Ita kingdom was destroyed.

External links

• http://www.aro-okigbo.com/history_of_the_aros.htm
• http://www.aronetwork.org/others/arohistory.html
• http://www.aronewsonline.com/origincivilization.html