Editing Agonglo (section)

==Rise to power==
Agonglo was the oldest son of [[Kpengla|King Kpengla]] (ruled 1774–1789), who had ruled over a long-term economic crisis in Dahomey. The [[Oyo empire]] still had [[suzerainty]] over the kingdom and in the time of Kpengla this power of Oyo over the kingdom had resulted in decreased slave trading by Dahomey.  Kpengla responded in a variety of ways: first trying to defeat common competitors of both Oyo and Dahomey, then when this failed he ended slave trade with Oyo entirely, raised harsh taxes on slave traders through Dahomey, and resumed slave raiding.  These policies largely did not work and the slave trade, which had become the primary trade for Dahomey, slowed significantly.<ref name=Law-1989>{{cite journal|last=Law|first=Robin|title=Slave-Raiders and Middlemen, Monopolists and Free-Traders: The Supply of Slaves for the Atlantic Trade in Dahomey c. 1715-1850|journal=The Journal of African History|year=1989|volume=30|issue=1|pages=45–68|doi=10.1017/s0021853700030875|s2cid=165485173 }}</ref>

Political factions were also developing in Dahomey under Kpengla.  When [[Tegbessou]] (ruled 1740–1774) became king in a contentious selection, two older sons of [[Agaja|King Agaja]] were passed over for selection.  The heirs of these two other brothers had slowly increased their power into a distinct rival claim to the throne at Dahomey.<ref name=Akinjogbin>{{cite book|last=Akinjogbin|first=I.A.|title=Dahomey and Its Neighbors: 1708-1818|year=1967|publisher=Cambridge University Press}}</ref>

When Kpengla died in 1789, four rival claimants came to the throne: two younger brothers of Kpengla, Fraku or Don Jeronimo (the son of one of the older sons of Agaja), and Agonglo (the oldest son of Kpengla. The Migan and Mehu of Dahomey, who were tasked with selecting the new king, choose Agonglo, but there remained significant political opposition to Agonglo.<ref name=Akinjogbin /> The selection of Agonglo resulted in such widespread opposition that the political functions of the kingdom largely halted for a year. Agonglo then did a series of conciliatory moves to try to end the opposition: promised to give citizens back some rights, ended constraints on slave traders, reduced taxes, reassigned some of the aggressive tax collectors into the army, and recognized other powerful individuals.<ref name=Akinjogbin />