[1] Idewu Ojulari became Oba after his father Osilokun died in 1829.
Notably, Lagos had hitherto been under Benin suzerainty up until the reign of Oba Kosoko who was dethroned by British forces in 1851.
[2][3] According to historian Kristin Mann, Idewu Ojulari's unpopularity may have been caused by the economic downturn in the slave trade following the prosperous years of Osinlokun's reign.
Idewu's chiefs reportedly communicated their displeasure to the Oba of Benin, who sent Idewu a skull, a sword, and a message that "the people of Lagos would no longer recognize him as their King".
Idewu recognized the skull as an invitation to take poison and the sword as a call to battle.