The opulent palaces built by the 12 rulers of the kingdom within the cloistered site of Abomey functioned between 1695 and 1900 as the traditional cultural hub of the empire.

[12] Dahomean culture was deeply rooted in intense reverence for the kings of Dahomey and with great religious significance.

[11] The town where the palaces were built was surrounded by a mud wall with a circumference estimated at 10 kilometres (6 mi), pierced by six gates, and protected by a ditch 1.5 m (5 ft) deep, filled with a dense growth of prickly acacia, the usual defence of West African strongholds.

Within the walls were villages separated by fields, several royal palaces, a market-place and a large square containing the barracks.

The average thickness of the walls was about 0.5 m (1+1⁄2 ft), which maintained cool temperatures inside the palace rooms.

The Ajalala, a unique building, which has many types of openings, is in the second courtyard; the walls have decorations of suggestive images in bas-relief.

The palaces of Glèlè and Guézo, which survived the intentional fire of 1894 set by Béhanzin, were restored and they are now part of the museum.

[13] The bas reliefs functioned as a record book (in the absence of written documents) to record the significant events in the evolution of the Fon people and their empire, relating the military victories and power of each king and documenting the Fon people's myths, customs and rituals.

[12] The Abomey Historical Museum is housed in a building built over an area of 2 hectares (5 acres), which was established in 1943 by the French colonial administration.

Some of the significant exhibits are appliquéd “king” quilt, traditional drums, and paintings of ceremonies and the war between France and Dahomey.

[17] Following the 2018 report on the restitution of African cultural heritage, 26 statues that had been looted by French troops during the sacking of the Royal Palaces of Abomey in 1892 and donated by the French colonel Alfred Dodds to a predecessor of the Musée du quai Branly in Paris, constitute the first permanent restitutions under the new law.

The decolonization of museums is part of a growing global movement to repatriate cultural property to their country of origin.

The extent of the flames spread rapidly as a result of the Harmattan winds, and demolished the straw roof and framework of several of the surrounding buildings.

Such plans included the desiccation of water from the structural remains, and fire extinguishing equipment to aid in the prevention of similar incidents.

Restoration works were supported by international organisations upon request by the Benin authorities and the World Heritage Centre.

In 2006, the City of Abomey decreed an urban and planning regulation, which provides a secure framework for the protection of the site.