Odarawu was an Alaafin

Alaafin

Alaafin or Man of the Palace in the Yoruba language was the title of the emperor of the medieval Oyo empire of northwestern Yorubaland. It was retained through the fall of that state as the official title of the ceremonial ruler of the contemporary Oyo clan....

 of Oyo

Oyo Empire

The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...

, who was on the throne for a short period of time. He was considered a man of bad temperament. According to Oyo legend

Legend

A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...

 his bad temper led him to being removed as king and also served as educational warning and lesson to future kings on character development.

Odarawu's major battle was also his first and last blunder on the throne. During his reign, he ordered the destruction of a town

Town

A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...

called Ojo-segi for the trite reason of being disrespected in the market by a trader in Ojo-segi. Subsequently, the Oyo masses found him unfit to be king and he was asked to commit suicide.