Originally built to delineate the royal precinct of the Oba, or king, from the surrounding areas, the Benin City Walls consist of a set of inner and outer interlocking rings. Many other walls were erected in the surrounding countryside to mark the agricultural boundaries around distinct settlements.

Built to an original height of more than 18 meters, and a length of 1,200 kilometers, the earthworks attest the development of urbanization and the rise of state societies in Sub-Saharan Africa, a process that began in the 7th century AD and culminated in the founding of the Benin Kingdom in the 14th century.

The British ravaged the Walls in 1897. Portions have gradually vanished in the wake of modernization. Large segments have been cannibalized for the construction of new buildings. However, significant stretches of the walls remain, enclosing innumerable red-earth shrines and elite architecture with red-fluted walls.

Though the walls and moats have been protected by national legislation since 1961, a management plan and public awareness campaign were developed for the site only after it was listed in 2002. Still there is urgent need for emergency conservation work.