20 Facts About Colonial Nigeria

Colonial Nigeria was ruled by the British Empire from the mid-nineteenth century until 1960 when Nigeria achieved independence.

At the urging of Governor Frederick Lugard, the two territories were amalgamated as the Colony and Protectorate of Colonial Nigeria, while maintaining considerable regional autonomy among the three major regions .

The colonial period proper in Nigeria lasted from 1900 to 1960, after which Nigeria gained its independence.

Whether British conquest of Colonial Nigeria resulted from a benevolent motive to end slavery or more instrumental motives of wealth and power, remains a topic of dispute between African and European historians.

Colonial Nigeria'smission failed, but Park and his party covered more than 1,500 kilometres, passing through the western portions of the Sokoto Caliphate, before drowning when their boats overturned in rapids near Bussa.

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The first five heads of the Colonial Nigeria Department were Reginald Antrobus, William Mercer, William Baillie Hamilton, Sydney Olivier, and Charles Strachey.

Under the Colonial Nigeria Office was the Governor, who managed the administration of his colony and held powers of emergency rule.

Colonial Nigeria'sobjective was to conquer the entire region and to obtain recognition of the British protectorate by its indigenous rulers, especially the Fulani emirs of the Sokoto Caliphate.

Lugard's success in northern Colonial Nigeria has been attributed to his policy of indirect rule; that is, he governed the protectorate through the rulers defeated by the British.

Amalgamation of Colonial Nigeria was envisioned from early on in its governance, as is made clear by the report of the Niger Committee in 1898.

Lugard advocated constantly for the unification of the whole territory, and in August 1911 the Colonial Nigeria Office asked Lugard to lead the amalgamated colony.

The Colonial Nigeria Office approved most of Lugard's plan, but balked at authorising him to pass laws without their approval.

Lugard's governmental model for Colonial Nigeria was unique and there was apparently not much planning for its future development.

Colonial Nigeria Office accepted Lugard's proposal that the Governor would not be required to stay in-country full-time; consequently, as Governor, Lugard spent four months out of the year in London.

Unification meant only the loose affiliation of three distinct regional administrations into which Colonial Nigeria was subdivided—Northern, Western and Eastern regions.

Policy of indirect rule used in Northern Colonial Nigeria became a model for British colonies elsewhere in Africa.

Harding, director of Nigerian affairs at the Colonial Office, defined the official position of the British Government in support of indirect rule when he said that "direct government by impartial and honest men of alien race […] never yet satisfied a nation long and […] under such a form of government, as wealth and education increase, so do political discontent and sedition".

European traders in Colonial Nigeria initially made widespread use of the cowrie, which was already valued locally.

Colonial Nigeria'sgovernment guided the country for the next three years, operating with almost complete autonomy in internal affairs.

Preparation of a new federal constitution for an independent Colonial Nigeria was carried out at conferences held at Lancaster House in London in 1957 and 1958, which were presided over by The Rt.