factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria

PhD dissertation accepted at the Graduate Programme in History, York University, Ontario. Direct taxation on men was introduced in 1928 without major incidents. [19], West Africa also bought British exports, supplying 3040% of the demand for British cotton during the Industrial Revolution of 17501790.[27]. Individuals could be fined or jailed for refusing to comply.[12]. "Separatist Agitations in Nigeria Since 1914." The most important innovations in the new charter reinforced the dual course of constitutional evolution, allowing for both regional autonomy and federal union. Afeadie, "The Hidden Hand of Overrule" (1996), p. 1012. June 30, 2022 . The NPC, entering candidates only in the Northern Region, confined campaigning largely to local issues but opposed the addition of new regimes. factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria. The first known encounter between the British and the people of the region of modern-day Nigeria was on April 1, 1600, when English sailors landed on the Niger River near Katsina, the largest city in northern Nigeria. The most powerful figure in the party was Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto. E-mail: tundeoduwobi@yahoo.com Recibido: 15 Marzo 2011 / Revisado: 7 Abril 2011 / Aceptado: 17 Abril . It is not a federal state with federal Executive, Legislature and finances, like the Leewards. [59], Lugard advocated constantly for the unification of the whole territory, and in August 1911 the Colonial Office asked Lugard to lead the amalgamated colony.[60]. British expansion was conducted primarily by commercialists and resulted in more solid economic potential than the French endeavor (Crowder, 1990). There was virtually no pressure for greater unity among the regions until after the end of World War II. The Norman conquest in 1066 was the last successful conquest of England. Northern leaders committed to modernization were also firmly connected to the traditional power structure. 4 Pages. the British Government completed their assignment of conquest and came up with what they called the Amalgamation of Nigeria . Most Europeans tended to overlook their own differences and were surprised and shocked that Nigerians wanted to develop new denominations independent of European control. The Northern People's Congress (NPC) was organised in the late 1940s by a small group of Western-educated Northern Nigerians. The NPC was called on to form a government, but the NCNC received six of the ten ministerial posts. After the defection of Kano, the only significant disagreement within the NPC was related to moderates. The Action Group was largely the creation of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, General Secretary of Egbe Omo Oduduwa and leader of the Nigerian Produce Traders' Association. In February 1961, a plebiscite was conducted to determine the disposition of the Southern Cameroons and Northern Cameroons, which were administered by Britain as United Nations Trust Territories. In May of this year, Herbert J. [55], Under the Colonial Office was the Governor, who managed the administration of his colony and held powers of emergency rule. Officials of the Sokoto Caliphate considered these treaties quite differently; from their perspective, the British were granted only extraterritorial rights that did not prevent similar arrangements with the Germans and the French and certainly did not surrender sovereignty. Columbus, in his voyage, sought fame and fortune, as did his Spanish sponsors. L'indpendance du. In contrast to Lugard, Clifford argued that colonial government had the responsibility to introduce as quickly as practical the benefits of Western experience. Clifford emphasized economic development, encouraging enterprises by immigrant southerners in the north while restricting European participation to capital intensive activity. By 1903 the conquest of the emirates was complete. A people with no knowledge of their past would suffer from collective amnesia, groping blindly into the future without guide-posts of precedence to shape their course. Although this trade grew to significant proportionspalm oil exports alone were worth 1 billion a year by 1840it was concentrated near the coast, where palm trees grew in abundance. How did use of enslaved African people for labour develop? Balewa formed a coalition government that included the Action Group as well as the NCNC to prepare the country for the final British withdrawal. The essential basis of this system was a money economy specifically the British pound sterling which could be demanded through taxation, paid to cooperative natives, and levied as a fine. One place that felt victim to this imperialism was Africa. [11] In 1891, the African Banking Corporation founded the Bank of British West Africa in Lagos.[33]. The early history of Lagos Colony was one of repeated attempts to end the Yoruba wars. They, in turn, have by defeat lost their rule which has come into the hands of the British. The war also made the British reappraise Nigeria's political future. From 1790 to 1807, predominantly British slave traders purchased 1,0002,000 slaves each year in Lagos alone. Egypt) and titles (e.g. Portuguese Roman Catholic priests who accompanied traders and officials to the West African coast introduced Christianity to the Edo Empire in the fifteenth century. Herbert Richmond Palmer developed details of this model from 1906 to 1911 as the Governor of Northern Nigeria after Lugard.[66]. Davies and Nnamdi Azikiwe. In the 1700s, the British Empire and other European powers had settlements and forts in West Africa but had not yet established the full-scale plantation colonies which existed in the Americas. [21], Whether British conquest of 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. In this way Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowtherborn in the Yoruba-inhabited area of Oshogbo and the first African ordained by the CMSwas able to establish mission stations at Onitsha, Lokoja, and Eggan and later at Brass and Bonny. Lugard's success in northern Nigeria has been attributed to his policy of indirect rule; that is, he governed the protectorate through the rulers defeated by the British. In popular parlance, discussions of colonialism in Africa usually focus on the European conquests that resulted in the scramble for Africa after the Berlin Conference in the 19th century. The yoruba-Igbo rivalry became increasingly important in Nigerian politics. 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". A lack of interest in extending the NPC beyond the Northern Region corresponded to this strictly regional orientation. Three of these posts were assigned to representatives from each region, and one was reserved for a delegate from the Northern Cameroons. factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria. Progressive constitutions after World War II provided for increasing representation and electoral government by Nigerians. It, therefore, hired native intermediaries who could conduct diplomacy, trade and intelligence work in the local area. In the early stages of British rule, it is desirable to retain the native authority and to work through and by the native emirs. Borno capitulated without a fight, but in 1903 Lugard's RWAFF mounted assaults on Kano and Sokoto. [19] Although the Ijebu had some weapons they were wiped out by British Maxims, the earliest machine gun. Local rulers continued to administer their territories, but consular authorities assumed jurisdiction for the equity courts established earlier by the foreign mercantile communities. Some were deposed, some were defeated in battle, and others collaborated. Macbeth) in the essay title portion of your citation. factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria. The Action Group, which staged a lively campaign, favoured stronger government and the establishment of three new states while advocating the creation of a West Africa Federation that would unite Nigeria with Ghana and Sierra Leone. The most dramatic event having a long-term effect on Nigeria's economic development was the discovery and exploitation of petroleum deposits. 4. brighton grey motion loveseat; waterford, ct obituaries; jane wymark children. Christian missionaries were barred, and the limited government efforts in education were harmonized with Islamic institutions.[67]. Recovery came quickly and improvements in port facilities and the transportation infrastructure during World War I furthered economic development. The company received 865,000 compensation for the loss of its Charter. Crowther, a liberated Yoruba slave, had been educated in Sierra Leone and in Britain, where he was ordained before returning to his homeland with the first group of CMS missionaries. Gradually, however, the trade forced major economic and social changes in the interior, although it hardly undermined slavery and the slave trade. The British High Commissioners could depose emirs and other officials if necessary. By 1919 the National Council of British West Africa, an organization consisting of elites across West Africa, was demanding that half the members of the Legislative Council be Africans; they also wanted a university in West Africa and more senior positions for Africans in the colonial civil service. Despite conquering villages by burning houses and crops, continual political control over the Igbo remained elusive. The traders suffered from the risks of their position and believed they were at the mercy of the coastal rulers, whom they considered unpredictable. British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston detested slavery, and in 1851 he took advantage of divisions in native politics, the presence of Christian missionaries, and the maneuvers of British consul John Beecroft to encourage the overthrow of the regime. The Crusades and the Reconquista cemented religious intolerance, and the Christians looked to colonization partly as a means of continuing religious conquests. In 1916 Lugard formed the Nigerian Council, a consultative body that brought together six traditional rulersincluding the Sultan of Sokoto, the Emir of Kano and the Oba of Beninto represent all parts of the colony. Many of the slaves exported in the 1820s and 30s were intercepted by the ships of the Royal Navy, emancipated, and deposited in Sierra Leone under missionary tutelage. At the urging of Governor Frederick Lugard, the two territories were amalgamated as the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria, while maintaining considerable regional autonomy among the three major regions (Northern protectorate, Southern protectorate and the Colony of Lagos). Durres Port. However, development of the Nigerian oilfields slowed when Bergheim died in a car crash in September 1912. [74] But with the advancement and efficiency of colonial transportation networks, it was only a matter of time before the disease began to spread into the interior. The economy suffered from the decline in the slave trade, although considerable smuggling of slaves to the Americas continued for years afterward. This scheme proved unpopular and confusing to many involved parties and was phased out. Colonial official A. J. Harding commented in 1913: Sir F. Lugard's proposal contemplates a state which it is impossible to classify. [40] By 1893, most of the other political entities in Yorubaland recognised the practical necessity of signing another treaty with the British, this one explicitly joining them with the protectorate of Lagos. In addition, two other protectorates were declared, one over the Oil Rivers and the other over the hinterland of Lagos, to establish a claim that these areas were also British spheres of interest.. One of the most influential monarchies in the history of England began in 1066 C.E. They caused major transformations in traditional society as they eroded the religious institutions such as human sacrifice, infanticide and secret societies, which had formerly played a role in political authority and community life.[26]. Read suggested they be merged, and more use made of Nigeria's natural resources. The early Nigerian nationalist did not seek independence. The council was promoted as a device for allowing the expression of opinions that could instruct the Governor-General. In 1850, the British created a "Court of Equity" at Bonny, overseen by Beecroft, which would deal with trade disputes. The Niger Delta and Calabar, which once had been known for the export of slaves, became notable for the export of palm oil. There were three main factors that contributed to the European colonization Africa which were, political, social, and economic. Spain was driven by three main motivations. Afeadie, "The Hidden Hand of Overrule" (1996), p. 1719. Instead, the companies had to be content with a monopoly of the export trade in these products. Whereas Lugard had applied lessons learned in the north to the administration of the south, Clifford was prepared to extend to the north practices that had been successful in the south. These schools would teach "the basic principles that would and should regulate character and conduct". Slaves formerly had been traded for European goods, especially guns and gunpowder, but now the British encouraged trade in palm oil in the Niger delta states, ostensibly to replace the trade in slaves. Lugard, replacing Egerton as Governor, aborted the project in May 1913. They were helped by two major factors; the discovery of quinine as a preventive drug against malaria and the armory the British possess which was superior compared to those of the Nigerians. Elections were held for a new and greatly enlarged House of Representatives in December 1959; 174 of the 312 seats were allocated to the Northern Region on the basis of its larger population. Africans also were represented on the Lagos Legislative Council, a largely appointed assembly. Because of the hazards of climate and tropical diseases for Europeans and the absence of any centralized authorities on the mainland responsive to their interests, European merchants moored their ships outside harbours or in the delta, and used the ships as trading stations and warehouses. The essential basis of this system was a money economyspecifically the British pound sterlingwhich could be demanded through taxation, paid to cooperative natives, and levied as a fine. [82], Oil exploration began in 1906 under John Simon Bergheim's Nigeria Bitumen Corporation, to which the Colonial Office granted exclusive rights. We also understand that the said National African Company (limited) have full power to mine, farm, and build in any portion of our territory. The cleavage between the Yoruba and the Igbo was accentuated by their competition for control of the political machinery. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. [67], This system, in which the structure of authority focused on the emir to whom obedience was a mark of religious devotion, did not welcome change. European interpretations of Christian orthodoxy in some cases refused to allow the incorporation of local customs and practices, although the various mission denominations interpreted Christianity in different ways. Most of these came from military backgrounds. with the Norman Conquest led by William, the Duke of Normandy. At the turn of the century, top wages were four bags of salt (company retail price, 3s 9d) for a month of work. They were the most politically conscious segment of the population and created the vanguard of the nationalist movement. The Treasury used a planned budget for payment of staff and development of public works projects, and therefore could not be spent at the discretion of the local traditional ruler. In 1851 deposed king Akintoye of Lagos sought British help in restoring him to the throne. The boundaries of the two protectorates and the territories of the Royal Niger Company were difficult to define, but the tension was eased in 1894 when both entities were merged into the Niger Coast Protectorate. Economic links among the regions increased, but indirect rule tended to discourage political interchange. One of the most effective tactics, the British used to take over most of India. On a subsequent expedition to the Sokoto Caliphate, Scottish explorer Hugh Clapperton learned about the mouth of the Niger River, and where it reached the sea, but after suffering malaria, depression and dysentery, he died before confirming it. A spokeswoman for Austria's Weltmuseum Wien acknowledges 13 of its 173 Benin Bronzes "have been linked definitively to the British invasion" though eight were acquired in the 16th century . In the north Frederick Lugard, the first high commissioner of Northern Nigeria, was instrumental in subjugating the Fulani emirs. The British targeted Nigeria because of its resources. It is not a personal union of separate colonies under the same Governor like the Windwards, it is not a Confederation of States. His political platform called for economic and educational development, Africanization of the civil service, and self-government for Lagos. These courts contained majorities British members and represented a new level of presumptive British sovereignty in the Bight of Biafra. (Specifically it would enable direct subsidy of the less profitable Northern jurisdiction.) Another court was established in 1856 at Calabar, based on an agreement with local Efik traders which prohibited them from interfering with British merchants. Amalgamation of Nigeria was envisioned from early on in its governance, as is made clear by the report of the Niger Committee in 1898. In 1805, he set out on a second expedition, sponsored by the British Government, to follow the Niger to the sea. British colonialism led to the spread of the English language in Africa, and many former British colonies still maintain English as an official language. Read published a Memorandum on British possessions in West Africa, which remarked upon the "inconvenient and unscientific boundaries" between Lagos Colony, the Niger Coast Protectorate and the Royal Niger Company. Following military conquest, the British imposed an economic system designed to profit from African labor. factors that led to the british conquest of nigeriaannalise mahanes height. An example was that at Onitsha, where they could bargain directly with local suppliers and purchase products likely to turn a profit. The modern history of Nigeria - as a political state encompassing 250 to 400 ethnic groups of widely varied cultures and modes of political organization - dates from the completion of the. tamko building products ownership; 30 Junio, 2022; factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria . Mordi, Emmanuel Nwafor. Newspapers, some of which were published before World War I, provided coverage of nationalist views. The council was headed by a Governor. It represented a substantial element of reformism in the North. Its residents were employed in official capacities and were active in business. Awolowo had little difficulty in appealing to broad segments of the Yoruba population, but he worked to avoid the Action Group from being stigmatized as a "tribal" group. It was British colonialism which was the ultimate cause of the war . The British led a series of military campaigns to enlarge its sphere of influence and expand its commercial opportunities. In 1916, Sir Edward Carson led the majority of the Conservative and Unionist Party to vote against Party Leader Bonar Law on the issue, forcing it to withdraw from the Asquith coalition and for the government to begin to break apart. In-text citation: A third of the people associated with an 1842 riverine expedition died. Afeadie, Philip Atsu. [8], Through a progressive sequence of regimes, the British imposed Crown Colony government on much of the area of West Africa which came to be known as Nigeria, a form of rule which was both autocratic and bureaucratic. sutton united average attendance; granville woods most famous invention; alcoa utilities power outage; At the same time it is feasible by degrees to bring them gradually into approximation with our ideas of justice and humanity. Britain annexed Lagos in 1861 and established the Oil River Protectorate in 1884. A revelatory account of British imperialism's shameful impact on Africa's most populous state. At first, they lived in small family groups, but gradually these groups developed into a. Accordingly, as the volume of trade increased, merchants requested that the Government of the United Kingdom appoint a consul to cover the region. Some were deposed, some were defeated in battle, and others collaborated. [9] Administration and military control of the territory was conducted primarily by white Britons, both in London and in Nigeria. [61] John Anderson diplomatically suggested: If it is the necessity for formally submitting the drafts that hurts Sir F. Lugard, I should be quite prepared to omit that provision provided that the period of publication of the draft prior to enactment is extended from one month to two. . France sold Louisiana to the United States in 1803, the same year that it gave up on trying to regain Saint-Domingue from the Haitian Revolution. The Deputy Governor served as political administrator for company territory and appointed three officials in Nigeria to carry out the work of administration. Trained as an army officer, he had served in India, Egypt and East Africa, where he expelled Arab slave traders from Nyasaland and established British presence in Uganda. ", Helen Chapin Metz, ed. David Richardson, "Background to annexation: Anglo-African credit relations in the Bight of Biafra, 17001891"; in Ptr-Grenouilleau. The pulpits of the independent congregations became avenues for the free expression of critics of colonial rule. Other European powers acknowledged Britain's dominance over the area in the 1885 Berlin Conference. All the territories were now under British control, and the search for an identity began, first as Northern and Southern Nigeria and then with eventual amalgamation. By the 1870s the Niger trade was becoming profitable, and a few French companies took notice. If adopted, his proposals can hardly be a permanent solution and I gather that Sir F. Lugard only regards them as temporaryat any rate in part. Dike, K. O. The supply of precious metals was finite, and monarchs hoped to find large deposits of gold and silver in the Americas. The Reconquista, or reconquest, refers to the 800 years of violence and expulsion of Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula after the failed Crusades. Its effects are still widely felt up till today. by | Jun 15, 2022 | north node conjunct neptune synastry | greek mythology son falls in love with mother | Jun 15, 2022 | north node conjunct neptune synastry | greek mythology son falls in love with mother To reduce costs, Lagos was administered first from Freetown in Sierra Leone, along with Gold Coast forts such as Elmina, and later from Accra (in present-day Ghana); only in 1886 did Lagos become a separate colony. The war was between the Republic of Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist nation that had declared independence from Nigeria. factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria. The NPC continued to represent the interests of the traditional order in the pre-independence deliberations.