In-text citation: A.J. Some of them also manned Company stations and served as District Agents.". In the Northern Cameroons, however, the largely Muslim electorate chose to merge with Nigeria's Northern Region. He was convinced that the Muslim religion had fallen into utter degeneration as a result of moral depravity of the Hausa Emirs. The history of external colonisation of Africa can be divided into two stages: Classical antiquity and European colonialism. [12] Trade was also conducted through a mechanism of barter and credit. [8] Azikiwe was installed as Governor-General of the federation and Balewa continued to serve as head of a democratically elected parliamentary, but now completely sovereign, government. It backed Yoruba irredentism in the Fulani-ruled emirate of Ilorin in the Northern Region, and separatist movements among non-Igbo in the Eastern Region. The pulpits of the independent congregations became avenues for the free expression of critics of colonial rule. In 1912, Lugard returned to Nigeria from his six-year term as Governor of Hong Kong, to oversee the merger of the northern and southern protectorates. Developed from Mayan civilization B. acquired empires by means of military conquest C. Independently developed iron technology D. Depended entirely on oral record keeping . The racial discriminatory tendencies of the Europeans to Nigerians. [52], The territory of the Royal Niger Company became the Northern Nigeria Protectorate, and the Company itself became a private corporation which continued to do business in Nigeria. Great Britain was the leaders at this time in colonizing the land filled with rich natural recourses. Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands). A Hurst Publication. 0 Wishlist. The most striking departure was in the Northern Region, where special provisions brought the regional constitution into consonance with Islamic law and custom. However, the British East India Company was able to lay the foundation of an empire in the Indian sub-continent because, from a British perspective, of a fortuitous series of circumstances. The emirs retained their caliphate titles but were responsible to British district officers, who had final authority. Afeadie, "The Hidden Hand of Overrule" (1996), p. 1213. Thus Spain and Portugal set up colonies in Central and South America after it was discovered by Columbus. In the Eastern Region, appointed officials who were given "warrants" and hence called warrant chiefs, were strongly resisted by the people because they lacked traditional claims. The colonial economic policies in Nigeria, for instance, discouraged indigenous industrialization, but promoted export crop and mineral production to feed the British factories. The choice of political elite at the time of independence can also explain these differences. Missionary forces demanded prohibition of liquor, which proved highly unpopular. In general, the regional constitutions followed the federal model, both structurally and functionally. Initially, most palm oil (and later kernels) came from Igboland, where palm trees formed a canopy over the densely inhabited areas of the Ngwa, Nri Kingdom, Awka and other Igbo peoples. 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. In the 1920s, Nigerians began to form a variety of associations, such as professional and business associations, like the Nigerian Union of Teachers; the Nigerian Law Association, which brought together lawyers, many of whom had been educated in Britain; and the Nigerian Produce Traders' Association, led by Obafemi Awolowo. British colonialism destroyed the Ndebele state at the end of the nineteenth century. 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. It was British colonialism which was the ultimate cause of the war . During the war, the colonial government earmarked a large portion of the Nigerian budget as a contribution to imperial defence. The mud-walled city of Kano was captured in February, and, after a vigorous skirmish at Kotorkwashi, the sultans capital, Sokoto, fell the next month. Islam reached Nigeria through the Bornu Empire . 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. With this victory, the British went on to conquer the rest of Yorubaland, which had also been weakened by sixteen years of civil war. These policies met with ongoing resistance. Antrobus, Fiddes and Strachey in the Colonial Office promoted amalgamation, along with Lugard. Vice consuls were assigned to ports that already had concluded treaties of cooperation with the Foreign Office. Mordi, Emmanuel Nwafor. The emirs gave support to limited modernization largely from fears of the unsettling presence of southerners in the north, and by observing the improvements in living conditions in the South. [57], From 1895 to 1900, a railway was constructed running from Lagos to Ibadan; it opened in March 1901. Lugard, replacing Egerton as Governor, aborted the project in May 1913. The 1922 constitution provided Nigerians with the chance to elect a handful of representatives to the Legislative Council. Nigerian students abroad, particularly at British schools, joined those from other colonies in pan-African groups such as the West African Students Union, founded in London in 1925. [19] Although the Ijebu had some weapons they were wiped out by British Maxims, the earliest machine gun. The French had abolished slavery following the French Revolution, although it briefly re-established it in its Caribbean colonies under Napoleon. Until he stepped down as Governor-General in 1918, Lugard primarily was concerned with consolidating British sovereignty and with assuring local administration through traditional rulers. Ethnic and kinship organisations that often took the form of a tribal union also emerged in the 1920s. Therefore, other factors exist to explain the institutional design. The principal commodities of legitimate trade were palm oil and palm kernels, which were used in Europe to make soap and as lubricants for machinery before petroleum products were developed for that purpose. These courts contained majorities British members and represented a new level of presumptive British sovereignty in the Bight of Biafra. The British targeted Nigeria because of its resources. 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. [45], A campaign against the Sokoto Caliphate began in 1900 with the creation of the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria, under the direction of Governor Lugard. [] They needed special personnel: such officials who knew the local conditions and who could communicate between the Company and the indigenous people. 2. The political parties jockeyed for positions of power in anticipation of the independence of Nigeria. factors that led to the british conquest of nigeria. The country was divided politically, lacking European rivals, and no sense of national unity. [82], Oil exploration began in 1906 under John Simon Bergheim's Nigeria Bitumen Corporation, to which the Colonial Office granted exclusive rights. Under Lugard from 1900 to 1906, the Protectorate consolidated political control over the area through military conquest and initiated the use of British currency in substitute for barter. [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. Independence was achieved on 1 October 1960. Agents also collected intelligence for the colonial officials; they gathered information on public opinion and the military resources of the local polities; they also spied on rival colonial forces in foreign territories. The Governor was, in effect, the coordinator for virtually autonomous entities that had overlapping economic interests but little in common politically or socially. This article examines the deployment of West African soldiers for military service in West Africa, including the manner of mobilization and recruitment. [77] Its revenue quickly increased, from 4,424 in 1901 to 274,989 in 1910. As before, Aro merchants dominated trade in the hinterland, including palm products to the coast and the sale of slaves within Igboland. Out of reverence for traditional kingship, for instance, the Oba of Benin, whose office was closely identified with Edo religion, was accepted as the sponsor of a Yoruba political movement. Modern nationalists in the south, whose thinking was shaped by European ideas, opposed indirect rule, as they believed that it had strengthened what they considered an anachronistic ruling class and shut out the emerging Westernised elite. How did use of enslaved African people for labour develop? There were three main factors that contributed to the European colonization Africa which were, political, social, and economic. The most dramatic event having a long-term effect on Nigeria's economic development was the discovery and exploitation of petroleum deposits. Some were deposed, some were defeated in battle, and others collaborated. Regional administrations also varied widely in the quality of local personnel and in the scope of the operations they were willing to undertake. Combining the three jurisdictions would reduce administrative expenses and facilitate deployment of resources and money between the areas. However, development of the Nigerian oilfields slowed when Bergheim died in a car crash in September 1912. In consideration of the foregoing, the said National African Company (Limited) bind themselves not to interfere with any of the native laws or customs of the country, consistently with the maintenance of order and good government [and] agree to pay native owners of land a reasonable amount for any portion they may require. Indeed it was these developments in the history of Kano that transformed the political outlook of the people. [49], Concrete plans for transition to Crown ruledirect control by the British Governmentapparently began in 1897. Its program reflected greater planning and was more ideologically oriented than that of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons. Description. It was supported not only by the income from huge agricultural surpluses but also by a new range of direct and indirect taxes imposed during the 1950s. Lugard's campaign systematically subdued local resistance, using armed force when diplomatic measures failed. Du Bois. 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. Uneasy with the amount of latitude allowed traditional rulers under indirect rule, Clifford opposed further extension of the judicial authority held by the northern emirs. Dike, K. O. The British penetration of Nigeria met with various forms of resistance throughout the country. Deadly battles broke out sporadically through 1906. 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. British expansion was conducted primarily by commercialists and resulted in more solid economic potential than the French endeavor (Crowder, 1990). One of the most effective tactics, the British used to take over most of India. In one year, Lugard recruited 2600 troops, evenly split between Hausa and Yoruba. 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. Although his own ambitions were limited to the Northern Region, Bello backed the NPC's successful efforts to mobilize the north's large voting strength so as to win control of the national government. Under Goldie's direction, the Royal Niger Company was instrumental in depriving France and Germany of access to the region. The protectorate was organised to control and develop trade coming down the Niger. By demonstrating the heavy reliance on West African soldiers for the 'European' conduct of the Great War campaign in the region, it shows how West Africans helped determine the outcome of war in the region. Among the other major parties, the NCNC took fifty-six seats, winning a majority in both the Eastern and the Western regions, while the Action Group captured only twenty-seven seats. [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. Additionally. However, in October 1929 in Oloko a census related to taxation was conducted, and the women in the area suspected that this was a prelude to the extension of direct taxation, which had been imposed on the men the previous year. The experiment began in 1890 and was repealed in 1939,[71]. This rate rose to 20,000 per year in the last quarter of the century. He aroused political awareness through his newspaper, the Lagos Daily News. By 1938 the NYM was agitating for dominion status within the British Commonwealth of Nations so that Nigeria would have the same status as Canada and Australia. The Crusades and the Reconquista cemented religious intolerance, and the Christians looked to colonization partly as a means of continuing religious conquests. "The agents performed similar but more expansive roles as their Company counterparts. Northern leaders committed to modernization were also firmly connected to the traditional power structure. The NCNC backed creation of a midwest state and proposed federal control of education and health services. Hon. Palm oil was used locally for cooking, the kernels were a source for food, trees were tapped for palm wine, and the fronds were used for building material. Not wishing to appear out of control or weak, they approved the expedition (two days after it began) on 19 January 1903.,[47] In general, the Colonial Office allowed Lugard's expeditions to continue because they were framed as retaliatory and, as Olivier commented in 1906, "If the millions of people [in Nigeria] who do not want us there once get the notion that our people can be killed with impunity they will not be slow to attempt it."[48]. In contrast, the British pursued comparatively limited settlement and institutional transformation in the more populous and more politically and economically developed preco-lonial areas. The British encouraged this secession, worsening the war even further. All were knighted. Although lacking Azikiwe's compelling personality, Awolowo was a formidable debater as well as a vigorous and tenacious political campaigner.