In the Northern Region, the colonial government took careful account of Islam and avoided any appearance of a challenge to traditional values that might incite resistance to British rule. His government guided the country for the next three years, operating with almost complete autonomy in internal affairs. He was contemptuous of the educated and Westernised African elite found more in the South, and he recommended transferring the capital from Lagos, the cosmopolitan city where the influence of these people was most pronounced, to Kaduna in the north. God, Gold, and Glory. Another court was established in 1856 at Calabar, based on an agreement with local Efik traders which prohibited them from interfering with British merchants. This rate rose to 20,000 per year in the last quarter of the century. They were instrumental in the development of government diplomacy with the traditional rulers; they spread government propaganda among the indigenous people; and they assisted colonial officials in parleying with native forces at war with government troops. It is not a federal state with federal Executive, Legislature and finances, like the Leewards. Most Europeans tended to overlook their own differences and were surprised and shocked that Nigerians wanted to develop new denominations independent of European control. They received attention from major parties before elections, at which time either a dominant party from another region or the opposition party in their region sought their alliance. The traders suffered from the risks of their position and believed they were at the mercy of the coastal rulers, whom they considered unpredictable. [19] Although the Ijebu had some weapons they were wiped out by British Maxims, the earliest machine gun. The most dramatic event having a long-term effect on Nigeria's economic development was the discovery and exploitation of petroleum deposits. Both claimed in 1908; territories formed in 1962 (British Antarctic Territory) and 1985 (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands). Lugard's campaign systematically subdued local resistance, using armed force when diplomatic measures failed. It is not a personal union of separate colonies under the same Governor like the Windwards, it is not a Confederation of States. Ethnic cleavages intensified in the 1950s. Some of the treaties contained prohibitions on diplomacy conducted without British permission, or other promises to abide by British rule. The first missions were opened by the Church of England's Church Missionary Society (CMS). By the eighteenth century, evidence of Christianity had disappeared. The CMS initially promoted Africans to responsible positions in the mission field; for instance, they appointed Samuel Ajayi Crowther as the first Anglican Bishop of the Niger. Similar status was acquired by the Northern Region two years later. It was replaced by a new coalition government led by David Lloyd George featuring Conservatives and Lloyd George's supporters in the Liberal Party, while Asquith and the remainder of the Liberals entered opposition.[69]. The British penetration of Nigeria met with various forms of resistance throughout the country. 3. [65], Half of all taxes went to the colonial government and half went to the Native Treasury. Early nationalists tended to ignore Nigeria as the focus of patriotism. It is not a unitary state with local government areas but with one Central Executive and one Legislature. Lagos was annexed as a Crown Colony in 1861 via the Lagos Treaty of Cession.[30]. ", Helen Chapin Metz, ed. [11], By the 1880s, the National African Company became the dominant commercial power, increasing from 19 to 39 stations between 1882 and 1893. The Governor-General, in turn, was responsible for appointing the prime minister and for choosing a candidate from among contending leaders when there was no parliamentary majority. Spain was driven by three main motivations. There were some specific outcomes and impacts for Africans as a result of WWI. 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. [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. The British Conquest of Nigeria From about the mid nineteenth century, the British began to alter the nature of their relationship between themselves and Nigerians. But by providing for comparable regional governments exercising broad legislative powers, which could not be overridden by the newly established 185-seat federal House of Representatives, the Macpherson Constitution also gave a significant boost to regionalism. by How Africa 6 years ago. The British turned to Persia for oil.[83]. 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. It made anti-slavery treaties with West African powers, which it enforced militarily with the blockade of Africa. In contrast, the British pursued comparatively limited settlement and institutional transformation in the more populous and more politically and economically developed preco-lonial areas. Their common denominators tended to be based on newly assertive ethnic consciousness, particularly that of the Yoruba and Igbo. [29] His servant, Richard Lander, and Lander's brother John were the ones to demonstrate that the Niger flowed into the sea. The said National African Company (Limited) bind themselves to protect the said King and Chiefs from the attacks of any neighbouring tribes (Ibid.). British business interests wanted to use this to create a monopoly over the industry, but Prime Minister H. H. Asquith's Liberal government and subsequent war coalition favored allowing international free trade. In the Northern Cameroons, however, the largely Muslim electorate chose to merge with Nigeria's Northern Region. The goal of activists initially was not self-determination, but increased participation on a regional level in the governmental process. In the north, for instance, legislation took the form of a decree cosigned by the Governor and the emir, while in the south, the Governor sought the approval of the Legislative Council. David Ellis, "African and European relations in the last century of the transatlantic slave trade"; in Ptr-Grenouilleau. Colonialism is both a practice and a word that means so much to Nigeria. 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. The delegation was led by Balewa of the NPC and included party leaders Awolowo of the Action Group, Azikiwe of the NCNC, and Bello of the NPC; they were also the premiers of the Western, Eastern and Northern regions, respectively. Exploration was intensified in 1946, but the first commercial discovery did not occur until 1956, at Olobiri in the Niger Delta. 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. [32] This included a river fleet which it used for retaliatory attacks on uncooperative villages. Under Goldie's direction, the Royal Niger Company was instrumental in depriving France and Germany of access to the region. The decrease in trade indirectly led to the collapse of states like the Edo Empire. 4. Though the Europeans possess many considerable settlements both upon the coast of Africa and in the East Indies, they have not yet established in either of those countries such numerous and thriving colonies as those in the islands and continent of America. In the South, only English had official status. [50] In the same year, the British created the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF or WAFF), under the leadership of Colonel Frederick Lugard. From 1815 to 1840, palm oil exports increased by a factor of 25, from 800 to 20,000 tons per year. In 1900, the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate passed from company hands to the Crown. [73] The colonial government would enact new legislation in reaction to the pandemic including, travel passes for individuals in the colony, increased usage of sanitary practices, and door to door checks on indigenous Nigerian households. The similarity between the federal and regional constitutions was deceptive, however, and the conduct of public affairs reflected wide differences among the regions. [36], The company, as was common among European businesses in Africa, paid its native workers in barter. "The agents performed similar but more expansive roles as their Company counterparts. They invited missionaries to follow them and, in the 1840s, made themselves available as agents who allowed missionaries and British traders to gain access to such places as Lagos, Abeokuta, Calabar, Lokoja, Onitsha, Brass, and Bonny. Mordi, Emmanuel Nwafor. The most important innovations in the new charter reinforced the dual course of constitutional evolution, allowing for both regional autonomy and federal union. British Colonizing in Nigeria. He aroused political awareness through his newspaper, the Lagos Daily News. 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]. In 1907, the corporation received a loan of 25,000, repayable upon discovery of oil. Great Britain was the leaders at this time in colonizing the land filled with rich natural recourses. speedo sectionals 2022 texas info@hebasanmakine.com on it burgers ferntree gully closed +90 224 371 29 30 In time they captured Oba Ovonramwen and sent him into exile to Calabar, a town east of Benin. In-text citation: The conquest and colonization of the Nigerian territory stirring up nationalist sentiments among the few educated elements mostly foreign educated Africans and liberated slaves, and later African students in Britain. 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 conquest was personal to William. Joining the Royal Niger Company in 1894, Lugard was sent to Borgu to counter inroads made by the French, and in 1897 he was made responsible for raising the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF) from local levies to serve under British officers. The slave trade was heaviest in the period 17001850, with an average of 76,000 people taken from Africa each year between 1783 and 1792. [19][41], In 18961897 the forces of the Niger Coast Protectorate fought with the remnants of the Edo Empire. Most of the fighting was done by Hausa soldiers, recruited to fight against other groups. He was convinced that the Muslim religion had fallen into utter degeneration as a result of moral depravity of the Hausa Emirs. These include the fact that military conscription (draft) of numerous African colonial subjects into European armies generated great amounts of anger. In an economy with many qualified applicants for every post, great resentment was generated by any favouritism that authorities showed to members of their own ethnic group. The militias and RWAFF battalions were reorganized into the RWAFF Nigeria Regiment.[62]. 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. Segments of the Yoruba community had their own animosities and new rivalries arose. . The election of the House of Representatives after the adoption of the 1954 constitution gave the NPC a total of seventy-nine seats, all from the Northern Region. ", Tamuno, T. N. (1970). Egypt) and titles (e.g. The early Nigerian nationalist did not seek independence. 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. [19], The company considered itself the sole legitimate government of the area, with executive, legislative and judicial powers all subordinate to the rule of a council created by the company board of directors in London. The economy suffered from the decline in the slave trade, although considerable smuggling of slaves to the Americas continued for years afterward. Lord Lugard recorded a huge success mainly because he used the highly developed traditional system of administration that was already in existence in the Northern Nigeria. 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. These schools would teach "the basic principles that would and should regulate character and conduct". This became the Lagos Constabulary, and subsequently the Nigerian Police Force. Three years later internal divisions arose that was dominated by major ethnic loyalties. The NPC federal parliamentary leader, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, was appointed Prime Minister of Nigeria. The Niger Delta and Calabar, which once had been known for the export of slaves, became notable for the export of palm oil. [64], Each region also had a Native Administration, staffed by locals, and possessing a Native Treasury. All were knighted. His political platform called for economic and educational development, Africanization of the civil service, and self-government for Lagos. The Native Administration was headed by the traditional rulersmostly emirs in the north and often obas in the southand their District Heads, who oversaw a larger number of Village Heads. The racial discriminatory tendencies of the Europeans to Nigerians. Davies and Nnamdi Azikiwe. Facebook Instagram Email. 2. The company's major imports to the area included gin and low-quality firearms. In 1905, the colonial government divided Bengal into Hindu and Muslim sections; this division was revoked after strong protests. The history of external colonisation of Africa can be divided into two stages: Classical antiquity and European colonialism. David Richardson, "Background to annexation: Anglo-African credit relations in the Bight of Biafra, 17001891"; in Ptr-Grenouilleau. Nigeria (Sokoto Caliphate inclusive) fell prey to the attacks. Direct taxation on men was introduced in 1928 without major incidents. Some of them began to migrate back from Sierra Leone in search of home and trade. Lugard's governmental model for Nigeria was unique and there was apparently not much planning for its future development. From 1790 to 1807, predominantly British slave traders purchased 1,0002,000 slaves each year in Lagos alone. [70], Lugard's immediate successor (19191925), Sir Hugh Clifford, was an aristocratic professional administrator with liberal instincts who had won recognition for his enlightened governorship of the Gold Coast in 19121919. At the same time, British scientists were interested in exploring the course and related settlements along the Niger River. The supply of precious metals was finite, and monarchs hoped to find large deposits of gold and silver in the Americas. These organisations were primarily urban phenomena that arose after numerous rural migrants moved to the cities. British expansion was conducted primarily by commercialists and resulted in more solid economic potential than the French endeavor (Crowder, 1990). [] They needed special personnel: such officials who knew the local conditions and who could communicate between the Company and the indigenous people. British soap and cosmetics manufacturers tried to obtain land concessions for growing oil palms, but these were refused. The appointment of Joseph Chamberlain as colonial secretary in 1895 especially marked a shift towards new territorial ambitions of the British Empire. This led to protests known as Women's War. The company negotiated treaties with Sokoto, Gwandu and Nupe that were interpreted as guaranteeing exclusive access to trade in return for the payment of annual tribute. In the meantime, public sector spending increased even more dramatically than export earnings. 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). [59], Following the order recommended by the Niger Committee, the Colonial Office merged Lagos Colony and the Southern Nigeria Protectorate on 1 May 1906, forming a larger protectorate (still called the Southern Nigeria Protectorate) which spanned the coastline between Dahomey and Cameroon. Its activist membership was drawn from local government and emirate officials who had access to means of communication and to repressive traditional authority that could keep the opposition in line. During World War II, Awolowo reorganized it as a predominantly Yoruba political party, the Action Group. [12] Trade was also conducted through a mechanism of barter and credit. An extensive immigrant population of southerners, especially Igbo, already were living in the north; they dominated clerical positions and were active in many trades. 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. The NCNC backed creation of a midwest state and proposed federal control of education and health services. Inconsistencies in British policy reinforced existing cleavages based on regional animosities, as the British tried both to preserve the indigenous cultures of each area and to introduce modern technology, and Western political and social concepts. They wanted self-government, charging that only colonial rule prevented the unshackling of progressive forces in Nigeria and other states. The Reconquista, or reconquest, refers to the 800 years of violence and expulsion of Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula after the failed Crusades. Aside from the possibility of treasure, the European governments aimed to find a passage through the Americas to Asia. [31], In 1891, the consulate established the Niger Coast Protectorate Force or "Oil Rivers Irregulars".[32]. penn wood high school alumni; picture of shawn westover; microblading nickel allergy The emirs retained their caliphate titles but were responsible to British district officers, who had final authority. http://www.kibin.com/essay-examples/the-factors-that-led-to-the-colonization-of-africa-by-the-europeans-PLa41Sz5 Be sure to capitalize proper nouns (e.g. Although the capital was not moved, Lugard's bias in favour of the Muslim north was clear at the time. Balewa was called on to head an NPC-NCNC coalition government, and Awolowo became the official leader of the opposition. Although realistic in its assessment of the situation in Nigeria, the Richards Constitution undoubtedly intensified regionalism as an alternative to political unification. Its architecture was in both Victorian and Brazilian style, as many of the black elite were English-speakers from Sierra Leone and freedmen repatriated from the Empire of Brazil and Spanish Cuba. In 1950 Aminu Kano, who had been instrumental in founding the NPC, broke away to form the Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU), in protest against the NPC's limited objectives and what he regarded as a vain hope that traditional rulers would accept modernization. Portuguese Roman Catholic priests who accompanied traders and officials to the West African coast introduced Christianity to the Edo Empire in the fifteenth century. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Final Conquest Verse By Verse Study of The Book Revelation DVD Robert Jeffress at the best online prices at eBay! The policy of indirect rule used in Northern Nigeria became a model for British colonies elsewhere in Africa. At the same time, George Dashwood Goldie, a British businessman, bought out all French rivals and created the Royal Niger Company (chartered 1886) in order to control trade on the Niger and administer the immense territories of the Sokoto caliphate and Borno. This article examines the deployment of West African soldiers for military service in West Africa, including the manner of mobilization and recruitment. As its head, the master trader taxed other traders who were members of his "house"; he maintained a war vessel, a large dugout canoe that could hold several tons of cargo and dozens of crew, for the defense of the harbor. To establish settled government in the newly won districts; To improve and extend native footpaths throughout the country; To construct properly graded roads in the more populated districts; To clear the numerous rivers in the country and make them suitable for launch and canoe traffic; and. When direct Portuguese contacts in the region were withdrawn, however, the influence of the Catholic missionaries waned. 1833 - The abolition of slavery throughout the British Empire. The Northern People's Congress (NPC) was organised in the late 1940s by a small group of Western-educated Northern Nigerians. Economic competition among these "houses" was so fierce that trade often erupted into an armed battle between the crews of the large canoes. [19] This scenario provided an opportunity for naval expeditions and reconnaissance throughout the region. The NPC was called on to form a government, but the NCNC received six of the ten ministerial posts. Combining the three jurisdictions would reduce administrative expenses and facilitate deployment of resources and money between the areas. The British responded to such evidence of rivalry by defending their right to free navigation on the river at the Berlin West Africa Conference of 188485. Macbeth) in the essay title portion of your citation. We bind ourselves not to have any intercourse with any strangers or foreigners except through the said national African Company (Limited), and we give the said National African Company (Limited) full power to exclude all other strangers and foreigners from their territory at their discretion. "John Beecroft, 17901854: Her Brittanic Majesty's Consul to the Bights of Benin and Biafra 18491854". England would forever be changed politically, economically, and socially as a result.