Political History in Nigeria

Before Nigeria was a republic it consisted of several different independent ethnic groups of people. Today 250 to 400 ethic group make up present day Nigeria, which was a result from European Imperialism. The name “Nigeria” came from the Niger river.[1] Before the 1500s Nigeria was divided into states, which were identified by the modern ethnic groups that trace their history to the origins of these states. These early states included the Yoruba kingdoms, the Edo kingdom of Benin, the Hausa cities, and Nupe.[2]

The Songhai empire peaked in the 16^th century it stretched from the Senegal and Gambia rivers in the far west and incorporating part of Hausa land in the east. Songhai's empire controlled western Hausa land which included the subordination of Kebbi, whose kanta (king) controlled the territory along the Sokoto River.

Songhai empire collapsed abruptly in 1591 when an army from morocco conquered their capital, Gao and the commercial center of Timbuktu. Morocco was not able to control the whole empire. So, The Hausa states and the various provinces became independent. The destruction of Songhai left Borno uncontested. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries Borno dominated the political history of northern Nigeria.  It became the center of Islamic learning and trade.The military rivalries of the Hausa states and the political weakness of Borno put a severe strain on the economic resources of the region. During that time, they were expecting a drought and famine that caused many Fulani and Borno to move into Hausa land. Their arrival increased tensions because they had no loyalty to the political authorities.[3]

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Between 1804 and 1808 an Islamic holy war established the Sokoto Caliphate.  which expanded to become the largest empire in Africa since the fall of Songhai. It had a profound influence on much of Muslim Africa to the west and to the east.[4]

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Map of the secessionist state of the Republic of Biafra, Ibos (1967 – 1970) as in May 1967 Image [1]

Malnourished woman during Biafra civil war in the late 1960s Image [2]

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By the 19th century the British gained control of territories in Nigeria ruling indirectly through chiefs from the Northern and Southern regions of Nigeria.[5]Frederick Lugard, high commissioner of the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria since 1900 returned to Nigeria in 1912 to set in motion the merger of the northern and southern protectorates. The task of unification was achieved two years later. The colonial officers were instructed to interfere as little as possible while the administration of traditional rulers applied the principle of indirect rule. In 1963 Nigeria obtained their independence. Their constitution consisted of three regions situated by ethnic groups, Hausa and Fulani in the north, Yoruba in the south-west, and Ibo in the south-east.

 Consequently, Nigeria was composed of semi-autonomous Muslim feudal states in the desert north, and once-powerful Christian and animist kingdoms in the south and east. Conflict raised during the 1964-65 elections which led to the Biafra civil war between the Muslim and Christian groups of Nigeria. An estimate of 30,000 Ibos were killed in fighting with Hausas, and around 1million refugees fled to their Ibo homeland in the east. After the war many Ibos were excluded from political power.[6] 


[1]congress, U.S. Library of. Nigeria-History. n.d. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/3.htm (accessed March 4, 2016).

 [2]Congress, U.S. Library of. Nigeria Early States before 1500. n.d. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/5.htm (accessed March 4, 2016).

 [3]Congress, U.S. Library of. The Savanna States, 1500-1800. n.d. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/6.htm (accessed March 4, 2016).

 [4]Congress, U.S. Library of. The Nineteeth Century. n.d. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/8.htm (accessed March 4, 2016).

 [5]Congress, U.S. Library of. Frederick Lugard. n.d. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/17.htm (accessed March 4, 2016).

 [6]Biafara: Thirty Years On. 13 2000, January. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/596712.stm (accessed March 4, 2016). Congress, U.S. Library of. Frederick Lugard. n.d. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/17.htm (accessed March 4, 2016).

Image [1] Gaba, Eric - Own workBackground map: NGDC GSHHS and WDBII dataBiafra independent state borders reference maps: UN, Matthew White, Otvaga2004, Travel-Image (originally a CIA map ?), Biafraland and MSN Encarta, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://com. Wikipedia. 2008. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigerian_Civil_War#/media/File:Biafra_independent_state_map-en.svg (accessed March 4, 2016).

Image[2] By Unknown CDC employee (Dr. Lyle Conrad?) (Public Health Image Library (PHIL) (Image #6874)) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository; Starving-woman-africa-biafra-nigeria-conflict-famine.jpg. late 1960s. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AStarving-woman-africa-biafra-nigeria-conflict-famine.jpg (accessed March 4, 2016).