Road to Amalgamation (5)

Lord Fredrick Lugard

Lugard became High Commissioner at the beginning of 1900 as the British abrogated the charter made by Goldie’s company in 1886 and made Northern Nigeria a protectorate. In November 1901 the Governor established the Central Native Council in Lagos to get their advice. The Village Native Council was responsible for settling local disputes. The Aborigines Rights Protection Society (ARPS) also became active in Lagos. Lugard established his headquarters at Jebba, and his forces used Maxim guns and artillery to conquer Bida, Kontagora, and Yola in 1901, Bauchi in 1902, and Kano, Burwuri, and Sokoto in 1903. After the battle on March 15, Sokoto’s Caliph Attahiru Ahmed fled, but he was killed in the decisive battle at Burmi on July 27. Lugard had conquered the Sokoto empire with 3,000 soldiers, and only 150 of them were Europeans.


In 1902 the Native Courts Proclamation established the legality of the emirates’ native courts in Bornu, and in 1904 Lugard simplified the tax system with a single tax. They developed a Native Treasury which became official in 1911. The Emir of Kano tried to maintain his absolute rule in his domain. Nigerian railway clerks went on strike in 1902 and 1904. In 1903 the British removed the independent Emir Aliyu and replaced him with his brother, Abbas, and the next year they reorganized the territories into eight districts with a headman in each. Nigeria squelched criticism of the government in 1903 with the Newspaper Ordinance and in 1909 with the Seditious Offenses Ordinance. Lagos and Southern Nigeria were united into the Protectorate of Southern Nigeria in May 1906. That year only two emirs in Northern Nigeria supported the Mahdist uprising at Satiru that was crushed. Northern Nigeria had only one British administrator per 100,000 Africans. Lugard left Africa to become governor of Hong Kong in 1907.


To be contd

Courtesy www.san.beck.org