On 1 January 1914, the British government amalgamated the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria and the Protectorate of Southern Nigeria, creating the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. Sir Frederick Lugard became Governor General of the unified territory, and Lagos functioned as the administrative centre of the new colonial state.
The amalgamation brought both territories under one central authority. Yet the societies within the new colony differed in political organisation, social structure, and educational development. In Northern Nigeria, colonial rule operated largely through indirect rule, relying on emirs and established authority systems. In the South, missionary education, commercial activity, and an emerging professional class shaped a different political atmosphere.
The 1914 union created a single administrative framework, but regional distinctions remained embedded in governance practices and social development.
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Administration After 1914, Central Authority and Regional Variation
Following amalgamation, Nigeria functioned as a unitary colonial state under British authority. Executive power rested with the Governor General and colonial officials in Lagos. Despite this centralised authority, administration across the territory reflected significant regional variation.
Indirect rule remained central in the North, where traditional rulers were integrated into colonial governance. In many parts of the South, particularly in coastal and urban centres, Western education expanded and local politics developed in response to new social forces.
The First World War influenced the early years of unified administration, affecting finances and administrative capacity. Although Nigeria existed as one colony in law, governance continued to reflect inherited distinctions between regions.
1939, The Division of the Southern Provinces
In 1939, Governor Bernard Bourdillon reorganised the Southern Provinces into Eastern and Western Provinces. This administrative change formalised territorial distinctions within the South and provided clearer regional structures for governance.
The reorganisation strengthened the framework through which representation and political activity would later be organised. As constitutional reforms expanded participation in government, these territorial divisions increasingly shaped political identity and competition.
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1946, The Richards Constitution and Regional Framework
The Richards Constitution of 1946 introduced a new constitutional structure that divided Nigeria into three regions, Northern, Western, and Eastern. Each region was provided with a regional House, while an all Nigeria legislative framework remained in place.
This arrangement gave formal recognition to regional divisions within a single constitutional order. Political activity increasingly operated through regional institutions, and regional leadership became central to emerging nationalist politics.
1951, The Macpherson Constitutional Settlement
The Nigeria (Constitution) Order in Council of 1951, associated with the Macpherson constitutional settlement, expanded political participation and strengthened regional institutions. Regional assemblies gained broader responsibilities, and political mobilisation intensified within regional arenas.
By the early 1950s, constitutional development had placed regions at the centre of Nigeria’s political system. Leadership, party organisation, and political negotiation were increasingly structured around regional boundaries.
1954, The Lyttleton Constitution and Federal Structure
The Lyttleton Constitution of 1954 formally established Nigeria as a federation. The federal principle clarified the division of powers between the central government and the regions, granting substantial autonomy to Northern, Western, and Eastern Regions.
From this point, Nigeria’s political order operated under a federal constitutional framework. Regional governments exercised defined powers, and federal institutions coordinated national affairs. The constitutional design embedded regional autonomy within the national structure.
1963, Creation of the Mid West Region
In August 1963, the Mid West Region was created from the Western Region. The new region emerged following constitutional procedures and a referendum process. Its creation reflected efforts to address internal political tensions and minority concerns within the Western Region.
This development demonstrated that territorial restructuring had become part of Nigeria’s political process. Adjustments to regional boundaries were used as instruments to manage representation and balance power within the federation.
1967, The Creation of 12 States
On 27 May 1967, General Yakubu Gowon announced the creation of 12 states, replacing the four regional structure that existed at the time. The decision was enacted through the States Creation and Transitional Provisions Decree of 1967.
The new states divided the former regions into smaller administrative units, including the subdivision of the Northern Region into multiple states. This restructuring significantly altered Nigeria’s political map and marked a decisive shift from region based administration to state based governance.
The transformation occurred during a period of severe national tension and became a defining structural change in Nigeria’s political history.
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The Structural Legacy by 1967
Between 1914 and 1967, Nigeria’s political framework evolved through successive stages. The 1914 amalgamation created one colony under central authority. Constitutional reforms in 1946, 1951, and 1954 entrenched regional structures within a federal framework. In 1963, a new region was created to address political pressures. In 1967, the regional system itself was replaced with twelve states.
Across five decades, Nigeria’s political structure was repeatedly redesigned in response to administrative needs and political developments. The evolution from colony to federation, and from regions to states, shaped the institutional foundations of modern Nigeria.
Author’s Note
Nigeria’s political unity began as an administrative decision in 1914, but its stability depended on how power was structured. From regions to states, the country repeatedly adjusted its internal design to respond to tension and representation. The history of 1914 to 1967 shows that Nigeria’s map was never static, it evolved alongside the nation itself.
References
United Kingdom Statutory Instruments, The Nigeria (Constitution) Order in Council, 1951, SI 1951 No. 1172.
United Kingdom Statutory Instruments, The Nigeria (Constitution) Order in Council, 1954, SI 1954 No. 1146.
Academic study on federal government in Nigeria discussing the 1939 division of the Southern Provinces.
D. O. Ajayi, “British Colonial Policies and the Challenge of National Integration in Nigeria,” Southern Journal for Contemporary History.
Western Michigan University ScholarWorks, study on Lugard, World War I, and the amalgamation of Nigeria.
