Colonial Nigeria
Explore Nigeria’s colonial era (c. 1861–1960), from the annexation of Lagos and the Royal Niger Company to the 1914 amalgamation and the road to independence. This category examines British administration, missionary education, commerce and railways, taxation and labor, cultural change and urban life, and the rise of nationalist movements, including women’s protests, unions, and political parties. Discover biographies, key events, and documents that reveal resistance, collaboration, and everyday experiences across Nigeria’s regions.
Satiru Uprising of 1906: 2 Fierce Battles That Shook British Rule in Sokoto
The Satiru uprising of 1906 erupted less than three years after British forces had conquered Sokoto and brought the surviving institutions of the Sokoto...
Lagos Gaol Execution of 1885: The Powerful Story of a Colonial Prison Crisis
The Lagos Gaol Execution of 1885 was reported in extraordinary detail by The African Times on 1 October 1885. Under its “Lagos News” section,...
Dorugu and Abbega: 2 Remarkable African Travellers Who Helped Shape Heinrich Barth’s Record of West Africa
Dorugu and Abbega occupy an unusual place in the history of nineteenth-century African exploration. Both were young Africans who had experienced slavery before entering...
Abbega of Lokoja: The Remarkable 19th-Century Journey from Enslavement to Europe with Heinrich Barth
Abbega of Lokoja lived one of the most extraordinary African lives of the nineteenth century. Born among the Margi people in the region that...
West African Negroland: Lady Lugard’s Powerful 1904 Vision of Islam, Empire and West Africa
On 10 May 1904, West African Negroland became the subject of an important address before the Royal Colonial Institute in London. Flora Shaw, better...
King Ibanichuka of Okrika: 5 Defining Events Behind the 1896 British Expedition That Ended His Reign
King Ibanichuka of Okrika ruled during one of the most consequential periods in the nineteenth-century history of the Niger Delta. Installed as Ado VI...
Fall of Sokoto 1903: The Decisive Conquest That Ended Caliphal Sovereignty
The Fall of Sokoto 1903 marked one of the most consequential moments in the colonial conquest of Northern Nigeria. On 15 March 1903, a...
Benin Warri and Calabar Trade in 1678: A Powerful Window into Commerce, Currency and Slavery
Benin Warri and Calabar Trade in 1678 reveals a commercial landscape that was already deeply connected to international markets more than two centuries before...
Satiru Uprising of 1906: The Powerful Revolt That Exposed British Vulnerability in Sokoto
The Satiru Uprising of 1906 was one of the most serious challenges faced by the British administration during the first years of colonial rule...
Garrick Sokari Braide: The Powerful ‘Elijah II’ Revival That Shook Colonial Nigeria
Garrick Sokari Braide became one of the most remarkable African Christian figures of colonial Nigeria when a religious revival centred on his preaching, prayer...