Nigerian Civil War
The Biafran War (1967–1970), including causes, battles, leaders, international involvement, and post-war reconstruction in Nigeria.
Road to the Nigerian Civil War
Nigeria did not slide into civil war in a single moment, it fractured through a chain of shocks that fed fear, revenge, and political...
January 1966, The Coup That Ended Nigeria’s First Republic
In the early hours of 15 January 1966, a group of junior officers in the Nigerian Army launched a coup attempt that abruptly brought...
Nzeogwu’s Broadcast and the Collapse of the First Republic
Major Patrick Chukwuma “Kaduna” Nzeogwu was a Nigerian Army officer whose place in history is defined by his role in Nigeria’s first military coup...
Why Nigeria’s January 1966 Coup Failed, And How Aguiyi Ironsi Took Power Within 24 Hours
On 15 January 1966, Nigeria entered one of the most decisive moments in its post independence history. A group of young army officers launched...
Decree 34 and the Fall of Ironsi
When Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi became Head of State in January 1966, Nigeria was responding to a crisis that had overwhelmed civilian government. The coup of...
15 January 1966, The Coup That Ended Nigeria’s First Republic and Changed the Nation Forever
Every year, 15 January returns as one of Nigeria’s most emotionally charged dates. It is observed nationally in connection with military remembrance and reflection,...
Nigeria’s 1966 Power Shift That Changed Everything, How January’s Coup Set Up July’s Counter Coup
Nigeria’s first months under military rule in 1966 were not a smooth transfer of power. They were a tense struggle to hold a fragile...
January Boys of 1966, The Nigerian Army Majors Who Toppled the First Republic and Lost Control of Power
On 15 January 1966, coordinated military action erupted across Nigeria’s major centres of power. Senior political leaders and top military officers were targeted, confusion...
January 15, 1966, Nigeria’s First Coup, A Reconstruction of Events in Kaduna, Lagos, and Ibadan
Nigeria’s first military coup unfolded in the late hours of January 14 and the early hours of January 15, 1966, as coordinated actions by...
Biafra Airlift Shock: The Night Flights That Changed War, Faith, and Survival
By late 1967, life inside the secessionist enclave of Biafra had collapsed into a daily struggle for survival. Markets were empty. Farms lay abandoned....