Independence
Nigeria becomes independent as a federation of three regions, Africa's most populous state, full of hope and full of fault lines.
- A History of Nigeria — Toyin Falola and Matthew M. Heaton, Cambridge University Press (2008)
- Crippled Giant: Nigeria since Independence — Eghosa E. Osaghae, Hurst (1998)
- Nigeria — Encyclopaedia Britannica
- For Women and the Nation: Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti of Nigeria — Cheryl Johnson-Odim and Nina Emma Mba, University of Illinois Press (1997)
Nigerian nationalism grew from the early twentieth century in Lagos newspapers, churches and political clubs. Herbert Macaulay founded the Nigerian National Democratic Party in 1923. From the late 1930s Nnamdi Azikiwe’s newspapers and the Nigerian Youth Movement turned protest into a mass movement, and after the Second World War, in which many Nigerians served, strikes and campaigns pushed Britain toward self-government. Women’s movements, led by figures such as Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, fought taxes and demanded the vote.
- A History of Nigeria — Toyin Falola and Matthew M. Heaton, Cambridge University Press (2008)
- For Women and the Nation: Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti of Nigeria — Cheryl Johnson-Odim and Nina Emma Mba, University of Illinois Press (1997)
Three regions, three parties
The constitutions of the 1950s divided the country into three regions, each with its own government and its own dominant party: the Northern People’s Congress of Ahmadu Bello in the North, the Action Group of Obafemi Awolowo in the West, and the NCNC of Nnamdi Azikiwe, strongest in the East. The North had more than half the population and so the most seats, but northern leaders, fearing domination by better-educated southerners, were wary of moving too fast to independence.
- A History of Nigeria — Toyin Falola and Matthew M. Heaton, Cambridge University Press (2008)
- Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto: Values and Leadership in Nigeria — John N. Paden, Hodder and Stoughton (1986)
1 October 1960
Nigeria became independent on 1 October 1960, with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of the NPC as prime minister and Azikiwe as governor-general. In 1963 it became a republic, with Azikiwe as president. With tens of millions of people, oil just discovered in the Delta, and educated elites, it was hailed as the “giant of Africa”.
- A History of Nigeria — Toyin Falola and Matthew M. Heaton, Cambridge University Press (2008)
- Nigeria — Encyclopaedia Britannica
A troubled First Republic
The hope soon frayed. A disputed census in 1962–63, whose numbers decided each region’s share of seats and money, became a bitter fight. The Action Group split, and Awolowo was jailed for treason. The 1964 federal election and the 1965 Western Region election were marred by rigging and violence; in the West, rioting was so bad that it was nicknamed “Wild, Wild West”.
- Crippled Giant: Nigeria since Independence — Eghosa E. Osaghae, Hurst (1998)
- A History of Nigeria — Toyin Falola and Matthew M. Heaton, Cambridge University Press (2008)
By the end of 1965 many Nigerians had lost faith in the politicians. In January 1966 young army officers struck, beginning thirteen years of military rule and the slide toward civil war.
- Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966–1976) — Max Siollun, Algora (2009)
- Crippled Giant: Nigeria since Independence — Eghosa E. Osaghae, Hurst (1998)
Why it matters today
1 October is Independence Day, marked with parades and green-white-green. For many older Nigerians, 1960 recalls a moment of enormous promise, when Nigeria was expected to lead Africa. The gap between that promise and what followed is a theme Nigerians return to constantly.