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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | The 1913 Memorial: A Study of Protest and Discord among the British Political Officers in Northern Nigeria |
Author: | Apata, Z.O. |
Year: | 1996 |
Periodical: | African Study Monographs |
Volume: | 17 |
Issue: | 3 |
Pages: | 129-139 |
Language: | English |
Geographic terms: | Nigeria Northern Nigeria Great Britain |
Subjects: | colonialism colonial administrators History and Exploration |
External link: | https://jambo.africa.kyoto-u.ac.jp/kiroku/asm_normal/abstracts/pdf/ASM%20%20Vol.17%20No.3%201996/Z.%20O.%20APATA.pdf |
Abstract: | Frederick Lugard, appointed as the first High Commissioner of Northern Nigeria in 1900, did little to dispel the dissatisfaction of British political officers in the Northern Protectorate with their poor conditions of service. The officers were bitter at the cold attitude of the Colonial Office to their problems. They also detested a number of colonial regulations, such as the canoe tax, in addition to the frequent administrative changes and transfer of administrative officers which Lugard introduced. Other sensitive issues included the system of Indirect Rule and the emphasis on Hausa language. Lugard's attitude and military style of administration furthermore contributed to alienating some staff. When Lugard resigned in 1906, the majority of the Northern administrative officers heaved a sigh of relief. His reappointment in 1912 as Governor-General of Nigeria, with the additional mission to amalgamate the Northern and Southern Protectorates, provoked the Northern officers' 1913 memorial, which contained a long and comprehensive list of their grievances. Pressure from Lugard failed to convince the signatories to withdraw the memorial. They insisted that it be sent to the Secretary of State, Lewis Harcourt. Harcourt, an admirer of Lugard, took no action. However, the memorial had succeeded in drawing the attention of the highest colonial authority to the political officers' plight. Bibliogr., notes, sum. |