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Formation: The Making of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation
What do you get when dare-devil jihadists, mad English missionaries and proud, stubborn, warring natives meet in a clash?
Nigeria.
Formation: The Making of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation tracks the unlikely series of events and characters that turned a collection of disparate nations into a British colony in 1914. But the story of Nigeria's formation begins much earlier, in 1804 when the jihadists launched their attack on countries along the Niger river. What unfolds is a story of conquests and slavery, betrayals and bravery, rivers and riots, victors and vanquished, all of which are central to understanding modern Black struggles.
Formation runs, like the rivers Niger and Benue, through the rise and fall of empires. It explores Dan Fodio's revolutionary jihad and the spread of Islam, the fall of the Oyo Empire, the influence of the returnee freed slaves, the growing influence of Christianity, and the palm oil politics in the Niger Delta in the territory that would come to be known as Nigeria. Inextricably linked to this is the story of the ascendency of the British Empire and the Industrial Revolution.
Influential figures of Nigeria's historic past, like the founder of the Sokoto caliphate, Usman Dan Fodio; Yoruba linguist Samuel Ajayi Crowther; powerful slave trader Madam Tinubu; British colonial administrator Frederick Lugard; and suffragette and mother to Fela Kuti, Funmilayo Ransom-Kuti, are re-examined, moving them from myth to reality. Fagbule and Fawehinmi challenge the orthodox understanding of Nigeria's past as merely a product of colonial interference, revealing an incredibly complicated portrait of a nation with a tangled history and self-determination.
Nigeria.
Formation: The Making of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation tracks the unlikely series of events and characters that turned a collection of disparate nations into a British colony in 1914. But the story of Nigeria's formation begins much earlier, in 1804 when the jihadists launched their attack on countries along the Niger river. What unfolds is a story of conquests and slavery, betrayals and bravery, rivers and riots, victors and vanquished, all of which are central to understanding modern Black struggles.
Formation runs, like the rivers Niger and Benue, through the rise and fall of empires. It explores Dan Fodio's revolutionary jihad and the spread of Islam, the fall of the Oyo Empire, the influence of the returnee freed slaves, the growing influence of Christianity, and the palm oil politics in the Niger Delta in the territory that would come to be known as Nigeria. Inextricably linked to this is the story of the ascendency of the British Empire and the Industrial Revolution.
Influential figures of Nigeria's historic past, like the founder of the Sokoto caliphate, Usman Dan Fodio; Yoruba linguist Samuel Ajayi Crowther; powerful slave trader Madam Tinubu; British colonial administrator Frederick Lugard; and suffragette and mother to Fela Kuti, Funmilayo Ransom-Kuti, are re-examined, moving them from myth to reality. Fagbule and Fawehinmi challenge the orthodox understanding of Nigeria's past as merely a product of colonial interference, revealing an incredibly complicated portrait of a nation with a tangled history and self-determination.
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Published February 22, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
March 5, 2025
Informative.
April 3, 2021
I went into this book thinking I knew all there was to know about colonialism and the country that is Nigeria. I now leave the book with the realization that I knew almost nothing.
This is a must read for anyone who's interested in either of the above mentioned topics.
This is a must read for anyone who's interested in either of the above mentioned topics.
November 30, 2020
Fola Fagbule and Feyi Fawehinmi, in Formation: The Making of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation, assert an incontestable fact: the creation of Nigeria was the outcome of dual projects set in motion by two very different groups of highly motivated minorities.
This book is a first-rate work of narrative history: informative and riveting. Its undue focus on individuals at the expense of economic forces does not detract from its achievement. It is valuable enough for the insights within, and on trivia night you will be grateful to the authors if winning depends on knowledge of all the many names of the River Niger, for example.
As the authors admit, publications are not solo efforts. Adekunle Adebisi and Wilna Combrink deserve credit for superb design and brilliant picture choices. Uthman Adejumo, the proofreader, also puts in a good shift. In 357 pages of text, the number of errors I spotted was in the low single digits. I expect the errors will be gone in the second edition that this book richly deserves. In that edition, pullout maps and larger pictures would be an improvement on the present.
Messrs FF and FF did not set out to write a definitive history of the country. And they did not. Formation, instead, sets out to rejuvenate the love of history among Nigerians, and I will add, it should engender a level of fascination with the country, and Nigerians, in foreign readers. It is, as the authors rightly judge it, meant to be a ‘brick for our common house’.
Across ten chapters, with titles every bit as allusive as the book title, the authors guide us through the processes and outsized individuals who created a country from inchoate groups defined by their association with the ‘River of Rivers’ and its less-heralded tributary: the Benue. The otherwise crisp narrative only ever hit a discordant note for me when it came to their choice of words for the victims of the brisk trade in slaves in the region, later, country. Personally, using ‘slaves’ strikes me as apt and accurate. The authors, however, oscillated between many words of which ‘human captives’ was the best, and ‘human bodies’ worst. The latter brought to mind corpses.
In my opinion, the primary determinant of a book's quality is the insight it generates and the disagreements it engenders.
I had previously not thought that the emergence of the Sokoto Caliphate was a linear process culminating in the creation of Nigeria. After reading the book, I think that it was. The book allowed me to sew together threads that had previously been floating in my mind. The Caliphate unleashed the latent martial potential of the Hausa kingdoms on their pagan neighbours. That was because as per Islamic Law, it was impossible to raid for slaves in a territory deemed as belonging to an Islamic State. Because slaves were the economic fuel of the era, the Caliphate had to raid somewhere. For some of its southern (eastern by the Caliphate’s administrative structure) emirates, that meant southwards.
The book does not shy away from detailing just how widespread and vital slaves were to the economy of the region in the 19th and early 20th centuries. As I read, I realised that there was a marked difference in the slave systems of what I term the Saharan and Atlantic economies. Northern and Southern Nigeria, as we know them today. The former was aristocratic while the latter was commercial. Social mobility was worse in the aristocratic slave society. I came about this idea while reading the book’s brilliant section on the twinned careers of Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther and King Jubo Jugboha, better known as King Jaja of Opobo. Both were former slaves. In contrast, the greatest achievement noted in the book by a slave in the aristocratic society–relegated to a footnote–is being the mother of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the future Sardauna of Sokoto.
The different societal structures in the two economies led to remarkably different modes of government. That had important reverberations, even during British rule. I differ from the authors in their assessment of the most important role played by the British in Nigeria: its actual creation, in 1914. They call it ‘harebrained’; I think it brilliant. It brought into being what seemed a historical inevitability at many times less the cost in blood and treasure it would have taken to occur by local means. One of the many strong suits of the book is forever debunking the idea that ‘Nigerians’ had no contact until the meddling British arrived. On all the measures taken by the British to bring that event about, you will have to read the book to understand what I mean when I write that, ‘I am a Henry Carr for Lugard’.
My estimation of the British effort remains unchanged. Some individual Britons fell in my estimation, but not, despite the authors’ best efforts, Lord Lugard. My view of him very much remains akin to that held by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, an American President, towards the Nicaraguan dictator, Anastasio Somoza, expletives included.
I also disagree with their decision to put in scare quotes the discovery of the Niger by the trio of Mungo Park and the Lander Brothers. Yes, knowledge of a great river preceded them; however, the locals due to the anti-competitive practices of the riverine groups and the ubiquity of slaving did not know that the great river was the River Niger. They did not know its origins, full course or final destination in full. The Europeans eventually did, thanks to the efforts of the amateurs of the Royal Geographic Society. The sacrifices and sheer thirst for knowledge, as well as the presence of institutions fostering them, detailed in another of the book’s excellent sections, makes the case for an achievement without an asterisk.
I also disagree with their rather rosy view of the ‘Clapham Sect’ and the local elites they fostered. I am inclined to view them as mediocrities, keen to snipe and loath to build, rather than the beacons in the tropics the authors make them out to be. The extent of their failure was made clear in the Egba tax protests of 1918. Despite centuries under their influence, the brilliant idea for rolling back British rule held by the rebels was to destroy the rail lines and telegraph cables. The westernised elite had failed to make the case for modernity even among their closest pupils. What verdict but failure exists?
As mentioned, the emphasis on the narrative can come at the expense of focused analysis. For example, for all the narrative oomph brought by the Maxim gun, I think that the authors miss its true significance. It did not allow the British to conquer the Niger area. The disparity in power was already marked, even without it. Instead, it allowed the cheap conquest of the region. The paucity of institutions caused by ‘Empire on the cheap’ would haunt their later attempt to administer the country.
Regardless of my disagreements, I enjoyed the book. When I finished, I was excited to read that this would not be their final collaboration. I found Formation worthwhile; you will too. If you do not, then treat me as Nagwamachi would. Who? Read it to find out.
This book is a first-rate work of narrative history: informative and riveting. Its undue focus on individuals at the expense of economic forces does not detract from its achievement. It is valuable enough for the insights within, and on trivia night you will be grateful to the authors if winning depends on knowledge of all the many names of the River Niger, for example.
As the authors admit, publications are not solo efforts. Adekunle Adebisi and Wilna Combrink deserve credit for superb design and brilliant picture choices. Uthman Adejumo, the proofreader, also puts in a good shift. In 357 pages of text, the number of errors I spotted was in the low single digits. I expect the errors will be gone in the second edition that this book richly deserves. In that edition, pullout maps and larger pictures would be an improvement on the present.
Messrs FF and FF did not set out to write a definitive history of the country. And they did not. Formation, instead, sets out to rejuvenate the love of history among Nigerians, and I will add, it should engender a level of fascination with the country, and Nigerians, in foreign readers. It is, as the authors rightly judge it, meant to be a ‘brick for our common house’.
Across ten chapters, with titles every bit as allusive as the book title, the authors guide us through the processes and outsized individuals who created a country from inchoate groups defined by their association with the ‘River of Rivers’ and its less-heralded tributary: the Benue. The otherwise crisp narrative only ever hit a discordant note for me when it came to their choice of words for the victims of the brisk trade in slaves in the region, later, country. Personally, using ‘slaves’ strikes me as apt and accurate. The authors, however, oscillated between many words of which ‘human captives’ was the best, and ‘human bodies’ worst. The latter brought to mind corpses.
In my opinion, the primary determinant of a book's quality is the insight it generates and the disagreements it engenders.
I had previously not thought that the emergence of the Sokoto Caliphate was a linear process culminating in the creation of Nigeria. After reading the book, I think that it was. The book allowed me to sew together threads that had previously been floating in my mind. The Caliphate unleashed the latent martial potential of the Hausa kingdoms on their pagan neighbours. That was because as per Islamic Law, it was impossible to raid for slaves in a territory deemed as belonging to an Islamic State. Because slaves were the economic fuel of the era, the Caliphate had to raid somewhere. For some of its southern (eastern by the Caliphate’s administrative structure) emirates, that meant southwards.
The book does not shy away from detailing just how widespread and vital slaves were to the economy of the region in the 19th and early 20th centuries. As I read, I realised that there was a marked difference in the slave systems of what I term the Saharan and Atlantic economies. Northern and Southern Nigeria, as we know them today. The former was aristocratic while the latter was commercial. Social mobility was worse in the aristocratic slave society. I came about this idea while reading the book’s brilliant section on the twinned careers of Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther and King Jubo Jugboha, better known as King Jaja of Opobo. Both were former slaves. In contrast, the greatest achievement noted in the book by a slave in the aristocratic society–relegated to a footnote–is being the mother of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the future Sardauna of Sokoto.
The different societal structures in the two economies led to remarkably different modes of government. That had important reverberations, even during British rule. I differ from the authors in their assessment of the most important role played by the British in Nigeria: its actual creation, in 1914. They call it ‘harebrained’; I think it brilliant. It brought into being what seemed a historical inevitability at many times less the cost in blood and treasure it would have taken to occur by local means. One of the many strong suits of the book is forever debunking the idea that ‘Nigerians’ had no contact until the meddling British arrived. On all the measures taken by the British to bring that event about, you will have to read the book to understand what I mean when I write that, ‘I am a Henry Carr for Lugard’.
My estimation of the British effort remains unchanged. Some individual Britons fell in my estimation, but not, despite the authors’ best efforts, Lord Lugard. My view of him very much remains akin to that held by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, an American President, towards the Nicaraguan dictator, Anastasio Somoza, expletives included.
I also disagree with their decision to put in scare quotes the discovery of the Niger by the trio of Mungo Park and the Lander Brothers. Yes, knowledge of a great river preceded them; however, the locals due to the anti-competitive practices of the riverine groups and the ubiquity of slaving did not know that the great river was the River Niger. They did not know its origins, full course or final destination in full. The Europeans eventually did, thanks to the efforts of the amateurs of the Royal Geographic Society. The sacrifices and sheer thirst for knowledge, as well as the presence of institutions fostering them, detailed in another of the book’s excellent sections, makes the case for an achievement without an asterisk.
I also disagree with their rather rosy view of the ‘Clapham Sect’ and the local elites they fostered. I am inclined to view them as mediocrities, keen to snipe and loath to build, rather than the beacons in the tropics the authors make them out to be. The extent of their failure was made clear in the Egba tax protests of 1918. Despite centuries under their influence, the brilliant idea for rolling back British rule held by the rebels was to destroy the rail lines and telegraph cables. The westernised elite had failed to make the case for modernity even among their closest pupils. What verdict but failure exists?
As mentioned, the emphasis on the narrative can come at the expense of focused analysis. For example, for all the narrative oomph brought by the Maxim gun, I think that the authors miss its true significance. It did not allow the British to conquer the Niger area. The disparity in power was already marked, even without it. Instead, it allowed the cheap conquest of the region. The paucity of institutions caused by ‘Empire on the cheap’ would haunt their later attempt to administer the country.
Regardless of my disagreements, I enjoyed the book. When I finished, I was excited to read that this would not be their final collaboration. I found Formation worthwhile; you will too. If you do not, then treat me as Nagwamachi would. Who? Read it to find out.
December 28, 2020
As a Nigerian who never took a history class, it has always bugged me that I, and by extension many Nigerians like myself, knew so little about Nigerian history. Consequently I was eager to get my hands on this book once I heard about the project.
While it did get a bit tedious in the end, This book is an easy enough read that charts the makings of Nigeria from Usman Dan Fodio's Targaryen-esque jihad to the journeys of the many British "mad men" that led to formation of what is now known as Nigeria. A consistent theme of the book is the incessant amount of violence that occurred between the many nations within Nigeria as well as the British over issues like trade, borders and religion. Issues that still lead to a lot of violence seen in the Nigeria of more recent times.
All in all, this was a great book that I would recommend to all interested Nigerians who would like to really understand how Nigeria came about and go beyond common tropes of Nigerian history like Mungo Park discovering the Niger river. Kudos to the authors.
While it did get a bit tedious in the end, This book is an easy enough read that charts the makings of Nigeria from Usman Dan Fodio's Targaryen-esque jihad to the journeys of the many British "mad men" that led to formation of what is now known as Nigeria. A consistent theme of the book is the incessant amount of violence that occurred between the many nations within Nigeria as well as the British over issues like trade, borders and religion. Issues that still lead to a lot of violence seen in the Nigeria of more recent times.
All in all, this was a great book that I would recommend to all interested Nigerians who would like to really understand how Nigeria came about and go beyond common tropes of Nigerian history like Mungo Park discovering the Niger river. Kudos to the authors.
January 3, 2023
Such an awesome book! I’m almost sad that I’m now done with it. It touches on so many important parts of Nigerian history.
I think every Nigerian should read this book, because in order to reshape the future, it’s important to learn about the past.
I think every Nigerian should read this book, because in order to reshape the future, it’s important to learn about the past.
February 6, 2021
What an amazing rendition of Nigeria's history !!
The research that went into this book was remarkable. It was great to examine all the assumptions I had grown up with. This book shows that the history being taught in schools (at least back when I was in school) is in now way definitive and there is so much more we can do for our children.
Well done Feyi and Fola - I hope you keep your promise and write more books !
The research that went into this book was remarkable. It was great to examine all the assumptions I had grown up with. This book shows that the history being taught in schools (at least back when I was in school) is in now way definitive and there is so much more we can do for our children.
Well done Feyi and Fola - I hope you keep your promise and write more books !
May 7, 2025
It was informative!
August 7, 2025
This morning, I finished reading Formation: The Making of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation by Fola Fagbule & Feyi Fawehinmi, written in 2021.
After finishing the book, I took a deep breath and thought it was astonishing how the authors, both working in the financial sector (Feyi is an accountant while Fola is a banker), painstakingly produced a book that would impress the best of historians. It is a book about the history of the area now known as Nigeria. It traces the origin of this vast country which envelopes the confluence between the great rivers of Niger and Benue and extends northwards to the great Bornu empire, westward to the wartorn Oyo empire, southward to the creeks of the Niger Delta and eastward to the hinterlands of the Aro. It tells the stories of how these vast and different peoples were brought together under a single colonial rule.
But first, the book had to start in 1804 from the incomparable Uthman Dan Fodio and his followers. Starting from a little-known settlement called Gobir, they conquered multiple lands in all directions, including teaming up with the renegade Oyo prince, Afonja (whom they later killed) to take over the valued Ilorin city. The one great city they didn't conquer was the kingdom of Bornu - one so formidable that its imperial reaches once extended far northwards across the great Sahara to include inland territories of present-day Libya. The Fulanis were an impressive army. They set up the largest and most advanced, organized civil state in sub-Saharan Africa.
#WIL Juba the Second, the Rome-educated scholar and Berber king of Numidia in present-day Algeria, gave River Niger its name, derived from the Tuareg expression 'N'ger-n-n'gero,' meaning 'River of Rivers.'
Would the Fulani Jihadists have conquered the areas south of the Niger? No one is sure. Conquests create enemies, and empires often fall from within. A good example, perhaps, is the internal rebellion of 1818, which became perhaps the bloodiest single day in Nigerian history. But then, they could well have conquered the entire Yorubaland, even if the reign did not last long, especially because of the constant fighting taking place in Yorubaland. Oyo would have taken back defeated Afonja if the Alaafin did not have problems popping up all across the Empire.
A renewed appreciation of modern life, where relative peace has been achieved, would come upon the reader as they read of the life of constant fights that their ancestors were thrown into. For instance, Bello, who succeeded Uthman, led 47 expeditions and raids in his time as Sultan, an average of more than two per annum. It was worse in Yorubaland. The system was such that you either raided or waited to be raided. There was no middle ground. It is not difficult to imagine that had the British not imposed calm through brutal force, the wars would have continued in perpetuity. War was the basis of Ibadan's economic existence. To show the extent to which wars were taken as a given, when Emir Alihu at Ilorin was informed that Queen Victoria had reigned for over 50 years in England, he considered it ridiculous. To him, how can one person govern for so long a time without enemies arising to plot against her life?
You should read the account of the ambush that led to the death of Mungo Park. You should also read the chronicle of the Nembe uprising, which dealt the killer blow to the monopolistic Royal Niger Company and fast-tracked colonial rule. More importantly, read the account of the incredible fight between the famed Agoji of Dahomey and Abeokuta. The account was scintillating. This is why the movie 'The Woman King' amused me. King Ghezo was one of the most feared and entrenched rulers and slave traders West Africa has ever seen. His female warriors were a menace to their neighbors in the all-important exchange of human bodies for European weaponry and merchandise.
It's difficult to imagine the scale of slavery in ancient African societies. The Aro dealt extensively in trade. Slaves were denied political representation, economic and financial transactions, marriage, property rights, and religious rites. Entire villages were earmarked for slaves for the purpose of labor-intensive palm oil cultivation. The Sokoto Caliphate was one of the largest slave societies in history, with up to 50 percent of the population being slaves by the end of the nineteenth century. When one Emir was entreated by the British to let go, he unyieldingly proclaimed, 'Can you stop a cat from mousing? When I die, it will be with a slave in my mouth!'. The famous Madam Efunsetan Aniwura was said to have been happier for boatloads of humans to be drowned, rather than sold at a loss to her.
The slave trade grew internal as British force reduced overseas demand. Porterage and industrial-scale cash crop production in Niger-Benue, notably the Nupe Tungazi and Urhobo and western Igbo palm oil plantations, required slaves. Slave prices rose from £1 (about £130 now) for a male slave in 1850 to £7 (same amount after inflation) in 1895 as overseas demand fell. Female slaves cost extra. Local demand and indiscriminate slave-raiding generated a supply glut, which stabilized market prices despite decades of export demand reduction.
#NewWordAlert - Suzerainty
No wonder minorities embraced the missionaries, and then much later the British rule. The long-suffering communities from these rapacious slave harvesting harbored multiple decades-long resentments against their overlords. Siding with the European superpowers was their only chance at striking back and regaining freedom from their oppressors. So, they volunteered their support and participation on the side of the British forces, supplying them with food and soldiers. Being in charge of the maxim gun (which had just come out) and the devastation it wrought on their previous lords must have been an exhilarating experience. Hours after reading the book, I am still unable to get over this quote about the fall of Ilorin to the British:
"It was over in less than three days; the excised limb of the centuries-old great Oyo Empire was reduced to an appendage of a stock market listed company in faraway London."
It is for this pragmatism of the minorities that I wonder what a blessing a leader like Sodeke of Abeokuta must have been. A visionary leader who brought together more than 150 distinct groupings of settlements. Devolving powers to other sub-groups closer to the people, he was one of the first to embrace the missionaries and thus made his people safe from marauding Yoruba warriors. Sodeke's competent leadership led to the city's peace and prosperity, access to a thriving seaport, internal markets in the Yoruba hinterland, and attracted migrants from the diaspora. Sierra Leonean ethnic Yorubas (freed slaves and their descendants called Saro) began to trade with the old country via Abeokuta. They governed Abeokuta so well that the city's name resonated in British political circles as an ally that must be protected by any means necessary.
And that was how the later highly influential Samuel Ajayi Crowther came to settle in the city-state. Crowther was a colossus. It was he who influenced the Royal court in England into an aggressive implementation of the Aberdeen Act of 1845, which stipulated that arrested slave traders could be tried in British courts. This was what finally led to the dislocation of the slave markets at the coast of West Africa and the start of palm oil trading at Lagos for the first time.
#Oddment Considering what happened between the British and the Benin king, it's surprising they allowed his son, Aiguobasinwin, to return as King. It's not consistent with their nature at the time.
This era of people like Ajayi Crowther and Jaja of Opobo, before colonial rule started, could very well be regarded as the golden age of Nigeria, at least in the area below the Niger. With little interference from their advocates in London, these Black men took charge of their lands and brought about African-led human development. Unfortunately, it was not to last. The arrival of the most important capitalist in the history of Nigeria, George Taubman Goldie, on the river made sure of that (without whom we could easily be speaking German or French now). And then his excesses brought about the emergence of British colonial rule in newly formed Nigeria.
#Alert There is the story of a certain Desalu that you will find headspinning.
And so, the reader was introduced to perhaps the most important person in Nigeria's history - the man Frederick John Dealtry Lugard, and his wife, the accomplished Flora Shaw. The man who joined one of the most diverse peoples in the world into one nation was a troubled child and a troubled soldier who was given the job of using force to bring about the amalgamation of Northern and Southern Nigeria. Reading the account of his stewardship to London, I could not help but think that had he wanted, he would have imposed Christianity in the North even if with great difficulty. But at this time, the son of a missionary had become agnostic and did not care much for the religion of his father. He named Port Harcourt after Lewis Vernon Harcourt, a known sexual predator who killed himself when his attempt to have sex with a 12-year-old boy was about to be published in the papers, as a reward.
It was Lord Lugard in 1914 who completed the work that Dan Fodio had started, bringing a diverse set of people under one umbrella. As you read, you will plainly see the reasons why it has been a daunting task to maintain unity in Nigeria...
Read full review on Medium - https://tosinadeoti.medium.com/book-r...
After finishing the book, I took a deep breath and thought it was astonishing how the authors, both working in the financial sector (Feyi is an accountant while Fola is a banker), painstakingly produced a book that would impress the best of historians. It is a book about the history of the area now known as Nigeria. It traces the origin of this vast country which envelopes the confluence between the great rivers of Niger and Benue and extends northwards to the great Bornu empire, westward to the wartorn Oyo empire, southward to the creeks of the Niger Delta and eastward to the hinterlands of the Aro. It tells the stories of how these vast and different peoples were brought together under a single colonial rule.
But first, the book had to start in 1804 from the incomparable Uthman Dan Fodio and his followers. Starting from a little-known settlement called Gobir, they conquered multiple lands in all directions, including teaming up with the renegade Oyo prince, Afonja (whom they later killed) to take over the valued Ilorin city. The one great city they didn't conquer was the kingdom of Bornu - one so formidable that its imperial reaches once extended far northwards across the great Sahara to include inland territories of present-day Libya. The Fulanis were an impressive army. They set up the largest and most advanced, organized civil state in sub-Saharan Africa.
#WIL Juba the Second, the Rome-educated scholar and Berber king of Numidia in present-day Algeria, gave River Niger its name, derived from the Tuareg expression 'N'ger-n-n'gero,' meaning 'River of Rivers.'
Would the Fulani Jihadists have conquered the areas south of the Niger? No one is sure. Conquests create enemies, and empires often fall from within. A good example, perhaps, is the internal rebellion of 1818, which became perhaps the bloodiest single day in Nigerian history. But then, they could well have conquered the entire Yorubaland, even if the reign did not last long, especially because of the constant fighting taking place in Yorubaland. Oyo would have taken back defeated Afonja if the Alaafin did not have problems popping up all across the Empire.
A renewed appreciation of modern life, where relative peace has been achieved, would come upon the reader as they read of the life of constant fights that their ancestors were thrown into. For instance, Bello, who succeeded Uthman, led 47 expeditions and raids in his time as Sultan, an average of more than two per annum. It was worse in Yorubaland. The system was such that you either raided or waited to be raided. There was no middle ground. It is not difficult to imagine that had the British not imposed calm through brutal force, the wars would have continued in perpetuity. War was the basis of Ibadan's economic existence. To show the extent to which wars were taken as a given, when Emir Alihu at Ilorin was informed that Queen Victoria had reigned for over 50 years in England, he considered it ridiculous. To him, how can one person govern for so long a time without enemies arising to plot against her life?
You should read the account of the ambush that led to the death of Mungo Park. You should also read the chronicle of the Nembe uprising, which dealt the killer blow to the monopolistic Royal Niger Company and fast-tracked colonial rule. More importantly, read the account of the incredible fight between the famed Agoji of Dahomey and Abeokuta. The account was scintillating. This is why the movie 'The Woman King' amused me. King Ghezo was one of the most feared and entrenched rulers and slave traders West Africa has ever seen. His female warriors were a menace to their neighbors in the all-important exchange of human bodies for European weaponry and merchandise.
It's difficult to imagine the scale of slavery in ancient African societies. The Aro dealt extensively in trade. Slaves were denied political representation, economic and financial transactions, marriage, property rights, and religious rites. Entire villages were earmarked for slaves for the purpose of labor-intensive palm oil cultivation. The Sokoto Caliphate was one of the largest slave societies in history, with up to 50 percent of the population being slaves by the end of the nineteenth century. When one Emir was entreated by the British to let go, he unyieldingly proclaimed, 'Can you stop a cat from mousing? When I die, it will be with a slave in my mouth!'. The famous Madam Efunsetan Aniwura was said to have been happier for boatloads of humans to be drowned, rather than sold at a loss to her.
The slave trade grew internal as British force reduced overseas demand. Porterage and industrial-scale cash crop production in Niger-Benue, notably the Nupe Tungazi and Urhobo and western Igbo palm oil plantations, required slaves. Slave prices rose from £1 (about £130 now) for a male slave in 1850 to £7 (same amount after inflation) in 1895 as overseas demand fell. Female slaves cost extra. Local demand and indiscriminate slave-raiding generated a supply glut, which stabilized market prices despite decades of export demand reduction.
#NewWordAlert - Suzerainty
No wonder minorities embraced the missionaries, and then much later the British rule. The long-suffering communities from these rapacious slave harvesting harbored multiple decades-long resentments against their overlords. Siding with the European superpowers was their only chance at striking back and regaining freedom from their oppressors. So, they volunteered their support and participation on the side of the British forces, supplying them with food and soldiers. Being in charge of the maxim gun (which had just come out) and the devastation it wrought on their previous lords must have been an exhilarating experience. Hours after reading the book, I am still unable to get over this quote about the fall of Ilorin to the British:
"It was over in less than three days; the excised limb of the centuries-old great Oyo Empire was reduced to an appendage of a stock market listed company in faraway London."
It is for this pragmatism of the minorities that I wonder what a blessing a leader like Sodeke of Abeokuta must have been. A visionary leader who brought together more than 150 distinct groupings of settlements. Devolving powers to other sub-groups closer to the people, he was one of the first to embrace the missionaries and thus made his people safe from marauding Yoruba warriors. Sodeke's competent leadership led to the city's peace and prosperity, access to a thriving seaport, internal markets in the Yoruba hinterland, and attracted migrants from the diaspora. Sierra Leonean ethnic Yorubas (freed slaves and their descendants called Saro) began to trade with the old country via Abeokuta. They governed Abeokuta so well that the city's name resonated in British political circles as an ally that must be protected by any means necessary.
And that was how the later highly influential Samuel Ajayi Crowther came to settle in the city-state. Crowther was a colossus. It was he who influenced the Royal court in England into an aggressive implementation of the Aberdeen Act of 1845, which stipulated that arrested slave traders could be tried in British courts. This was what finally led to the dislocation of the slave markets at the coast of West Africa and the start of palm oil trading at Lagos for the first time.
#Oddment Considering what happened between the British and the Benin king, it's surprising they allowed his son, Aiguobasinwin, to return as King. It's not consistent with their nature at the time.
This era of people like Ajayi Crowther and Jaja of Opobo, before colonial rule started, could very well be regarded as the golden age of Nigeria, at least in the area below the Niger. With little interference from their advocates in London, these Black men took charge of their lands and brought about African-led human development. Unfortunately, it was not to last. The arrival of the most important capitalist in the history of Nigeria, George Taubman Goldie, on the river made sure of that (without whom we could easily be speaking German or French now). And then his excesses brought about the emergence of British colonial rule in newly formed Nigeria.
#Alert There is the story of a certain Desalu that you will find headspinning.
And so, the reader was introduced to perhaps the most important person in Nigeria's history - the man Frederick John Dealtry Lugard, and his wife, the accomplished Flora Shaw. The man who joined one of the most diverse peoples in the world into one nation was a troubled child and a troubled soldier who was given the job of using force to bring about the amalgamation of Northern and Southern Nigeria. Reading the account of his stewardship to London, I could not help but think that had he wanted, he would have imposed Christianity in the North even if with great difficulty. But at this time, the son of a missionary had become agnostic and did not care much for the religion of his father. He named Port Harcourt after Lewis Vernon Harcourt, a known sexual predator who killed himself when his attempt to have sex with a 12-year-old boy was about to be published in the papers, as a reward.
It was Lord Lugard in 1914 who completed the work that Dan Fodio had started, bringing a diverse set of people under one umbrella. As you read, you will plainly see the reasons why it has been a daunting task to maintain unity in Nigeria...
Read full review on Medium - https://tosinadeoti.medium.com/book-r...
May 2, 2023
Excellent tome on Nigerian history. It goes beyond just whatever some silly white explorer was doing and looks at the complicated polities that were already emerging before Europeans arrived. The jihad of Usman Dan Fodio, the centuries of relentless civil war in Yorubaland, how the brutal slave trade reshaped coastal areas like Lagos and the Niger Delta. It's all there. The stuff about trigger-happy British coloniser Lord Lugard is the most colourful writing I've ever seen about him. 'Formation' brings all these moving parts together and shows how they coalesced to form the notoriously complex, rumbustious country that eventually came to be known as Nigeria. A cracking read! One tiny criticism: the authors clearly decided not to do another Black consciousness book about how terrible colonialism was/is. Fair enough: such books are hardly in short supply. But they sometimes go too easy on the various actors, including the missionaries and some civil servants, who came to conquer Nigeria -- and on the systemic imperial project, in general. Hardly an apology for imperialism, but you wonder if some bits might give ammunition to those who look back on the empire through rose-tinted glasses.
January 6, 2021
Thoroughly enjoyed this. The story is really interesting and the book is beautifully written, darting back and forth in time perfectly and developing the picture nicely. It’s a great book generally not just for Nigerians.
December 23, 2020
Good read, eye-opening, helped put a lot of the more popular fragmented bits of history in perspective and context. A bit academic but still retaining the writer's voice and with some wit which was refreshing. It's detailed, well-researched and yet not too tedious to read. All the more impressive when I read that neither of writers is a historian; trust me, I'd have never guessed if I didn't read their bio. A rewarding read.
Would have been nice for the book to have a lot more maps.
Would have been nice for the book to have a lot more maps.
August 6, 2021
Formation tells the story of pre-colonial Nigeria from 1804 to 1914. As such, it covers Dan Fodio’s jihad that had a massive impact on the Niger-area states – an impact so mighty that we continue to feel its pulse in 21st century Nigeria.
In the 19th century, the jihad sacked many Hausa kingdoms and also catalyzed the dissociation of Ilorin from the Old Oyo Empire, which in turn led to the continued disintegration of the Oyo empire. That century also saw several internecine warfares amongst the Yorubas.
Amid this furor, Abeokuta was birthed, and the need for an alliance with the British State to materialize its progressive and liberal ideas. There is also the Clapham Sect Era, which saw a fruitful and progressive collaboration with the locals in Southern pre-colonial Nigeria. This sect pushed for education and trade in commodities, moving away from the dastardly international trade in human bodies in the previous years. This era saw the likes of Jaja of Opobo and Bishop Ajayi Crowther.
Next is the post-Clapham Sect Era, where power indeed changed hands. This period kick-started with the scramble for Africa (Berlin conference), of which pre-colonial Nigeria was not left out. Needless to say, it was an era of imperialism and subjugation. This era also saw the sale of the Nigerian territories to the British State by the Royal Niger Company for £865,000 in 1899. The acquisition led to the consolidation of various protectorates, which they administer via the indirect rule.
One thing led to another, and you have the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorate in 1914, in which the authors state, “The Southern Protectorate was to be merged with its much less financially buoyant and landlocked Northern neighbor. This was considered especially shrewd by the pinny-pinchers in London, given the high cost of achieving and maintaining military conquest in that country.”
More than a century later, such asinine amalgamation had led to the literal destruction of lives and properties of its citizens, with activists now springing up now on almost a daily basis – demanding the end of the country.
In the 19th century, the jihad sacked many Hausa kingdoms and also catalyzed the dissociation of Ilorin from the Old Oyo Empire, which in turn led to the continued disintegration of the Oyo empire. That century also saw several internecine warfares amongst the Yorubas.
Amid this furor, Abeokuta was birthed, and the need for an alliance with the British State to materialize its progressive and liberal ideas. There is also the Clapham Sect Era, which saw a fruitful and progressive collaboration with the locals in Southern pre-colonial Nigeria. This sect pushed for education and trade in commodities, moving away from the dastardly international trade in human bodies in the previous years. This era saw the likes of Jaja of Opobo and Bishop Ajayi Crowther.
Next is the post-Clapham Sect Era, where power indeed changed hands. This period kick-started with the scramble for Africa (Berlin conference), of which pre-colonial Nigeria was not left out. Needless to say, it was an era of imperialism and subjugation. This era also saw the sale of the Nigerian territories to the British State by the Royal Niger Company for £865,000 in 1899. The acquisition led to the consolidation of various protectorates, which they administer via the indirect rule.
One thing led to another, and you have the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorate in 1914, in which the authors state, “The Southern Protectorate was to be merged with its much less financially buoyant and landlocked Northern neighbor. This was considered especially shrewd by the pinny-pinchers in London, given the high cost of achieving and maintaining military conquest in that country.”
More than a century later, such asinine amalgamation had led to the literal destruction of lives and properties of its citizens, with activists now springing up now on almost a daily basis – demanding the end of the country.
May 2, 2023
"Formation" is a poignant historical narrative that evokes a myriad of emotions, ranging from anger and surprise to disbelief and incredulity. The book delves into the complex histories of Nigeria, deconstructing its myths and legends. The author successfully surpasses the Nigerian history curriculum, providing a profound insight into the country's past and transforming the reader's understanding of Nigeria.
The first few chapters of the book, however, could benefit from a more coherent narrative structure. The frequent shifts from one "character" to another and one "Empire" to the next can be disorienting, particularly given the extensive cast of characters. Despite this, the book's depth and scope make it a worthwhile read, as it provides a plethora of "what-if" scenarios that challenge traditional narratives.
The book's verbosity may also prove challenging for some readers, particularly in sections such as the discussion of the Hausa city-states and their relationship with the Ottoman world in the Mediterranean Sea. Nonetheless, the inclusion of detailed maps and images adds depth and context to the narrative, providing the reader with an immersive experience that leaves a lasting impression.
Overall, Formation is a compelling and thought-provoking book that sheds light on Nigeria's complex history. The authors, in their collaboration, have produced a work of considerable significance, one that deserves recognition as a valuable addition to the academic literature on Nigerian history. The only minor suggestion for improvement would be to increase the size and detail of the maps in a future edition.
The first few chapters of the book, however, could benefit from a more coherent narrative structure. The frequent shifts from one "character" to another and one "Empire" to the next can be disorienting, particularly given the extensive cast of characters. Despite this, the book's depth and scope make it a worthwhile read, as it provides a plethora of "what-if" scenarios that challenge traditional narratives.
The book's verbosity may also prove challenging for some readers, particularly in sections such as the discussion of the Hausa city-states and their relationship with the Ottoman world in the Mediterranean Sea. Nonetheless, the inclusion of detailed maps and images adds depth and context to the narrative, providing the reader with an immersive experience that leaves a lasting impression.
Overall, Formation is a compelling and thought-provoking book that sheds light on Nigeria's complex history. The authors, in their collaboration, have produced a work of considerable significance, one that deserves recognition as a valuable addition to the academic literature on Nigerian history. The only minor suggestion for improvement would be to increase the size and detail of the maps in a future edition.
April 29, 2022
This is an outstanding work.
I knew nearly nothing about Southern Nigerian history. Fola Fagbuye and Feyi Fawehinmi masterfully tell the dense and complicated story of how the territory of present Nigeria became subsumed under one political authority - the British imperialist state.
They made very complicated political moves and names I had never heard before come alive. Although their language stays neutral and nuanced, their respect for certain figures like the towering and impressive Samuel Ajayi Crowther and their disdain for some of the most racist and stubborn colonial agents comes through. I found this to be a refreshing feature of their narrative.
I knew nearly nothing about Southern Nigerian history. Fola Fagbuye and Feyi Fawehinmi masterfully tell the dense and complicated story of how the territory of present Nigeria became subsumed under one political authority - the British imperialist state.
They made very complicated political moves and names I had never heard before come alive. Although their language stays neutral and nuanced, their respect for certain figures like the towering and impressive Samuel Ajayi Crowther and their disdain for some of the most racist and stubborn colonial agents comes through. I found this to be a refreshing feature of their narrative.
August 22, 2023
Often a challenging read (a slog). The barrage of names of people and places overwhelmed me. The authors' approach of taking multiple passes over the subject matter was helpful. What I did not know, but came to appreciate was how recently Nigeria became a colony. Also eye-opening was that slavery was fundamental to the economy and history of the areas that were amalgamated. More could have been said about how slavery operated. I'd prefer not to leave that to my imagination.
November 25, 2021
4.75
Fola and Feyi have done a fantastic job. I am thankful that this book exists.
I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to know the nitty-gritty of the process that led to the formation of the county presently known as Nigeria.
It’s well researched and very accessible to a non-historian like me.
Fola and Feyi have done a fantastic job. I am thankful that this book exists.
I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to know the nitty-gritty of the process that led to the formation of the county presently known as Nigeria.
It’s well researched and very accessible to a non-historian like me.
November 3, 2022
The narrative style is fluid and easy to follow. This book definitely set me off to go further in my thirst for the history of parts of Nigeria i never knew had a story to tell. I would highly recommend every Nigerian and non-Nigerian to read if you want a high-level understanding of the cultural history of Nigeria, and how it became what it is currently.
Great read! Worth every Naira.
Great read! Worth every Naira.
December 5, 2022
Full of nuggets
A history book about Nigeria which helps explain some of the present day is a great resource for anyone interested in Africa’s largest country by population. Interspersed with golden nuggets about the country and its people …thanks to the authors for taking the time to write it
A history book about Nigeria which helps explain some of the present day is a great resource for anyone interested in Africa’s largest country by population. Interspersed with golden nuggets about the country and its people …thanks to the authors for taking the time to write it
December 29, 2022
Formation is a great history book, full of stories and anecdotes on the messy historical events leading to the creation of Nigeria as an entity in 1914. Well researched and full of reference, this book does not only teach us on the past of the peoples and empires, but also on the foundations of the political and economic forces shaping Nigeria up to today.
January 21, 2025
Read it in one sitting, perfect blend of humor and eye-opening historical information.
I would have preferred a bit more coherency, occasionally it jumped from one topic to another and focused on random aspects/historical characters that did not seem important in context. I don't know much about the regional history of West Africa, so I can't assess how accurate it is.
I would have preferred a bit more coherency, occasionally it jumped from one topic to another and focused on random aspects/historical characters that did not seem important in context. I don't know much about the regional history of West Africa, so I can't assess how accurate it is.
June 28, 2023
It is a book that grips you with facts rare to come by and takes you on a tour of how your country came to be and how it’s problems become intractable . Reading it for the second time and ingesting more nuggets.
July 24, 2021
With the exception of a lack of in-depth commentary on issues and events from Eastern Nigeria, the book is a good read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 12, 2024
Needed more maps.
October 13, 2021
Most detailed book on the Nigeria’s history I’ve read so far. Particularly enjoyed the deep dive into Dan fodio’s conquest of the Hausa states. It was such an underdog story.
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