British Protectorate Administrative Headquarters – Basic 4 History Lesson Note (First Term)

A British protectorate administrative headquarters was the main centre from which the British governed a part of Nigeria during colonial rule.

Behavioural objectives

1. Define an administrative headquarters.
2. Name the early British administrative headquarters in Nigeria and the period of each.
3. List the features found in a colonial administrative headquarters.
4. State the reasons why the British set up administrative headquarters.
5. Arrange the Northern Nigeria headquarters in the order they were used.

What is an administrative headquarters?

An administrative headquarters is a special place from which a government controls and runs an area.

• Government leaders: they work and make decisions there.
• Important meetings: they are held there.
• Laws and rules: they are made there.
• Government offices: they are located there.
• Records and documents: they are kept there.

It is like the main office that controls everything in an area.

What were the early British administrative headquarters in Nigeria?

The early British headquarters in Nigeria were Lagos, Lokoja, Zungeru and Kaduna.

Lagos (1861 to 1914)

• First headquarters: it was the first British headquarters in Nigeria.
• Lagos Colony: it was the capital of the colony.
• Southern Nigeria: it later became the capital of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate.
• Coastal location: it is a port on the coast, so ships from Britain could reach it easily.

Lokoja (1900 to 1902)

• Northern headquarters: it was the headquarters of the Northern Nigeria Protectorate.
• Location: it stands where Rivers Niger and Benue meet.
• First capital: it was the first capital of Northern Nigeria.

Zungeru (1902 to 1917)

• Replaced Lokoja: it became the Northern Nigeria capital in 1902.
• Built by the British: the British developed it as a government town.
• Location: it was more central in the North.

Kaduna (1917 to 1960)

• Final headquarters: it was the last headquarters of Northern Nigeria under British rule.
• Replaced Zungeru: the capital moved there in 1917.
• Planned city: the British built it as a modern planned city.

Lagos (1914 to 1960)

• Unified Nigeria: it was the capital after the North and South joined in 1914.
• Until independence: it remained the headquarters until 1960.

What features did colonial administrative headquarters have?

A colonial administrative headquarters had seven main kinds of features: government buildings, security, communication, transport, education and health, economic centres and residential areas.

1. Government buildings

• Governor’s residence: the big house for the British leader.
• Secretariat buildings: the government offices.
• Court houses: places for judges and trials.
• Treasury buildings: places for money and taxes.

2. Security features

• Police stations: they also had barracks.
• Military camps: they had training grounds.
• Prisons: they held law breakers.
• Guard posts: they stood at important places.

3. Communication systems

• Telegraph offices: they sent messages.
• Post offices: they handled letters and mail.
• Radio stations: they were used for communication.
• Telephone lines: they linked the headquarters to other cities.

4. Transportation networks

• Railway stations: they were joined to train lines.
• Good roads: they linked the headquarters to other towns.
• River ports: they were built where there were rivers.
• Airports: they came in later years.

5. Educational and health facilities

• Schools: they were for British children and some Nigerians.
• Hospitals: they used modern medicine.
• Churches: they were for British officials.
• Libraries: they included reading rooms.

6. Economic centres

• Banks: they kept money safe.
• Trading company offices: they handled trade.
• Warehouses: they stored goods.
• Markets: people bought and sold there.

7. Residential areas

• European quarters: nice houses for British people.
• Native quarters: the colonial name for the areas where Nigerians lived.
• Separate areas: different groups lived apart.
• Government housing: houses for government workers.

Why did the British establish administrative headquarters?

The British established administrative headquarters mainly to control and govern their territory in Nigeria.

1. Control and administration

• Central place: a place to govern from.
• Coordination: activities across the territory could be organised.
• Laws: they could be made and enforced easily.
• Monitoring: officials could watch what was happening everywhere.

2. Strategic location

• Easy access: it could be reached from different parts of Nigeria.
• Transport links: roads and railways joined it to other places.
• Rivers: they gave access to water transport.
• Central position: it helped the British control trade.

3. Economic reasons

• Trade and taxes: the British controlled trade and collected taxes.
• Natural resources: they managed them.
• Economic activities: they supervised them.
• Profits: they made sure profits went to Britain.

4. Security and defence

• British interests: they protected British people and their interests.
• Quick response: they could act fast on any problem.
• Resistance: they controlled local resistance to British rule.
• Law and order: they maintained it.

5. Communication needs

• Messages to London: they could be sent quickly.
• Other colonies: the British coordinated with them.
• Instructions: they were received from Britain.
• Information: it was shared between regions.

6. Showing British power

• Control: it was shown to local people.
• Impressive buildings: they showed strength.
• Symbol of authority: they stood for British rule.
• Opposition: they were meant to discourage it.

Evaluation

1. Fill in the blanks: (a) An administrative headquarters is where _______ work. (b) _______ was the first British headquarters in Nigeria. (c) Lokoja stands where Rivers _______ and _______ meet. (d) _______ replaced Zungeru as the Northern Nigeria capital.
2. True or False: (a) Lagos was never a British headquarters. (b) Kaduna replaced Zungeru. (c) Headquarters had only government buildings. (d) The British built separate areas for Europeans and Nigerians.
3. Put these Northern Nigeria headquarters in the order they were used: Kaduna, Zungeru, Lokoja.
4. Circle the features found in a headquarters: governor’s residence, farms and farmlands, police stations, traditional shrines, telegraph offices, railway stations.
5. Short answer: (a) What is an administrative headquarters? (b) Why was Lagos chosen as the first headquarters? (c) Name three features found in headquarters. (d) How did headquarters help the British control Nigeria?

Answers

1. (a) government leaders, (b) Lagos, (c) Niger and Benue, (d) Kaduna.
2. (a) False, (b) True, (c) False, (d) True.
3. Lokoja (1), Zungeru (2), Kaduna (3).
4. Governor’s residence, police stations, telegraph offices, railway stations.
5. (a) A place where the government works and makes decisions. (b) It is a coastal port that ships from Britain could reach. (c) Any three, for example government buildings, police stations and telegraph offices. (d) They gave one central place to make laws, collect taxes and send orders.

Assignment

Draw a table with three columns: headquarters, period and one fact. Fill it in for Lokoja, Zungeru and Kaduna, then write two reasons why the British set up headquarters.