His Majesty Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa (24 August 1914 – 17 February 2003) was King of

Nembe Kingdom The Nembe Kingdom is a traditional state in Niger Delta. It includes the Nembe and Brass Local Government Areas of Bayelsa State, Nigeria. The traditional rulers take the title "Amanyanabo". Today, leadership is split between the Amanyanabos of O ...

from 1980 until his death. He is also by birth related to the Ossomari royal family through his grandmother Omu Okwei (the merchant queen of Onitsha). He succeeded his father His Royal Majesty Francis Ossomade Joseph Allagoa (Mingi X) Amanyanabo of Nembe on 12 April 1980, being styled His Royal Majesty Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa Mingi XI Amanyanabo of Nembe-Ibe Kingdom

Early life

Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa MINGI XI was born on 24 August 1914, the second son of His Royal Majesty King Francis Ossomade Joseph Allagoa MINGI X and Madam Nwaokiri Rose Onyeka. He was educated at the Government School Owerri in 1927; the St Mary's Primary School in Port Harcourt (1927–32), and a pioneer student of

Christ the King College, Onitsha Christ the King College, Onitsha (CKC), popularly known as CKC Onitsha, or Amaka Boys, is a Catholic all-boys secondary school in Onitsha, Nigeria. It is ranked the top-ranked high school in Nigeria and 36th in the top 100 best high schools in Af ...

(1933–36). He joined the

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

in November 1944 and was subsequently called to the

English bar Barristers in England and Wales are one of the two main categories of lawyer in England and Wales, the other being solicitors. Barristers have traditionally had the role of handling cases for representation in court, both defence and prosecutio ...

on 26 January 1950.

Political career

After successfully being called to the English Bar in 1950, he returned to the city of Port Harcourt in the old eastern Region of Nigeria where the independence movement was growing. He served as Deputy Mayor of Port Harcourt Municipal Council between 1951 and 59, when he was elected as the 2nd Mayor of Port Harcourt Municipal Council taking over from Mayor Richard Okwosha Nzimiro in 1959. He served in this capacity for three years, giving the city of Port Harcourt the name Garden City. He served his tenure as mayor of Port Harcourt where he invited the Prime Minister of Nigeria Sir Alhaji Tafawa Balewa and the Premier of the Eastern Region, Chief

Michael Okpara Michael Iheonukara Okpara (25 December 1920 – 17 December 1984) was a Nigerian politician and Premier of Eastern Nigeria during the First Republic, from 1959 to 1966. At 39, he was the nation's youngest Premier. He was a strong advocate of wh ...

to the city of Port Harcourt.

Working career

Upon completion of his secondary school education at

, young Ambrose successfully sat for and made distinctions in his senior Cambridge Certificate exam and was subsequently employed in the Civil Service of the then

Eastern Region of Nigeria The Eastern Region was an administrative region in Nigeria, dating back originally from the division of the colony Southern Nigeria in 1954. Its first capital was Calabar. The capital was later moved to Enugu and the second capital was Umuahia. Th ...

where he worked as a clerk in the judiciary of the Eastern Region government for a few years. He gained a lot of exposure and experience which were vital in his life. His working career took him to Lagos, Enugu and Port Harcourt where he served diligently as a clerk of court before proceeding to the

for his qualification as a lawyer. On his return from England as a lawyer, he commenced his legal practice, setting up his Law firm in the oil rich city of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. He had a successful career in the legal profession and this won him the respect and admiration of many lawyers. He was elevated to the bench as a High Court Judge in 1962 by the then Eastern Region of Nigeria Government where he served as a Judge of the Eastern Region in cities like

Abakaliki Abakaliki is the capital city of Ebonyi State in southeastern Nigeria, located southeast of Enugu. The inhabitants are primarily members of the Igbo nation. It was the headquarters of the Ogoja province before the creation of the Southeastern ...

Nsukka Nsukka is a town and a Local Government Area in Enugu State, Nigeria. Nsukka shares a common border as a town with Edem, Opi (archaeological site), Ede-Oballa, and Obimo. The postal code of the area is 410001 and 410002 respectively referr ...

, Ikot Ekpene,

Umuahia Umuahia () is the capital city of Abia State in southeastern Nigeria. Umuahia is located along the rail road that lies between Port Harcourt to its south,and Enugu city to its north. Umuahia has a population of 359,230 according to the 2006 Nig ...

, and Port Harcourt. In 1976, he was appointed the first indigenous Chief Judge of Old Rivers State in 1976. And the second

Chief Judge of Rivers state The Chief Judge of Rivers State, also known as the Chief Judge of the High Court of Justice, is the title and office of the head of the judicial branch of Rivers State. The Chief Judge presides over the state's High Court, and is usually the mo ...

. He retired three years later on 24 September 1979, having attained the requisite retirement age of 65 years. His Lordship (late) H.R.M. Justice Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa is mostly remembered for the celebrated judgment in the famous Amakiri v. Iwowari case where he exhibited rare courage in the award of damages in favor of the injured journalist Amakiri.

Religion

His maternal great grandfather (King Atamanya- Nzedegwu of Ossomari) invited Roman Catholic priests into his Ossomari Kingdom and the young Ambrose growing up in Ossomari became an adherent catholic faithful. His Majesty Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa was a devout Catholic; he fully identified with the objectives of the Roman Catholic Church and was a worthy knight of the Roman Catholic Church. According to an oration presented by The Order Of the Knights of Saint Mulumba, KSM, Port Harcourt in honor of His Majesty the King:

''"We recall the crucial role he played as a Catholic in post-war Rivers state. At the end of the civil war, Catholics generally were haunted in Rivers state. In spite of this unwholesome phenomenon, he not only stood firm in the Catholic Church, but also participated and supported the persecuted clergy. He assisted the Catholic Church immensely in identifying and recovering some of her properties at the end of the war in Rivers state. His full participation during Corpus Christi procession, in spite of acute challenges of age, epitomized his commitment to the Catholic faith."''

Reign

His Majesty Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa was crowned king on the 12th of April, 1980 in succession to his father and as Mingi XI he reigned for 23 years EQ9nEzDXsAA1vt6

. Upon the creation of

Bayelsa state Bayelsa is one of the states in the South-South region of Nigeria, located in the core of the Niger Delta region. Bayelsa State was created in 1996 and was carved out from Rivers State, making it one of the newest states in the federation. Yenag ...

out of the old River state in 1996, he contributed immensely to the success of the newly created state. His Majesty was the Chairman of the Traditional Rulers Council both in Rivers State and in Bayelsa State where he moved to restore peace among the coastal communities.

Titles

Monarchical style of King Ambrose Allagoa Amanyanabo of Nembe, Mingi the 11th *Reference style: His Majesty *Spoken style: Your Majesty *Alternative style: Mingi XI

Honours

Commander of the Order of the Niger Nigeria became an independent country on 1 October 1960 and in 1963 became the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The republic instituted two orders of merit: the Order of the Niger and the Order of the Federal Republic. Award The two highest honour ...

, CON in 1978 * Grand Knight of Saint Sylvester conferred on him by

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

in 1977 * Knight of St. Gregory conferred on him by

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

in 1978 * Honorary Citizen of Maryland, USA conferred on him by Governor Preston Smith in 1972 * Pro-Chancellor,

University of Ilorin University of Ilorin, also known as Unilorin, is a federal government-owned university in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria. It was established by a decree of the federal military government in August, 1975. The establishment aimed to implement one o ...

1978 * Pro-Chancellor, University of Sokoto 1982-83, * Chancellor,

Federal University of Technology, Owerri The Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) is a federal government university in Owerri West, the capital of Imo State, Nigeria. The university is bounded by the communities of Eziobodo, Umuchima, Ihiagwa and Obinze. It is the premier ...

1985-2000.

Sources

*Ebiegberi Joe-Allagoa: Genealogy of His Majesty Justice Ambrose Ezeolisa Allagoa, MINGI XI Amanyanabo of Nembe (c) 2006 *Funeral Oration Presented by The Order Of The Knights Of Saint Mulumba, KSM, Port Harcourt (c) 2006 *Robert Nabena: The Royal Root Of His Royal Majesty Francis Ossomade Joseph Allagoa MINGI X Amanyanabo of Nembe. A Historical *Perspective: The Culture, Tradition, Monuments And Economic Life Of The Nembe People. (c) 2014 *Robert Nabena: Break Off The Limits (c) 2013, Green And Cherished Limited. *Robert Nabena: LIFE & TIMES OF HRM AMBROSE E. ALLAGOA *Ebiegberi Joe Alagoa: Kaliye Opuye, Opuye Kaliye 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allagoa, Ezeolisa 1914 births 2003 deaths Kings of Nembe Knights of St. Gregory the Great Commanders of the Order of the Niger Lawyers from Port Harcourt Members of Lincoln's Inn