Frederick John Dealtry Lugard, 1st Baron Lugard (22 January 1858 – 11 April 1945), known as Sir Frederick Lugard between 1901 and 1928, was a
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
soldier, mercenary, explorer of Africa and colonial administrator. He was
Governor of Hong Kong
The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. ...
(1907–1912), the last Governor of
Southern Nigeria Protectorate
Southern Nigeria was a British Empire, British protectorate in the coastal areas of modern-day Nigeria formed in 1900 from the union of the Niger Coast Protectorate with territories chartered by the Royal Niger Company below Lokoja on the Niger ...
(1912–1914), the first High Commissioner (1900–1906) and last Governor (1912–1914) of
Northern Nigeria Protectorate
Northern Nigeria (Hausa: ''Arewacin Najeriya'') was a British protectorate which lasted from 1900 until 1914 and covered the northern part of what is now Nigeria.
The protectorate spanned and included the emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate an ...
and the first
Governor-General of Nigeria
The Governor-General of Nigeria was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom in Colonial Nigeria from 1954 to 1960, and after Nigerian independence in 1960, the representative of the Nigerian head of state.
The office was create ...
(1914–1919).
Early life and education
Lugard was born in Madras (now
Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
) in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, but was brought up in
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Englan ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. He was the son of the Reverend Frederick Grueber Lugard, a British Army chaplain at Madras, and his third wife Mary Howard (1819–1865), the youngest daughter of Reverend John Garton Howard (1786–1862), a younger son of landed gentry from
Thorne and
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
near York. His paternal uncle was Sir
Edward Lugard
Sir Edward Lugard (8 May 1810 – 31 October 1898) was a British Army officer who served as Adjutant-General in India (1857–58) and later as Permanent Under-Secretary of State for War (1861–71) at the War Office.
Early life
Lugard was son ...
,
Adjutant-General in India from 1857 to 1858 and Permanent
Under-Secretary of State for War
The position of Under-Secretary of State for War was a British government position, first applied to Evan Nepean (appointed in 1794). In 1801 the offices for War and the Colonies were merged and the post became that of Under-Secretary of State for ...
at the
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...
from 1861 to 1871. Lugard was educated at
Rossall School
Rossall School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) for 0–18 year olds, between Cleveleys and Fleetwood, Lancashire. Rossall was founded in 1844 by St Vincent Beechey as a sister school to Marlborough College ...
and the
Royal Military College, Sandhurst
The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...
. The name 'Dealtry' was in honour of
Thomas Dealtry
The Rt Rev Thomas Dealtry (1795–1861) was an Anglican bishop in the 19th century.
Life
He was born into a poor family in Knottingley in Yorkshire in 1796.
Mainly self-taught, Dealtry worked as an usher in a Doncaster school and then as tu ...
, a friend of his father.
Military career
Lugard was commissioned into the
9th Foot (East Norfolk Regiment) in 1878 and joined the second
battalion
A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
in India; he served in the
Second Anglo-Afghan War
The Second Anglo-Afghan War (Dari: جنگ دوم افغان و انگلیس, ps, د افغان-انګرېز دويمه جګړه) was a military conflict fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the l ...
(1878–1880), the
Sudan campaign
The Mahdist War ( ar, الثورة المهدية, ath-Thawra al-Mahdiyya; 1881–1899) was a war between the Mahdist Sudanese of the religious leader Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah, who had proclaimed himself the "Mahdi" of Islam (the "Guided On ...
(1884–1885) and the
Third Anglo-Burmese War
The Third Anglo-Burmese War ( my, တတိယ အင်္ဂလိပ် – မြန်မာစစ်, Tatiya Anggalip–Mran cac), also known as the Third Burma War, took place during 7–29 November 1885, with sporadic resistance conti ...
(November 1885) and was awarded the
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...
in 1887. After this promising start, his career was derailed when he fell in love with a twice married British divorcee he met in India; learning she had been injured in an accident, he abandoned his post in Burma to join her in
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
, then followed her to England. When she rejected him, Lugard decided to make a fresh start in Africa.
Karonga War
Around 1880, a group of Swahili traders under Mlozi bin Kazbadema established trading bases in the north-west sector of
Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania.
It is the fifth largest fre ...
, including a stockade at
Chilumba
Chilumba is a town in Malawi. It is an urban centre in Karonga District.
Location
Chilumba is located along the western shores of Lake Malawi, at the southern end of Karonga District, in the Northern Region, Malawi, Northern Region of Malawi. T ...
on the lake from where ivory and
slaves
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
could be shipped across the lake. In 1883 the
African Lakes Company
The African Lakes Corporation plc was a British company originally set-up in 1877 by Scottish businessmen to co-operate with Presbyterian missions in what is now Malawi. Despite its original connections with the Free Church of Scotland, it operated ...
set up a base in Karonga to exchange ivory for trade goods from these Swahili merchants.
Relations between the two groups deteriorated, partly because of the company's delays or unwillingness to provide guns, ammunition and other trade goods, and also because the Swahili traders turned more to slaving, attacking communities that the company had promised to protect, and hostilities broke out in mid-1887. The series of intermittent armed clashes that took place up to mid-1889 is known as the
Karonga War The name Karonga War is given to a number of armed clashes that took place between mid-1887 and mid-1889 near Karonga at the northern end of Lake Malawi in what is now Malawi between a Scottish trading concern called the African Lakes Company Limit ...
, or sometimes the Arab War.
The African Lakes Company depot at Karonga was evacuated at the end of the year but in May 1888, Captain Lugard, persuaded by the British Consul at Mozambique, arrived to lead an expedition against Mlozi, sponsored by the African Lakes Company but without official support from the
British government
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd
, image = HM Government logo.svg
, image_size = 220px
, image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
, image_size2 = 180px
, caption = Royal Arms
, date_es ...
.
Lugard's first expedition of May to June 1888 attacked the Swahili stockades with limited success and, in the course of one attack, Lugard was wounded and withdrew south. Lugard's second expedition in December 1888 to March 1889 was larger and included a
7-pounder gun, which, however, failed to breach the stockade walls. Following this second failure, Lugard left the Lake Malawi region for Britain in April 1889.
Exploration of East Africa
![Frederick John Dealtry Lugard, Vanity Fair, 1895-12-19](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Frederick_John_Dealtry_Lugard%2C_Vanity_Fair%2C_1895-12-19.jpg)
After leaving Nyasaland in April 1889, Lugard accepted a position with the
Imperial British East Africa Company
The Imperial British East Africa Company (IBEAC) was a commercial association founded to develop African trade in the areas controlled by the British Empire. The company was incorporated in London on 18 April 1888 and granted a royal charter by Q ...
(IBEAC) and arrived in
Mombasa
Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...
on the coast of east Africa that December.
A year earlier in 1888, the IBEAC had been granted a royal charter by Queen Victoria to colonise the 'British sphere of influence' between
Zanzibar
Zanzibar (; ; ) is an insular semi-autonomous province which united with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. It is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of many small islands ...
and Uganda and were keen to open a trading route between Lake Victoria in Uganda and the coastal port of Mombasa. Their first interior trading post was established at
Machakos
Machakos, also called Masaku is a town in Kenya, southeast of Nairobi. It is the capital of the Machakos County, Kenya. Its population is rapidly growing and was 150,041 as of 2009 and Machakos County had a population of 1,421,932 as of 2019 ...
240 miles in from the coast. But the established traditional route to Machakos was a treacherous journey through the large
Taru Desert
Taru may refer to:
People Given or middle name
* Taru Kuoppa (born 1983), Finnish competitive archer
* Taru Mäkelä (born 1959), Finnish film director and screenwriter
* Taru Rinne (born 1968), Finnish motorcycle racer
* Bhai Taru Singh (1720– ...
—93 miles of scorching dust bowl.
Lugard's first mission was to determine the feasibility of a route from Mombasa to Machakos that would bypass the Taru Desert. He explored the
Sabaki River
The Athi-Galana-Sabaki River is the second longest river in Kenya (after the Tana River). It has a total length of , and drains an area of . The river rises in the Gatamaiyo Forest as the Athi River and enters the Indian Ocean as the Galana Riv ...
and the neighbouring region, in addition to elaborating a scheme for the emancipation of the
slaves held by Arabs in the
Zanzibar mainland.
On 6 August 1890, Lugard began his caravan expedition to Uganda, accompanied by five other Europeans -
George Wilson, Fenwick De Winton (son of
Francis de Winton
Major-General Sir Francis Walter de Winton (21 June 1835 – 16 December 1901) was a British Army officer, colonial administrator and courtier in the Household of the Duke of York.
Early life
De Winton was born at Pitsford, Northamptonshire i ...
- Lugard's other chief), William Grant and Archibald Brown.
![Captain Lugard, F](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Captain_Lugard%2C_F._de_Winton_and_Grant_at_Kampala%2C_Mengo.png)
Departing from Mombasa towards
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
to secure British predominance over German influence in the area and put an end to the civil disturbances between factions in the
kingdom of Buganda
Buganda is a Bantu kingdom within Uganda. The kingdom of the Baganda people, Buganda is the largest of the traditional kingdoms in present-day East Africa, consisting of Buganda's Central Region, including the Ugandan capital Kampala. The 14 m ...
.
En route, Lugard was instructed to enter into treaties with local tribes and build forts in order to secure safe passage for future IBEAC expeditions. The IBEAC employed official treaty documents that were signed by their administrator and the local leaders but Lugard preferred the more equitable
blood brother
Blood brother can refer to two or more men not related by birth who have sworn loyalty to each other. This is in modern times usually done in a ceremony, known as a blood oath, where each person makes a small cut, usually on a finger, hand or ...
hood ceremony
and entered into several brotherhood partnerships with leaders who inhabited the areas between Mombasa and Uganda. One of his famed blood partnerships was sealed in October 1890 during his journey to Uganda when he stopped at
Dagoretti Dagoretti is an area in the western part of Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. It straddles the Nairobi and Kiambu County boundary with the Dagoretti Road Reserve marking the psychological border point heading Northerly and North-Easterly. Administrativ ...
in Kikuyu territory and entered into an alliance with
Waiyaki Wa Hinga
Waiyaki Wa Hinga, was an Agikuyu chieftain who was the ruler of South Gikuyu. Waiyaki signed a treaty with Frederick Lugard of the British East Africa Company. However, after becoming frustrated with the increasing number of European settlers, Wa ...
.
Lugard was Military Administrator of Uganda from 26 December 1890 to May 1892. While administering Uganda, he journeyed round the
Rwenzori Mountains
The Ruwenzori, also spelled Rwenzori and Rwenjura, are a range of mountains in eastern equatorial Africa, located on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The highest peak of the Ruwenzori reaches , and the range' ...
to
Lake Edward
Lake Edward (locally Rwitanzigye or Rweru) is one of the smaller African Great Lakes. It is located in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift, on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, w ...
, mapping a large area of the country. He also visited
Lake Albert and brought away some thousands of
Sudanese who had been left there by
Emin Pasha
185px, Schnitzer in 1875
Mehmed Emin Pasha (born Isaak Eduard Schnitzer, baptized Eduard Carl Oscar Theodor Schnitzer; March 28, 1840 – October 23, 1892) was an Ottoman physician of German Jewish origin, naturalist, and governor of the Egyp ...
and
H. M. Stanley during the
Emin Pasha Relief Expedition
The Emin Pasha Relief Expedition of 1886 to 1889 was one of the last major European expeditions into the interior of Africa in the nineteenth century, ostensibly to the relief of Emin Pasha, General Charles Gordon's besieged governor of Equato ...
.
When Lugard returned to England in 1892, he successfully dissuaded Prime Minister
William Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...
from allowing the IBEAC to abandon Uganda.
Early colonial service
In 1894, Lugard was dispatched by the
Royal Niger Company
The Royal Niger Company was a mercantile company chartered by the British government in the nineteenth century. It was formed in 1879 as the ''United African Company '' and renamed to ''National African Company'' in 1881 and to ''Royal Niger Co ...
to
Borgu
Borgu is a region in north-west Nigeria and in the northern Republic of Benin. It was partitioned between Great Britain and France by the Anglo-French Convention of 1898.
People of Borgu are known as Bariba or Borgawa.
History
According to the ...
, where he secured treaties with the kings and chiefs who acknowledged the sovereignty of the British company, while reducing the influence of other colonial powers. From 1896 to 1897, Lugard took charge of an expedition to
Lake Ngami
Lake Ngami is an endorheic lake in Botswana north of the Kalahari Desert. It is seasonally filled by the Taughe River, an effluent of the Okavango River system flowing out of the western side of the Okavango Delta. It is one of the fragmented remn ...
, in modern-day
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
, on behalf of the British West Charterland Company. He was recalled from Ngami by the British government and sent to West Africa, where he was commissioned to raise a native force to protect British interests in the hinterland of the
Lagos Colony
Lagos Colony was a British colonial possession centred on the port of Lagos in what is now southern Nigeria. Lagos was annexed on 6 August 1861 under the threat of force by Commander Beddingfield of HMS Prometheus who was accompanied by the Ac ...
and
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
against French aggression. In August 1897, Lugard organised the
West African Frontier Force
The West African Frontier Force (WAFF) was a multi-battalion field force, formed by the British Colonial Office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia. In 1928, it received royal recognition ...
and commanded it until the end of December 1899, when the disputes with France were settled.
After relinquishing command of the West African Frontier Force, Lugard was appointed
High Commissioner of the newly created
Protectorate of Northern Nigeria
Northern Nigeria (Hausa: ''Arewacin Najeriya'') was a British protectorate which lasted from 1900 until 1914 and covered the northern part of what is now Nigeria.
The protectorate spanned and included the emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate an ...
. He was present at
Mount Patti
The Mount Patti Hill is a 1503 foot-tall (458 m) mountain and tourist attraction in Lokoja, Nigeria. It is famous for being the place where British journalist and writer Flora Louise Shaw (later Flora Lugard) gave Nigeria its name.
The name (N ...
,
Lokoja
Lokoja is a city in Nigeria. It lies at the confluence of the Niger and Benue rivers and is the capital city of Kogi State. While the Yoruba (Oworo), Bassa Nge and Nupe are indigenous to the area, other ethnic groups of Nigeria, including the ...
and read the proclamation that established the protectorate on 1 January 1900. At that time, the portion of Northern Nigeria under effective control was small, and Lugard's task in organising this vast territory was made more difficult by the refusal of the sultan of
Sokoto
Sokoto is a major city located in extreme northwestern Nigeria, near the confluence of the Sokoto River and the Rima River. As of 2006 it has a population of over 427,760. Sokoto is the modern-day capital of Sokoto State and was previously the c ...
and many other
Fula
Fula may refer to:
*Fula people (or Fulani, Fulɓe)
*Fula language (or Pulaar, Fulfulde, Fulani)
**The Fula variety known as the Pulaar language
**The Fula variety known as the Pular language
**The Fula variety known as Maasina Fulfulde
*Al-Fula
...
princes to fulfill their treaty obligations.
In 1903, British control over the whole
protectorate
A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over m ...
was made possible by a successful campaign against the
emir of Kano
Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or ceremo ...
and the
sultan of Sokoto
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
. By the time Lugard resigned as commissioner in 1906, the entire region of what would eventually be transformed into modern-day Nigeria was being peacefully administered under the supervision of British
residents.
Lugard was knighted in the
1901 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 1901 were appointments to Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, various orders and honours of the United Kingdom and British Raj, British India.
The list was published in ''The Times'' on 1 January 1901, and t ...
for his service in Nigeria.
Lugard restored peace and order, and suppressed
Fulani
The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
despotism
Despotism ( el, Δεσποτισμός, ''despotismós'') is a form of government in which a single entity rules with absolute power. Normally, that entity is an individual, the despot; but (as in an autocracy) societies which limit respect and ...
. He also stopped
slave raiding
Slave raiding is a military raid for the purpose of capturing people and bringing them from the raid area to serve as slaves. Once seen as a normal part of warfare, it is nowadays widely considered a crime. Slave raiding has occurred since ant ...
and abolished
slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
and the
slave trade
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
. He began developing the country by getting it surveyed, mapped, and improved transport and communications. He also re-organised the
taxation system
A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
. Lugard is most importantly remembered for his political system of rule which was practised in Nigeria, called
indirect rule
Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by variou ...
, particularly in
Igboland
Igboland (Standard ), also known as Southeastern Nigeria (but extends into South-Southern Nigeria), is the indigenous homeland of the Igbo people.
It is a cultural and common linguistic region in southern Nigeria. Geographically, it is divided b ...
.
Governor of Hong Kong
About a year after he resigned as High Commissioner of the
Protectorate of Northern Nigeria
Northern Nigeria (Hausa: ''Arewacin Najeriya'') was a British protectorate which lasted from 1900 until 1914 and covered the northern part of what is now Nigeria.
The protectorate spanned and included the emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate an ...
, Lugard was appointed
Governor of Hong Kong
The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. ...
, a position he held until March 1912. During his tenure, Lugard proposed to return
Weihaiwei
Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea.
Weihai's popula ...
to the Chinese government, in return for the ceding of the rented
New Territories
The New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of Hong Kong. Historically, it ...
in perpetuity. However, the proposal was neither well received nor acted upon. Some believed that if the proposal were carried through, Hong Kong might forever remain in British hands.
Lugard's chief interest was education and he was largely remembered for his efforts to the founding of the
University of Hong Kong
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fi ...
in 1911. He became the first chancellor, despite a cold reception from the
Colonial Office
The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of col ...
and local British companies, such as the
Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (), commonly known as HSBC (), was the parent entity of the multinational HSBC banking group until 1991, and is now its Hong Kong-based Asia-Pacific subsidiary. The largest bank in Hong K ...
. The Colonial Office called the idea of a university "Sir Frederick's pet lamb". Lugard's chief impetus from founding the university was to have it serve as a bearer of
Western culture
Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''.
image:Plato Pio-Cle ...
in
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
. He expected the university, however, to adopt a politically conservative framework supportive of the colonial authorities and refrain from teaching ideas such as
democracy
Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...
or
equality
Equality may refer to:
Society
* Political equality, in which all members of a society are of equal standing
** Consociationalism, in which an ethnically, religiously, or linguistically divided state functions by cooperation of each group's elite ...
. He was financially backed by his personal friend
Sir Horsusjee Naorojee Mody who shared the same vision for the establishment of a university in Hong Kong.
Governor of Nigeria
In 1912, Lugard returned to Nigeria as Governor of the two protectorates. His mission was to combine the two colonies into one. Although controversial in Lagos, where it was opposed by a large section of the political class and the media, the amalgamation did not arouse passion in the rest of the country because the people were unaware of the implications. Lugard took scant notice of public opinion, neither did he feel there was need for consensus among the locals on such a serious political subject which had such key implications for the two colonies. From 1914 to 1919, Lugard served as Governor General of the now combined colony of Nigeria. Throughout his tenure, he sought strenuously to secure the amelioration of the condition of the native people, among other means by the exclusion, wherever possible, of alcoholic liquors, and by the suppression of slave raiding and slavery.
Lugard, assisted by his indefatigable wife,
Flora Shaw
Dame Flora Louise Shaw, Lady Lugard (born 19 December 1852 – 25 January 1929), was a British journalist and writer. She is credited with having coined the name ''Nigeria''.
Early life
She was born at 2 Dundas Terrace, Woolwich, South Lond ...
, concocted a legend which warped understanding of him, Nigeria and colonial rule for decades. He believed that "the typical African ... is a happy, thriftless, excitable person, lacking in self control, discipline and foresight, naturally courageous, courteous and polite, full of personal vanity, with little of veracity; in brief, the virtues and defects of this race-type are those of attractive children."
Funding of the colony of Nigeria in the development of state's infrastructure such as harbours, railways and hospitals in Southern Nigeria came from revenue generated by taxes on imported alcohol. In Northern Nigeria, the revenue that allowed state development projects was less because the taxes was absent and thus funding of projects was covered from revenue generated in the south.
The
Adubi War
The Adubi War (known locally as Ogun Adubi or Egba Uprising) was a conflict in June and July 1918 in the British Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria ostensibly because of the imposition of colonial taxation. Direct taxes were introduced by the col ...
occurred during his governorship. In Northern Nigeria, Lugard permitted slavery within traditional native elite families. He loathed the educated and sophisticated Africans of the coastal regions. Lugard ran the country whilst spending half each year in England, where he could promote himself and was distant from realities in Africa, where subordinates had to delay decisions on many matters until he returned. He based his rule on a military system—unlike
William MacGregor
Sir William MacGregor, (20 October 1846 – 3 July 1919)R. B. Joyce,', ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 5, Melbourne University Press, 1974, pp 158–160. Retrieved 29 September 2009 was a Lieutenant-Governor of British New Guine ...
, a doctor turned governor, who mixed with all ranks of people and listened to what was wanted. The Lugard who opposed "native education" later became involved in
Hong Kong University
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fir ...
, and the man who disliked traders and businessmen became a director of a Nigerian bank.
When the British Government decided to raise a local militia to protect the western frontier of the Royal Niger Company's territory against French advance from
Dahomey
The Kingdom of Dahomey () was a West African kingdom located within present-day Benin that existed from approximately 1600 until 1904. Dahomey developed on the Abomey Plateau amongst the Fon people in the early 17th century and became a region ...
, Lugard was sent and he successfully organised the
West African Frontier Force
The West African Frontier Force (WAFF) was a multi-battalion field force, formed by the British Colonial Office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia. In 1928, it received royal recognition ...
, which he used successfully to defend not only the western but the northern frontiers of Nigeria from French encroachment. This saved Nigeria from the assimilation issues of the French.
Lugard's greatest contribution to the making of Modern Nigeria was the successful amalgamation of the North and South in 1914. Even after the amalgamation, the two parts remained as two separate countries with separate administrations. "Though in doing this, he aimed primarily at making the wealth and seaport facilities of the South available to the North, he had in fact fashioned the political unity of the
Giant of Africa
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...
. " As noted earlier, amalgamation of Nigeria helped in making Nigeria to have common telegraphs, railways, customs and excise, a
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
, a standard time, a common currency, and a common civil service, he introduced all the necessities needed for infrastructure in a modern state.
More importantly, he laid the foundations of continuous legislative assemblies in Nigeria by establishing the Nigerian council in 1914. It consisted of the Governor, Chief Secretary and a few nominated members who met to listen to government policies and give their advice. Unfortunately, it legislated only for the South. It could be referred to as a mock parliament because it set pace for the
Legislative Council of later years.
In spite of his contributions, Lugard's work was not without faults. "He aimed at creating in Nigeria one administrative unit but he did not intend to create a Nigerian nation". Instead, his policy of isolating the North from the South, a policy which his successors maintained had a hand in the present disunity of Nigeria till today. An example is the exclusion of the North from the Legislative Council until 1947. "Thus, it can be said that Lugard sowed the seeds of separatist tendency which has still plagued Nigerian unity".
Lugard was also partly responsible for the backwardness in the education and other social services of the Northerners And this is the reason for the South's advance in education over the North.
To sum it up, Lugard's attitude to Nigeria implied that he did not envisage self-government for Nigeria. He planned for perpetual
British colonialism
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. I ...
. "His system of
Indirect Rule
Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by variou ...
, his hostility towards educated Nigerians in the South, and his system of education for the North which aimed at training only the sons of the chiefs and emirs as clerks and interpreters show him as one of Britain's arch-imperialists", says K. B. C. Onwubiko.
''The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa''
Lugard's ''The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa'' was published in 1922 and discussed
indirect rule
Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by variou ...
in colonial Africa.
He argued that administration of Africa could simultaneously promote the well-being of the inhabitants and develop the resources of the continent for the benefit of mankind.
He defended British colonial practices, in particular the system of indirect rule that he introduced in Nigeria.
In this work, Lugard outlined the reasons and methods that he recommended for the colonisation of Africa. Some of his justifications for establishing colonial rule included spreading Christianity and ending barbaric practises by African such as
human sacrifice
Human sacrifice is the act of killing one or more humans as part of a ritual, which is usually intended to please or appease gods, a human ruler, an authoritative/priestly figure or spirits of dead ancestors or as a retainer sacrifice, wherein ...
. He also saw state-sponsored colonisation as a way to protect missionaries, local chiefs and local people from each other, as well as from foreign powers. For Lugard, it was also vital that Britain gain control of unclaimed areas before
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
or
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
claimed the land and its resources for themselves. He realised that there were vast profits to be made through the export of resources such as rubber, and through taxation of native populations as well as importers and exporters (the British taxpayer continually made a loss from the colonies in this period). In addition, these resources and inexpensive native labour (slavery having been
abolished by Britain in 1833) would provide vital fuel for the industrial revolution in resource-depleted Britain, as well as monies for public works projects. Finally, Lugard reasoned that colonisation had become a fad and that, in order to remain a global power, Britain would need to hold colonies to avoid appearing weak.
William Rappard
William Emmanuel Rappard (April 22, 1883, New York City – April 29, 1958) was a Swiss academic and diplomat.
Rappard was as a co-founder of the Graduate Institute of International Studies (now IHEID), Professor of Economic History at the Univer ...
was influenced by Lugard's book.
He sought to get Lugard appointed to the
Permanent Mandates Commission
The Permanent Mandates Commission (PMC) was the commission of the League of Nations responsible for oversight of mandated territories. The commission was established on 1 December 1920 and was headquartered at Geneva.
The existence of the Commis ...
of the
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
.
League of Nations and Abolitionist activism
Between 1922 and 1936, Lugard was the British representative on the League of Nations' Permanent Mandates Commission. Lugard saw imperial administration in moral terms and advocated for humane principles of colonial rule.
He saw the role of the Permanent Mandates Commission as involving standard-setting and oversight, whereas actual administration should be left to national powers.
Lugard supported General
George Spafford Richardson
Major-General Sir George Spafford Richardson, (14 November 1868 – 11 June 1938) was a senior officer in the New Zealand Military Forces.
Born in Northamptonshire, England, Richardson originally served with the British Army's Royal Regi ...
's repressive rule of Western Samoa. Lugard criticized European settlers and Samoans who engaged in "interracial mobilization."
Lugard played a key role in drafting a Commission report that exonerated Richardson's governance of Western Samoa and placed the blame of the Western Samoa unrest on the anti-colonial activist
Olaf Frederick Nelson
Ta'isi Olaf Frederick Nelson (24 February 1883 – 28 February 1944) was a Samoan businessman and politician. He was one of the founding leaders of the anti-colonial Mau movement.
Biography
Nelson was born on 24 February 1883 in Safune on th ...
.
During this period he served first on the
Temporary Slavery Commission and was involved in organising the
1926 Slavery Convention. He had submitted a proposal for the convention to the British government. Although they were initially alarmed by it, the British government backed the proposal (after subjecting it to considerable redrafting) and it was eventually enacted.
Lugard served on the
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...
's Committee of Experts on Native Labour from 1925 to 1941.
Views
Lugard pushed for native rule in African colonies. He reasoned that black Africans were very different from white Europeans, although he did speculate on the admixture of
Aryan
Aryan or Arya (, Indo-Iranian *''arya'') is a term originally used as an ethnocultural self-designation by Indo-Iranians in ancient times, in contrast to the nearby outsiders known as 'non-Aryan' (*''an-arya''). In Ancient India, the term ' ...
or
Hamitic
Hamites is the name formerly used for some Northern and Horn of Africa peoples in the context of a now-outdated model of dividing humanity into different races which was developed originally by Europeans in support of colonialism and slavery. ...
blood arising from the advent of
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
among the
Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also
* ...
and
Fulani
The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
. He considered that natives should act as a sort of middle manager in colonial governance. This would avoid revolt because, he believed, the people of Africa would be more likely to follow someone who looked like them, spoke their languages and shared their customs.
Olúfẹmi Táíwò argues that Lugard blocked Africans who had been educated in Europe from playing an active role in the development of Colonial Nigeria; he distrusted white "intellectuals" as much as black ones, believing that the principles they were taught in the universities were often wrong. Lugard preferred to advance prominent Hausa and Fulani leaders from traditional structures.
Lugard was an advocate for European
paternalist
Paternalism is action that limits a person's or group's liberty or autonomy and is intended to promote their own good. Paternalism can also imply that the behavior is against or regardless of the will of a person, or also that the behavior expres ...
governance over Africans. He described Africans as holding "the position of a late-born child in the family of nations, and must as yet be schooled in the discipline of the nursery."
Honours
Lugard was appointed a Companion of the
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...
(CB) in 1895. He was knighted as a Knight Commander of the
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III.
...
(KCMG) in the
1901 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 1901 were appointments to Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, various orders and honours of the United Kingdom and British Raj, British India.
The list was published in ''The Times'' on 1 January 1901, and t ...
[ and raised to a Knight Grand Cross (GCMG) in 1911. He was appointed to the ]Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
in the 1920 New Year Honours. In 1928 he was further honoured when he was elevated to the peerage as Baron Lugard, of Abinger
Abinger is a large, well-wooded and mostly rural civil parish that lies between the settlements of Dorking, Shere and Ewhurst in the district of Mole Valley, Surrey, England.
It adjoins Wotton Common on the same side of Leith Hill and inclu ...
in the County of Surrey.
The Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
awarded him the Founder's Medal in 1902 for persistent attention to African geography.
A bronze bust of Lugard, created by Pilkington Jackson
Charles d’Orville Pilkington Jackson Royal Scottish Academy, RSA, FRBS, FRSA (11 October 1887 – 20 September 1973) was a British sculptor prominent in Scotland in the 20th Century. Throughout his career he worked closely with the architect S ...
in 1960, is held in the National Portrait Gallery, London
The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...
.
Personal life
Lugard married, on 10 June 1902, Flora Shaw
Dame Flora Louise Shaw, Lady Lugard (born 19 December 1852 – 25 January 1929), was a British journalist and writer. She is credited with having coined the name ''Nigeria''.
Early life
She was born at 2 Dundas Terrace, Woolwich, South Lond ...
, daughter of Major-General George Shaw, and granddaughter of Sir Frederick Shaw, 3rd Baronet
Sir Frederick Shaw, 3rd Baronet (11 December 1799 – 30 June 1876) was an Irish Conservative MP in the United Kingdom Parliament, and a judge.
He was the second son of Colonel Sir Robert Shaw, Bt of Bushy Park, Dublin and his first wife Mar ...
. She was a foreign correspondent for ''The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' and coined the place name ''Nigeria''. There were no children from the marriage. She died in January 1929; Lugard survived her by sixteen years and died on 11 April 1945, aged 87. Since he was childless, the barony became extinct. He was cremated at Woking
Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...
Crematorium.
Published works
*In 1893, Lugard published ''The Rise of our East African Empire'', which was partially an autobiography. He was also the author of various valuable reports on Northern Nigeria issued by the Colonial Office
The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of col ...
.
*''The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa'', 1922.
See also
* Indirect rule
Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by variou ...
* Richmond Palmer
Sir Herbert Richmond Palmer (25 April 1877 – 22 May 1958) was an English barrister, who became a colonial supervisor for Britain during the inter-World War period. He served as a Lieutenant Governor in Nigeria, Governor and Commander-in-Chief ...
* Frank Lugard Brayne
Frank Lugard Brayne (6 January 1882 – 3 April 1952) was an administrator in the Indian Civil Service (ICS) during the British Raj era. A nephew of Lord Lugard, who was zealous in his attempts to improve what he considered to be a "backward" Af ...
* George Wilson (Chief Colonial Secretary of Uganda)
George Wilson CB (of the civil division) (13 May 1862 - 12 December 1943) also known as ''bwana tayari'' - "Mr ready", amongst natives in the East Africa protectorate region, was a general African staff employee of the Imperial British East Af ...
References
*
* Biography, ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
''
Further reading
*
*
*
* Meyer, Karl E. and Shareen Blair Brysac. ''Kingmakers: The Invention of the Modern Middle East'' (2009) pp 59–93.
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Archives Hub:Papers of Frederick Dealtry Lugard, Baron Lugard of Abinger: 1871–1969
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lugard, Frederick
1858 births
1945 deaths
Military personnel from Worcester, England
People educated at Rossall School
Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
Royal Norfolk Regiment officers
Royal West African Frontier Force officers
British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Afghan War
British Army personnel of the Mahdist War
British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Burmese War
Lugard, Frederick Lugard, 1st Baron
English explorers
Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
Explorers of Africa
Governors of Hong Kong
British Governors and Governors-General of Nigeria
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
Companions of the Order of the Bath
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Vice-Chancellors of the University of Hong Kong
Nigeria in World War I
British expatriates in Hong Kong
History of Lagos
Military personnel of British India
20th-century Hong Kong people
20th-century British politicians
Barons created by George V