The British used Lagos as the starting point for their expansion into Yorubaland. The primary driver of British authority growth outside of Lagos was finance. The governors had little choice but to impose customs duties as the British government was unwilling to foot the bill for managing the governance of Lagos. That was Freeman’s only practical option. To enforce the imposition, trade with the Hinterland was controlled by extending the borders east and west along the coast. Furthermore, the Lagos colony’s ability to fully develop its commerce was contingent upon the opening of the interior. Lagos’ reliance on hinterland trade meant that the colony was directly impacted by the fortunes of those living in the hinterland, particularly the Egba, Ijebu, and Ibadan.
For instance, the Egba and its allies barricaded the route connecting Ibadan to Lagos in 1864 during the Ijaye War with the intention of preventing Ibadan from having access to weapons.
Ikorodu was also under siege by Egba soldiers. Lagos trade declined mostly because of these blockades. In March 1865, Glover, who was the Lagos Governor at the time, led an attack on the Egba in Ikorodu. Glover was able to stop the French from advancing at Porto Novo, and he formed treaties with the local authorities, bringing Ado, Ipokia, Okeodan, Ebute metta, and Badagry within the control of Lagos.
Under Carter, the true push into Yorubaland began. In 1891, the British administration in Yorubaland faced significant challenges due to the blockades imposed by the Egba/Ijebu alliance.
When Denton, the acting governor during Maloney’s term, visited Ijebu, the Awujale did not take kindly to him. Denton insisted that the “insult” be apologized for. In addition to the apology, he was able to get the Ijebu to sign a treaty promising to open the highways that traveled through their nation during a summit in Lagos in 1891. However, the Awujale and Ibadan got into a fight, which led to the treaty being violated sooner rather than later. He accused two missionaries in Ibadan of bringing Europeans and their goods into his domain without authorization, and he wanted their execution. The Awujale blocked the routes connecting Ibadan to the coast, which had the typical negative impact on business in Lagos.
The Lagos administration prepared a military expedition in response, mostly to make sure the roads stayed open. The expedition marched against Ijebu on May 16, 1892. In three days, despite their resistance, the Ijebu were vanquished. To increase Lagos’s trade, the roads passing through Ijebu were opened right away.
In Egba territory, the setback had political repercussions. The Egba made peace with Lagos a few months after the Ijebu loss and allowed trade on all routes and waterways. The Yoruba now offered no further threat to the spread of British invasion and colonialism, with the exception of a few isolated incidents of resistance like that of Oyo in 1895. Carter began his mission throughout Yorubaland in the beginning of 1893 as a result of Egba’s prompt submission. He traveled to Abeokuta, where he and the Egba formed a pact of friendship and trade. The Egba succeeded in getting a clause securing their “independence” included in the pact. In 1914, this phrase was removed. Carter relocated from Abeokuta to Oyo, then to Illorin and Ibadan.
A history of Yoruba people.
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