Federation of Nigeria

For the autonomous British territory named Federation of Nigeria from 1954 to 1960, see Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria

Commonwealth realm

←

1960–1963

→


Flag	Coat of arms

Motto
"Unity and Faith"

Anthem
Nigeria, We Hail Thee

Royal anthem
God Save the Queen

Capital

Lagos

Languages

English
Hausa · Igbo · Yoruba

Government

Constitutional monarchy

Monarch

1960–1963

Elizabeth II

Governor-General

1960

Sir James Wilson Robertson

1960–1963

Nnamdi Azikiwe

Prime Minister

1960–1963

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa

Legislature

Parliament^[1]

Upper house

Senate

Lower house

House of Representatives

Historical era

Cold War

Independence

1 October 1960

Republic

1 October 1963

Currency

Nigerian pound

The Federation of Nigeria was a predecessor to modern-day Nigeria. It existed between 1 October 1960 and 1 October 1963.

When British rule ended in 1960, Nigeria Independence Act 1960^[2] transformed the Federation of Nigeria into an independent sovereign Commonwealth realm. Nigeria shared the Sovereign (British monarch Elizabeth II) with the other Commonwealth realms. The monarch's constitutional roles were mostly delegated to the Governor-General of Nigeria. The royal succession was governed by the English Act of Settlement of 1701. Two people held the office of governor-general:

Sir James Wilson Robertson October 1960 - 16 November 1960
Nnamdi Azikiwe November 16, 1960 – October 1, 1963

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa held office as prime minister (and head of government).

The Federal Republic of Nigeria came into existence on 1 October 1963.^[3] The monarchy was abolished and Nigeria became a republic within the Commonwealth. Following the abolition of the monarchy, former Governor-General Nnamdi Azikiwe became President of Nigeria.

Elizabeth II did not visit the Federation of Nigeria between 1960 and 1963. She did visit:

1956 (28 January–16 February): as Queen of the United Kingdom
2003 (3–6 December): as Head of the Commonwealth

References

^ The Constitution of the Federation of Nigeria (1960), http://www.worldstatesmen.org/nigeria_const1960.pdf
^ Nigeria Independence Act 1960, 8 & 9 Eliz. 2 c.55
^ Nigeria Republic Act 1963, c. 57

External links

http://www.archontology.org/nations/nigeria/01_polity.php
http://www.archontology.org/nations/nigeria/00_1954_1963_gg.php
http://www.archontology.org/nations/nigeria/00_1960_1963_s.php
http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Nigeria.htm
http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1960/jul/04/commonwealth-prime-ministers-conference#S5CV0626P0_19600704_HOC_246*
http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1963/dec/17/nigeria-republic-bill#S5LV0254P0_19631217_HOL_211
http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1963/dec/18/royal-commission#S5LV0254P0_19631218_HOL_141

Commonwealth realms and Dominions

Current	Antigua and Barbuda (Monarchy) Australia (Monarchy) Bahamas (Monarchy) Barbados (Monarchy) Belize (Monarchy) Canada (Monarchy) Grenada (Monarchy) Jamaica (Monarchy) Realm of New Zealand Cook Islands New Zealand Niue Papua New Guinea (Monarchy) St. Kitts and Nevis (Monarchy) St. Lucia (Monarchy) St. Vincent and the Grenadines (Monarchy) Solomon Islands (Monarchy) Tuvalu (Monarchy) United Kingdom (Monarchy)

Former	Ceylon (Monarchy) Fiji (Monarchy) The Gambia (Monarchy) Ghana (Monarchy) Guyana (Monarchy) India¹ (Monarchy) Ireland¹ (Monarchy) Kenya (Monarchy) Malawi (Monarchy) Malta (Monarchy) Mauritius (Monarchy) Newfoundland² Nigeria (Monarchy) Pakistan (Monarchy) Rhodesia³ Sierra Leone (Monarchy) South Africa (Monarchy) Tanganyika (Monarchy) Trinidad and Tobago (Monarchy) Uganda (Monarchy)

¹ Dominion, became republic before adoption of the term "realm" ² Dominion, never ratified Statute of Westminster 1931, London-based external government 1934–1949, annexed by Canada in 1949 ³ Rhodesia unilaterally declared independence as a realm in 1965, but this was not recognised internationally. Declared itself a republic in 1970.

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Federation of Nigeria