IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS) Volume 19, Issue 7, Ver. V (July. 2014), PP 01-05 e-ISSN: 2279-0837, p-ISSN: 2279-0845. www.iosrjournals.org www.iosrjournals.org 1 | Page State Making and State Craft: A Critical Review of the Misconception of Amalgamation of Nigeria In 1914 1 Yakubu Haruna Jae, 2 Ntim Gyakari Esew 1 Department of Political Science, Kaduna State University, Kaduna 2 Department of Political Science, Kaduna State University, Kaduna. Abstract: This paper examines the false perception attached to the amalgamation of Nigeria in 1914. The research reviewed and falsified two fundamental historical fallacies which assumed that the various ethnic groups and parts or regions of Nigeria were in perpetual antagonism before that historic amalgamation. And that the essence of British integration was for unification. The research after a thorough investigation and consultation of relevant literatures, established that, the prime objective of British amalgamation was the desire to achieve a total and effective control over Nigeria. For the British to achieve this mission, they used both military and non-military approaches. The paper finally recommends that since the amalgamation had taken place, Nigerian leaders should not abuse it but rather consolidate it. Unity, peace and harmony, tolerance and equality should be strengthened. Key words: Amalgamation, North, South, Unification, and Integration I. Introduction: It is a mistake for somebody to say that Nigeria came into being in 1914, because one has to look at how the various parts [North, West and East] came into being. The country today known as Nigeria went under series of amalgamations in the East, West and North before the final one in 1914. Unless we are clear about Nigeria‟s history chronologically we cannot understand how Nigeria came into being and how the current states were created. It is incorrect for somebody to say that there were nations and kingdoms independent of each other before the coming of the British colonialists, but the truth of there were interactions among them like trading before the formal coming of the British powers and people did not consider others as settlers or outsiders as rightly observed by (Siddique, 2009). The history of the amalgamation of Nigeria in 1914 has been twisted, and distorted by many people. It is sometimes attached with myths as Bala and Al-kasim (1991) (Afigbo, 2003) noted in their book Bala & Alkasim, (2000) Misrepresentation of Nigeria by Nigerians which was corroborated by Afigbo (2003) Maintain that the formation of Nigeria was misunderstood, in that some people believed that the Federal Republic of Nigeria is an amalgam of two distinct geographical, cultural, economic, social and political entities namely the North and the South. These distinct entities, according to this conception have been, brought together by the British for their own reasons i.e the 1914 amalgamation of the colony and protectorate of southern Nigeria and the protectorate of Northern Nigeria However, it should be noted that according to this conception these two amalgamated entities have never been fused or merged into one, but have remained an amalgam of two distinct, and often antagonistic entities in terms of their background, interests, and aspirations (Bala and Alkasim, 2000), (Afigbo,2003) all disputed this conceptions . Background of Nigeria Nigeria‟s official name is Federal Republic of Nigeria and has a total land area of 923,768sq, with a climate annual rain fall ranging from 381 cm along the coast and 64 cm or less in the far North. Nigeria has a population of about 157,000,000 according to 2006 population census. It was colonized by the British the North and South were amalgamated for political reasons in 1914 by them and she became independent on 1 st October, 1960. Nigeria, geographically, is located in West Africa, bounded in the North by Niger Republic, in the East by Cameroon Republic, in the West by Benin Republic and in the North – East by Chad Republic, Nigeria is the fourth largest country in West Africa. II. Nigeria Before The Amalgamation Of 1914 As noted earlier, there were contacts and trade relations among various ethnic groups and communities in what is called Nigeria before the coming of British rule. This paper argues that it is fallacious for somebody to say that the various ethnic groups and various parts of Nigeria were in perpetual antagonism before the