Colonialism by Proxy: Hausa Imperial Agents and Middle Belt Consciousness in Nigeria

Moses E. Ochonu explores a rare system of colonialism in Middle Belt Nigeria, where the British outsourced the business of the empire to Hausa-Fulani subcolonials because they considered the area too uncivilized for Indirect Rule. Ochonu reveals that the outsiders ruled with an iron fist and imagined themselves as bearers of Muslim civilization rather than carriers of the white man's burden. Stressing that this type of Indirect Rule violated its primary rationale, Colonialism by Proxy traces contemporary violent struggles to the legacy of the dynamics of power and the charged atmosphere of religious difference.

Author: Moses E. Ochonu
Publisher: Indiana University Press
Published: 02/14/2014
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.24lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.69d
ISBN: 9780253011602

Review Citation(s):
Chronicle of Higher Education 02/21/2014 pg. 14
Choice 02/01/2015 pg. 1036

About the Author

Moses E. Ochonu is Associate Professor of African History at Vanderbilt University and author of Colonial Meltdown: Northern Nigeria in the Great Depression.