| Bussa rebellion | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofWorld War I | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Supporters of theEmir of Bussa | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 District Officer Hamilton-Brown | Sabukki | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Rebels | |||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 600 rebels | |||||||
TheBussa rebellion, also known as theBoussa rebellion, was a small insurrection in the town ofBussa against the policy ofindirect rule inBritish-ruled Nigeria in June 1915. The rebellion was triggered by the British deposition of the localEmir of Bussa, Kitoro Gani, and his replacement with a Native Administration. The rebels attacked and killed around half of the members of the Administration, while the rest fled, leaving the rebels in control in Bussa. Despite the ongoingKamerun campaign against theGerman Empire, the British were able to use a small force of soldiers which quickly suppressed the rebellion incurring no casualties. The Bussa Rebellion was the subject of a major work by British historianMichael Crowder.
DuringWorld War I, the increased demands on the colonial state, combined with its growing shortage of manpower, put strain on British and French colonial holdings inWest Africa.[1] Uprisings inBritish Nigeria andFrench Dahomey in particular served to "embarrass" European colonial powers and special precautions were taken to suppress them. Rebellions by theEgba people and theIseyin were the cause of particular concern.[1]
Bussa was located inBorgu Province, in the west of Northern Nigeria. Traditionally, Bussa had been part of theBorgu Emirate, but it had been conquered by the British and annexed into theNorthern Nigeria Protectorate. Between 1912 and 1914, under the auspices ofFrederick Lugard, Northern and Southern Nigeria were merged into a single Nigerian protectorate. Lugard was a chief proponent of allowing limited self-determination to local states, known asindirect rule, based on traditional tribal groups but within the aegis of general British control.
Lugard argued that where possible, pre-colonial aristocrats or kings should be retained as indirect rulers in British service to give greater legitimacy to the system.[2] The hereditary emir of Bussa, Kitoro Gani, was judged to be a weak ruler who did not have enough influence to collect taxes or fill quotas of labourers to work onbuilding railways. In 1912, therefore, theresident atYelwa, A. C. Boyd, forced a major administrative reform on theBorgu Emirate which was divided up into administrative areas, each ruled by abeit-el-mal, or Native Administration.[3] In Bussa, the Administration was put under the control of Turaki, a former royal advisor. Taxes were also raised.[4]
The precise date of the start of the insurrection is unknown, but it occurred in early June 1915. A force of around 600 rebels, led by Sabukki, a local prince, occupied Bussa. The rebels were armed withbows and arrows and succeeded in capturing and killing half the members of the new Native Administration established just three months previously. The remaining members of the Administration fled the district.[5] Although small, the rebellion caused panic because the British authorities were so short of troops.[1]
The local British District Official, Hamilton-Brown, received news of the rebellion on 16 June.[6] The fighting with German forces in theKamerun campaign limited the forces which were at his disposal but Hamilton-Brown managed to levy a small force from theWest African Frontier Force (WAFF) and theNigerian police. The government force moved into Bussa andskirmished with the rebels, although no soldiers were killed and only 150 shots were fired. Sabukki fled to nearbyFrench Dahomey but the rebellion did not spread into the French colony.[7]
