CONQUEST AND THE IMPOSITIONOF CHIEFTAINCY IN EGGON LAND AND ITS IMPLICATIONS

Abstract

This study is centred on the socio-political history of Eggon land and seeks to critically examine the stages of transformation, from the colonial subjugation to the advent of a centralized political authority with the entrenchment of colonial rule in the area, especially from the first quarter of the 20th twentieth) century. The paper therefore contends that prior to the colonial imperial contact; indigenous African societies have evolved a dynamic socio-political system and boisterous institutions that ensure adherence to cultural values and orderliness for the enthronement of a peaceful and harmonious society, contrary to the Eurocentric view of a stateless society without a centralized authority. Thus, the Eggon evolved several of these institutions that invariably shaped their rich cultural heritage. The paper also examines the pattern of colonial conquest and enthronement of colonialism and its consequent implications, as well as post-colonial developments in the area that triggered a series of socio-political changes, especially the transformation of the traditional decentralized political authority to the indirect or emirate model of a centralize political authority. This gradual transformation however, gave rise to the emergence of chiefdoms that eventually crystalized in the creation of the “Aren” Chieftaincy stool. More so, the ensuing political changes at that period reinforce the consolidation of the Aren chieftaincy institution and the profound impact it exerted in the society.