THE RISE AND FALL OF ARO HEGEMONY IN IGBO LAND
A
MINI-PROJECT
BY
ODUNZE SIXTUS EMEKA
ART1300919
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF ARTS
UNIVERSITY OF BENIN,
BENIN CITY.
JULY, 2016
1
CERTIFICATION
This is to certify that this mini-project work was carried out by Oduze Sixtus Emeka,
the Department of History and International Studies, University of Benin, Benin City.
2
DEDICATION
This project work is dedicated to the almighty God for his guidance, protect and
provision while the course lasted and beyond.
3
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I wish to thank the almighty God for His guidance, protection and provision
throughout my research work, for He is the author and finisher of my faith.
I also wish to acknowledge the effort of Mrs. Osenwiegie, popularly known as I.
O Kalu, whom has acted as my mentor, for her invaluable help, skillful guidance and
dedication during my research period.
I am gratefully indebted to all lecturers of the Department of History and
International Studies, Prof. O.B. Osadolor, Miss. Oghogho and others for the
knowledge they are imparting in me.
My appreciation goes to my parents Mr. and Mrs. Odunze whom has being by
my side right form my conception and have toured hard to seeing me through my
academics.
I am equally indebted to my bosom siblings, whom has always encouraged me
never to give up and have reminded me of what lies ahead.
My gratitude likewise go to my uncle, Mr. Anyanwu Chima for endless
contributions towards my studies right form my primary school.
My sincere gratitude also goes to catholic Charismatic Renewal of Nigeria
Students Community, Uniben/Ubth for the family love shown toward me and the
spiritual guidance they gave me.
Finally, to all those that have contributed in one way or the other that their
names did not appear, I sincerely appreciate your efforts and love, indeed am indebted
to you all.
May God Bless you all.
4
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title page
Certificate -------------------------------------------------------------------
2
Dedication ------------------------------------------------------------------
3
Acknowledgement --------------------------------------------------------
4
Table of content -----------------------------------------------------------
5
CHAPTER ONE --------------------------------------------------------------
6 - 10
BACKGROUND OF STUDY
CHAPTER TWO -------------------------------------------------------------
11 - 13
THE RISE OF ARO HEGEMONY IN IGBO LAND
CHAPTER THREE -----------------------------------------------------------
14 - 17
SOCIO-ECONOMIC HEGEMONY OF THE ARO IN IGBO LAND
CHAPTER FOUR ------------------------------------------------------------
18 - 21
THE DECLINE OF THE ARO HEGEMONY IN IGBO LAND
CHAPTER FIVE -------------------------------------------------------------CONCLUSION
Bibliography
5
22 - 24
CHAPTER ONE
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Introduction
Here we can only state that exploiting their strategic location on the border
land between the Igbo, Ibibio and their cross river people, the Aro came to prominence
as traders and oracle agents about the middle of the seventeenth century. What was
the nature of the hegemony enjoyed over the Ibo and Ibibio by the Aro up to the end
of the nineteenth century? The Aro territory and Aro-Chukwu are located on the
eastern periphery of the Ibo country.
The Aro community has their headquarters in Aro-Chukwu on the eastern fringe
of the Igbo area, near the cross river. It has been argued that they even that they are
not really Igbo. Probably from the eighteenth century onwards, the Aro have
specialized in long distance trade in slaves, salt and luxury items imported from
Europe. They developed a network of trade routes along which Aro traders travelled
in caravans for their safety. Along these trade routes a number of Aro communities or
colonies developed, the inhabitants of which called themselves Aro and traced back
their origin to Aro-Chukwu. Although the Aro are known as traders, a number of their
colonies have specialized in agriculture.
The Aro are thought to have contributed to the homogenization of Igbo culture
since they had settled in many villages and linked different communities through
trade. Furthermore, the Aro-Chukwu oracle was consulted by many inhabitants of the
region. However, it was often regarded as one oracle among others and not as the
most important oracle in the area. More so, the influence of Aro-Chukwu was limited
to a part of the present Igbo area and within this area only a limited number of fixed
trade routes were used, ignoring a considerable part of the population. On the other
hand, the influence of Aro-Chukwu was not limited to the Igbo area: their trade
network included a part of the current Ibibio territory, the Cameroons, and Tiv, Igala,
6
and Idoma areas. The oracle in Aro-Chukwu also attracted people from groups which
were situated to the east, south, and north of the present Igbo area.
Justification of Research
Although much works have been done pertaining to this research, this research
will be in no doubt relevant for the benefit of up-coming researches in this topic if
need be.
Aims and Objectives
The aims and objectives of this research work are as follow:
1. To propel the present pen-ultimate students of the Department of History and
International Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Benin for the major research
project awaiting them in their final year.
2. It is to examine the factors that aided the Aro Hegemony in Igbo land and the
role they played in the civilization of Igbo land.
3. To de u k the Ha iti H pothesis
hi h stated that there as o i ilizatio
i Afri a s ethi groups efore the ad e t of the European.
4. Finally to unveil the expedition which enable the British to overthrow on
already civilized socio-economic system in Igbo land.
Scope of Study
This mini-research work intends to cover the Rise and Fall of Aro Hegemony in
Igbo land. This research shall cover the major socio-economic hegemony of the Aro
and how they influenced the Igbos in general.
Metholodology
In the process of carrying out this mini-research work, this researcher relied basically
on two main sources of information which are:
i.
Secondary Sources (Written Sources):
7
The secondary sources which were consulted in the course of this research are
basically books, articles or journals, monograph and paper. This information that
were obtained help to provide historical analysis of the Aro hegemony and their
socio-economic dominance in Igbo land and the factors behind their fall.
ii.
Tertiary Source (Written Sources):
The tertiary sources which were also consulted in the course of this research are
basically reference sources such as encyclopedia, internet and dictionary, this
information that were obtained helped to provide historical analysis of the origin
and geographical location of the Aro.
Literature Review
In as much as the literary or academic works on the Rise and Fall of Aro
Hegemony in Igbo land are much available, the time frame given to carry out this
research coupled with other academic activities problem. However, there are very
much literature that were consulted among them is the well-known book on Nigeria
history. Ikime .O. (ed) Groundwork of Nigerian History Ibadan: Heinemann, 1980. Ikime
.O in this book examined the strategic location of the Aro and how the Aro emerged
prominent as an economic and spiritual agent in Igbo land. According to him, the Aro
exploited their strategic location on the border land between the Igbo, Ibibio, and the
Cross River Peoples.
He further said that in pursuit of their expanding business, the Aro started
establishing settlement in many Igbo and Ibibio areas, as well as building up trade and
defense pacts with other oligarchies and groups like the Akwa etc, probably borrowing
a leaf form the Aro, the Akwa evolved an oracle of their own called Agbala and
combined their smiting business with being the agents of their oracle.
Another literary work to be employed is Toyin Falola, Abdullahi Mahadi, Martin
Uhomoibhi and Ukachukwu Anyanwu Nigeria before 1800 AD Longman Nigeria 1989.
They emphasized on the vital role the Aro played in determining the Igbo relationship
8
with immediate and long distant neighbours. This book examined the Aro-Chukwu
people and how their individual and collective acumen, diplomatic ability and
economic sense brought a sizeable part of Igbo land, Ibibio, in the Cross River, and
Apa/Akpa in the Benue Valley under Aro influence. This literature went further to
examine the symbolic relationship between the Aro and their neighbor. It stated that
the Aro-Chukwu oracle, was said to have developed out of a local Ibibio shrine, Ibritam,
in the Cross River estuary.
There are other literature which are relevant and have been consulted for
research. These include Ade Ajayi and Ian Espie (eds) A Thousand Years of West African
History Kenya, Ikime .O. Fall of Nigeria: The British Conquest Ibadan: Heinemann, 1977,
and Afigbo A.E Groundwork of Igbo History. Lagos, Vista Books Limited. 1992.
Ade Ajayi and Ian Espie discuss the hinterland trade engaged by the Aro, how
the Aro dominated the trade route and in spite all those it not amount to a
comprehensive political control. They also emphasized on how the Aro as oracle
agents and traders wielded tremendous influence and whatnot.
Ikime in his book Fall of Nigeria: The British Conquest on the other hand
examined the expedition of the British on the Aro. In this book Ikime gave a detail
explanation of the four years continual conflict between the British and the Aro and
how the Aro had been a hard nut for the British to crack. And finally how the expedition
of November 28, 1901 brought the Aro hegemony to an end, consequently creating
the platform for the British spread of influence into Igbo and Ibibio country.
Chapterization
This mini-project work is divided into five chapters as follow;
Chapter One
Background of the study
9
This chapter provides a brief geo-graphical location of the Aro-Chukwu and also
gives an overview of the topic.
Chapter two
The Rise of Aro hegemony in Igbo Land
This chapter examines the emergence of the Aro in Igbo land, and it also discuss
the factors that paved the way for the Aro hegemony.
Chapter Three
The Socio-Economic Hegemony of the Aro in Igbo Land
This chapter examines the roles that the Aro played in the Igbo society and their
neighbours d how they were le to dominate their environment socio-economically.
Chapter Four
The Decline of the Aro Hegemony in Igbo Land
This chapter covers and examines the British expedition in Igbo land, the four
years conflict between the British and the Aro and finally, the defeat and fall of Aro
Hegemony.
Chapter Five
Conclusion
This chapter concludes this research work. It examines the socio-economic
relation between the Aro and their neighbours and those factors that enhanced the
strength that bonds the Aro and their neighbor, and finally, the fall.
10
CHAPTER TWO
THE RISE OF ARO HEGEMONY IN IGBOLAND
The formation of the Aro-Chukwu and the development of the Aro diaspora
corresponded with basic trends in the Biafran Atlantic Slave trade. But this simple
proposition has not been fully investigated. As recently, 1989, G.I. Jones (1989:36)
re arked
e do ot k o
ho
or
he the Aro-Chukwu traders achieved their
dominant position in the cross river trading system and the hinterland slave trade
hi h fed the Bright of Biafra s ports.
The enquiry into Aro origin is an old theme. The vast outpouring on Aro origin
gained momentum with the Aro expedition from 1901-1902. The first systematic
attempted at dating Aro formation was that of the colonial anthropologist, H.F.
Mathe s. Mathe s dated Aro for atio at ot earlier tha
7
or 73
ut
ost
pro a l arou d 75 . After arious resear hes, he o luded that Aro foundation
was either 1777 or 1767.
Nevertheless, so much has been written on the Aro, yet Aro role in the history
of the Igbo and their neighbours remains to be clarified. This largely because much of
the writing on the Aro has centered on the problem of their origin, and issue which
has been bedeviled by the fact that people have often confused the problem of Aro
origin as a clan of the Igbo with the problem of their emergence as an organized
trading interest. Here we can only state that exploiting their strategic location on the
border land between the Igbo, Ibibio and the cross river peoples, the Aro came to
prominence as traders and oracle agents about the middle of the 17th century. In time
they built up an intricate trading network covering the former eastern region of Nigeria
and even penetrating into the areas occupied by the Idoma, Igala and some peoples
of the western delta. A tradition has recently come to light that Chima, the legendary
ancestor of the Onitsha people, who the latter believed to have been a Benin refugee,
was an Aro oracle agent and slave dealer. Chima is a name encountered mostly among
the Aro, but this tradition just referred to require further detailed and critical
11
investigation. In pursuit of their expanding business the Aro started establishing
settlements in many Igbo and Ibibio areas, as well as building up trade and defense
pacts with other oligarchies and groups like the Awka, and Nkwerre smiths already
mentioned, the Ohaffia-Abam-Eda confederacy of head hunters, the Nike and
Abakaliki of the northern and northeastern Igbos and so no. probably borrowing a leap
from the Aro, the Awka evolved an oracle of their own called Agbala and combined
their own called Agbala and combined their smiting business with being the agents of
their oracle.
N au a s al ulatio deser es further atte tio
e ause it is the ost rigorous
to date. Nwanwa makes an important distinction between small-scale and commercial
importation of firearms, suggesting that Latha
s 1713 date referred to commercial
importation, while firearms could have trickled into the region during more than 150
years of trade with Europeans. Nwauwa insists that the importation of firearms was
critical to Aro chronology. His chronological charts place the genealogies of almost all
major characters of Aro for atio i the ge eratio a d that
o stitue t illages
a
of Aro-Chukwu
ere esta lished i the e t ge eratio . N au a atte pts to
correlate Aro expansion with the expansion of the Biafran trade, identifying Amawom
and Nkalunta in western cross river Igbo area as the earliest diaspora settlements.
Using the traditions of Niger Delta, G.I. Jones concluded that the Aro oracle,
Ibiniukpabi pla ed a ru ial part i their for atio . He attri uted the lu der usses
element in Aro traditions of origin to tales-coping. From this fact, Jones places Aro
formation at the period before the mid-17th century.
Importantly, Dike and Ekejiuba (1990:56:57) link the contemporaneous
formation in the 17th century of five Igbo state-Aro-Chukwu, abo, Oguta, Onitsha and
Osamari to non-Igbo people interested in the slave trade. They theorize that AroChuk u s formation and consolidation derived form a conjuncture of ecological and
economic conditions that made the Ibiniukpabi socially relevant and gave expression
to the ge ius of Akuma, the first Aro king. They have also suggested that the stability
12
and the corollary surplus population which the Aro state ensured, rather than the
Atlantic slave trade, prompted Aro expansion. Thus, they co lude that the Atlantic
slave trade was a facilitating, not a causal factor in Aro ars.
During expansion from Aro-Chukwu, the existence of a stable Aro state and the
Atlantic slave trade were complementary elements, not competing factors. This
standpoint alone can satisfactorily clarify the conjuncture of the rise of Aro hegemony
in Igbo land.
13
CHAPTER THREE
THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC HEGEMONY OF THE ARO IN IGBO LAND
The Aro community have their headquarters in Aro-Chukwu on the eastern
fringe of the Igbo area, near the Cross River. It has been argued that they have been
heavily influenced by their non-Igbo Neighbours and even that they are
ot reall
Igbo. Probably from the eighteenth century onwards, the Aro have specialized in long
distances trade in slaves, salt and luxury items imported from Europe. They developed
a network of trade routes, along which Aro trades travelled in caravans for their safety.
Alone these trade routes a number of Aro communities or colonies developed, the
inhabitants of which called themselves Aro and traced back their origin to AroChukwu. Although the Aro are known as trader, a number of the Aro colonies have
specialized in agriculture.
On the social angle the Aro are thought to have contributed to the
homogenization of Igbo culture, since they had settlements in many villages and linked
different communities through trade. Furthermore, the Aro-Chukwu oracle was
consulted by many inhabitants of the region. However, it was often regarded as one
oracle among others, and not as the area, it appears that U u oha s Igwe Ka Ala held
the greatest influence. Furthermore, the influence of Aro-Chukwu was limited to a part
of the present Igbo area, and within this area only a limited number of fixed trade
routes were used, ignoring a considerable part of the population. On the other hand,
the influence of Aro-Chukwu was not limited to the Igbo area; their trade network
included a part of the current Ibibio territory, the Cameroons and Tiv, Igala and Idoma
areas. The oracle in Aro-Chukwu also attracted people from groups which were
situated to the east south, and north of the present Igbo area.
After the defeat of Ibibio by the Aro in 1634, a new hegemony was created by
the Aro slave trading. The defeat of Ibibio by a combined effort of Igbo groups and
Akpa warriors from Akamkpa opened new vista in human trafficking by the Aro. The
Aro man who took the Ibibio oracle retained its priest in other to initiate Aro indigenes
14
and as well teach them the expertise. Beginning from the period, Ubini Ukpabi began
to enjoy pan Igbo influence. In his book, they Igbo and their neighbor professor Adeile
Eberechukwu Afigbo notes that:
Ea h
e
er of the juju has his
esse gers ho go a d reside i the
various districts under guise of traders. Those men are the principal
messengers of the chiefs. They each have a number of minor
messengers under them. The chief messenger after having settled in
many districts make friends of the people of the district in which they
reside. Though the friends make the messenger hear of all palavers and
the trouble of the people. He goes to the people and advise them to go
to the long juju and consult Chukwu. The people in response will ask him
to lead the
to Chuk u
With this development, the Aro never lost for such a sojourn. This is because if they
are not paid for consulting Chukwu (god) the customer (the person who wishes to see
Ubini Ukpabi) may end up becoming the product instead of the buyer he proposed to
be. The flimsy excuse given in the circumstance was that the sacrifice was
unacceptable to Chukwu and in punishment he set up the person offering the sacrifice.
Nevertheless, all about Ubini Ukpabi was not in the negative realm all through.
Ifemesia for example described the oracle as a famous fertility god of Igbo land. E.J.
Alagoa re alled that the Aro excelled in the manipulation of an oracle for the
purposes of ad a i g the e o o i i terests of a group. The
ost sig ifi a t
innovation was their use of mercenaries to enforce their will and to collect slaves for
sale. The neighboring Abam, Ohafia and Edda lived themselves out to the Aro as
mercenaries. By these means the Aro build up a network of markets, trade routes and
agent communities around the greater portion of Igbo land.
On the other hand, various competent authorities have provided detailed
descriptions of the structure and functioning of Aro economic hegemony. One point
to stress is that the Aro reated hat K.O. Dike ter ed a regio al Pa
15
u der hi h
large-scale trade flourished in a multi-ethnic region. Aro operations eased exchanged
in a region with a multi-tiered currency system. The Aro criss-crossed these currency
zones in their trade with other Aro and non-Aro groups.
The chapter shows that Aro expansion during the peak years of the Atlantic
slave trade was attained via the agency of a network of diaspora settlement. The
establishment of characters in the densely populated central Igbo land was a major
factor that shaped the character of the Biafran Atlantic trade. Dike and Ekejiuba
estimate that more than 85% of all the captives that the Aro sold resulted from "the
effort and exploitations of individual Aro s attered i per a e t settle e ts.
Based on just the mode of establishment, Kanu Umo identifies two types: by treaty
and by conquest. Dike and Ekejiuba (1990:196-97) delineate as many as five. But they
o ede that, si e the Aro often combined trading, recruiting Abam warriors and
prosel tizi g for the ora le, the a o e t polog is pri aril a heuristi s he e.
Probably aware of the rough similarities in the functions of the Aro diaspora
communities, Chinyere Okafor eschews function as a comparative criterion in her
three type classification. She uses the mode of formation, size and structure to derive
the following types:
1. Large settlements that were founded by conquest and grew to dominate that
land, superimposing their names on it, (as in Nde-Izuogu, Ndi-Eni and Inokun).
2. Those that were founded peacefully and constituted separate villages or wards
within pre-existing non-Aro communities (as found in Oguta, Bende, Umuahia
and Port Harcourt) and
3. The numerous compounds or lineages within pre-existing non-Aro villages,
sprouted as trading outposts even in founded peacefully. Nevertheless,
e eptio s o tai e e i Okafor s lassifi atio .
Conclusively, it is not simply Aro organization that is relevant is expanding trade
in the 18th century. Aro organization must be understood in conjunction with the
dynamic of central Igbo land. One might ask: why were the Aro not viewed as
16
exploiters in the region? Apart from kinship networks which they diligently contracted
across the region, for the most part, Aro interests were linked closely to those of the
ruling groups in other societies. The stalwart men needed the foreign goods that the
Aro supplied. Further, individuals and groups needed the Aro in struggles among one
another over political power and economic opportunities. Moreover, the Aro
committed their allies to covenant, which deterred allies from delinquency, and
apparently justified Aro retribution, saving them from the odium of being perceived
as bullies or aggressors of importance is that the Aro had access to an effective into
line. In this, they differed from other trade Diasporas. The Ibini Ukpabi oracle
essentialized these transactions, commending the Aro widely as Umu-chukwu
(children of god). The seemingly omnipresent Ibini Ukpabi was the final resort in the
knottiest of cases. Consequently, the Aro were immune from molestation. Dissenters
to Aro dominance, rivals in local politics, and incriminated persons were likely to be
sold into slavery.
17
CHAPTER FOUR
THE DECLINE OF ARO HEGEMONY IN IGBO LAND
By the end of the nineteenth century the British had succeeded in gaining
control of the Delta States must have resented the loss of their political authority, they
probably resented even more the determination of the British to penetrate the
hinterland and deal directly with the oil producers. As in well known the Delta states
developed on the basis of their middlemen monopoly of the trade between the
hinterland and the Europeans. Their fall to the British was accompanied by a
determination by the latter to trade direct with the hinterland. The costal trade,
gradually being displaced from his role as a middleman trader in the old style, began
to want to accompany the British into the hinterland so that he could, as it were,
develop a new way of playing the old game. If any group in the hinterland stood to
lose by this new development it was the Aro, the great middlemen traders of that
hinterland. Hence, the conflict which developed between the British and Aro can really
only be understood against this essentially economic background.
The British military attack on the Aro did not take place until December 1901.
The four years which preceded that date were, however, years of continual conflict
between the British and the Aro. Having occupied the coastal states, the British began
to push into the interior as from about 1896. The Aro immediately began to organize
to frustrate this push. The British were pushing in from two centers, the Cross River
area and the Atlantic seaboard with Bonny, Opobo, and Kalabari as bases. The Aro
ensured that they worked out peacefully or by force a system of alliances with various
groups designed to obstruct British penetration. Thus, in the Cross River zone they
instigated the Ikwo, Ezza, and Izzi clans to resist British penetration in the 1898. A
military expedition sent into the area was not sufficiently powerful to break the
resistance of these people who made no secret of the fact that they were acting as
allies of the Aro.
18
In 1899 the British had a similar experience from the Bonny, Opobo, and Kalabari end.
The Aro forced the villages north of the Azumini River to resist British advance. British
political officers were told by informants that left to themselves some of these villages
like Ihafu, Elele, Amafo, and so on would have been prepared to deal with the British,
but that the Aro had warned all and sundry that any group who co-operated with the
British would receive condign punishment when the Aro had inflicted a crushing
defeat on the British. Further into the hinterland, the Aro carried out various acts of
terrorism just to demonstrate that the Aro would not tolerate the British attempt to
upset the old trading system and that any group that toyed with the idea of receiving
the British must regard itself as an enemy of the Aro.
Aro fears about future prospects for their trade was not brought about only by
the attack on their middleman role in the hinterland. As was said earlier, the fact that
the long juju served as a court of appeal for many groups even outside Igbo and Ibibio
countries played an important part in promoting the trade of the Aro. As agents of the
long juju people were not only afraid to lay hands on them, but went out of their way
to court their friendship. This was good for Aro trade. Now, however, the British
political officers as well as missionaries preached against the age-old judicial and other
institutions of the Nigerian people. British occupation would thus mean not only loss
of the middlemen position in the interior enjoyed by the Aro, it would also ultimately
remove that super-natural sanction which did so much to promote Aro trade. The Aro
thus had get another reason for opposing the extension of British influence.
In a sense, the British misunderstood the reasons for Aro hostility. They
assumed, wrongly, that the Aro were the political leaders of the Igbo and Ibibio and
that their hostility stemmed from their unreadiness to yield that leadership to the
British. Consequently, the British were satisfied that once they had been able to
overcome the Aro there would be no further resistance and that the entire hinterland
of the eastern delta would be theirs for the taking. Partly because of this
misconception and partly because Aro activities in the period 1898-1901 had shown
19
them to be inveterate enemies of the British, sir Ralph Moor, the head of the British
administration, made elaborate preparations for the Aro expedition. He would have
liked to act earlier than he did but was prevented from doing so by the fact that Nigeria
had to contribute troops to the British war against the Asante which did not end till
early 1901.
The force which was ultimately got together was placed under the command
of Lt. Colonel H.F. Montanaro, pompously entitled officer commanding Aro field force!
The force consisted of 87 officers, 1,550 rank and file, and 2, 100 carriers. There were
four columns taking off from Oguta, Akwele, Unwana, and Itu. Political officers as well
as medical doctors were attached to each column. The commanding officer, obviously
thinking that his was a major war, issued detailed directives to the sectional
commanders. Ralph Moor briefed the political officer as to how to win the people
over. At the same time he made it clear that the political officers were not to interfere
with the soldiers when the latter came across any hostile towns. Hostile towns were
defined as those whose inhabitants resisted the troops going through their towns or
which evacuated their people on the approaches of the British. Moor anticipated very
tough opposition and Aro expedition was conceived of as one of the grandest the
British would undertake in Nigeria. The officers were to stick to their orders. No radical
departure from the plan was to be made without consulting the consul-general
himself.
While the British were thus busy writing memoranda and issuing directives, the
Aro stroked. In a raid against the town of Obegu, the British reported that the Aro
killed 400 people. Obegu was a government center with a rest house which the Aro
burnt down. Some stores had also been kept there for the soldier; the Aro destroyed
these. Undoubtedly, then, the Aro knew that an attack was under way and they
thought they might at least make one themselves on a pro-British down. This action,
however, had the effect of preventing any further delays and the British forces set out
on 28th November, 1901.
20
The actual expedition turned out to be an anti-climax. Although the reports
speak of the great resistance put up by the Aro, there really was not much fighting.
Aro land is savannah country. The people had no chance in such country against rifles
and Maxim gun. Most villages were abandoned before the British arrived. Those who
stayed behind were sensible enough to surrender. The only worthwhile action was
perhaps the blowing up of the shrine of the long juju with Montanaro himself leading
the operation. The expedition was soon over. The Aro had been overthrown and the
British could begin-only begin-to spread their influence into Igbo and Ibibio country.
The fall of Aro hegemony did not mean as the British had hoped, the fall of the
other groups. However, it taught other groups that the might of the British was
irresistible even though a few groups still challenged that might even after the Aro
experience. There can thus be no questioning of the fact that the fall of the Aro was a
major breakthrough in the British conquest of the hinterland of south-eastern Nigeria.
It should be clear from all that has been said that Aro attitude to the British was
determined by their desire to preserve the old socio-political and economic
arrangements in that part of Nigeria.
21
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION
From the foregoing research, three periods may be delineated in charting Aro
people. The first period began at about 1771, with the emergence of the Aro
hegemony in Igbo land. The second period explore the socio-economic hegemony of
the Aro in Igbo land and the third period witnessed the decline and fall of Aro
hegemony in Igbo land.
This study incorporates cultural development is explaining economic change
and the structure of the Aro hegemony in Igbo land. The Aro system is of interest to
scholar interested in the influence of the Aro in the history of the Igbos and the role
they played in the Atlantic slave trade and later, the legitimate trade. The Aro traded
both the people who were retained in the region and those who were sent to the
Americas. While the Aro sent most captives to Atlantic slavery, they retained in the
same process many others in the ever growing Aro settlements.
Another element that marked out the Aro from other groups is the socioeconomic and political influences that they had on host communities, and access to
and use of military force. The large Aro settlements of Nde-Izuogu, Nde-Eni and Inokun
dominated their environment in all particulars. At Afikpo, where the Aro were a
minority, they constituted the aristocracy. Even where their political influence seems
slight or non-existent, as in the case of the coastal city-states, the Aro performed
through their oracle judicial functions on matters that included political disputes. Aropower in the words of Cookey, could be said to have been founded on a spiritual aura
backed by the military might.
Given this political and judicial influence, one might wonder if the Aro did not
constitute an imperialism rather than a trade diaspora. After all commerce was an
important component of British imperialism. The existence of a range of specialized
political institutions in Aro organization supports such proposition. At the apex of Aro
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organization was Eze Aro (Aro King). Okpo Nkpo was another such institution, over
which Eze Aro permanently persisted.
In spite of these imperial characteristics, the Aro are best seem as a diaspora.
Unlike the British, who often (although not always) maintained specialized sections of
imperial executioners (traders, soldiers, administrators and missionaries), every male
Aro was until the 1890s when agriculture had become significant in Aro life, primarily
involved in trade. Up until the mid-19th century, their fighters were exclusively nonAro. These are communities were involved in trade and thy massively incorporated
non-Aro elements.
Finally, the Aro despite their astuteness in trade and the fame of their oracle
could not hold out against the British takeover of their territory in the wake of the 20th
century. The conquest of the Aro crashed the mask of the hinterland which hitherto
that they had covered. It became easier to penetrate into Igbo land and establish
colonies.
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BIBLIOGRAGPY
Secondary Sources
Books
Ikime .O. (ed) Groundwork of Nigerian History Ibadan: Heinemann, 1980
Toyin Falola, Abdullahi Mahadi, Martin Uhomoibhi and Ukachukwu Anyanwu
Nigeria before 1800 AD Longman Nigeria 1989.
Ade Ajayi and Ian Espie (eds) A Thousand Years of West African History Kenya.
Ikime .O. Fall of Nigeria: The British Conquest Ibadan: Heinemann, 1977.
Afigbo A.E. Groundwork of Igbo History. Lagos, Vista Books Limited. 1992.
Dike, K.O and F.I. Ekejiuba 1990. The Aro of South-Eastern Nigeria, 1650-1980: A Study
of Socio-Economic Formation and Transformation in Nigeria. Ibadan, University Press
Ltd.
Forde, D. and G.I. Jones 1950. The Ibo and Ibibio-Speaking Peoples of South-Eastern
Niaena, London, Oxford University Press.
Journals
G. Ugo Nwokeji, 1991. The Biafran Frontier: Trade, Slaves, and Aro Society, C.
1950-1905
Uche Uwaezuoke Okonkwo. The Aro, Host Community and Continuities in
Intergroup Suspicious in the Oguta Area since Pre-Colonial Times.
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