JAMB History 2025 Past Questions & Answers

The Aba Women's Riot of 1929, also known as the Women's War, was directly caused by the colonial government's plan to impose direct taxes on women. After successfully taxing men the previous year, the British administration began counting women and their property, which led to widespread fear that women would be taxed next. This perceived economic threat to their livelihoods was the immediate trigger for the massive protests by women across southeastern Nigeria.

Common mistake: Students might mistakenly choose 'anti-British nationalist propaganda' because the riot was an anti-colonial protest, but it was a spontaneous grassroots reaction to a specific policy, not an event organized by a formal nationalist movement.

The League of Nations was founded in 1920, immediately following the end of World War I $(1914-1918)$. This period falls within the era when British colonial rule was firmly established in Nigeria. Understanding major global events like the founding of the League of Nations is crucial for comprehending the broader historical context of colonial Nigeria.

Common mistake: Students often confuse the League of Nations with the United Nations, which was founded after World War II, leading them to incorrectly choose option D.

The Berlin Conference of $1884-85$ was a meeting of European powers where they formally agreed on how to partition Africa among themselves. This was done to avoid conflicts between European nations as they scrambled for territories. The outcome directly led to the establishment of colonial rule across the continent, including in what would become Nigeria.

Common mistake: Students might mistakenly choose 'establish African independence' (A) if they confuse the conference's purpose with later decolonization efforts, or 'create African states' (C) which is incorrect as the conference divided existing territories into colonial possessions, not independent states.

The Igbo political system was traditionally decentralized, meaning it did not have a single king or paramount ruler. Instead, decisions were made collectively through democratic village assemblies, and elders (gerontocracy) played a significant role in governance. This unique structure contrasts with the centralized monarchies found in many other Nigerian societies.

Common mistake: Students might incorrectly choose 'Centralized monarchy' (D) because many other major Nigerian groups, like the Yoruba or Benin, had such systems, leading to a generalization that doesn't apply to the Igbo.

The Organisation of African Unity (OAU) was transformed to better meet the continent's modern challenges. African leaders adopted the Constitutive Act, the legal document creating the African Union (AU), in Lomé, Togo, in the year 2000. This Act officially came into force on 26 May 2001, which is considered the year the OAU legally became the AU.

Common mistake: Students often mistakenly choose 2000 because that was the year the Constitutive Act of the AU was adopted, but the transformation is marked by when the act officially came into force in 2001.

The question directly addresses the completion of the British conquest of Nigeria. The defeat of the Sokoto Caliphate in 1903, particularly the fall of Kano and Sokoto, marked the final major resistance to British rule in the vast northern territories, thereby completing the British subjugation of the area that would become Nigeria. This event is a key part of how the British established their colonial authority.

Common mistake: Students might incorrectly choose the Benin Kingdom or Yoruba Kingdom, whose conquests were significant but occurred earlier and did not represent the final completion of British control over the entire Nigerian territory.

General Yakubu Gowon, who was the Nigerian Head of State, declared 'No Victor, No Vanquished' in his speech at the end of the Nigerian Civil War in 1970. This statement was made to promote peace and national unity after the conflict. It signified that the federal government would not punish the former Biafran side, but would instead focus on reconciliation, rehabilitation, and reconstruction to rebuild Nigeria as one country.

Common mistake: Students might mistakenly choose Odumegwu Ojukwu because he was the leader of Biafra, but he was on the losing side, while Gowon was the Head of State who declared the policy of reconciliation.

The Bretton Woods Conference was held in 1944 to create a new international economic system after World War II. Its most important result was the creation of two major financial institutions: the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. These bodies were established to manage the global economy, a system which colonial Nigeria was a part of and which would heavily influence its economy after independence.

Common mistake: Students might mistakenly choose the United Nations because it was also established around the end of World War II, but it was created at a separate conference in 1945 to promote international peace and security, not primarily for economic reasons.

Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was Nigeria's first Prime Minister and Head of Government during the First Republic. He was overthrown and assassinated in the first military coup d'état in January 1966. This event marked the end of the First Republic and made him the first Nigerian leader to be removed from power by a coup.

Common mistake: Students might mistakenly choose Aguiyi Ironsi, forgetting that while he was also overthrown by a coup, his overthrow occurred later in July 1966, making Balewa the first leader of independent Nigeria to be overthrown.

The Kanem-Bornu Empire was founded and ruled for centuries by the Kanuri-speaking Sayfawa dynasty. The Kanuri people formed the core ethnic and ruling group of the empire, especially after the capital was moved from Kanem to Bornu, west of Lake Chad. Their language and political structure defined the empire, making them its primary establishers.

Common mistake: Students may confuse the Kanuri with the Hausa, as the Hausa states were also major powers in the Central Sudan region and were geographically close to Kanem-Bornu.