Abstract

The historical accounts of the Nigeria-Biafra War include books on the circumstances leading up to the war, how the war was fought, and the consequences of the conflict. Nigeria’s Five Majors: Coup d’Etat of 15th January 1966, First Inside Account by Ben Gbulie; Why We Struck: The Story of the First Nigerian Coup by Adewale Ademoyega; The Nigerian Revolution and the Biafran War by Alexander A. Madiebo; Requiem Biafra by Joe O. G. Achuzia; Nigeria and Biafra: My Story by Philip Efiong; My Command: An Account of the Nigerian Civil War 1967–70 and Nzeogwu by Olusegun Obasanjo; On a Darkling Plain: An Account of the Nigerian Civil War by Ken Saro-Wiwa; Biafra: The Making of an African Legend and Emeka by Frederick Forsyth; Let Truth Be Told by D. J. M. Muffett; The Brothers’ War: Biafra and Nigeria by John de St. Jorre; and Blood on the Niger: An Untold Story of the Nigerian Civil War by Emma Okocha are some well-known instances. These studies present “factual” or “inside” accounts of the circumstances and consequences of Nigeria’s first military coup on January 15, 1966; the counter-coup on July 29, 1966; and the declaration of secession by Eastern Nigeria on May 30, 1967. Some contested accounts allege that the first coup was organized by Igbo or Eastern Nigerian military officers with the objective of eliminating major political figures from Northern Nigeria. The counter-coup was a revenge mission, as was the pogrom against Igbos or Eastern Nigerians resident in Northern Nigeria. The declaration of secession or the Republic of Biafra represented a failure of dialogue as well as the decimation of the idea of Nigeria.