History The International Boundaries of Nigeria, 1885-1960: The Framework of an Emergent African Nation
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Date
2025-12-02
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The Journal of African Studies and Research Forum
Abstract
Joseph Christopher Okwudi Anene is the author of The International Boundaries of Nigeria, 1885-1960: The Framework of an Emergent African Nation. Anene was born at Onitsha, Nigeria in 1921 and attended a Roman Catholic School called Christ the King College where he became a teacher after graduation. He studied for an external degree in History offered by the University of London; in 1948, he got a local trader to sponsor him to go to the University College of Cork where he received the Bachelor of Arts degree of the University of London in the Upper Division with Second Class (Anene, 1970). Anene did a postgraduate degree in London from 1949 to 1952 and was awarded the Master of Arts degree for a thesis titled ‘The Establishment of British Rule in Southern Nigeria, 1885-1906” Following the degree with a Diploma in Education, he went to teach at the Ibadan branch of the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology from 1954 to 1956 before moving to the University of Ibadan. His basic training was in Imperial History. For most of his teaching career, he taught courses in British Colonial History and the Growth of the British Commonwealth that were under the scheme of the special relationship with the University of London, which constituted a third of the History Honors Courses at Ibadan until 1962 when he gradually made the transition to African History that became a significant part of the History of Historiography in West Africa scheme (Anene, 1970). Anene’s book being reviewed here was based on his Philosophy Doctorate thesis approved by the University of London in 1960. His contribution to historical scholarship went beyond his research and publications. He was a stimulating and methodical teacher who meticulously revised his notes every year. He particularly encouraged better teaching in schools of History in general and African History in particular. Before his death, he was a senior member and later Head of the Department of History. He was also an important architect of the new Ibadan Bachelor of Arts degree structure and of the postgraduate school in History which has produced many Nigerian teachers of History (Anene, 1970).