Egba United Government

The Egba United Government (EUG) was a short-lived but significant government established in the late 19th century by the Egba-Egbado people, a subgroup of the Yoruba ethnic group, in what is now South-western Nigeria and Eastern Benin. Mainly in response to external threats from neighbouring kingdoms, such as the Dahomey and the collapsed Oyo Empire, the Egba towns and villages began to come together to form a loose confederacy, which was later formalized into the Egba United Government in 1893. In 1898, the government was formally recognized and established by the Lagos Colony Governor, McCallum, at a meeting organized with William Alfred Allen, who was the Colonial Government Agent in Abeokuta and an Egba man from Iporo Ake. This event occurred at the end of the Yoruba civil wars in 1893, to the EUG one of Africa's legally existing government and nation-state (according to contemporary international laws), ensuring its independence during the Scramble for Africa. William Alfred Allen was appointed the first Secretary to the Government by the Colonial government while the Egba rulers were given government portfolios. Eventually, Allen was succeeded by Adegboyega Edun.