Madam Tinubu
Encyclopedia
Madam Efunroye Tinubu was an active adversary of the British Colonial Government
of what is now Nigeria
that was banished by them from Lagos
to her native Abeokuta
. She was a former slave trader who, having realised the differences between domestic slaving
and the inhumane treatment of slaves in Europe
and the Americas, became an active opponent to all slave trading
.
She became the first Iyalode of the Egba
clan and was able to build a small financial empire through trading in arms and salt. She is considered an important figure in West African history due to her political significance as a powerful female aristocrat
of feudal Nigeria
. She died in 1887.
Tinubu Square on Lagos Island
, a place previously known as Independence Square, is named after the late Oloye.
Ita Tinubu (Tinubu's precint or Tinubu Square) had been known by that name long before the country's independence, but it was re-named Independence Square by the leaders of the First Republic who failed to recognise the importance of this venerable lady amongst the indigenous Yoruba people of Lagos or, perhaps, as a punitive measure to exert federal might over their heroes and heroines.
Colonial Nigeria
Colonial Nigeria ran from 1800 till October 1, 1960 when it gained independence. Up until the amalgamation of 1914, the country's constituting parts existed as separate British protectorates.-Abolition of the Slave Trade:...
of what is now Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
that was banished by them from Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
to her native Abeokuta
Abeokuta
Abeokuta is the largest city and capital of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria and is situated at , on the Ogun River; 64 miles north of Lagos by railway, or 81 miles by water. As of 2005, Abeokuta and the surrounding area had a population of 593,140....
. She was a former slave trader who, having realised the differences between domestic slaving
African slave trade
Systems of servitude and slavery were common in many parts of Africa, as they were in much of the ancient world. In some African societies, the enslaved people were also indentured servants and fully integrated; in others, they were treated much worse...
and the inhumane treatment of slaves in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the Americas, became an active opponent to all slave trading
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
.
She became the first Iyalode of the Egba
Egba
The Egba are a clan of the Yoruba people who live in western Nigeria. Many Egba live in the city of Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State.- History :...
clan and was able to build a small financial empire through trading in arms and salt. She is considered an important figure in West African history due to her political significance as a powerful female aristocrat
Aristocracy (class)
The aristocracy are people considered to be in the highest social class in a society which has or once had a political system of Aristocracy. Aristocrats possess hereditary titles granted by a monarch, which once granted them feudal or legal privileges, or deriving, as in Ancient Greece and India,...
of feudal Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. She died in 1887.
Tinubu Square on Lagos Island
Lagos Island
Lagos Island is the principal and central local government area of the Metropolitan Lagos in Nigeria. It is part of the Lagos Division. As of the preliminary 2006 Nigerian census, the LGA had a population of 209,437 in an area of 8.7 km²...
, a place previously known as Independence Square, is named after the late Oloye.
Ita Tinubu (Tinubu's precint or Tinubu Square) had been known by that name long before the country's independence, but it was re-named Independence Square by the leaders of the First Republic who failed to recognise the importance of this venerable lady amongst the indigenous Yoruba people of Lagos or, perhaps, as a punitive measure to exert federal might over their heroes and heroines.