Perched on the banks of the River Niger, Lokoja stands as one of Nigeria’s most historically layered cities and few places capture its colonial depth like the European Cemetery, a quiet burial ground that holds the weathered graves of British officers, missionaries, explorers, and other Europeans who died during the early years of British expansion into the Nigerian interior.
Once the seat of the Royal Niger Company and later Nigeria’s first administrative capital, Lokoja was a major gateway to colonial penetration, and the cemetery offers a sobering reminder of the human cost of empire, disease, and ambition.
Echoes of Empire and Mortality
The cemetery, dating back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries, contains dozens of stone and marble tombs, many now partially engulfed by grass and erosion. Among the names are those of young British officers who succumbed to tropical diseases like malaria, yellow fever, and dysentery, conditions that earned West Africa the grim nickname “White Man’s Grave” during the colonial era.
These graves don’t just tell stories of conquest; they also speak of frailty, loss, and sacrifice, often of men who were in their 20s or 30s, caught between the empire’s ambition and Africa’s harsh realities.
Lokoja’s Colonial Role
Lokoja’s significance in Nigeria’s colonial formation cannot be overstated. It was from here that Lord Frederick Lugard, the British colonial administrator, governed and later oversaw the amalgamation of Northern and Southern Nigeria in 1914. The cemetery is not far from Lugard’s former residence, further cementing the town’s place in Nigeria’s imperial narrative.
Nearby colonial landmarks, such as the old prison, cantonments, and the Iron of Liberty (symbolizing the abolition of the slave trade), form part of a broader historical loop that visitors can explore.
