20th Century
| Year | Date | Event |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | Anglo-Aro war: The war began. The Aro Confederacy began to decline. (to 1902) | |
| 1902 | Anglo-Aro war: The war ended. | |
| 1903 | The British conquered most of Northern Nigeria, including the Sokoto Caliphate. | |
| 1905 | The British conquest of Southern Nigeria ended. | |
| 1912 | Lord Lugard, Governor of Northern Nigeria, established a system of indirect rule. | |
| 1914 | Northern Nigeria and Southern Nigeria were amalgamated into Nigeria. | |
| 1946 | Nigeria entered a period of decolonization and growing Nigerian nationalism. | |
| 1950 | A conference of northern and southern delegates was held in Ibadan. | |
| 1953 | A conference regarding Nigeria's federal formula was held in London. | |
| 1957 | Nigeria held a Constitutional conference. | |
| 1959 | Nigeria holds its first national election to set up an independent government. Northern politicians won a majority of seats in the Parliament. | |
| 1960 | The period of nationalism and decolonization ended. | |
| 1 October | Nigeria gained independence from Britain under Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa and President Nnamdi Azikiwe. | |
| 1963 | 1 October | Nigeria severed its remaining ties to Britain, marking the birth of the Nigerian First Republic. |
| 1964 | 1 December | A national election was held. |
| 1966 | 15 January | A military coup deposed the government of the First Republic. Balewa, Premier of Northern Nigeria Ahmadu Bello, and Finance Minister Festus Okotie-Eboh, were assassinated. |
| 16 January | The Federal Military Government was formed, with General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi acting as head of state and Supreme Commander of the Federal Republic. | |
| 29 July | A counter-coup by military officers of northern extraction deposed the Federal Military Government. Aguiyi-Ironsi and Adekunle Fajuyi, Military Governor of the Western Region, were assassinated. General Yakubu Gowon became President. | |
| 1967 | Violence between the Christian Igbo people and the Muslim Hausa and Fula people in Eastern and Northern Nigeria triggered a migration of the Igbo back to the East. | |
| 30 May | Nigerian-Biafran War: General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Military Governor of Eastern Nigeria, declared his province an independent republic called Biafra. | |
| 1970 | 8 January | Ojukwu fled into exile. His deputy Philip Effiong became acting President of Biafra |
| 15 January | Effiong surrendered to Nigerian forces. Biafra was reintegrated into Nigeria. | |
| 1973 | 22 January | A plane crashed in Kano, Nigeria, killing 176 people. |
| 1975 | 29 January | General Yakubu Gowon was overthrown in a bloodless coup. General Murtala Mohammed became Head of State. |
| 1976 | 13 February | Mohammed was assassinated on his way to work. His deputy, Lieutenant-General Olusegun Obasanjo, became Head of State and set a date to end military rule. |
| 1979 | Shehu Shagari won election to the Executive Presidency of the American-style Second Republic. | |
| 1 October | Shagari was sworn in as President. | |
| 1983 | Shagari won reelection. | |
| 31 December | Shagari's government was ejected from power in a palace coup, marking the end of the Second Republic. General Muhammadu Buhari became Head of State and Chairman of the Supreme Military Council of Nigeria. | |
| 1984 | 17 April | The Buhari regime promulgated Decree No. 4, the "Public Officer's Protection Against False Accusation" Decree, which made it an offence to ridicule the government by publication of false information. |
| 1985 | August | Buhari was overthrown in a palace coup. General Ibrahim Babangida became Head of State and President of the Armed Forces Ruling Council of Nigeria. |
| 1990 | April | Middle Belt Christian officers, led by Major Gideon Orkar, attempt to overthrow Babangida in an unsuccessful coup. |
| 1992 | Two political parties, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the National Republican Convention (NRC) ware established by Babangida in an attempt to return to civilian rule. | |
| 1993 | 12 June | Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola won a presidential election. Babangida annulled the results. |
| 26 August | Babangida stepped down due to pressure from the Armed Forces Ruling Council. Ernest Adegunle Oladeinde Shonekan assumed power as Interim Head of State. | |
| 17 November | Shonekan was forced to resign from office. Defence Minister Sani Abacha became Head of State and established the Provisional Ruling Council of Nigeria. | |
| 1995 | 13 March | The Abacha administration arrested Obasanjo for allegedly supporting a secret coup plot. |
| 10 November | Human and environmental rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa was hanged with eight others. | |
| 1998 | 8 June | Abacha died from a heart attack. Abdusalami Abubakar became Head of State and Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council of Nigeria and lifted the ban on political activity. |
| 15 June | Obasanjo was released from prison. | |
| 1999 | 10 February | Obasanjo was elected President. |
| 29 May | Obasanjo was sworn in, ushering in the Fourth Republic. | |
| 19 December | Obasanjo ordered the Nigerian Armed Forces to raid the town of Odi in the Niger Delta, in response to the murder of twelve policemen by local militia. | |
| 2000 | 27 January | Sharia was established in the predominantly Muslim state of Zamfara. |
| May | Religious riots erupted in Kaduna over the implementation of sharia. | |
| 5 June | The Obasanjo administration established the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to tackle human and ecological issues in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. |
Read more about this topic: Timeline Of Nigerian History
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