Eastern Region | |||||||||
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Autonomous region of Nigeria | |||||||||
1954–1967 | |||||||||
Capital | Enugu | ||||||||
Demonym | Easterner | ||||||||
Area | |||||||||
• 1965 | 76,145.65 km2 (29,400.00 sq mi) | ||||||||
Population | |||||||||
• 1965 | 12,000,000 | ||||||||
Government | Eastern Nigerian Government | ||||||||
• Type | Parliamentary constitutional monarchy (1954–1963) Parliamentary republic (1963–1966) Military dictatorship (1966–1967) | ||||||||
Governor | |||||||||
• 1954–1956 | Clement John Pleass | ||||||||
• 1956–1960 | Robert Stapledon | ||||||||
• 1960–1966 | Francis Akanu Ibiam | ||||||||
• 1966–1967 | Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu | ||||||||
Premier | |||||||||
• 1951–1953 | Eyo Ita | ||||||||
• 1954–1959 | Nnamdi Azikiwe | ||||||||
• 1959–1966 | Michael Okpara | ||||||||
Legislature | Eastern Regional Assembly | ||||||||
• Upper house | House of Chiefs | ||||||||
• Lower house | House of Assembly | ||||||||
Historical era | Decolonisation of Africa | ||||||||
1884 | |||||||||
1 October 1954 | |||||||||
15 March 1957 | |||||||||
1 October 1960 | |||||||||
16 November 1961 | |||||||||
• Constitution of the First Republic | 1 October 1963 | ||||||||
15 January 1966 | |||||||||
28 July 1966 | |||||||||
May–October 1966 | |||||||||
5 January 1967 | |||||||||
• Independence (as Biafra) | 27 May 1967 | ||||||||
15 January 1970 | |||||||||
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Today part of | Nigeria |
The Eastern Region was an administrative region in Nigeria, dating back originally from the division of the colony Southern Nigeria in 1954. Its first capital was Calabar. The capital was later moved to Enugu and the second capital was Umuahia. The region was officially divided in 1967 into three new states, the East-Central State, Rivers State and South-Eastern State. East-Central State had its capital at Enugu, which is now part of Enugu State.[1]
The region had the third-, fourth- and fifth-largest indigenous ethnic groups including Igbo, Ibibio and Ijaw. It was what later became Biafra, which was in rebellion from 1967 to 1970.[2]