Sir Walter Egerton, had a long career in the administration of the British Empire, holding senior positions which included the Governorships of Lagos Colony (1904–1906), Southern Nigeria (1906–1912), and British Guiana (1912–1917).
Walter Egerton
A commemorative group photograph taken at the 2nd Durbar held on 20 July 1903. sitting from left to right: William Treacher (resident-general), Sultan Alaiddin Sulaiman of Selangor, Sultan Idris of Perak, Sir Frank Swettenham (governor), Sultan Ahmad Maatham of Pahang, Tuanku Muhammad (Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan), Walter Egerton (resident-general of Negeri Sembilan)
Sir Walter Egerton (far right) with his wife and other westerners in Lagos, c. 1910
Lagos Colony was a British colonial possession centred on the port of Lagos in what is now southern Nigeria. Lagos was annexed on 6 August 1861 under the threat of force by Commander Beddingfield of HMS Prometheus who was accompanied by the Acting British Consul, William McCoskry. Oba Dosunmu of Lagos resisted the cession for 11 days while facing the threat of violence on Lagos and its people, but capitulated and signed the Lagos Treaty of Cession. Lagos was declared a colony on 5 March 1862.
By 1872, Lagos was a cosmopolitan trading centre with a population over 60,000.
In the aftermath of prolonged wars between the mainland Yoruba states, the colony established a protectorate over most of Yorubaland between 1890 and 1897. The protectorate was incorporated into the new Southern Nigeria Protectorate in February 1906, and Lagos became the capital of the Protectorate of Nigeria in January 1914.
Since then, Lagos has grown to become the largest city in West Africa, with an estimated metropolitan population of over 9,000,000 as of 2011.
Lagos Colony
Brass head of a Yoruba king from Ife, 13th century
Counterattack during the Reduction of Lagos (1851–1852)
Richard Francis Burton, opponent of missionary activity in the colony