In this chapter I shall examine the working of indirect rule in Dagomba, the reasons for the disillusionment of administrative officers with the Native Authority system, and the effects of that system on the distribution and exercise of power in the kingdom. In so doing, I shall suggest, tentatively, the outlines of an interpretation which might be applied to the Yendi crisis and the events preceding it. This interpretation will be developed further in the last three chapters.

The late thirties and the early forties represent a period of transition in Dagomba state politics and also in colonial thinking. Because colonial philosophy underwent a sea-change during this period, it is important to take account of the new official mood when we try to assess the successes and failures of indirect rule. For, if we say that indirect rule was a ‘failure’, we should add that this was as much because standards had changed as because institutions and policies proved inadequate to their purpose. The Dagomba Native Authorities did, indeed, fail to achieve much that the ‘indirect rule team’ had hoped for.