The Forgotten Era cover art

The Forgotten Era

Nigeria Before British Rule

Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for £0.00
£8.99/mo thereafter. Renews automatically. Terms apply. Offer ends 31 July 2025 at 23:59 GMT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

The Forgotten Era

By: Max Siollun
Narrated by: Ben Onwukwe
Try for £0.00

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends 31 July 2025 23:59 GMT. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Much is known about what Europeans did in Africa, yet very little is known about Africa's history before its colonization. In this surprising exploration, Max Siollun uncovers societies that were not part of a backward "Dark Continent," but which instead had rich lore to rival the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Precolonial West Africa had a mesmerizing cast of revolutionaries, intellectuals, innovators, and villainous assassins. These include the family that overthrew three different 1000-year-old empires, the royal court official who engineered the death of four kings, and the young enslaved boy who became the first Black bishop in history, befriending Queen Victoria along the way.

This story of a dynamic and artistic people is a vital listen for those who want to discover a forgotten era of West Africa.

©2025 Max Siollun (P)2025 Tantor Media
Africa Colonialism & Post-Colonialism Politics & Government Royalty
All stars
Most relevant  
The narrator is an English actor, so it's a bit bizarre he reads this in a hammy Nigerian accent like it's an Achebe novel. The book itself isn't the easiest to follow - the history is quite fragmented and organised by ethnic group, not chronology - so the frequent pauses and over-the-top pronunciations were an unwelcome distraction.

Could do without the sham accent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.