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Federal Republic of Nigeria | |||||||||
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1963–1966 | |||||||||
Motto: "Peace, Unity, Freedom"[1] | |||||||||
Anthem: Nigeria, We Hail Thee[1] | |||||||||
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Capital | Lagos | ||||||||
Common languages | English · Hausa · Igbo · Yoruba and other regional languages | ||||||||
Religion | Islam · Christianity · Traditional beliefs | ||||||||
Government | Federal parliamentary republic | ||||||||
President | |||||||||
• 1963–1966 | Nnamdi Azikiwe | ||||||||
Prime Minister | |||||||||
• 1963–1966 | Abubakar Tafawa Balewa | ||||||||
Legislature | Parliament[2] | ||||||||
• Upper house | Senate | ||||||||
• Lower house | House of Representatives | ||||||||
Historical era | Cold War | ||||||||
1 October 1963 | |||||||||
15 January 1966 | |||||||||
Area | |||||||||
1963[3] | 923,768 km2 (356,669 sq mi) | ||||||||
Population | |||||||||
• 1963[3] | 55,670,055 | ||||||||
Currency | Nigerian pound | ||||||||
Time zone | UTC+1 (WAT) | ||||||||
Driving side | left | ||||||||
ISO 3166 code | NG | ||||||||
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Today part of | Nigeria Cameroona | ||||||||
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The First Republic was the republican government of Nigeria between 1963 and 1966 governed by the first republican constitution. The country's government was based on a federal form of the Westminster system. The period between 1 October 1960, when the country gained its independence and 15 January 1966, when the first military coup d’état took place, is also generally referred to as the First Republic. The first Republic of Nigeria was ruled by different leaders representing their regions as premiers in a federation during this period.