Royal West African Frontier Force
By July 1897, the War Office had successfully completed the reorganisation of the Egyptian army and thought a similar process would be wise in West Africa.
The Secretary of State for War, the Marquess of Lansdowne, advised the Colonial Office that it was possible at no additional cost to create a "homogeneous Imperial force available for any emergency" in West Africa.
Rivalry between Britain and France for control of the trade on the River Niger led to the occupation of areas by the French, for instance at Illo, and the stationing of the Frontier Force at Yashikera and elsewhere in the region.
The standard weapon was the .303 Martini-Enfield carbine, and the force had 30 QF 2.95 inch mountain guns (quick-firing, man-portable pack howitzers) for the artillery.
[3] The West African Frontier Force first saw action during the occupation of the German Kamerun (now Cameroon and part of present-day Nigeria).
The experience gained in this campaign during 1914–16, in difficult terrain against stubborn resistance, made the WAFF a valuable reinforcement to the British Empire forces operating against the German Schutztruppe (colonial troops) in East Africa led by General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck.
By the end of the First World War, regimental strengths were as follows:[citation needed][4] The following battle honours were awarded separately to the constituent regiments of the WAFF during the First World War:[citation needed] Between 1919 and 1939 the RWAFF reverted to its peacetime role of an all regular multi-battalion force, recruited from diverse regions and with a commitment to serve in any of the British West African colonial territories.
[5] In peacetime the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF) had numbered five battalions of infantry, but during the war increased to several dozen plus ancillaries.
[6] Prime Minister Winston Churchill was informed on a visit to West Africa in May 1941 that it was necessary to find a large number of officers for the RWAFF.
The American writer John Gunther, writing in 1953, did, however report meeting "two or three smart young Negro officers of the West African Frontier Force" in Lagos.
[12] British officers wore khaki serge or drill uniforms with tropical helmets (later bush or slouch hats) for review order and field dress.
For evening functions, a white mess uniform with rolled collar was worn with cummerbunds in blue for artillery and battalion colours for infantry officers.
Because of its identification with colonial rule, this uniform was replaced shortly after Nigerian independence by a high-collared dark green tunic, peaked cap and light coloured trousers.
