Queen Elizabeth II first visited Nigeria in 1956. The visit was a familiarisation tour of the territories under the British Commonwealth. Her visit was coming just three years after she ascended the throne.
That was four years before Nigeria’s independence and the queen’s visit was received with lots of fanfare.
During her visit, she toured Nigeria with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. She spent a total of 20 days from 28 January to 16 February.
Queen Elizabeth II also visited Jos which was the center of tin mining and has being exporting its mineral resources to Great Britain. The Queen and her husband Prince Philip travelled in from Kaduna and stayed at the famous Hill Station hotel in Jos.
Queen Elizabeth and her husband spent 2 weeks in Nigeria and most of the travels around the country was done by train.
After her departure, the train was packaged and put on display, complete with the interior, at the Jos Museum which was founded just a few years before her visit.
Some of this monumental piece of history from 1956 still exist, like the train which is now used as a Café, restaurant and bar.
The Hill Station hotel, the place where the Queen and her husband lodged during their stay still exists though it is now a shadow of itself.
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