1966 Nigerian counter-coup

1966 Nigerian counter-coup
Date	28 July – 1 August 1966
Location	Nigeria
Result	Coup successful End of the Ironsi regime; Elimination of many Igbo soldiers and officers; Beginning of Northern dominance of the Nigerian Army; Yakubu Gowon appointed Head of State; 1966 anti-Igbo pogrom Intensifies; Rift between the Eastern Region Government and the Federal Military Government;
Belligerents
Supreme Military Council of Nigeria	Northern Army Officers
Commanders and leaders
Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi †; Adekunle Fajuyi †	Murtala Muhammed; Joseph Akahan; Theophilus Danjuma; Martin Adamu
Strength
unknown	unknown
Casualties and losses
300 dead	none

The 1966 Nigerian counter-coup (also known as the "July Rematch") was the second of many military Coups in Nigeria. It was masterminded by Lt. Colonel Murtala Muhammed^[4] and many northern military officers. The coup began as a mutiny at roughly midnight on 28 July 1966^[5] and was a reaction to the killings of Northern politicians and officers by some soldiers on 15 January 1966 (see 1966 Nigerian coup d'état). The July mutiny/counter coup resulted in the murder of Nigeria's first military Head of State General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi and Lt Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi (who was hosting a visiting Aguiyi-Ironsi) in Ibadan by disgruntled northern non-commissioned officers (NCOs).^[6] Upon the termination of Ironsi's government, Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon was appointed Head of State by the coup conspirators.

^ ^a ^b ^c Baxter, Peter (2015). Biafra : the Nigerian Civil War, 1967-1970. Solihull, West Midlands, England: Helion. p. 15. ISBN 9781909982369. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
^ ^a ^b Siollun, Max (2009). Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. p. 148. ISBN 9780875867090.
^ Metz, Helen. "The 1966 Soups, Civil War, and Gowon's Government". Country Studies. Country Studies/Area Handbook Series. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
^ Siollun, Max (2009). Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Soup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. pp. 98–102. ISBN 9780875867090.
^ Joe Garba- A Revolution in Nigeria, another view
^ Siollun, Max (2009). Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. p. 110. ISBN 9780875867090.

[c-1] Baxter, Peter (2015). Biafra : the Nigerian Civil War, 1967-1970. Solihull, West Midlands, England: Helion. p. 15. ISBN 9781909982369. Retrieved 6 September 2021.

[g-2] Siollun, Max (2009). Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. p. 148. ISBN 9780875867090.

[3] Metz, Helen. "The 1966 Soups, Civil War, and Gowon's Government". Country Studies. Country Studies/Area Handbook Series. Retrieved 6 September 2021.

[OPV-Max-4] Siollun, Max (2009). Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Soup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. pp. 98–102. ISBN 9780875867090.

[5] Joe Garba- A Revolution in Nigeria, another view

[6] Siollun, Max (2009). Oil, Politics and Violence: Nigeria's Military Coup Culture (1966-1976). Algora. p. 110. ISBN 9780875867090.

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