Letter from Amos Olalekau, Winchester Prison

This is a 1950 letter from a stowaway named Amos Olalekau from Lagos, Nigeria. This letter gives us a unique insight into the experience of this individual who risked his life to enter Britain illegally. During the period that this letter was written in, Nigeria was one of many countries in the British empire. At the height of the empire held over 450 million people and covered 1/4 of the world's land area. Britain had political and economical control over all of the territories within the empire. This meant that the populations from the various countries within the empire viewed Britain as their 'Mother country' .
This letter displays the writers' loyalty to Britain and the crown. As a final note he writes:
'Don't think if you send me back to Lagos I will not come back. I am coming back because I under Union Jack. God time is the best. God save our Queen'.
Amos Olalekau clearly identifies as British and risked his life and freedom to enter Britain. He writes:
'Because you no we all are under British Empire and you still rulling us, and I wonder why am British subject will gave to England and you will refused to land him.'
Here he is questioning why he was refused entry when is is a British subject and his country belongs to the British empire. He is adamant that he will return to Britain as he believes it is his home. This form of resistance is very much a political statement which infers that British subjects should be able to live in the country that rules them. This letter is available to access at Black Cultural Archives REF BANTON/1/1/7.