A lively political satire of traditional kingship, colonial local government, reform and the contested right to rule.

In the kingdom of Aiye, a new Local Government Law promises modern administration by sharing power between the Alaiye and a council of educated officials. Barrister Morrison arrives determined to bring roads, schools, health reform and accountable government; the Alaiye is equally determined that no law diminish the authority of the throne. Narrated by the council secretary caught between both worlds, His Worshipful Majesty follows the growing contest between bureaucracy and chieftaincy, reform and custom, law and personal power. First published in 1973, T. M. Aluko turns the collision of colonial administration, traditional kingship and modern local government into a lively, perceptive satire of political accommodation and the meanings of progress. This New Africa Library edition restores the novel to global circulation.