Lady Victoria Aguiyi-Ironsi, the wife of General Thompson Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi, the first Military Head of State in Nigeria is dead.
According to report, the 97-year-old Lady Victoria died Monday morning of old age related ailment, and her corpse has been deposited in the mortuary.
Victoria Nwanyiocha Aguyi-Ironsi (born 21 November 1923) was the second First Lady of Nigeria from 16 January 1966 to 29 July 1996.
She hailed from Umuahia North Local Government Area of Abia State.
She is the widow of General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi who was the first Nigerian military head of state who was killed in Ibadan a countercoup led by Murtala Muhammed and led to the installtion of Yakubu Gowon.
She married Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi as a student of Holy Rosary Convent School, Okigwe in 1953 aged 16.
She had 8 children who were taken away and cared for by nuns in Ibadan under the direction of Adekunle Fajuyi during the Nigerian Civil War.
She served as a commissioner of the Local Government Services Commission in Umuahia.
The advent of the office of the First Lady came with Ironsi. Aguiyi-Ironsi brought prestige to the office. She was often garbed in traditional outfits and her style was described as “pretty and effortlessly regal”.
