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Barghash bin Said of Zanzibar
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Sayyid Barghash bin Said Al-Busaid, GCMG, GCTE (1837 – 26 March 1888), was an Omani Sultan and the son of Said bin Sultan, was the second Sultan of Zanzibar.
Barghash ruled Zanzibar from 7 October 1870 to 26 March 1888.
Reign
Barghash is credited with building much of the infrastructure of Stone Town, including piped water, public baths, a police force, roads, parks, hospitals and large administrative buildings such as the (Bait el-Ajaib) House of Wonders.
He was perhaps the last Sultan to maintain a measure of true independence from European control.
He did consult with European "advisors" who had immense influence, but he was still the central figure they wrestled to control.
He crossed wits with diplomats from Britain, America, Germany, France and Portugal and was often able to play one country off.
It was his son, Khaled, who while vying for the succession, was the loser in the Shortest War.
In 1859 a dispute broke out between the brothers Sayyid Majid, the first Sultan of Zanzibar, and Barghash.
Their sister Sayyida Salme (later Emily Ruete) acted (at the age of fifteen) as secretary of Barghash's party.
However, with the help of an English gunboat the insurrection of Barghash was soon brought to an end, and Barghash was sent into exile in Bombay for two years.
After the death of Majid, Barghash became Sultan.
"It is a well-known fact in Zanzibar that Barghash, as soon as he had ascended the throne in 1870, suddenly and without any cause cast our second youngest brother Chalîfe into prison."
"The poor fellow had to languish there for three long years in the dungeon, in heavy iron fetters weighed with chains!"
"And why?"
"No one could say."
"It may have been feared that Chalîfe, being next in succession to the throne, might plot the same treacherous plans as Barghash himself had once tried against Madjid" Emily Ruete, p. 398. (Ruete wrote this in 1886).
According to Ruete, Barghash did not release Khalifah before one of their sisters prepared to set out for a pilgrimage for Mecca, and "he did not want to bring down upon himself a curse pronounced in the Holy City of the Prophet."
"But his sister did not pardon him before he had set free the innocent Chalîfe."
Barghash is credited with building much of the infrastructure of Stone Town, including roads, parks, hospitals, piped water, and public baths, including the Hamamni Persian Baths.
Sayyid Barghash had a treaty with the British to help stop the slave trade in Zanzibar, but he was not always scrupulous in his commitment.
In the late-1860s, he was suspected of taking money from the slave traders to allow them to continue the practice, and he maintained this double deal for some years; HMS Daphne liberated 2000 slaves in the Indian Ocean over many years, mainly near Zanzibar.
In June 1873 John Kirk was acting British Consul and received simultaneous and contradictory instructions from London, one to issue an ultimatum to the Sultan under threat of blockade that the slave trade must be unequivocally stopped and the slave market closed, and the other not to actually enforce a blockade which might be taken as an act of war pushing Zanzibar towards French protection.
Kirk only showed the first instruction to Barghash, who capitulated within two weeks signing a further treaty with Britain prohibiting slave trade in his kingdom, and immediately closing the great slave market.
Towards the end of his reign Barghash had to witness the disintegration of his inherited empire.
In 1884 the German adventurer Carl Peters made African chiefs on the Tanganyika mainland sign documents which declared their areas to be under German "protection".
In February 1885 these acquisitions were ratified by the German Government through an imperial letter of protection.
Few weeks later in April 1885, the German Dehnhardt brothers concluded a contract with the Sultan of Witu (former ruler of Pate) on the Kenya Coast near Lamu which was also put under official German protection.
Bargash tried to send troops against the Witu ruler who in his view anyhow was supposed to be his subject when the appearance of a German fleet forced him to accept the German intrusion.
The British-German agreement of 29 October 1886 acknowledged the Sultan's rule over a 10-mile-strip along the coast from Portuguese Mozambique up to the Tana River and some towns on the Somali coast.
This agreement, however, was only short-lived as it cut the German areas of influence off the sea.
Bargash did not live to see the 1888 agreement come into force which signed off the coastal strip of later Tanganyika to the Germans resulting in the uprising of the Sultans' subjects against the Germans and its subsequent repression.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barghash_ ... f_Zanzibar
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Ranavalona II
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ranavalona II (1829 – 13 July 1883) was Queen of Madagascar from 1868 to 1883, succeeding Queen Rasoherina, her first cousin.
She is best remembered for Christianizing the royal court during her reign.
Early life
Ranavalona II was born Princess Ramoma in 1829 at Ambatomanoina, near Antananarivo in the central highlands to Prince Razakaratrimo and his wife Princess Rafarasoa Ramasindrazana.
As a young woman she, like her cousin Rasoherina, was married to King Radama II and was widowed upon his assassination in the nobles' coup of 1863.
The prime minister at the time, Rainivoninahitriniony, played a major role in the assassination plot and public condemnation of the action forced him from his post.
The position of prime minister was then filled by his younger brother Rainilaiarivony, who married Queen Rasoherina and then, upon her death, helped to designate Ranavalona II the next monarch of Madagascar and consequently married her to retain his position.
During her years at court, young Ramoma was tutored by Protestant missionaries who greatly influenced her religious and political views.
She became increasingly favorable toward the beliefs of the Christian religion.
Reign
Ranavalona II succeeded to the throne upon the death of Queen Rasoherina on April 1, 1868.
On 21 February 1869, she entered into a political marriage with her prime minister, Rainilaiarivony, in a public ceremony at Andohalo wherein the court officially underwent conversion to Christianity.
This conversion was effected to bring the increasingly powerful Protestant faction under the influence of the royal court.
Declaring Madagascar a Christian nation, Ranavalona had the traditional royal talismans (sampy) burned in a bonfire in September 1869 and replaced their authority with that of the Bible.
Under her rule the problem of deforestation was considered.
The queen authorized construction using brick and other durable materials within the walls of Antananarivo (previously forbidden by King Andrianampoinimerina).
She also banned the traditional practice of tavy (swidden, slash-and-burn agriculture), charcoal making and construction of houses within forests.
A European visitor to the court of Ranavalona II in 1873 described the queen in the following terms:
"I should think the queen was about 45 years of age, with a dark olive complexion, and a face full of kindness and benevolence."
"She was very queenly, and dressed in a gray shot-silk dress, and a silk lamba fell negligently from her shoulders."
"Her hair was black, and beautifully arranged; 'crown she did not wear', but from the hair at the top of her head there depended the long fine gold chain ending in a gold tassel, which only the queen can wear."
Death and succession
Ranavalona II died in 1883 and was buried in Ambohimanga.
In a bid to desacralize the holy city, in 1897 the French colonial authority disinterred her remains along with those of other monarchs buried in Ambohimanga and transferred them to the tombs on the compound of the Rova of Antananarivo, where her bones were interred in the tomb of Queen Rasoherina.
She was succeeded by Queen Ranavalona III, the last monarch of the kingdom.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranavalona_II
Ranavalona II
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ranavalona II (1829 – 13 July 1883) was Queen of Madagascar from 1868 to 1883, succeeding Queen Rasoherina, her first cousin.
She is best remembered for Christianizing the royal court during her reign.
Early life
Ranavalona II was born Princess Ramoma in 1829 at Ambatomanoina, near Antananarivo in the central highlands to Prince Razakaratrimo and his wife Princess Rafarasoa Ramasindrazana.
As a young woman she, like her cousin Rasoherina, was married to King Radama II and was widowed upon his assassination in the nobles' coup of 1863.
The prime minister at the time, Rainivoninahitriniony, played a major role in the assassination plot and public condemnation of the action forced him from his post.
The position of prime minister was then filled by his younger brother Rainilaiarivony, who married Queen Rasoherina and then, upon her death, helped to designate Ranavalona II the next monarch of Madagascar and consequently married her to retain his position.
During her years at court, young Ramoma was tutored by Protestant missionaries who greatly influenced her religious and political views.
She became increasingly favorable toward the beliefs of the Christian religion.
Reign
Ranavalona II succeeded to the throne upon the death of Queen Rasoherina on April 1, 1868.
On 21 February 1869, she entered into a political marriage with her prime minister, Rainilaiarivony, in a public ceremony at Andohalo wherein the court officially underwent conversion to Christianity.
This conversion was effected to bring the increasingly powerful Protestant faction under the influence of the royal court.
Declaring Madagascar a Christian nation, Ranavalona had the traditional royal talismans (sampy) burned in a bonfire in September 1869 and replaced their authority with that of the Bible.
Under her rule the problem of deforestation was considered.
The queen authorized construction using brick and other durable materials within the walls of Antananarivo (previously forbidden by King Andrianampoinimerina).
She also banned the traditional practice of tavy (swidden, slash-and-burn agriculture), charcoal making and construction of houses within forests.
A European visitor to the court of Ranavalona II in 1873 described the queen in the following terms:
"I should think the queen was about 45 years of age, with a dark olive complexion, and a face full of kindness and benevolence."
"She was very queenly, and dressed in a gray shot-silk dress, and a silk lamba fell negligently from her shoulders."
"Her hair was black, and beautifully arranged; 'crown she did not wear', but from the hair at the top of her head there depended the long fine gold chain ending in a gold tassel, which only the queen can wear."
Death and succession
Ranavalona II died in 1883 and was buried in Ambohimanga.
In a bid to desacralize the holy city, in 1897 the French colonial authority disinterred her remains along with those of other monarchs buried in Ambohimanga and transferred them to the tombs on the compound of the Rova of Antananarivo, where her bones were interred in the tomb of Queen Rasoherina.
She was succeeded by Queen Ranavalona III, the last monarch of the kingdom.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranavalona_II
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Royal African Company
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Royal African Company (RAC) was an English mercantile (trading) company set up in 1660 by the royal Stuart family and City of London merchants to trade along the west coast of Africa.
It was led by the Duke of York, who was the brother of Charles II and later took the throne as James II.
It shipped more African slaves to the Americas than any other institution in the history of the Atlantic slave trade.
Its original purpose was to exploit the gold fields up the Gambia River, which were identified by Prince Rupert during the Interregnum.
It was established after Charles II gained the English throne in the Restoration of 1660.
It soon developed and led a brutal and sustained slave trade.
It extracted other commodities, mainly from the Gold Coast.
After becoming insolvent in 1708, it survived until 1752 in a state of much reduced activity when its assets were transferred to the new African Company of Merchants, which lasted until 1821.
History
Background
In the 17th century the settlements on the west coast of Africa, though they had a not unimportant trade of their own in gold and ivory, existed chiefly for the supply of slaves to the West Indies and America.
On the west coast the Europeans lived in fortified factories (trading posts) but had no sovereignty over the land or its natives.
The coastal tribes acted as intermediaries between them and the slave-hunters of the interior.
There was little incentive for white men to explore up the rivers, and few of them did so.
The atmosphere might have been one of quiet routine had there not been acute rivalries between the European powers; especially the Dutch, who made use of native allies against their rivals.
Before the Restoration the Dutch had been the main suppliers of slaves to the English West Indian plantations, but it was part of the policy of the English Navigation Acts to oust them from this lucrative trade.
Foundation and early years
Originally known as the Company of Royal Adventurers Trading into Africa, by its charter issued in 1660 it was granted a monopoly over English trade along the west coast of Africa, with the principal objective being the search for gold.
In 1663 a new charter was obtained which also mentioned the trade in slaves.
This was the third English African Company, but it made a fresh start in the slave trade and there was only one factory of importance for it to take over from the East India Company, which had leased it as a calling-place on the sea-route round the Cape.
This was Cormantin, a few miles east of the Dutch station of Caso Corso or Cape Coast Castle.
In 1663, as a prelude to the Dutch war, Captain Holmes's expedition captured or destroyed all the Dutch settlements on the coast, and in 1664 Fort James was founded on an island about twenty miles up the Gambia river, as a new centre for English trade and power.
This, however, was only the beginning of a series of captures and recaptures.
In the same year de Ruyter won back all the Dutch forts except Cape Coast Castle and also took Cormantin.
The treaty of Breda confirmed Cape Coast Castle to the English.
Forts served as staging and trading stations, and the Company was responsible for seizing any English ships that attempted to operate in violation of its monopoly (known as interlopers).
In the "prize court", the King received half of the proceeds and the Company half from the seizure of these interlopers.
The Company fell heavily into debt in 1667, during the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
For several years after that, the Company maintained some desultory trade, including licensing single-trip private traders, but its biggest effort was the creation in 1668 of the Gambia Adventurers.
This new company was separately subscribed and granted a ten-year licence for African trade north of the Bight of Benin with effect from 1 January 1669.
At the end of 1678, the licence to the Gambia Adventurers expired and its Gambian trade was merged into the Company.
The African Company was ruined by its losses and surrendered its charter in 1672, to be followed by the still more ambitious Royal African Company of England.
Its new charter was broader than the old one and included the right to set up forts and factories, maintain troops, and exercise martial law in West Africa, in pursuit of trade in gold, silver and African slaves.
Until 1687 the Company was very prosperous.
It set up six forts on the Gold Coast, and another post at Ouidah, farther east on the Slave Coast, which became its principal centre for trade.
Cape Coast Castle was strengthened and rose to be second in importance only to the Dutch factory at Elmina.
Anglo-Dutch rivalry was, however, henceforward unimportant in the region and the Dutch were not strong enough to take aggressive measures here in the Third Anglo-Dutch War.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Royal African Company
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Royal African Company (RAC) was an English mercantile (trading) company set up in 1660 by the royal Stuart family and City of London merchants to trade along the west coast of Africa.
It was led by the Duke of York, who was the brother of Charles II and later took the throne as James II.
It shipped more African slaves to the Americas than any other institution in the history of the Atlantic slave trade.
Its original purpose was to exploit the gold fields up the Gambia River, which were identified by Prince Rupert during the Interregnum.
It was established after Charles II gained the English throne in the Restoration of 1660.
It soon developed and led a brutal and sustained slave trade.
It extracted other commodities, mainly from the Gold Coast.
After becoming insolvent in 1708, it survived until 1752 in a state of much reduced activity when its assets were transferred to the new African Company of Merchants, which lasted until 1821.
History
Background
In the 17th century the settlements on the west coast of Africa, though they had a not unimportant trade of their own in gold and ivory, existed chiefly for the supply of slaves to the West Indies and America.
On the west coast the Europeans lived in fortified factories (trading posts) but had no sovereignty over the land or its natives.
The coastal tribes acted as intermediaries between them and the slave-hunters of the interior.
There was little incentive for white men to explore up the rivers, and few of them did so.
The atmosphere might have been one of quiet routine had there not been acute rivalries between the European powers; especially the Dutch, who made use of native allies against their rivals.
Before the Restoration the Dutch had been the main suppliers of slaves to the English West Indian plantations, but it was part of the policy of the English Navigation Acts to oust them from this lucrative trade.
Foundation and early years
Originally known as the Company of Royal Adventurers Trading into Africa, by its charter issued in 1660 it was granted a monopoly over English trade along the west coast of Africa, with the principal objective being the search for gold.
In 1663 a new charter was obtained which also mentioned the trade in slaves.
This was the third English African Company, but it made a fresh start in the slave trade and there was only one factory of importance for it to take over from the East India Company, which had leased it as a calling-place on the sea-route round the Cape.
This was Cormantin, a few miles east of the Dutch station of Caso Corso or Cape Coast Castle.
In 1663, as a prelude to the Dutch war, Captain Holmes's expedition captured or destroyed all the Dutch settlements on the coast, and in 1664 Fort James was founded on an island about twenty miles up the Gambia river, as a new centre for English trade and power.
This, however, was only the beginning of a series of captures and recaptures.
In the same year de Ruyter won back all the Dutch forts except Cape Coast Castle and also took Cormantin.
The treaty of Breda confirmed Cape Coast Castle to the English.
Forts served as staging and trading stations, and the Company was responsible for seizing any English ships that attempted to operate in violation of its monopoly (known as interlopers).
In the "prize court", the King received half of the proceeds and the Company half from the seizure of these interlopers.
The Company fell heavily into debt in 1667, during the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
For several years after that, the Company maintained some desultory trade, including licensing single-trip private traders, but its biggest effort was the creation in 1668 of the Gambia Adventurers.
This new company was separately subscribed and granted a ten-year licence for African trade north of the Bight of Benin with effect from 1 January 1669.
At the end of 1678, the licence to the Gambia Adventurers expired and its Gambian trade was merged into the Company.
The African Company was ruined by its losses and surrendered its charter in 1672, to be followed by the still more ambitious Royal African Company of England.
Its new charter was broader than the old one and included the right to set up forts and factories, maintain troops, and exercise martial law in West Africa, in pursuit of trade in gold, silver and African slaves.
Until 1687 the Company was very prosperous.
It set up six forts on the Gold Coast, and another post at Ouidah, farther east on the Slave Coast, which became its principal centre for trade.
Cape Coast Castle was strengthened and rose to be second in importance only to the Dutch factory at Elmina.
Anglo-Dutch rivalry was, however, henceforward unimportant in the region and the Dutch were not strong enough to take aggressive measures here in the Third Anglo-Dutch War.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
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Royal African Company, continued ...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Slave (Human) trade
In the 1680s the Company was transporting about 5,000 enslaved humans a year to markets primarily in the Caribbean across the Atlantic.
Many were branded with the letters "DY", for its Governor, the Duke of York, who succeeded his brother on the throne in 1685, becoming King James II.
Other slaves were branded with the company's initials, RAC, on their chests.
Historian William Pettigrew has stated that this company “shipped more enslaved African women, men and children to the Americas than any other single institution during the entire period of the transatlantic slave trade,” and that investors in the company were fully aware of its activities and intended to profit from this exploitation.
Between 1662 and 1731, the Company transported approximately 212,000 slaves, of whom 44,000 died en route.
By that time, they also transported slaves to English colonies in North America.
Later activities and insolvency
From 1694 to 1700, the Company was a major participant in the Komenda Wars in the port city Komenda in the Eguafo Kingdom in modern-day Ghana.
The Company allied with a merchant prince named John Cabess and various neighbouring African kingdoms to depose the king of Eguafo and establish a permanent fort and factory in Komenda.
The English took two French forts and lost them again, after which the French destroyed Fort James.
The place appears to have been soon regained and in the War of Spanish Succession to have been twice retaken by the French.
In the treaty of Utrecht it remained English.
The French wars caused considerable losses to the Company.
In 1689, the Company acknowledged that it had lost its monopoly with the end of royal power in the Glorious Revolution, and it ceased issuing letters of marque.
Edward Colston transferred a large segment of his original shareholding to William III at the beginning of 1689, securing the new regime's favour.
To maintain the Company and its infrastructure and end its monopoly, parliament passed the Trade with Africa Act 1697 (9 Will. 3 c. 26).
Among other provisions, the Act opened the African trade to all English merchants who paid a ten per cent levy to the Company on all goods exported from Africa.
The Company was unable to withstand competition on the terms imposed by the Act and in 1708 became insolvent, surviving until 1750 in a state of much reduced activity.
The Company continued purchasing and transporting slaves until 1731, when it abandoned slaving in favour of ivory and gold dust.
From 1668 to 1722, the Royal African Company provided gold to the English Mint.
Coins made with such gold are designed with an elephant below the bust of the king and/or queen.
This gold also gave the coinage its name, the guinea.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Royal African Company, continued ...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Slave (Human) trade
In the 1680s the Company was transporting about 5,000 enslaved humans a year to markets primarily in the Caribbean across the Atlantic.
Many were branded with the letters "DY", for its Governor, the Duke of York, who succeeded his brother on the throne in 1685, becoming King James II.
Other slaves were branded with the company's initials, RAC, on their chests.
Historian William Pettigrew has stated that this company “shipped more enslaved African women, men and children to the Americas than any other single institution during the entire period of the transatlantic slave trade,” and that investors in the company were fully aware of its activities and intended to profit from this exploitation.
Between 1662 and 1731, the Company transported approximately 212,000 slaves, of whom 44,000 died en route.
By that time, they also transported slaves to English colonies in North America.
Later activities and insolvency
From 1694 to 1700, the Company was a major participant in the Komenda Wars in the port city Komenda in the Eguafo Kingdom in modern-day Ghana.
The Company allied with a merchant prince named John Cabess and various neighbouring African kingdoms to depose the king of Eguafo and establish a permanent fort and factory in Komenda.
The English took two French forts and lost them again, after which the French destroyed Fort James.
The place appears to have been soon regained and in the War of Spanish Succession to have been twice retaken by the French.
In the treaty of Utrecht it remained English.
The French wars caused considerable losses to the Company.
In 1689, the Company acknowledged that it had lost its monopoly with the end of royal power in the Glorious Revolution, and it ceased issuing letters of marque.
Edward Colston transferred a large segment of his original shareholding to William III at the beginning of 1689, securing the new regime's favour.
To maintain the Company and its infrastructure and end its monopoly, parliament passed the Trade with Africa Act 1697 (9 Will. 3 c. 26).
Among other provisions, the Act opened the African trade to all English merchants who paid a ten per cent levy to the Company on all goods exported from Africa.
The Company was unable to withstand competition on the terms imposed by the Act and in 1708 became insolvent, surviving until 1750 in a state of much reduced activity.
The Company continued purchasing and transporting slaves until 1731, when it abandoned slaving in favour of ivory and gold dust.
From 1668 to 1722, the Royal African Company provided gold to the English Mint.
Coins made with such gold are designed with an elephant below the bust of the king and/or queen.
This gold also gave the coinage its name, the guinea.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
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WIKIPEDIA
Royal African Company, concluded ...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Members and officials
At its incorporation, the constitution of the company specified a Governor, Sub Governor, Deputy Governor and 24 Assistants.
The Assistants (also called Members of the Court of Assistants) can be considered equivalent to a modern day board of directors.
James Stuart, Duke of York, the future King James II – Governor of the Company from its creation and its largest shareholder
Edward Colston (1636–1721), merchant, philanthropist, and Member of Parliament, was a shareholder in the Royal African Company from 1680 to 1692; from 1689 to 1690 he was its Deputy Governor, a senior executive position, the basis on which he is described as a slave trader.
Charles Hayes (1678–1760), mathematician and chronologer, was sub-governor of the Royal African Company in 1752, when it was dissolved.
List of notable investors and officials
Charles II of England
Sir Edmund Andros
Sir John Banks
Benjamin Bathurst, Deputy Governor of the Leeward Islands
Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington
Lord Buckingham
Sir Josiah Child
Sir Robert Clayton
Sir George Carteret
Sir Peter Colleton
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury
Earl of Craven
Lawrence Du Puy
Sir Samuel Dashwood
Ferdinand Gorges
Francis, Lord Hawley
Sir Jeffrey Jeffreys, Commander of affairs of Leeward Isles in England 1690–c.1696, Assistant to the Royal African Company 1684–6, 1692–8
John Locke
Sir John Moore
Samuel Pepys
James Phipps of Cape Coast Castle
Thomas Povey
Sir William Prichard
Sir Gabriel Roberts
Prince Rupert
Tobias Rustat
George Villiers
Matthew Wren
Dissolution
The Royal African Company was dissolved by the African Company Act 1750, with its assets being transferred to the African Company of Merchants.
These principally consisted of nine trading posts on the Gold Coast known as factories: Fort Anomabo, Fort James, Fort Sekondi, Fort Winneba, Fort Apollonia, Fort Tantumquery, Fort Metal Cross, Fort Komenda, and Cape Coast Castle, the last of which was the administrative centre.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_African_Company
Royal African Company, concluded ...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Members and officials
At its incorporation, the constitution of the company specified a Governor, Sub Governor, Deputy Governor and 24 Assistants.
The Assistants (also called Members of the Court of Assistants) can be considered equivalent to a modern day board of directors.
James Stuart, Duke of York, the future King James II – Governor of the Company from its creation and its largest shareholder
Edward Colston (1636–1721), merchant, philanthropist, and Member of Parliament, was a shareholder in the Royal African Company from 1680 to 1692; from 1689 to 1690 he was its Deputy Governor, a senior executive position, the basis on which he is described as a slave trader.
Charles Hayes (1678–1760), mathematician and chronologer, was sub-governor of the Royal African Company in 1752, when it was dissolved.
List of notable investors and officials
Charles II of England
Sir Edmund Andros
Sir John Banks
Benjamin Bathurst, Deputy Governor of the Leeward Islands
Henry Bennet, 1st Earl of Arlington
Lord Buckingham
Sir Josiah Child
Sir Robert Clayton
Sir George Carteret
Sir Peter Colleton
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury
Earl of Craven
Lawrence Du Puy
Sir Samuel Dashwood
Ferdinand Gorges
Francis, Lord Hawley
Sir Jeffrey Jeffreys, Commander of affairs of Leeward Isles in England 1690–c.1696, Assistant to the Royal African Company 1684–6, 1692–8
John Locke
Sir John Moore
Samuel Pepys
James Phipps of Cape Coast Castle
Thomas Povey
Sir William Prichard
Sir Gabriel Roberts
Prince Rupert
Tobias Rustat
George Villiers
Matthew Wren
Dissolution
The Royal African Company was dissolved by the African Company Act 1750, with its assets being transferred to the African Company of Merchants.
These principally consisted of nine trading posts on the Gold Coast known as factories: Fort Anomabo, Fort James, Fort Sekondi, Fort Winneba, Fort Apollonia, Fort Tantumquery, Fort Metal Cross, Fort Komenda, and Cape Coast Castle, the last of which was the administrative centre.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_African_Company
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Komenda Wars
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Komenda Wars were a series of wars from 1694 until 1700 largely between the Dutch West India Company and the British Royal African Company in the Eguafo Kingdom in the present day state of Ghana, over trade rights.
The Dutch were trying to keep the British out of the region to maintain a trade monopoly while the British were attempting to re-establish a fort in the city of Komenda.
The fighting included forces of the Dutch West India Company, the Royal African Company, the Eguafo Kingdom, a prince of the kingdom attempting to rise to the throne, the forces of a powerful merchant named John Cabess, other Akan tribes and kingdoms like Twifo and Denkyira.
There were four separate periods of warfare, including a civil war in the Eguafo Kingdom, and the wars ended with the British placing Takyi Kuma into power in Eguafo.
Because of the rapidly shifting alliances between European and African powers, historian John Thornton has found that "there is no finer example of [the] complicated combination of European rivalry merging with African rivalry than the Komenda Wars."
Preceding conditions
The Dutch West India Company (WIC) and the Eguafo Kingdom engaged in an earlier set of hostilities in 1688.
The Dutch and the British had both established factories in the port city of Komenda.
In 1687, the French negotiated with the king of Eguafo to open a factory in Komenda and the WIC responded by launching its military to force the king of Eguafo to expel the French.
The Dutch tried to induce neighboring states to attack Eguafo at the same time, while the French provided gold to the King to pay the neighboring states to remain out of fighting.
In the end, the Twifo did join the Dutch and secured trade concessions in Komenda as a result.
The violence resulted in the killing of the King of Eguafo and a prince who allied with the Dutch was placed on the throne named Takyi.
Komenda then became largely controlled by the Dutch and their allies Twifo.
This situation gradually resulted in tensions between Takyi and both actors.
As a result, Takyi repeatedly tried to balance British interests in the port of Komenda.
Series of wars
The Komenda wars was a series of four different military engagements defined by shifting alliances and the involvement of military forces from multiple kingdoms in the region.
The wars ended with the enthronement by the British of Takyi Kuma as the King of Eguafo.
Willem Bosman was the primary chronicler of the Komenda Wars, being an active participant with the Dutch West India Company and publishing his journals in 1703.
In general, the protracted war included the Dutch West India Company (WIC) and the British Royal African Company (RAC) supporting different sides in the Eguafo Kingdom to support their desired trade privileges.
The forces of John Cabess, a prominent merchant in the city of Komenda, was closely allied to the British and often took their side.
The war started with John Cabess attacking the Dutch Fort Vredenburgh in Komenda and the Dutch then organizing regional forces against the King in Eguafo, Takyi.
Eventually, sides switched and the British began supporting a challenger to the Eguafo throne, Takyi Kuma.
The fighting brought a number of other Akan polities in the region into the fighting, including: Adom, Akani, Akrons, Asebu, Cabess Terra, Denkyira, Fante, Ahanta and Twifo.
First Komenda War
The first war began as a result of disputes between a prominent African merchant, John Cabess (sometimes Kabes) who had armed forces loyal to him, in Eguafo and the Dutch West India Company (WIC).
Cabess was a formal and loyal ally to the British Royal African Company and assisted their operations in the region.
The Dutch, in competition with the Royal African Company, had a series of disputes with Cabess including an instance in 1684 with the Dutch panyarring Cabess and taking his goods.
The disputes intensified in November 1694 when Cabess invited the British Royal African Company to return to Komenda and then attacked Dutch miners outside of the city.
With the British reoccupying the former British fort in Komenda they were fired upon by the Dutch fort.
As a result of these hostilities, the British, Dutch, and Eguafo king began contacting possible allies in surrounding African kingdoms to prepare for a war.
Cabess Terra and Twifo initially joined the Dutch, but this alliance was stopped when Denkyira threatened to attack Twifo if war should break out.
The Adoms took money from Eguafo to remain neutral in any fighting.
War broke out in February 1695 when the forces of John Cabess attacked the Dutch fort and prevented reinforcements.
On April 28, 1695, the Twifo forces were defeated.
The war then largely took the form of panyarring where one force would seize members of other groups regularly.
John Cabess and the Dutch began negotiations that year, but on June 26, the Dutch head at the fort, Willem Bosman, drew a pistol and attempted to shoot at Cabess.
Panyarring and occasional violence broke out until a short-lived peace settlement was reached in the end of 1695.
Second Komenda War
On January 21, 1696, a young prince of Eguafo began a civil war to attempt and claim the throne of the kingdom.
The name of the young prince was often rendered as Takyi Kuma or Little Takyi (in relation to the current king Takyi).
The Dutch supported Takyi Kuma and were able to get the neighboring states of Adom and Akani to join in the fight supporting Takyi Kuma.
The Akrons joined Takyi in defending Eguafo.
The fighting ended quickly with Takyi Kuma and his forces losing on March 20.
The loss resulted in formal negotiations between the Dutch and Eguafo.
Jan van Sevenhuysen, the new WIC Governor of the Gold Coast made peace with Eguafo which allowed the Dutch to retain their factory and fort in Komenda.
However, the British and Dutch hostilities remained high and their forts in Komenda exchanged regular, minor hostilities.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Komenda Wars
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Komenda Wars were a series of wars from 1694 until 1700 largely between the Dutch West India Company and the British Royal African Company in the Eguafo Kingdom in the present day state of Ghana, over trade rights.
The Dutch were trying to keep the British out of the region to maintain a trade monopoly while the British were attempting to re-establish a fort in the city of Komenda.
The fighting included forces of the Dutch West India Company, the Royal African Company, the Eguafo Kingdom, a prince of the kingdom attempting to rise to the throne, the forces of a powerful merchant named John Cabess, other Akan tribes and kingdoms like Twifo and Denkyira.
There were four separate periods of warfare, including a civil war in the Eguafo Kingdom, and the wars ended with the British placing Takyi Kuma into power in Eguafo.
Because of the rapidly shifting alliances between European and African powers, historian John Thornton has found that "there is no finer example of [the] complicated combination of European rivalry merging with African rivalry than the Komenda Wars."
Preceding conditions
The Dutch West India Company (WIC) and the Eguafo Kingdom engaged in an earlier set of hostilities in 1688.
The Dutch and the British had both established factories in the port city of Komenda.
In 1687, the French negotiated with the king of Eguafo to open a factory in Komenda and the WIC responded by launching its military to force the king of Eguafo to expel the French.
The Dutch tried to induce neighboring states to attack Eguafo at the same time, while the French provided gold to the King to pay the neighboring states to remain out of fighting.
In the end, the Twifo did join the Dutch and secured trade concessions in Komenda as a result.
The violence resulted in the killing of the King of Eguafo and a prince who allied with the Dutch was placed on the throne named Takyi.
Komenda then became largely controlled by the Dutch and their allies Twifo.
This situation gradually resulted in tensions between Takyi and both actors.
As a result, Takyi repeatedly tried to balance British interests in the port of Komenda.
Series of wars
The Komenda wars was a series of four different military engagements defined by shifting alliances and the involvement of military forces from multiple kingdoms in the region.
The wars ended with the enthronement by the British of Takyi Kuma as the King of Eguafo.
Willem Bosman was the primary chronicler of the Komenda Wars, being an active participant with the Dutch West India Company and publishing his journals in 1703.
In general, the protracted war included the Dutch West India Company (WIC) and the British Royal African Company (RAC) supporting different sides in the Eguafo Kingdom to support their desired trade privileges.
The forces of John Cabess, a prominent merchant in the city of Komenda, was closely allied to the British and often took their side.
The war started with John Cabess attacking the Dutch Fort Vredenburgh in Komenda and the Dutch then organizing regional forces against the King in Eguafo, Takyi.
Eventually, sides switched and the British began supporting a challenger to the Eguafo throne, Takyi Kuma.
The fighting brought a number of other Akan polities in the region into the fighting, including: Adom, Akani, Akrons, Asebu, Cabess Terra, Denkyira, Fante, Ahanta and Twifo.
First Komenda War
The first war began as a result of disputes between a prominent African merchant, John Cabess (sometimes Kabes) who had armed forces loyal to him, in Eguafo and the Dutch West India Company (WIC).
Cabess was a formal and loyal ally to the British Royal African Company and assisted their operations in the region.
The Dutch, in competition with the Royal African Company, had a series of disputes with Cabess including an instance in 1684 with the Dutch panyarring Cabess and taking his goods.
The disputes intensified in November 1694 when Cabess invited the British Royal African Company to return to Komenda and then attacked Dutch miners outside of the city.
With the British reoccupying the former British fort in Komenda they were fired upon by the Dutch fort.
As a result of these hostilities, the British, Dutch, and Eguafo king began contacting possible allies in surrounding African kingdoms to prepare for a war.
Cabess Terra and Twifo initially joined the Dutch, but this alliance was stopped when Denkyira threatened to attack Twifo if war should break out.
The Adoms took money from Eguafo to remain neutral in any fighting.
War broke out in February 1695 when the forces of John Cabess attacked the Dutch fort and prevented reinforcements.
On April 28, 1695, the Twifo forces were defeated.
The war then largely took the form of panyarring where one force would seize members of other groups regularly.
John Cabess and the Dutch began negotiations that year, but on June 26, the Dutch head at the fort, Willem Bosman, drew a pistol and attempted to shoot at Cabess.
Panyarring and occasional violence broke out until a short-lived peace settlement was reached in the end of 1695.
Second Komenda War
On January 21, 1696, a young prince of Eguafo began a civil war to attempt and claim the throne of the kingdom.
The name of the young prince was often rendered as Takyi Kuma or Little Takyi (in relation to the current king Takyi).
The Dutch supported Takyi Kuma and were able to get the neighboring states of Adom and Akani to join in the fight supporting Takyi Kuma.
The Akrons joined Takyi in defending Eguafo.
The fighting ended quickly with Takyi Kuma and his forces losing on March 20.
The loss resulted in formal negotiations between the Dutch and Eguafo.
Jan van Sevenhuysen, the new WIC Governor of the Gold Coast made peace with Eguafo which allowed the Dutch to retain their factory and fort in Komenda.
However, the British and Dutch hostilities remained high and their forts in Komenda exchanged regular, minor hostilities.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Re: ON THE ROOTS OF SLAVERY
WIKIPEDIA
Komenda Wars. concluded ...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Third Komenda War
The Dutch began soliciting the other African parties to try and organize another force against Eguafo and Takyi's regime.
On August 5, 1697, the Dutch and Fante made an agreement to attack Eguafo in exchange for significant gold given to Fante.
The British were able to make an offer to Fante of an equal amount in order to keep them neutral and Fante accepted.
Other Dutch efforts were largely rebuffed by the allies.
In early 1698 the British and Dutch reached an agreement for mutual recognition to trade rights and the maintenance of forts in Komenda.
By November 1698, the British came to view that Takyi was becoming more inline with Dutch interests and so began to support Takyi Kuma.
In November 1698, the British killed Takyi as part of this attempt to put Takyi Kuma on the throne.
The British paid for mercenaries from Asebu, Cabess Terra, and Akani to join the conflict.
In contrast, the Dutch, Fante and Denkyira remained largely neutral in the war.
The combined forces of Takyi Kuma moved upon Eguafo but were routed by the forces of the kingdom.
Fourth Komenda War
The fourth war began in November 1699 with a unified force supporting Takyi Kuma beginning hostilities in the region.
Panyarring became a large scale process between the different forces and heightened tensions.
In early 1700, individual merchants associated with Twifo and John Cabess were panyarred by Adom, possibly on the instructions of the Dutch.
Violence remained sporadic with regular seizing of individuals of rival forces until the British-supported mercenary force moved upon Eguafo and on May 9, 1700, Takyi Kuma was named the new king of Eguafo.
Legacy
The primary legacy in the area was a transformation of which European power controlled trade along the Gold Coast.
While little territory changed hands between the Dutch and British companies, or the African polities, the British ended with the primary advantage in trade power along the coast.
However, they quickly alienated the new king Takyi Kuma by demanding repayment of debts.
In addition, the British position was undermined in 1704 when the death of Takyi Kuma resulted in civil war in Eguafo.
Secondarily, the wars and a smallpox outbreak in the early 1700s led to significant depopulation of the coastal area.
The wars also begun warfare practices which would become more regular throughout the rest of the 1700s including the use of mercenaries and panyarring.
The chaos eventually allowed expansion of the Ashanti Empire in the region and the replacement of the gold trade with the slave trade.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komenda_Wars
Komenda Wars. concluded ...
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Third Komenda War
The Dutch began soliciting the other African parties to try and organize another force against Eguafo and Takyi's regime.
On August 5, 1697, the Dutch and Fante made an agreement to attack Eguafo in exchange for significant gold given to Fante.
The British were able to make an offer to Fante of an equal amount in order to keep them neutral and Fante accepted.
Other Dutch efforts were largely rebuffed by the allies.
In early 1698 the British and Dutch reached an agreement for mutual recognition to trade rights and the maintenance of forts in Komenda.
By November 1698, the British came to view that Takyi was becoming more inline with Dutch interests and so began to support Takyi Kuma.
In November 1698, the British killed Takyi as part of this attempt to put Takyi Kuma on the throne.
The British paid for mercenaries from Asebu, Cabess Terra, and Akani to join the conflict.
In contrast, the Dutch, Fante and Denkyira remained largely neutral in the war.
The combined forces of Takyi Kuma moved upon Eguafo but were routed by the forces of the kingdom.
Fourth Komenda War
The fourth war began in November 1699 with a unified force supporting Takyi Kuma beginning hostilities in the region.
Panyarring became a large scale process between the different forces and heightened tensions.
In early 1700, individual merchants associated with Twifo and John Cabess were panyarred by Adom, possibly on the instructions of the Dutch.
Violence remained sporadic with regular seizing of individuals of rival forces until the British-supported mercenary force moved upon Eguafo and on May 9, 1700, Takyi Kuma was named the new king of Eguafo.
Legacy
The primary legacy in the area was a transformation of which European power controlled trade along the Gold Coast.
While little territory changed hands between the Dutch and British companies, or the African polities, the British ended with the primary advantage in trade power along the coast.
However, they quickly alienated the new king Takyi Kuma by demanding repayment of debts.
In addition, the British position was undermined in 1704 when the death of Takyi Kuma resulted in civil war in Eguafo.
Secondarily, the wars and a smallpox outbreak in the early 1700s led to significant depopulation of the coastal area.
The wars also begun warfare practices which would become more regular throughout the rest of the 1700s including the use of mercenaries and panyarring.
The chaos eventually allowed expansion of the Ashanti Empire in the region and the replacement of the gold trade with the slave trade.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komenda_Wars
Re: ON THE ROOTS OF SLAVERY
WIKIPEDIA
Ashanti Empire
The Asante Empire was an Akan empire and kingdom from 1701 to 1957, in what is now modern-day Ghana.
It expanded from Ashanti to include the Brong-Ahafo Region, Central Region, Eastern Region, Greater Accra Region and Western Region of present-day Ghana.
Due to the empire's military prowess, wealth, architecture, sophisticated hierarchy and culture, the Ashanti Kingdom has been extensively studied and has more books written by European, primarily British authors than any other indigenous culture of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Starting in the late 17th century, the Ashanti king Osei Tutu (c. 1695 – 1717) and his adviser Okomfo Anokye established the Ashanti Kingdom, with the Golden Stool of Asante as a sole unifying symbol.
Osei Tutu oversaw a massive Ashanti territorial expansion, building up the army by introducing new organisation and turning a disciplined royal and paramilitary army into an effective fighting machine.
In 1701, the Ashanti army conquered Denkyira, giving the Ashanti access to the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean coastal trade with Europeans, notably the Dutch.
The Ashanti Empire fought several wars with neighboring kingdoms and lesser organized tribes such as the Fante.
The Ashanti defeated the British Empire's invasions in the first two of the four Anglo-Ashanti Wars, killing and keeping British army general Sir Charles MacCarthy's skull as a gold-rimmed drinking cup in 1824.
Due to British improvements in weapons technology, burning and looting of the capital Kumasi and final defeat at the fifth Anglo-Ashanti War, the Ashanti empire became part of the Gold Coast colony in January 1, 1902.
Today, the Ashanti Kingdom survives as a constitutionally protected, sub-national traditional state in union with the Republic of Ghana.
The current king of the Ashanti Kingdom is Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Asantehene.
The Ashanti Kingdom is the home to Lake Bosumtwi, Ghana's only natural lake.
The state's current economic revenue is derived mainly from trading in gold bars, cocoa, kola nuts and agriculture.
Etymology and origins
The name Asante means "because of war".
The word derives from the Twi words ɔsa meaning "war" and nti meaning "because of".
This name comes from the Asante's origin as a kingdom created to fight the Denkyira kingdom.
The variant name "Ashanti" comes from British reports that transcribing "Asante" as the British heard it pronounced, as-hanti.
The hyphenation was subsequently dropped and the name Ashanti remained, with various spellings including Ashantee common into the early 20th century.
Between the 10th and 12th centuries AD the ethnic Akan people migrated into the forest belt of Southern Ghana and established several Akan states: Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Assin-Denkyira-Fante Confederacy-Mankessim Kingdom (present-day Central region), Akyem-Akwamu-Akuapem-Kwahu (present-day Eastern region and Greater Accra), and Ahanta-Aowin-Sefwi-Wassa (present-day Western region).
Before the Ashanti Kingdom had contact with Europeans, it had a flourishing trade with other African states due to the Ashanti gold wealth.
Trade with European states began after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century AD.
When the gold mines in the Sahel started to play out, the Ashanti Kingdom rose to prominence as the major player in the gold trade.
At the height of the Ashanti Kingdom, the Ashanti people became wealthy through the trading of gold mined from their territory.
History
Gold Coast
Foundation
Ashanti political organization was originally centered on clans headed by a paramount chief or Amanhene.
One particular clan, the Oyoko, settled in the Ashanti's sub-tropical forest region, establishing a center at Kumasi.
The Ashanti became tributaries of another Akan state, Denkyira but in the mid-17th century the Oyoko under Chief Oti Akenten started consolidating the Ashanti clans into a loose confederation against the Denkyira.
The introduction of the Golden Stool (Sika dwa) was a means of centralization under Osei Tutu.
According to legend, a meeting of all the clan heads of each of the Ashanti settlements was called just prior to declaring independence from Denkyira.
In this meeting the Golden Stool was commanded down from the heavens by Okomfo Anokye, chief-priest or sage advisor to Asantehene Osei Tutu I and floated down from the heavens into the lap of Osei Tutu I.
Okomfo Anokye declared the stool to be symbolic of the new Asante Union (the Ashanti Kingdom), and allegiance was sworn to the stool and to Osei Tutu as the Asantehene.
The newly declared Ashanti union subsequently waged war against and defeated Denkyira.
The stool remains sacred to the Ashanti as it is believed to contain the Sunsum — spirit or soul of the Ashanti people.
Independence
In the 1670s the head of the Oyoko clan, Osei Kofi Tutu I, began another rapid consolidation of Akan peoples via diplomacy and warfare.
King Osei Kofu Tutu I and his chief advisor, Okomfo Kwame Frimpong Anokye led a coalition of influential Ashanti city-states against their mutual oppressor, the Denkyira who held the Ashanti Kingdom in its thrall.
The Ashanti Kingdom utterly defeated them at the Battle of Feyiase, proclaiming its independence in 1701.
Subsequently, through hard line force of arms and savoir-faire diplomacy, the duo induced the leaders of the other Ashanti city-states to declare allegiance and adherence to Kumasi, the Ashanti capital.
From the beginning, King Osei Tutu and priest Anokye followed an expansionist and an imperialistic provincial foreign policy.
According to folklore, Okomfo Anokye is believed to have visited Agona-Akrofonso.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Ashanti Empire
The Asante Empire was an Akan empire and kingdom from 1701 to 1957, in what is now modern-day Ghana.
It expanded from Ashanti to include the Brong-Ahafo Region, Central Region, Eastern Region, Greater Accra Region and Western Region of present-day Ghana.
Due to the empire's military prowess, wealth, architecture, sophisticated hierarchy and culture, the Ashanti Kingdom has been extensively studied and has more books written by European, primarily British authors than any other indigenous culture of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Starting in the late 17th century, the Ashanti king Osei Tutu (c. 1695 – 1717) and his adviser Okomfo Anokye established the Ashanti Kingdom, with the Golden Stool of Asante as a sole unifying symbol.
Osei Tutu oversaw a massive Ashanti territorial expansion, building up the army by introducing new organisation and turning a disciplined royal and paramilitary army into an effective fighting machine.
In 1701, the Ashanti army conquered Denkyira, giving the Ashanti access to the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean coastal trade with Europeans, notably the Dutch.
The Ashanti Empire fought several wars with neighboring kingdoms and lesser organized tribes such as the Fante.
The Ashanti defeated the British Empire's invasions in the first two of the four Anglo-Ashanti Wars, killing and keeping British army general Sir Charles MacCarthy's skull as a gold-rimmed drinking cup in 1824.
Due to British improvements in weapons technology, burning and looting of the capital Kumasi and final defeat at the fifth Anglo-Ashanti War, the Ashanti empire became part of the Gold Coast colony in January 1, 1902.
Today, the Ashanti Kingdom survives as a constitutionally protected, sub-national traditional state in union with the Republic of Ghana.
The current king of the Ashanti Kingdom is Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Asantehene.
The Ashanti Kingdom is the home to Lake Bosumtwi, Ghana's only natural lake.
The state's current economic revenue is derived mainly from trading in gold bars, cocoa, kola nuts and agriculture.
Etymology and origins
The name Asante means "because of war".
The word derives from the Twi words ɔsa meaning "war" and nti meaning "because of".
This name comes from the Asante's origin as a kingdom created to fight the Denkyira kingdom.
The variant name "Ashanti" comes from British reports that transcribing "Asante" as the British heard it pronounced, as-hanti.
The hyphenation was subsequently dropped and the name Ashanti remained, with various spellings including Ashantee common into the early 20th century.
Between the 10th and 12th centuries AD the ethnic Akan people migrated into the forest belt of Southern Ghana and established several Akan states: Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Assin-Denkyira-Fante Confederacy-Mankessim Kingdom (present-day Central region), Akyem-Akwamu-Akuapem-Kwahu (present-day Eastern region and Greater Accra), and Ahanta-Aowin-Sefwi-Wassa (present-day Western region).
Before the Ashanti Kingdom had contact with Europeans, it had a flourishing trade with other African states due to the Ashanti gold wealth.
Trade with European states began after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century AD.
When the gold mines in the Sahel started to play out, the Ashanti Kingdom rose to prominence as the major player in the gold trade.
At the height of the Ashanti Kingdom, the Ashanti people became wealthy through the trading of gold mined from their territory.
History
Gold Coast
Foundation
Ashanti political organization was originally centered on clans headed by a paramount chief or Amanhene.
One particular clan, the Oyoko, settled in the Ashanti's sub-tropical forest region, establishing a center at Kumasi.
The Ashanti became tributaries of another Akan state, Denkyira but in the mid-17th century the Oyoko under Chief Oti Akenten started consolidating the Ashanti clans into a loose confederation against the Denkyira.
The introduction of the Golden Stool (Sika dwa) was a means of centralization under Osei Tutu.
According to legend, a meeting of all the clan heads of each of the Ashanti settlements was called just prior to declaring independence from Denkyira.
In this meeting the Golden Stool was commanded down from the heavens by Okomfo Anokye, chief-priest or sage advisor to Asantehene Osei Tutu I and floated down from the heavens into the lap of Osei Tutu I.
Okomfo Anokye declared the stool to be symbolic of the new Asante Union (the Ashanti Kingdom), and allegiance was sworn to the stool and to Osei Tutu as the Asantehene.
The newly declared Ashanti union subsequently waged war against and defeated Denkyira.
The stool remains sacred to the Ashanti as it is believed to contain the Sunsum — spirit or soul of the Ashanti people.
Independence
In the 1670s the head of the Oyoko clan, Osei Kofi Tutu I, began another rapid consolidation of Akan peoples via diplomacy and warfare.
King Osei Kofu Tutu I and his chief advisor, Okomfo Kwame Frimpong Anokye led a coalition of influential Ashanti city-states against their mutual oppressor, the Denkyira who held the Ashanti Kingdom in its thrall.
The Ashanti Kingdom utterly defeated them at the Battle of Feyiase, proclaiming its independence in 1701.
Subsequently, through hard line force of arms and savoir-faire diplomacy, the duo induced the leaders of the other Ashanti city-states to declare allegiance and adherence to Kumasi, the Ashanti capital.
From the beginning, King Osei Tutu and priest Anokye followed an expansionist and an imperialistic provincial foreign policy.
According to folklore, Okomfo Anokye is believed to have visited Agona-Akrofonso.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Re: ON THE ROOTS OF SLAVERY
WIKIPEDIA
Ashanti Empire, concluded ...
Under Osei Tutu
Realizing the strengths of a loose confederation of Akan states, Osei Tutu strengthened centralization of the surrounding Akan groups and expanded the powers of the judiciary system within the centralized government.
This loose confederation of small city-states grew into a kingdom and eventually an empire looking to expand its borders.
Newly conquered areas had the option of joining the empire or becoming tributary states.
Opoku Ware I, Osei Tutu's successor, extended the borders, embracing much of Ghana's territory.
European contact
European contact with the Asante on the Gulf of Guinea coast region of Africa began in the 15th century.
This led to trade in gold, ivory, slaves, and other goods with the Portuguese, which gave rise to kingdoms such as the Ashanti.
On May 15, 1817 the Englishman Thomas Bowdich entered Kumasi.
He remained there for several months, was impressed, and on his return to England wrote a book, Mission from Cape Coast Castle to Ashantee.
His praise of the kingdom was disbelieved as it contradicted prevailing prejudices.
Joseph Dupuis, the first British consul in Kumasi, arrived on March 23, 1820.
Both Bowdich and Dupuis secured a treaty with the Asantehene.
But, the governor, Hope Smith, did not meet Ashanti expectations.
Slavery
Slavery was historically a tradition in the Ashanti Empire, with slaves typically taken as captives from enemies in warfare.
The welfare of their slaves varied from being able to acquire wealth and intermarry with the master's family to being sacrificed in funeral ceremonies.
The Ashanti believed that slaves would follow their masters into the afterlife.
Slaves could sometimes own other slaves, and could also request a new master if the slave believed he or she was being severely mistreated.
The modern-day Ashanti claim that slaves were seldom abused, and that a person who abused a slave was held in high contempt by society.
They defend the "humanity" of Ashanti slavery by noting that those slaves were allowed to marry, and that their children were born free.
If a master found a female slave desirable, he might marry her.
He preferred such an arrangement to that of a free woman in a conventional marriage, because marriage to an enslaved woman allowed the children to inherit some of the father's property and status.
This favored arrangement occurred primarily because of what some men considered their conflict with the matrilineal system.
Under this kinship system, children were considered born into the mother's clan and took their status from her family.
Generally her eldest brother served as mentor to her children, particularly for the boys.
She was protected by her family.
Some Ashanti men felt more comfortable taking a slave girl or pawn wife in marriage, as she would have no abusua (older male grandfather, father, uncle or brother) to intercede on her behalf when the couple argued.
With an enslaved wife, the master and husband had total control of their children, as she had no kin in the community.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashanti_Empire
Ashanti Empire, concluded ...
Under Osei Tutu
Realizing the strengths of a loose confederation of Akan states, Osei Tutu strengthened centralization of the surrounding Akan groups and expanded the powers of the judiciary system within the centralized government.
This loose confederation of small city-states grew into a kingdom and eventually an empire looking to expand its borders.
Newly conquered areas had the option of joining the empire or becoming tributary states.
Opoku Ware I, Osei Tutu's successor, extended the borders, embracing much of Ghana's territory.
European contact
European contact with the Asante on the Gulf of Guinea coast region of Africa began in the 15th century.
This led to trade in gold, ivory, slaves, and other goods with the Portuguese, which gave rise to kingdoms such as the Ashanti.
On May 15, 1817 the Englishman Thomas Bowdich entered Kumasi.
He remained there for several months, was impressed, and on his return to England wrote a book, Mission from Cape Coast Castle to Ashantee.
His praise of the kingdom was disbelieved as it contradicted prevailing prejudices.
Joseph Dupuis, the first British consul in Kumasi, arrived on March 23, 1820.
Both Bowdich and Dupuis secured a treaty with the Asantehene.
But, the governor, Hope Smith, did not meet Ashanti expectations.
Slavery
Slavery was historically a tradition in the Ashanti Empire, with slaves typically taken as captives from enemies in warfare.
The welfare of their slaves varied from being able to acquire wealth and intermarry with the master's family to being sacrificed in funeral ceremonies.
The Ashanti believed that slaves would follow their masters into the afterlife.
Slaves could sometimes own other slaves, and could also request a new master if the slave believed he or she was being severely mistreated.
The modern-day Ashanti claim that slaves were seldom abused, and that a person who abused a slave was held in high contempt by society.
They defend the "humanity" of Ashanti slavery by noting that those slaves were allowed to marry, and that their children were born free.
If a master found a female slave desirable, he might marry her.
He preferred such an arrangement to that of a free woman in a conventional marriage, because marriage to an enslaved woman allowed the children to inherit some of the father's property and status.
This favored arrangement occurred primarily because of what some men considered their conflict with the matrilineal system.
Under this kinship system, children were considered born into the mother's clan and took their status from her family.
Generally her eldest brother served as mentor to her children, particularly for the boys.
She was protected by her family.
Some Ashanti men felt more comfortable taking a slave girl or pawn wife in marriage, as she would have no abusua (older male grandfather, father, uncle or brother) to intercede on her behalf when the couple argued.
With an enslaved wife, the master and husband had total control of their children, as she had no kin in the community.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashanti_Empire
Re: ON THE ROOTS OF SLAVERY
WIKIPEDIA
Akan people
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Akan are a meta-ethnicity living in the southern regions of present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast in West Africa.
The Akan language (also known as Twi/Fante) is a group of dialects within the Central Tano branch of the Potou–Tano subfamily of the Niger–Congo family.
Subgroups of the Akan people include: Fante, Ashanti, Akuapem,Bono, Kwahu, Akyem, Agona, Wassa and Akwamu.
Subgroups of the Bia-speaking Akan groups include the Anyin, Baoulé, Chakosi (Anufo), Sefwi (Sehwi), Nzema, Ahanta, and Jwira-Pepesa.
The Akan subgroups all have cultural attributes in common; most notably the tracing of matrilineal descent, inheritance of property, and succession to high political office.
Akan culture can also be found in the Americas, where a number of Akans were taken as captives.
Roughly ten percent of all slave ships that embarked from the Gold Coast contained Akan people.
The primary source of wealth in the Akan economy was gold.
However, the capture and sale of Akan people peaked during the Fante and Ashanti conflicts (as both sold many of their captives as prisoners of war).
Akan conflicts led to a high number of military captives, known as "Coromantee", being sold into slavery.
The Coromantee soldiers and other Akan captives were notorious for various slave revolts and plantation resistance tactics.
These captives were feared throughout America.
Their legacy is evident within groups such as the Maroons of the Caribbean and South America.
TO BE CONTINUED ...
Akan people
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Akan are a meta-ethnicity living in the southern regions of present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast in West Africa.
The Akan language (also known as Twi/Fante) is a group of dialects within the Central Tano branch of the Potou–Tano subfamily of the Niger–Congo family.
Subgroups of the Akan people include: Fante, Ashanti, Akuapem,Bono, Kwahu, Akyem, Agona, Wassa and Akwamu.
Subgroups of the Bia-speaking Akan groups include the Anyin, Baoulé, Chakosi (Anufo), Sefwi (Sehwi), Nzema, Ahanta, and Jwira-Pepesa.
The Akan subgroups all have cultural attributes in common; most notably the tracing of matrilineal descent, inheritance of property, and succession to high political office.
Akan culture can also be found in the Americas, where a number of Akans were taken as captives.
Roughly ten percent of all slave ships that embarked from the Gold Coast contained Akan people.
The primary source of wealth in the Akan economy was gold.
However, the capture and sale of Akan people peaked during the Fante and Ashanti conflicts (as both sold many of their captives as prisoners of war).
Akan conflicts led to a high number of military captives, known as "Coromantee", being sold into slavery.
The Coromantee soldiers and other Akan captives were notorious for various slave revolts and plantation resistance tactics.
These captives were feared throughout America.
Their legacy is evident within groups such as the Maroons of the Caribbean and South America.
TO BE CONTINUED ...