Ashanti Empire

When enterprising European merchants and colonists sought the profits of gold and trade in West Africa, they went to the Ashanti Empire, a wealthy and militaristically powerful kingdom in the jungles near the coast of the Gulf of Guinea. In selling gold and captured enslaved persons to the Portuguese, Dutch, and British from the 17th to 19th centuries, the Ashanti people gained the means to expand their empire and later mount an impressive resistance against their former trading partners turned colonial aggressors. The British waged five offensives against the Ashanti over 76 years before the African kingdom finally yielded to the dominant European empire. Keep on reading to learn more about the timeline, the rise and fall of the Empire, and its achievements.

Ashanti Empire Location

The Ashanti Empire was located in West Africa. Its territorial holdings correspond very closely with the modern-day African country of Ghana, depicted below (Ghana is roughly in the middle of the African countries on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea).

Fig. 1- Map of modern-day Ghana.

As you can see, the spirit of the Ashanti Empire lives on as a region within Ghana bearing the same name. The capital Kumasi remains a regional capital in the Ashanti region, its historical and cultural significance preserved by the people of Ghana.

Ashanti Empire Timeline

The following timeline provides a brief series of events beginning from the Ashanti Empire's inception to its fall in the 20th century:

• 1701: The Ashanti defeat the Denkyira at the Battle of Feyiase, becoming the dominant West African Empire.

• Early 18th century: Osei Tutu declares himself Asantehene, presenting the Golden Stool as a symbol of his authority.

• 1821: The British establish the Gold Coast Crown Colony on the coast of modern-day Ghana. Tensions build between the Ashante and the British, leading to the Anglo-Ashanti Wars.

• 1874: British forces burn down the Ashante capital of Kumasi.

• 1902: The Ashanti Empire becomes part of the Gold Coast colony under British rule.

• 1960: The Republic of Ghana, including the remnants of the Ashanti Empire, gains its independence from British rule.

Rise and Fall of the Ashanti Empire

The Ashanti Empire's origins begin with the Akan people of West Africa, categorized by their shared Akan (or Twi) language. Before the Ashanti Empire formed in the early 18th century, the Akan people were organized into many disparate states within modern-day Ghana, fueled by trade and conflict with other states.

Keep in mind that the Europeans Maritime Empires (particularly the Portuguese) had established trade connections within the African continent since the 15th century. The Akan people traded resources like silver, gold, cocoa, and war captives as slaves in exchange for European gunpowder weaponry. Competition among the Akan states fueled more trade, which fueled more competition.

Fig. 2- Flag of the Ashanti people.

When African states unified into empires, it was often because a single state had overpowered its neighbors and demanded loyalty and tribute. Such was the case with the Denkyira Akan nation in the 17th century. One tributary of the Denkyira was the Ashanti (or Asante) state, which rose and overthrew the Denkyira in 1701 at the Battle of Feyiase.

The Rise of the Ashanti Empire

Before the fall of the Denkyira, the Akan states of modern-day Ghana were loosely organized in their shared rebellion, but they were far from unified. The origins of the Ashanti as an empire are tied to Osei Tutu, the Omanhene of the Ashanti people, who presented the Golden Stool as a symbol of his power to a group of gathered Akan leaders.

As Ashanti tradition goes, the Golden Stool was called down from heaven by Okomfo Anokye, head priest of the Ashanti, and the holy relic fell into Osei Tutu's lap. The other chiefs swore allegiance to Asantehene Osei Tutu and his capital of Kumasi. After the Denkyira nation was defeated, Osei Tutu centralized his power and solidified the reign of the Ashanti Empire.

Fig. 3- Ashanti food festival.

For the next one hundred years, the Ashanti Empire expanded its borders, suppressed rebellions, and traded with the Europeans. Growing in power and wealth from their flourishing gold mines, the Ashanti had become the undisputed primary power in Western Africa. By the 19th century, their entire military was equipped with gunpowder weapons.

The Fall of the Ashanti Empire

While the Ashanti Empire's trading with European empires helped it to become the dominant force in Western Africa, it would also lead to its undoing. Increased interaction with the British Empire led to increased conflict. In 1821, the British established the Gold Coast colony on the coast of modern-day Ghana. Two years later, the British offered support to a coastal Akan nation called the Fante against Ashanti intrusion, leading to the first of five Anglo-Ashanti Wars, a series of bloody conflicts that ultimately led to the fall of the Ashanti Empire.

Fig. 4- Ashanti battling British soldiers in the Anglo-Ashanti Wars.

Yet due to their fierce military and armament of gunpowder weaponry, the Ashanti Empire was able to resist the British during the first two Anglo-Ashanti Wars. After a major victory against British Governor Sir Charles McCarthy in the first war, the Asantehene used the governor's decorated skull as a drinking cup.

For the remainder of the 19th century, however, the British dominated the Gold Coast, increasing their infrastructure and political alliances with other Akan peoples in the region. The continued pressure of the British Empire mounted upon the Ashanti Empire. The slave trade had been fueled by European demand, but now the British saw the slavery and human-sacrifice traditions of the Ashanti Empire as justifications for war against an immoral culture.

In 1902, the fifth Anglo-Ashanti War, also called the "War of the Golden Stool", saw its end. Yaa Asantewaa, the Ashanti Warrior-Queen, acceded the Ashanti Empire to the Gold Coast colony of the British Empire, essentially losing sovereignty of the nation and ending the Ashanti Empire. The region of modern-day Ghana would remain under British rule until 1960 when the Ashanti and other Akan peoples gained independence from the British.