Akwamu

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The Akwamu was a state set up by the Akan people in Ghana which existed in the 1600s and 1700s.[1] Originally immigrating from Bono state, the founders settled in Twifo-Heman.[2] In 1693, the Asimani of Akwamu lead a raid and seized Osu Castle (currently the seat of the Ghanaian government), from the Danish colonists.[3] The Akwamu sold it back a year later, but retained the keys to the castle, and still have them as of 2007.[3]

In the 1720s the King of Akwanu began selling many of his subjects. This lead to civil war and the state's disintegration. Most of the King's allies were sold away as slaves and ended up on the Carribbean Island of St. John where they fomented a revolt.[4]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Akwamu. Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  2. ^ The Akwamu. Ghana.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  3. ^ a b Ghana Castle. ghanacastle.gov.gh. Government of Ghana. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  4. ^ Hartman, Saidiya. Lose Your Mother: A Journey Along the Atlantic Slave Route. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007) p. 91-93

[edit] Further reading

  • Dantzig, Albert van; Barbara Priddy (1971). A short history of the forts and castles of Ghana. Accra: Liberty Press. 
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