Asante History
The rich history and cultural heritage of the Asante Kingdom of Ghana
Asante Currency: Gold Dust, Weights and Value
Asante History 4 min read
Gold dust served as money across Asante, measured with brass weights, scales and spoons whose forms carried proverbs as......
The Battle of Katamanso, 1826
Asante History 4 min read
On the Accra plains in August 1826 a broad coalition met the Asante army in one of the largest engagements ever fought o......
The Battle of Nsamankow and the Death of Sir Charles MacCarthy
Asante History 4 min read
In January 1824 an Asante army destroyed a British force at Nsamankow and killed the governor of the Gold Coast, a defea......
Islam in the Asante Kingdom
Asante History 4 min read
Asante was never an Islamic state, yet Muslim scholars, scribes and traders held a settled place at the Kumasi court, su......
Asante and the Northern Savanna: Gonja, Dagomba and the Trade in Kola
Asante History 4 min read
Asante expansion northwards brought Gonja and Dagomba into tributary relations and linked the forest kingdom to the cara......
The Great Roads of Asante: Infrastructure of an Empire
Asante History 4 min read
Eight great roads radiated from Kumasi to the coast and the savanna, cleared, policed by road wardens and controlled by......
The Great Oath of Asante: Ntamkese and Political Authority
Asante History 4 min read
Swearing the Great Oath moved a dispute out of local hands and into the Asantehene's court. It was a legal instrument of......
Asantemanso and the Origins of the Asante People
Asante History 4 min read
Tradition holds that the ancestors of the Asante clans emerged from the ground at Asantemanso. Archaeology shows settlem......
The Battle of Feyiase and the Defeat of Denkyira
Asante History 4 min read
In 1701 the young Asante union destroyed the power that had ruled it. Feyiase ended Denkyira overlordship, opened the ro......
The Third Anglo-Asante War (1873–74): Dutch Withdrawal and Aftermath
Asante History 3 min read
The Third Anglo-Asante War was the direct consequence of the Dutch abandonment of the Gold Coast. Understanding it requi......
Asante Resistance to Colonialism
Asante History 1 min read
Dutch-Asante trade relations shaped West African commerce and cultural exchange....
European Explorers and Asante Kingdom
Asante History 1 min read
Asante resistance to colonialism demonstrated strategic decision-making and perseverance over 80 years...