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Ashanti Military Campaigns, (Ghana) of 1873-4, 1895-96 and 1900. |
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| Context | | It is generally little known that during the second half of the 19th century Britain wished to divest itself of minor, uneconomic territories from its Empire. Policing of these outposts required constant vigilance, dealing with the inevitable minor uprisings and local skirmishes against both British rule and neighbouring tribes. The cost of such operations and their associated administration often far outweighed the small rewards earned by trading. However, whenever plans for these territories’ disposal were proposed British traders objected, insisting on local military protection.
Furthermore, protests from moral crusaders and humanitarians also insisted on Britain maintaining control in order to suppress the slave-trade and to bring Western material improvement and social justice to these regions.
One such territory was the Gold Coast (Ghana) on the west coast of Africa, a Crown territory since 1821. The most aggressive and feared tribe in the region were the Ashanti (Asante), a confederation of tribes under one supreme king, whose history with the British was of almost continual hostilities until 1826, when the Ashanti were routed. Peace continued until 1852 until a British poll-tax was imposed on the tribes, which resulted in a resumption of hostilities that continued sporadically until 1873.
Now the dispute was over payments for the use of the port at Elmina. Britain had acquired the port from the Dutch in 1872, but refused to honour previous agreements between the Dutch and Ashanti. Another contributory factor to the Ashanti’s grievance was their loss of income due to suspension of the slave-trade. Because of these issues the Ashanti chief, Kofi Karikari, less moderate that his predecessor, started to wage hostilities against neighbouring tribes who supported the British.
| | | Initial Hostilities | | In June 1873 the Ashanti first raided neighbouring villages and then with a 3,000-strong force attacked the coastal fort at Elmina. Although beaten off by local British forces, consisting of 100 Marines augmented by West Indian troops, the Ashanti camped in the surrounding area and continued to raid the town. In resisting these skirmishes the British casualties were two dead and about seven wounded from the 500 of all ranks engaged.
Consequently the British Government decided, albeit reluctantly, to send more officers and troops to decisively quell the uprising and hence appointed Sir Garnet Wolseley as Administrator and Commander-in-Chief for the Gold Coast along with 35 British officers, arriving in September 1873. After Wolseley and his 500 West Indian troops, police and local irregulars had cleared Elmina on 14th October he offered peace terms to the Ashanti, but these were rejected. Following this rebuttal Wolseley reopened hostilities with many small engagements until November, re-taking the villages of Essaman, Escabio and Sutah.
The Ashanti then withdrew back to their own heavily forested territory. Consequently, Wolseley without reinforcements could not continue his advance. Although Wolseley requested support from the local tribes very little had been forthcoming and therefore, in November 1873, he sent for three battalions of British troops in order to defeat and capture Coomassie (Kumasi), the Ashanti’s capital.
| | | Main Engagements of 1873-4 | | Until January 1874, when his 4,000 reinforcements were due to arrive, Wolseley was busy preparing for a concerted attack by ordering the construction of bridges, clearing roads, building of staging posts consisting of hospitals, water purifiers and storerooms along his proposed route to Coomassie. On 20th January, Wolseley and his troops crossed into Ashanti territory and advanced unopposed until reaching Barborassie where weak resistance was encountered.
On 31st January Wolseley fought his first big battle at Amoaful, set amongst tall trees, scrub and swampy streams that suited the Ashanti. However, accurate British shell-fire gradually overcame the Ashanti’s initial resistance and they eventually retreated back into the dense forest. Of the 2,000 men and 130 officers engaged some seven were killed and nearly 200 wounded. After this defeat the Ashanti disintegrated into smaller units of men, still harassing the British columns but their resistance had been decisively weakened. Nonetheless, there was one last determined Ashanti attack, on the 2nd February, this time on the garrison at Fommanah in which Captain North, its commander, was killed.
However the British advance continued, encountering little Ashanti resistance taking Ordahsu unopposed on the 4th. Later that same day Wolseley’s army, led by the 42nd Highlanders, entered Coomassie and found it deserted. Wolseley had the town destroyed and ordered the king’s palace to be blown up. The entire expedition’s losses amounted to eighteen killed in action, fifty-five dead from disease and 185 wounded. Although the Ashanti were beaten they still sought a truce, but accepted the conditions of war reparations, renunciation of land claims over neighbouring tribes and to stop rituals involving human sacrifice. From 1874 the Gold Coast was established as a dependent Crown colony.
| | | 1895-6 Campaign | | | Instead of peace however, years of wrangling followed with a succession of kings over non-payment of the reparations and lack of co-operation with the Gold Coast Governor. Finally, in December 1895, a further expedition was sent out under the command of Colonel Sir Francis Scott. His advance to Coomassie comprised of West Yorkshire Regiment and other detachments, along with local and colonial forces. These British forces again occupied Coomassie unopposed on 17th January 1896. The prevailing King Prempeh was exiled and a British governor and administration appointed who ruled the territory, supported by a small garrison. | | | 1900 Campaign | | On 28th March 1900 Sir Frederick Hodgson, the Governor of the Gold Coast, made the mistake of demanding the Ashanti’s Golden Stool (the kings’ throne and sign of power), but perhaps he did not fully appreciate its symbolic and historic tribal significance. Consequently, three tribes rose to defend against the request, the Kumasi, Asanti and Kokofu, who quickly overpowered the small garrison. Hodgson and other Europeans sought refuse in the newly built fort at Coomassie and summoned help. In response reinforcements arrived on 18th and 29th April just in time to repel another Ashanti attack. A further 250 men arrived on 15th May, but with disease rife and supplies low the Governor ordered a break-out of the siege with 600 men of the garrison. They finally reached Cape Coast on 10th July with losses of two officers and 39 men with many more missing or wounded.
However, the Coosmassie fort was still defended by three Europeans and 100 local troops, commanded by Captain Bishop, who had only three weeks rations. A relief force consisting of some 1,000 local troops, commanded by Colonel James Willcocks, fought their way through appalling conditions caused by the rainy season, enemy harassment and exacerbated by supply difficulties to relieve the fort on 15th July. After Willcocks had dealt with the garrison’s sick and wounded he cleared the area of Ashanti and then once reinforcements had arrived started an offensive capturing Obassa on 30th September. Following this defeat many rebel chiefs surrendered, with the remainder overwhelmed on 28th December. British losses, including from disease, amounted to over 1,000 dead. In recognition of his great fortitude Willcocks was honoured with a knighthood.
In September 1901 the Gold Coast was formally annexed with its own governor and in 1957 became the first colony to gain independence as a member of the Commonwealth and took the name Ghana. In 1960 Ghana became a republic.
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