Gold Coast Colony

Ghana, 1821–1957. Draft, not yet reviewed

The Colony of the Gold Coast was a British Crown colony on the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa from 1821 until its independence as Ghana in 1957. Under British colonial administration, the Gold Coast developed an export economy centred on cocoa, gold, timber and other natural resources. British rule expanded through treaties, the acquisition of rival European possessions, and the conquest of African states, most notably the Ashanti Empire.

Seat of power: Accra

No rulers documented for this era yet.

Culture

• The large quantity of gold dust found in Ghana was what primarily attracted European traders.
• Local Africans received clothing, blankets, spices, sugar and silk in exchange for gold, mahogany, other local goods and enslaved captives.
• Between 1830 and 1843, while Maclean was in charge, no confrontations occurred with Asante and the volume of trade reportedly increased threefold.

Picture

Cape Coast Castle is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, with other forts and castles in Ghana, because it bears witness to the Atlantic gold and slave trades.

Image: Rjruiziii, CC BY-SA 3.0, file

Sources

• Gold Coast (British colony) (Wikipedia)
• Gold Coast Colony (Wikidata)
• About the picture (Wikipedia)

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.