[1] The homonym, ash or (pl.) ashes, the residue (of a body, &c.)
after burning, is a common Teutonic word, Ger. _Asche_, connected
with the root found in Lat. _ardere_, to burn.
A'SHA [MAIMUN IBN QAIS], Arabian poet, was born before Mahomet, and
lived long enough to accept the mission of the prophet. He was born in
Manfuha, a village of al-Yemama in the centre of Arabia, and became a
wandering singer, passing through all Arabia from Hadramut in the south
to al-Hira in the north, and naturally frequenting the annual fair at
Okaz (Ukaz). His love poems are devoted to the praise of Huraira, a
black female slave. Even before the time of Mahomet he is said to have
believed in the resurrection and last judgment, and to have been a
monotheist. These beliefs may have been due to his intercourse with the
bishop of Nejran (Najran) and the `Ibadites (Christians) of al-Hira. His
poems were praised for their descriptions of the wild ass, for the
praise of wine, for their skill in praise and satire, and for the
varieties of metre employed. His best-known poem is that in praise of
Mahomet.
His poems have been collected from various sources in L. Cheikho's
_Les Poetes arabes chretiens_ (Jesuit press, Beirut, 1890), pp.
357-399. His eulogy of Mahomet has been edited by H. Thorbecke, _Al
Asa's Lobgedicht auf Muhammad_ (Leipzig, 1875). (G. W. T.)
ASHANTI, a British possession in West Africa, bounded W. by the (French)
Ivory Coast colony, N. by the British Protectorate known as Northern
Territories of the Gold Coast (see GOLD COAST), and E. by the river
Volta (which separates it from the German colony of Togoland); the
southern frontier is conterminous with the northern frontier of the
(British) Gold Coast colony. It forms an irregular oblong, with a
triangular projection (the country of the Adansi) southward. It has an
area of 23,000 sq. m., and a population estimated (1907) at 500,000.
_Physical Features; Flora and Fauna._--A great part of Ashanti is
covered with primeval and almost impenetrable forest.[1] Many of the
trees, chiefly silk-cotton and hardwood, attain splendid proportions,
the bombax reaching a height of over 200 ft., but the monotony is
oppressive, and is seldom relieved by the sight of flowers, birds or
beasts. Ferns are abundant, and the mimosa rises to heights of from 30
to 60 ft. All over the forest spread lianas, or monkey-ropes, their
usual position being that of immense festoons hanging from tree to tree.
To these lianas (species of which yield one kind of the rubber of
commerce) is due largely the weird aspect of the forest. The country
round the towns, however, is cultivated with care, the fields yielding
in abundance grain, yams, vegetables and fruits. In the north-eastern
districts the primeval forest gives place to park-like country,
consisting of plains covered with high coarse grass, and dotted with
occasional baobabs, as well as with wild plum, shea-butter, dwarf date,
fan palms, and other small trees. Among the wild animals are the
elephant (comparatively rare), the leopard, varieties of antelope, many
kinds of monkeys and numerous venomous snakes. Crocodiles and two kinds
of hippopotami, the ordinary and a pygmy variety, are found in the
rivers. Of birds, parrots are the most characteristic. Insect life is
abundant.
About 25 m. south-east of Kumasi is Lake Busumchwi, the sacred lake of
the Ashanti. It is surrounded by forest-clad hills some 800 ft. high, is
nearly circular and has a maximum diameter of 6 m. The Black Volta, and
lower down the Volta (q.v.), form the northern frontier, and various
tributaries of the Volta, running generally in a northerly direction,
traverse the eastern portion of the country. In the central parts are
the upper courses of the Ofin and of some tributaries of the Prah.
Farther west are the Tano and Bia rivers, which empty their waters into
the Assini lagoon. In their course through Ashanti, the rivers, apart
from the Volta, are navigable by canoes only. The elevation of the
country is generally below 2000 ft., but it rises towards the north.
_Climate._--The climate, although unsuited to the prolonged residence of
Europeans, is less unhealthy than that of the coast towns of West
Africa. The water-supply is good and abundant. The rainy season lasts
from the end of May until October; storms are frequent and violent. The
mean temperature at Kumasi is 76 deg. F., the mean annual rainfall 40
ins.
_Inhabitants._--The most probable tradition represents the Ashanti as
deriving their origin from bands of fugitives, who in the 16th or 17th
century were driven before the Moslem tribes migrating southward from
the countries on the Niger and Senegal. Having obtained possession of a
region of impenetrable forest, they defended themselves with a valour
which, becoming part of their national character, raised them to the
rank of a powerful and conquering nation. They are of the pure negro
type, and are supposed to be originally of the same race as the Fanti,
nearer the coast, and speak the same language. The separation of Fanti
and Ashanti has been ascribed to a famine which drove the former south,
and led them to live on _fan_, or herbs, while the latter subsisted on
_san_, or Indian corn, &c., whence the names Fanti and Santi. The
Ashanti are divided into a large number of tribes, of whom a dozen may
be distinguished, namely, the Bekwai, Adansi, Juabin, Kokofu, Kumasi,
Mampon, Nsuta, Nkwanta, Dadiassi, Daniassi, Ofinsu and Adjisu. Each
tribe has its own king, but from the beginning of the 18th century the
king of Kumasi was recognized as king paramount, and was spoken of as
the king of Ashanti. As paramount king he succeeded to the "golden
stool," the symbol of authority among the Ashanti. After the deposition
of Prempeh (1896) no king of Kumasi was chosen; Prempeh himself was
never "enstooled." The government of Ashanti was formerly a mixture of
monarchy and military aristocracy. The confederate tribes were
originally organized for purposes of war into six great divisions or
clans, this organization developing into the main social fabric of the
state. The chiefs of the clans, with a few sub-chiefs having hereditary
rights, formed the King's Council, and the king, unless of exceptionally
strong character, often exercised less power than the council of chiefs,
each of whom kept his little court, making a profuse display of barbaric
pomp. Land is held in common by the tribes, lands unallotted being
attached to the office of head chief or king and called "stool lands."
Polygamy is practised by all who can afford it. It is stated by the
early chroniclers that the king of Ashanti was bound to maintain the
"fetish" number of 3333 wives; many of these, however, were employed in
menial services. The crown descended to the king's brother, or his
sister's son, not to his own offspring. The queen mother exercised
considerable authority in the state, but the king's wives had no power.
The system of human sacrifices, practised among the Ashanti until the
closing years of the 19th century, was founded on a sentiment of piety
towards parents and other connexions--the chiefs believing that the rank
of their dead relatives in the future world would be measured by the
number of attendants sent after them. There were two periods, called the
great Adai and little Adai, at which human victims, chiefly prisoners of
war or condemned criminals, were immolated. There is reason to believe
that the extent of this practice was not so great as was currently
reported.
There are a few Mahommedans in Ashanti, most of them traders from other
countries, and the Basel and Wesleyan missionaries have obtained some
converts to Christianity; but the great bulk of the people are
spirit-worshippers. Unlike many West African races, the Ashanti in
general show a repugnance to the doctrines of Islam.
_Towns and Trade._--Besides the capital, Kumasi (q.v.), with a
population of some 6000, there are few important towns in Ashanti.
Obuassi, in the south-west, is the centre of the gold-mining industry.
Wam is on the western border, Nkoranza, Atabubu and Kintampo in the
north. Kintampo is a town of some size and is about 130 m. north-east of
Kumasi. It is the meeting-place of traders from the Niger countries and
from the coast. Formerly one of the great slave and ivory marts of West
Africa, it is now a centre of the kola-nut commerce and a depot for
government stores. The Ashanti are skilful in several species of
manufacture, particularly in weaving cotton. Their pottery and works in
gold also show considerable skill. A large quantity of silver-plate and
goldsmiths' work of great value and considerable artistic elaboration
was found in 1874 in the king's palace at Kumasi, not the least
remarkable objects being masks of beaten gold. The influence of Moorish
art is perceptible.
The vegetable products do not differ greatly from those found on the
Gold Coast; the most important commercially is the rubber tree
(_Funtumia elastica_). The nut of the kola tree is in great demand, and
since 1905 many cocoa plantations have been established, especially in
the eastern districts. Tobacco is cultivated in the northern regions.
Gum copal is exported. Part of the trade of Ashanti had been diverted to
the French port of Assini in consequence of the wars waged between
England and the Ashanti, but on the suppression of the revolt of 1900
measures were taken to improve trade between Kumasi and Cape Coast.
Kumasi is the distributing centre for the whole of Ashanti and the
hinterland. Gold exists in the western districts of the country, and
several companies were formed to work the mines in the period 1895-1901.
Most of the gold exported from the Gold Coast in 1902 and following
years came from the Obuassi mines. The gold output from Ashanti amounted
in 1905 to 68,259 oz., valued at L254,790. The railway to Kumasi from
Sekondi, which was completed in 1903, passes through the auriferous
region. As far as the trade goes through British territory southward,
the figures are included in those of the Gold Coast; but Ashanti does
also a considerable trade with its French and German neighbours, and
northwards with the Niger countries. Its revenue and expenditure are
included in those of the Gold Coast. Revenue is obtained principally
from caravan taxes, liquor licences, rents from government land and
contributions from the gold-mining companies.
_Communications._--The railway to Kumasi, cut through one of the densest
forest regions, is described under GOLD COAST. The usual means of
communication is by tortuous paths through the forest, too narrow to
admit any wheeled vehicle. A wide road, 141 m. long, has been cut
through the bush from Cape Coast to Kumasi, and from Kumasi ancient
caravan routes go to the chief trading centres farther inland. Where
rivers and swamps have to be crossed, ferries are maintained. A
favourite mode of travelling in the bush is in a palanquin borne on the
heads of four carriers. Telegraph lines connect Kumasi with the coast
towns and with the towns in the Northern Territories. There is a
well-organized postal service.
Early relations with the British.
_History._--The Ashanti first came under the notice of Europeans early
in the 18th century, through their successful wars with the kingdoms
bordering the maritime territory. Osai Tutu may be considered as the
real founder of the Ashanti power. He either built or greatly extended
Kumasi; he subdued the neighbouring state of Denkera (1719) and the
Mahommedan countries of Gaman (Jaman) and Banna, and extended the empire
by conquests both on the east and west. At last he was defeated and
slain (1731); but his successor, Osai Apoko, made further acquisitions
towards the coast. In 1800, Osai Tutu Quamina, an enterprising and
ambitious man, who appears early to have formed the desire of opening a
communication with white nations, became king. About 1807, two chiefs of
the Assin, whom he had defeated in battle, sought refuge among the
Fanti, the ruling people on the coast. On the refusal of the Fanti to
deliver up the fugitives, Osai Tutu invaded their country, defeated them
and drove them towards the sea. The Ashanti reached the coast near
Anamabo, where there was then a British fort. The governor exhorted the
townsmen to come to terms and offered to mediate; but they resolved to
abide the contest. The result was the destruction of the town, and the
slaughter of 8000 of the inhabitants. The Ashanti, who lost over 2000
men, failed, however, to storm the English fort, though the garrison was
reduced from twenty-four to eight men. A truce was agreed to, and the
king refusing to treat except with the governor of Cape Coast, Colonel
G. Torrane (governor 1805-1807) repaired to Anamabo, where he was
received with great pomp. Torrane determined to surrender the fugitive
Assin chiefs, but one succeeded in escaping; the other, on being given
up, was put to death by the Ashanti. Torrane concluded an agreement with
the Ashanti, acknowledging their conquest of Fantiland, and delivering
up to them half the fugitives in Anamabo fort (most of the remainder
were sold by Torrane and the members of his council as slaves). The
governor also agreed to pay rent to the Ashanti for Anamabo fort and
Cape Coast castle. The character of this man, who died on the coast in
1808, is indicated by Osai Tutu's eulogy of him. "From the hour Governor
Torrane delivered up Tchibbu [one of the Assin fugitives] I took the
English for my friends," said the king of Ashanti, "because I saw their
object was trade only and they did not care for the people. Torrane was
a man of sense and he pleased me much."
In consequence of repeated invasions of Fantiland by the Ashanti, the
British in 1817 sent Frederick James, commandant of Accra fort, T.E.
Bowdich and W. Hutchinson on a mission to Kumasi. After one or two
harmonious interviews, the king advanced a claim for the payment of the
quit rents for Anamabo fort and Cape Coast castle, rents the major part
of which the Fanti had induced the British to pay to them, leaving only
a nominal sum for transmission to Kumasi. Mr James, the head of the
mission, volunteered no satisfactory explanation, whereupon the king
broke into uncontrollable rage, calling the emissaries cheats and liars.
Bowdich and Hutchinson, thinking that British interests and the safety
of the mission were endangered, took the negotiation into their own
hands. Mr James was recalled, and a treaty was concluded, by which the
king's demands were satisfied, and the right of the British to control
the natives in the coast towns recognized.
Sir Charles M'Carthy's fate.
The government at home, though they demurred somewhat to the course that
had been pursued, saw the wisdom of cultivating intercourse with this
powerful African kingdom. They sent out, therefore, to Kumasi, as
consul, Mr Joseph Dupuis, formerly consul at Mogador, who arrived at
Cape Coast in January 1819. By that time fresh difficulties had arisen
between the coast natives, who were supported by the British, and the
Ashanti. Dupuis set out on the 9th of February 1820, and on the 28th
arrived at Kumasi. After several meetings with the king, a treaty was
drawn up, which acknowledged the sovereignty of Ashanti over the
territory of the Fanti, and left the natives of Cape Coast to the mercy
of their enemies. Mr J. Hope Smith, the governor of Cape Coast, disowned
the treaty, as betraying the interests of the natives under British
protection. Mr Hope Smith was supported by the government in London,
which in 1821 assumed direct control of the British settlements. Sir
Charles M'Carthy, the first governor appointed by the crown, espoused
the cause of the Fanti, but was defeated in battle by the Ashanti, the
21st of January 1824, at a place beyond the Prah called Essamako. The
Ashanti had 10,000 men to Sir Charles's 500. Sir Charles and eight other
Europeans were killed. The skull of the governor was afterwards used at
Kumasi as a royal drinking-cup. It was asserted that Sir Charles lost
the battle through his ordnance-keeper bringing up kegs filled with
vermicelli instead of ammunition. The fact is that the mistake, if made,
only hastened the inevitable catastrophe. On the very day of this defeat
Osai Tutu Quamina died and was succeeded by Osai Okoto. A state of
chronic warfare ensued, until the Ashanti sustained a signal defeat at
Dodowah on the 7th of August 1826. From this time the power of the
Ashanti over the coast tribes waned, and in 1831 the king was obliged to
purchase peace from Mr George Maclean, then administrator of the Gold
Coast, at the price of 600 oz. of gold, and to send his son as a hostage
to Cape Coast. The payment of ground rent for the forts held by the
British had ceased after the battle of Dodowah, and by the treaty
concluded by Maclean the river Prah was fixed as the boundary of the
Ashanti kingdom, all the tribes south of it being under British
protection.
The king (Kwaka Dua I.), who had succeeded Osai Okoto in 1838, was a
peace-loving monarch who encouraged trade, but in 1852 the Ashanti tried
to reassert authority over the Fanti in the Gold Coast protectorate, and
in 1863 a war was caused by the refusal of the king's demand for the
surrender by the British of a fugitive chief and a runaway slave-boy.
The Ashanti were victorious in two battles and retired unmolested. The
governor, Mr Richard Pine, urged the advisability of an advance on
Kumasi, but this the British government would not allow. No further
fighting followed, but the prestige of the Ashanti greatly increased.
"The white men" (said Kwaka Dua) "bring many cannon to the bush, but the
bush is stronger than the cannon." In April 1867 Kwaka Dua died, and
after an interval of civil war was succeeded by Kofi Karikari, who on
being enstooled swore, "My business shall be war." Thereafter
preparations were made throughout Ashanti to attack the Fanti tribes,
and the result was the war of 1873-74.
The war of 1873-1874.
Two distinct events were the immediate cause of the war. The principal
was the transference of Elmina fort from the Dutch to the British, which
took place on the 2nd of April 1872. The Elmina were regarded by the
Ashanti as their subjects, and the king of Ashanti held the Elmina
"custom-note,"--that is, he received from the Dutch an annual payment,
in its origin a ground rent for the fort, but looked upon by the Dutch
as a present for trade purposes. The Ashanti greatly resented the
occupation by Britain of what they considered Ashanti territory. Another
but minor cause of the war was the holding in captivity by the Ashanti
of four Europeans. An Ashanti force invaded Krepi, a territory beyond
the Volta, and in June 1869 captured Mr Fritz A. Ramseyer, his wife and
infant son (the child died of privation shortly afterwards), and Mr J.
Kuhne, members of the Basel mission. Monsieur M.J. Bonnat, a French
trader, was also captured at another place. The captives were taken to
Kumasi. Negotiations for their release were begun, but the Europeans
were still prisoners when the sale of Elmina occurred. The Ashanti
delayed war until their preparations were complete, whilst the Gold
Coast officials appear to have thought the risk of hostilities remote.
However, on the 22nd of January 1873 an Ashanti force crossed the Prah
and invaded the British protectorate. They defeated the Fanti, stirred
up disputes at Elmina, and encamped at Mampon near Cape Coast, to the
great alarm of the inhabitants. Measures were taken for the defence of
the territory and the punishment of the assailants, which culminated in
the despatch of Sir Garnet (afterwards Viscount) Wolseley as British
administrator, L800,000 being voted by parliament for the expenses of
the expedition. On landing (October 2) at Cape Coast, Wolseley found the
Ashanti, who had been decimated by smallpox and fever, preparing to
return home. He determined, however, to march to Kumasi, whilst Captain
(afterwards Sir) John Glover, R.N., administrator of Lagos, was with a
force of native levies to co-operate from the east and take the Ashanti
in rear. Meanwhile the enemy broke up camp, and, although harassed by
native levies raised by the British, effected an orderly retreat. The
Ashanti army re-entered Kumasi on the 22nd of December. Wolseley asked
for the help of white troops, and the 2nd battalion Rifle Brigade, the
23rd Fusiliers and 42nd Highlanders were despatched. Seeing the
preparations made by his enemy, Kofi Karikari endeavoured to make peace,
and in response to General Wolseley's demands the European captives were
released (January 1874). Sir Garnet determined that peace must be signed
in Kumasi and continued his advance. On the 20th of January the river
Prah was crossed by the European troops; on the 24th the Adansi hills
were reached; on the 31st there was severe fighting at Amoaful; on the
1st of February Bekwai was captured; and on the evening of the 4th the
victorious army was in Kumasi, after seven hours' fighting. The king,
who had led his army, fled into the bush when he saw the day was lost.
As the 42nd Highlanders pushed forward to Kumasi, the town was found
full of Ashanti soldiers, but not a shot was fired at the invaders. Sir
Garnet Wolseley sent messengers to the king, but Kofi Karikari refused
to surrender. As his force was small, provisions scarce, and the rainy
season setting in, and as he was encumbered with many sick and wounded,
the British general decided to retire. On the 6th, therefore, the
homeward march was commenced, the city being left behind in flames. In
the meantime Captain Glover's force had crossed the Prah on the 15th of
January, and the Ashanti opposition weakening after the capture of
Kumasi, Glover was able to push forward. On the 11th of February,
Captain (later General) R.W. Sartorius, who had been sent ahead with
twenty Hausa only, found Kumasi still deserted. Captain Sartorius and
his twenty men marched 50 m. through the heart of the enemy's country.
On the 12th Glover and his force of natives entered the Ashanti capital.
The news of Glover's approach induced the king, who feared also the
return of the white troops, to sue for peace. On the 9th of February a
messenger from Kofi Karikari overtook Sir Garnet, who on the 13th at
Fomana received the Ashanti envoys. A treaty was concluded whereby the
king agreed, among other conditions, to pay 50,000 oz. of gold, to
renounce all claim to homage from certain neighbouring kings, and all
pretensions of supremacy over any part of the former Dutch protectorate,
to promote freedom of trade, to keep open a road from Kumasi to the
Prah, and to do his best to check the practice of human sacrifice.
Besides coloured troops, there were employed in this campaign about 2400
Europeans, who suffered severely from fever and otherwise, though the
mortality among the men was slight. Seventy-one per cent of the troops
were on the sick list, and more than forty officers died--only six from
wounds. The success of the expedition was facilitated by the exertions
of Captain (afterwards General Sir William) Butler and Captain
(afterwards General W. L.) Dalrymple, who effected diversions with very
inadequate resources.
A British protectorate established.
Prempeh deposed.
One result of the war of 1873-74 was that several states dependent on
Ashanti declared themselves independent, and sought British protection.
This was refused, and the inaction of the colonial office contributed to
the reconsolidation of the Ashanti power.[2] Shortly after the war the
Ashanti deposed Kofi Karikari, and placed on the golden stool--the
symbol of sovereignty--his brother Mensa. This monarch broke almost
every article of the Fomana treaty, and even the payment of the
indemnity was not demanded. (In all, only 4000 oz. of gold, out of the
50,000 stipulated for, were paid.) Mensa's rule was tyrannous and
stained with repeated human sacrifices. In 1883 a revolution displaced
that monarch, who was succeeded by Kwaka Dua II.--a young man who died
(June 1884) within a few months of his election. In the same month died
the ex-king Kofi Karikari, and disruption threatened Ashanti. At length,
after a desolating civil war, Prince Prempeh--who took the name of Kwaka
Dua III.--was chosen king (March 26, 1888), the colonial government
having been forced to intervene in the dispute owing to the troubles it
occasioned in the Gold Coast. The election of Prempeh took place in the
presence and with the sanction of an officer of the Gold Coast
government. Prempeh defeated his enemies, and for a time peace and
prosperity returned to Ashanti. However in 1893 there was fresh trouble
between Ashanti and the tribes of the protectorate, and the roads were
closed to traders by Prempeh's orders. The British government was forced
to interfere, more especially as the country, by international
agreement, had been included in the British sphere of influence. A
mission was despatched to Prempeh, calling upon him to fulfil the terms
of the 1874 treaty, and further, to accept a British protectorate and
receive a resident at Kumasi. The king declined to treat with the
governor of the Gold Coast, and despatched informal agents to England,
whom the secretary of state refused to receive. To the demands of the
British mission relative to the acceptance of a protectorate and other
matters, Prempeh made no reply in the three weeks' grace allowed, which
expired on the 31st of October 1895. To enforce the British demands, to
put an end to the misgovernment and barbarities carried on at Kumasi,
and to establish law, order and security for trade, an expedition was at
length decided upon. The force, placed under Colonel Sir Francis Scott,
consisted of the 2nd West Yorkshire regiment, a "special service corps,"
made up of detachments from various regiments in the United Kingdom,
under specially selected officers, the 2nd West India regiment, and the
Gold Coast and Lagos Hausa. The composition of the special service corps
was much criticized at the time; but as it was not called upon for
fighting purposes, no inferences as to its efficiency are possible. The
details of the expedition were carefully organized. Before the arrival
of the staff and contingent from England (December 1895) the native
forces were employed in improving the road from Cape Coast to Prahsu (70
m.), and in establishing road stations to serve as standing camps for
the troops. About 12,000 carriers were collected, the load allotted to
each being 50 lb. In addition, a force of native scouts, which
ultimately reached a total of 860 men, was organized in eighteen
companies, and partly armed with Snider rifles, to cover the advance of
the main column, which started on the 27th of December, and to improve
the road. The king of Bekwai having asked for British protection, a
small force was pressed forward and occupied this native town, about 25
m. from Kumasi, on the 4th of January 1896. The advance continued, and
at Ordahsu a mission arrived from King Prempeh offering unconditional
submission. On the 17th of January Kumasi was occupied, and Colonel Sir
F. Scott received the king. Effective measures were taken to prevent
his escape, and on the 20th Prempeh made submission to Mr (afterwards
Sir W. E.) Maxwell, the governor of Cape Coast, in native fashion. After
this act of public humiliation, the king and the queen mother with the
principal chiefs were arrested and taken as prisoners to Cape Coast,
where they were embarked on board H.M.S. "Racoon" for Elmina. The fetish
buildings at Bantama were burned, and on the 22nd of January Bokro, a
village 5 m. from Kumasi, and Maheer, the king's summer palace, were
visited by the native scouts and found deserted. On the same day,
leaving the Hausa at Kumasi, the expedition began the return march of
150 m. to Cape Coast. The complete success of the expedition was due to
the excellent organization of the supply and transport services, while
the promptitude with which the operations were carried out probably
accounts in great measure for the absence of resistance. Although no
fighting occurred, a heavy strain was thrown upon all ranks, and fever
claimed many victims, among whom was Prince Henry of Battenberg, who had
volunteered for the post of military secretary to Colonel Sir F. Scott.
Siege and relief of Kumasi.
After the deportation of Prempeh no successor was appointed to the
throne of Ashanti. A British resident, Captain Donald W. Stewart, was
installed at Kumasi, and whilst the other states of the confederacy
retained their king and tribal system the affairs of the Kumasi were
administered by chiefs under British guidance. Mr and Mrs Ramseyer (two
of the missionaries imprisoned by King Kofi Karikari for four and a half
years) returned to Kumasi, and other missionaries followed. A fort was
built in Kumasi and garrisoned with Gold Coast constabulary. Though
outwardly submissive, the Kumasi chiefs were far from reconciled to
British rule, and in 1900 a serious rebellion broke out. The tribes
involved were the Kumasi, Adansi and Kokofu; the other tribes of the
Ashanti confederation remained loyal. The rebels were, however, able to
command a force reported to number 40,000. On the 28th of March, before
the rebellion had declared itself, the governor of the Gold Coast, Sir
F. Hodgson, in a public palaver at Kumasi, announced that the Ashanti
chiefs would have to pay the British government 4000 oz. of gold yearly,
and he reproached the chiefs with not having brought to him the golden
stool, which the Kumasi had kept hidden since 1896. Three days
afterwards the Kumasi warriors attacked a party of Hausa sent with the
chief object of discovering the golden stool. (In the previous January a
secret attempt to seize the stool had failed.) The Kumasi, who were
longing to wipe out the dishonour of having let Prempeh be deported
without fighting, next threatened the fort of Kumasi. Mr Ramseyer and
the other Basel missionaries, and Sir F. and Lady Hodgson, took refuge
in the fort, and reinforcements were urgently asked for. On the 18th of
April 100 Gold Coast constabulary arrived. On the 29th the Kumasi
attacked in force, but were repulsed. The same day a party of 250 Lagos
constabulary reached Kumasi. They had fought their way up, and came in
with little ammunition. On the 15th of May Major A. Morris arrived from
the British territory north of Ashanti, also with 250 men. The garrison
now numbered 700. The 29 Europeans in the fort included four women.
Outside the fort were gathered 3000 native refugees. Famine and disease
soon began to tell their tale. Sir F. Hodgson sent out a message on the
4th of June (it reached the relieving force on the 12th of June), saying
that they could only hold out to the 11th of June. However, it was not
till the 23rd of June that the governor and all the Europeans save
three, together with 600 Hausa of all ranks, sallied out of the fort.
Avoiding the main road, held by the enemy in force, they attacked a
weakly held stockade, and succeeded in cutting their way through, with a
loss of two British officers mortally wounded, 39 Hausa killed, and
double that number wounded or missing. The governor's party reached Cape
Coast safely on the 10th of July.
A force of 100 Hausa, with three white men (Captain Bishop, Mr Ralph and
Dr Hay), was left behind in Kumasi fort with rations to last three
weeks. Meantime a relief expedition had been organized at Cape Coast by
Colonel James Willcocks. This officer reached Cape Coast from Nigeria on
the 26th of May. The difficulties before him were appalling. Carriers
could scarcely be obtained, there were no local food supplies, the rainy
season was at its height, all the roads were deep mire, the bush was
almost impenetrable, and the enemy were both brave and cunning, fighting
behind concealed stockades. It was not until the 2nd of July that
Colonel Willcocks was able to advance to Fumsu. On the next day he heard
of the escape of the governor and of the straits of the garrison left at
Kumasi. He determined to relieve the fort in time, and on the 9th of
July reached Bekwai, the king of which place had remained loyal. Making
his final dispositions, the colonel spread a report that on the 13th he
would attack Kokofu, east of Bekwai, and this drew off several thousands
of the enemy from Kumasi. After feinting to attack Kokofu, Colonel
Willcocks suddenly marched west. There was smart fighting on the 14th,
and at 4.30 P.M. on the 15th, after a march since daybreak through roads
"in indescribably bad condition," the main rebel stockade was
encountered. It was carried at the point of the bayonet by the Yoruba
troops, who proved themselves fully equal to the Hausa. "The charge
could not have been beaten in _elan_ by any soldiers." Kumasi was
entered the same evening, a bugler of the war-worn garrison of the fort
sounding the "general salute" as the relieving column came in view. Most
of the defenders were too weak to stand. Outside the fort nothing was to
be seen but burnt-down houses and putrid bodies. The relieving force
that marched into Kumasi consisted of 1000 fighting men (all West
Africans), with 60 white officers and non-commissioned officers, two
75-millimetre guns, four seven-pounder guns and six Maxims.
Kumasi relieved, there remained the task of crushing the rebellion.
Colonel Willcocks's force was increased by Yaos and a few Sikhs from
Central Africa to a total of 3368 natives, with 134 British officers and
35 British non-commissioned officers. In addition there were Ashanti
levies. On the 30th of September the Kumasi were completely beaten at
Obassa. Thereafter many of the rebel chiefs surrendered, and the only
two remaining in the field were captured on the 28th of December. Thus
1901 opened with peace restored. The total number of casualties during
the campaign (including those who died of disease) was 1007. Nine
British officers were killed in action, forty-three were wounded, and
six died of disease. The commander, Colonel Willcocks, was promoted and
created a K.C.M.G.
Progress under British administration.
By an order in council, dated the 26th of September 1901, Ashanti was
formally annexed to the British dominions, and given a separate
administration under the control of the governor of the Gold Coast. A
chief commissioner represents the governor in his absence, and is
assisted by a staff of four commissioners and four assistant
commissioners. A battalion of the Gold Coast regiment is stationed in
the country with headquarters at Kumasi. The order in council mentioned,
which may be described as the first constitution granted Ashanti by its
British owners, provides that the governor, in issuing ordinances
respecting the administration of justice, the raising of revenue, or any
other matter, shall respect any native laws by which the civil relations
of any chiefs, tribes or populations are regulated, "except so far as
they may be incompatible with British sovereignty or clearly injurious
to the welfare of the natives themselves." After the annexation of the
country in 1901 the relations between the governing power and the
governed steadily improved. Mr F.C. Fuller, who succeeded Sir Donald
Stewart as chief commissioner early in 1905, was able to report in the
following year that among the Ashanti suspicion of the "white man's"
ulterior motives was speedily losing ground. The marked preference shown
by the natives to resort to the civil and criminal courts established by
the British demonstrated their faith in the impartial treatment awarded
therein. Moreover, the maintenance of the tribal system and the support
given to the lawful chiefs did much to win the confidence and respect of
a people naturally suspicious, and mindful of their exiled king.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.--For a general survey of the country, see _Travels_ _in
Ashanti and Jaman_, by R.A. Freeman (London, 1898); _Historical
Geography of the British Colonies_, vol. iii. "West Africa," by C.P.
Lucas (Oxford, 1900); and the _Annual Reports, Ashanti_, issued from
1906 onward by the Colonial Office, London. _The Tshi-speaking Peoples
of the Gold Coast_, by Col. A.B. Ellis (London, 1887), deals with
ethnology. Of early works on the country the most valuable are _A
Mission from Cape Coast Castle to Ashantee_, by T.E. Bowdich (London,
1819); and _Journal of a Residence in Ashantee_ (London, 1824), by J.
Dupuis. For history generally, see _A History of the Gold Coast of
West Africa_, by Col. A.B. Ellis (London, 1893); and _History of the
Gold Coast and Asante ... from about 1500 to 1860_, by C.C. Reindorf,
a native pastor of the Basel mission (Basel, 1895).
For the British military campaigns, in addition to the official
blue-books, consult: _Narrative of the Ashantee War_, 2 vols., by
(Sir) Henry Brackenbury (London, 1874); _The Story of a Soldier's
Life_ by Viscount Wolseley, vol. ii. chs. xliii.-l. (London, 1903);
_Coomassie_, by (Sir) H.M. Stanley, being the story of the 1873-74
expedition (new ed., London, 1896); _Life of Sir John Hawley Glover_,
by Lady Glover, chs. iii.-x. (London, 1897); _The Downfall of
Prempeh_, by (General) R.S.S. Baden-Powell, an account of the 1895-96
expedition (London, 1896); _From Kabul to Kumassi_ (chs. xv. to end),
by Sir James Willcocks, (London, 1904); _The Ashanti Campaign of
1900_, by Capt. C.H. Armitage and Lieut.-Col. A.F. Montanaro (London,
1901); _The Relief of Kumasi_, by Capt. H.C.J. Biss (London, 1901).
The two bocks following are by besieged residents in Kumasi: _The
Siege of Kumasi_, by Lady Hodgson (London, 1901); _Dark and Stormy
Days at Kumasi_, 1900, from the diary of the Rev. Fritz Ramseyer
(London, 1901). Many of the works quoted under GOLD COAST deal also
with Ashanti. (F. R. C.)