Ghana is a land of various landscapes. Though located on the coast of West Africa, its landscapes range from coasts in the South, to savannah dry lands in the North, and forestland all in between. The country is inhabited in part by the Akan people. These people are among the most prominent and traditionally well-cultured indigenous inhabitants of Africa (Akan 1). The Akan people can be divided into different categories, and then subdivided into the Twi, the Fante, Akim, Ashanti, Juaben, and Agona. The Ashanti region of Ghana lies in the middle of the West African tropical rain forest. It’s major city, Kumasi, is located inland about 150 miles inland from the Gulf of Guinea. The Ashanti people are a people of many rituals and rites. These can be seen in their every day lives, and also in important events. These people have a very rich heritage filled with honor, prestige, wealth, culture, and stability. The Ashanti are very interesting. Their history dates back to the very war that created their foundation, through the struggles of colonization, to the present aspects of their region like society, religion, culture, military, village life, and economy.

The Ashanti people are a people of very rich culture, family values, history, religion, and skill. They are able to successfully rule and live in their society without much conflict. These people have lived in Ghana for many years, and continue not only to impact Ghana with their strong ideas and unique art, but also the world.

The traditional Ashanti religion involves a supreme god called Nyame, who communicates with human beings through lesser gods. The Ashanti also honor their ancestors at ancestral shrines. The Ashanti have a complex religious system involving elaborate ceremonies, ancestor worship, the ntoro concept and ritual, witchcraft and sorcery, beliefs in many kinds of spirits, divination, shamans, and so forth. The greatest and most frequent religious ceremonies are those whose purpose is to recall the spirits of the departed rulers, offer them food and drink, and ask their favor for the good of all the people. These ceremonies, called the Adae, occur every 21 days. Funeral and mourning rites are also important.

Ashanti believe in the aphorism “Unity is strength” (project 1). The stool helps to achieve this because all have the common bond of full allegiance to the Stool. Before the Ashanti Kingdom could emerge, the Akan states were formed in order to establish trade routes so that gold could be moved throughout the region. At the end of the 18th century, however, the Ashanti Kingdom emerged in the central forests of Ghana. The Ashanti dominion was extended by military action and political skill. The first Ashanti invasion of the coastal regions was in 1807. In 1811, the Ashanti moved south again, and yet again in 1814. These invasions oftentimes interrupted and threatened the European forts and trading ports in the area. This, in turn, led to many wars with Britain. From 1826 until 1900, the British fought a series of campaigns against the Ashantis. The British army captured Kumasi, the major city, in 1873. In 1901, after one last uprising led by Yaa Asantewaa, Ashanti came into British Protection, and finally became a region of the Gold Coast colony. Yaa Asantewaa was the queen mother at the time. Since the British defeated the Ashanti, the Ashanti were forced to sign a peace treaty that renounced all of their claims to southern territories. They were also forced to keep the road to Kumasi open to trade. In 1896, the Ashanti were forced to become a protectorate of the British Crown. This, in turn, promoted the Ashanti kingdom’s economy to depend on the trade of gold, and enslaved people to the Mande and Hausa traders, as well as to Europeans along the coast (uiowa 1). In return for being the middlemen in the slave trade, the Ashanti received firearms. These were often times used to increase their power. The Ashanti wars of conquest not only added to the states’ power, but its prestige. They were a direct source of wealth. Unfortunately, like in many cases, there were limits to the ability of the Ashanti’s military power to extend the kingdom through war. One of

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