Historical Figures Codexery

Yaa Asantewaa

Queen Mother and war leader who commanded the Ashanti in the War of the Golden Stool against British colonial rule.

Yaa Asantewaa

Noahalorwu · via Wikipedia: Yaa Asantewaa · CC BY-SA 4.0

Within the Ashanti Empire, which corresponds to present-day Ghana, Yaa Asantewaa held the position of Queen Mother for Ejisu.[1] The conflict against the British Empire that Yaa Asantewaa headed in 1900 is referred to as both the War of the Golden Stool and the Yaa Asantewaa War of Independence.[1] Her death occurred while she was in exile on the Seychelles islands, specifically on 17 October 1921.[2]

Quick Facts

Birth name
Nana Yaa Asantewaa
Born
1840
Birthplace
Besease, Ashanti Empire
Died
17 October 1921
Place of death
Seychelles
Allegiance
Ashanti Empire
Battles
War of the Golden Stool
Children
One

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

The rebellion began in March 1900 and laid siege to the British fort at Kumasi.[3] Yaa Asantewaa and fifteen of her closest advisers were captured and sent into exile to the Seychelles.[3] Kwaku Ampoma and Ata Po were the parents of Yaa Asantewaa, who was delivered around 1840 in the settlement of Besease.[4] Afrane Panin, her sibling, attained the position of chief for the nearby community of Edweso.[4]

A daughter was born from Yaa Asantewaa's polygamous union with a man whose origin was Kumasi.[4] Farming and motherhood were two areas where Yaa Asantewaa achieved success.[5] Regional Asante kings selected Yaa Asantewaa to serve as the war leader for the Asante military force, marking the sole instance in Asante history where a woman held this position.[6]

What the cited sources add

The WWP source reports that Asantewaa was a farmer and a mother when her brother nominated her as Queen Mother of Ejisu.[7] The New York Amsterdam News article by Boyd states that Yaa Asantewaa was likely in her late 50s or early 60s when she led the war.[8] The Foundry source notes that Adu Boahene, based on a Seychelles census, suggested Yaa Asantewaa was probably born in 1832.[9] The same source records that on March 28, 1900, a grand durbar was organized for Governor Arnold Hodgson at the Kumase Fort.[9]

That same source reports that a counterfeit golden stool was handed over to the British governor, while the authentic one remained concealed.[10][11]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Appiah, Kwame Anthony, and Henry Louis Gates Jr. (eds), Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience, 1999, p. 276. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Boahen, "The History of Ashanti Kings and the Whole Country Itself and Other Writings", British Academy, 2003, p. 25– (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Berry, L. V., Ghana: a Country Study. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Korsah, Chantal, "Yaa Asantewaa", Dangerous Women, 22 July 2016 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Nana Yaa Asantewaa", nanayaaasantewaa.de (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Brempong, "The role of Nana Yaa Asantewaa in the 1900 Asante War of Resistance", Le Griot, 2000 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. "Yaa Asantewaa Statue", WWP. facts only, no text reused. wanderwomenproject.com
  8. Boyd, "Queen-mother Yaa Asantewaa led the fight against British colonialism", New York Amsterdam News, 5 April 2018. facts only, no text reused. amsterdamnews.com
  9. Foundry, "HISTORY: Yaa Asantewa Neo-Griot", April 2014. facts only, no text reused. kalamu.com
  10. "July 17, 1900: Kumasi surrenders to British forces under Sir Frederick Hodgson", Edward A. Ulzen Memorial Foundation, 2017-07-17. facts only, no text reused. eaumf.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Yaa Asantewaa" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "July 17, 1900: Kumasi surrenders to British forces under Sir Frederick Hodgson", Edward A. Ulzen Memorial Foundation, 2017-07-17 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Yaa Asantewaa (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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