21/07/2022
AFRICAN PHOTO SERIES EP 01.
Detailed character review.(NANA YAA ASANTEWAA)
Nana Yaa Asantewaa
Of the Ejisu Clan of the Asante (b. 1863 – d. October 1923
She was an intellectual, a politician, human rights activist, Queen and a war leader. Yaa Asantewaa became famous for commanding the Ashanti Kings in the War of the Golden Stool, against British colonial rule to defend and protect the sovereign independence of the Golden Stool. Yaa Asantewaa remains one of the greatest Black Women in History as her bravery, courage, and determination was one of the factors that influence the need for independence in the then Gold Coast.
Yaa is a feminine given name originating from the Akan day naming system, meaning born on a Thursday. Your name is your destiny, heart’s desire, and personality. Asantewaa is a name that connotes you are ahead of your time. Your intelligence and brightness will enable you to achieve great things in your lifetime.
Yaa Asantewaa was named Queen Mother of the Ejisuhene (part of the Asante or Ashanti Confederacy) by her exiled brother Nana Akwasi Afrane Okpese. Prior to European colonization, the Ashanti people developed an influential West African empire. Asantewaa was the Gatekeeper of the “Golden Stool” (Sika ‘dwa) during this powerful Ashanti Confederacy (Asanteman), an independent federation of Asanti tribal families that ruled from 1701 to 1896. She had just one child, a daughter.
The Stool, made of gold, stands 18 inches high, 24 inches long, and 12 inches wide. It was never allowed to touch the ground and was considered so sacred that no one was allowed to sit on it. Each new Ashante king is lowered and raised over the Golden Stool without touching it. Basically, the Golden Stool was placed on a wooden one when presented during coronations. The Stool symbolizes ancient power and authority from the gods/ancestors, as well as acceptance.
The Ashanti-British “War of the Golden Stool” was led by Queen Mother Nana Yaa Asantewaa with an army of 5,000. While Yaa Asantewaa was captured by the British and deported, her bravery stirred a kingdom-wide movement for the return of Prempeh I and for independence.
Asantehene Prempeh I was a rebellious ruler who declared his dislike of the White man. In his words “it’s better to have a distant friendship than a close one. Let the White Man visit us in the day and return to his boat in the night”. The Whites were requesting lands to construct forts so they could “live” with the villagers, and trade with them. He thought the Whites should not be allowed to settle anywhere on their lands, since he thought they were “trickish dogs”.
This outright rebellion was not welcomed nor entertained by the White Man so to remedy their little headache they captured and exiled him to Seychelles Island.
While the other sub chiefs and noblemen sat still and accepted the White Man’s rule, Yaa was totally disgusted. The British governor had “insulted” them enough, first capturing their Hene, exiling him to suffer in an unknown location, then demanding for their Golden Stool, which meant asking them to submit to British rule. Yaa Asantewaa was even more rebellious than the exiled Hene, as she being a woman boldly stood up against the White Man. And in her words:
“Now I have seen that some of you fear to go forward to fight for our King.
If it were in the brave days of Osei Tutu, Okomfo Anokye, and Opoku Ware, leaders would not sit down to see their King taken away without firing a shot.
No white man could have dared to speak to a leader of the Ashanti in the way the Governor spoke to you this morning.
Is it true that the bravery of the Ashanti is no more? I cannot believe it. It cannot be!
I must say this, if you the men of Ashanti will not go forward, then we will. We the women will. I shall call upon my fellow women. We will fight the white men. We will fight till the last of us falls in the battlefields.”
This was how she led an army of 5,000 in the War of the Golden Stool against the British. In total 1,000 British and African allied forces, and 2,000 Asante soldiers died. The Resistance was a tough one though it was futile, with Yaa captured by the British, and exiled to Seychelles where she died. The Fighting Spirit and bravery of Nana Asantewaa gave birth to the spirit of Nationality in the Gold Coasters, and they began demanding for their exiled Hene.
📝 Victoire Hiamey
