Katie

__ How did the British influence Ghana? __  Britain took over Ghana in 1820. The most important impact Britain had on Ghana was the stop of the slave trade. From the moment the British took power they were occupied complete in stopping the slave trade. The Asnate, a state of the “Akan interior” tried to gain power in Ghana. The reactions of Britain to the Asnate wars lead to a disturbance of trade and instability in the country. Trade such as gold, timber, and palm oil became very disrupted completely altering the income for trade. In the early 1800s the African Company of Merchants (lead by Britain) had to sign off a large portion of land to the Asnate in order to regain stability. Britain tried to provide protection for the many tribes in Ghana from the Asnate, but was unable to. Although along Ghana’s coast there were many British forts the small British army that was in Ghana was unable to protect all the people.  Depending on the point of view it could be said that either the British did not care about the people, or it could be said that they were unable at the time to send many re-informants. None the less, the Ghanaians remained suffering. Not only were they being fought against by tribes, but also some of the tribes would take the people and sell them to slave traders. Although the British were trying to abolish the slave trade there were still lots of people still being taken as slaves. This only drove the British government and the groups that the government put in charge, to work harder to bring to an end the slave trade. After time, most of the slave trade in Ghana was abolished; but, something as big as the slave trade takes many years to be stopped completely. As we know, the slave trade still lives on today. However, it must be recognized that Britain did make giant leaps in helping put an end to the slave trade.

Later Britain got some of the tribes to sign the Bond of 1844 obliging them to present severe crimes, like murder and robbery, to British jurisdiction and it let the British lay a legal foundation. After purchasing Elmina Castle in 1872 the Asnate staged one of their last wars on the British colony. They did this because through Elmina Castle they had secured a good profit from trade, and when Britain took over they shut off the profit. In the end Britain was able to keep the people of Ghana (also known as the Gold Coast) safe. Most importantly the biggest and the best influence that Britain had over Ghana is the halt to the slave trade. In my own opinion, British influence on Ghana was not only significant, but it was a positive influence. Any country or group that is in charge of handling a situation as big as the slave trade must put effort into coming up with a solution. Obviously, the British put a great amount of effort into coming up with a solution because, for the most part, the slave trade has been abolished in Ghana.

Citations __//** "Ghana - Britain and the Gold Coast: The Early Years." __Country Studies__. 28 Jan. 2009 http://countrystudies.us/ghana/7.htm. "Ghana - THE COLONIAL ERA: BRITISH RULE OF THE GOLD COAST." __Country Studies__. 28 Jan. 2009 http://countrystudies.us/ghana/8.htm. "Ghana." __Country Studies__. 28 Jan. 2009 http://countrystudies.us/ghana/. "Ghana: History, Geography, Government, and Culture &mdash; Infoplease.com." __Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free online reference, research & homework help. &mdash; Infoplease.com__. 28 Jan. 2009 http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107584.html. "Gold Coast (Ghana under British rule, -1957)." __FOTW__. 28 Jan. 2009 .
 * //__ [[image:450px-Flag_of_Ghana_svg.png width="289" height="211"]][[image:792px-Elmina_slave_castle.jpg width="332" height="279"]]-Elmina Castle