Guns, Gold and Slaves: The Ashanti Gunmen

Guns, Gold, and Slaves seeks out Gold Coast history primarily from the African view. The Black Atlantic Confederacies that battled each other were strong nations, not meek victims of European Traders. In fact, their existence and creation depended exactly upon the successful control of, not just participation in, slavery. In that respect, the history of Old World Atlantic Africa is often more callous and pragmatic than New World histories, whether black or white, would imagine.

Perhaps unsurprisingly in Europe the tide of books, save for academic materials, has never primarily focused upon the voices of Africans. Such new literature as there is usually approaches the matter from Black New World modern perspectives, not objective assessments including contemporary Old World African perspectives. Old Africa was neither all victim nor all innocent. West Africa's history was complex. That was never truer than in the case of the Asante, the Land of Gilded Emperors and gun toting hordes who achieved greater victories against Britain, and for longer, than other African Kingdoms like the Zulus and the Afrikaners.

It is a story of many strands touching upon Arab, Black, and White Trading Routes. Primarily its focus however is upon the military machine and fighting of the Asante as well as the Fante Middlemen Merchant network connecting with the European Slave Castles at the coast.

It also illustrates the increasing host of African enemies ranged against the Asante Battlemen. Theirs was the rain forest and they defended it to the end against British, local African rivals, and latterly distant African auxiliaries of Queen Victoria.

It is a story of war drums, gold dust, trade muskets, savage bravery, unforgivable cruelty, and unbeatable tradition.