The War of the Golden Stool, also known as the Yaa Asantewaa War, the Third Ashanti Expedition, the Ashanti Uprising, or variations thereof, was a violent battle in the series of conflicts between the United Kingdom and the Ashanti Empire (later Ashanti Region), an autonomous state in West Africa that fractiously co-existed with the British and its vassal coastal tribes. The Golden Stool The Golden Stool had long symbolized governing power for the Ashanti people. On 19 March 1901 British statesman David Lloyd George stated in a Parliamentary session that: “Frederick Hodgson’s quest of the Golden Stool was something like the quest of the Holy Grail". The Member of Parliament of Caernarfon as well as other members of the House were extremely concerned about the huge expense that the House was being made to pay for the war. Joseph Chamberlain, then Secretary for the Colonial Office, was questioned extensively as to whether or not Frederick Hodgson had actually been given prior permission to demand the Golden Stool from the Asante people, because he seemed to think that; "if he could only get possession of the Golden Stool he would be able to govern the country for all time”. The speech was received in silence by the assembly, but the chiefs that were present began war preparations upon their return to their homes. In his book The Golden Stool: Some Aspects of the Conflict of Cultures in Modern Africa the anthropologist Reverend Edwin W. Smith wrote of this "A singularly foolish speech! An excellent example of the blunders that are made through ignorance of the African mind!". Gaurav Desai quotes this passage and goes on to clarify that the Stool was not seen as a mere physical object and symbol of power but as a metaphysical and spiritual representation of the soul of the Ashanti people as a whole - this misunderstanding being the catalyst for the conflict, coming at a time of already strained relations. Aftermath Ashanti was annexed into the British Empire; however, the Ashanti still largely governed themselves. They gave little or no deference to colonial authorities. The Ashanti were successful in their pre-war goal to protect the Golden Stool. But, the following year, the British arrested numerous chiefs, including the Queen Mother of Ejisu, Yaa Asantewaa, and exiled them to the Seychelles for 25 years. In that 25-year period many of them died, including Yaa Asantewaa herself in 1921. Kumasi City retains a memorial to this war and several large colonial residences. Ashanti and the former Gold Coast eventually became part of Ghana. The war cost the British and their allies approximately 1,000 fatalities in total; however, according to a statement made by MP David Lloyd George in Parliament in 1901, "the Colonial Office should have had some justification for the foolish policy of the [British] Government in regard to the Golden Stool, that had led to the hundreds and thousands of the corpses of savages festering round the fort of Coomassie"! David Lloyd George further admonished Joseph Chamberlain for his inhumane attitude towards the Human Life of the Asante People who were needlessly killed during the War, because the Golden Stool was never captured by the British: "Surely human life was worth some respectful treatment", he said. The Golden Stool was hidden deep in the forests for the duration of the war, with the British continuing to seek it until 1921. Shortly after this, it was accidentally uncovered by a team of labourers who took the golden ornaments that adorned the stool and left the rest, which was of wood. An Ashanti court sentenced the labourers to death for their desecration, but British officials intervened and arranged for their exile instead. "Yaa Asantewaa Profile", GhanaWeb "Yaa Asantewaa's War". WebCite URL "The Golden Stool". "The story of Africa – West African Kingdoms", BBC World Service. Hernon, Ian Britain's Forgotten Wars, 2002 () Lewin, J Asante before the British: The Prempean Years 1875-1900 The Siege of Kumassi, Lady Mary Alice Hodgson Letters from a Bush Campaign, David Martineau Haylings The Ashanti Campaign of 1900, Captain C. H. Armitage DSO and Lieutenant Colonel A. F. Montanaro The Relief of Kumasi, Captain Harold C.J. Biss Dark and Stormy Days at Kumassi, 1900, or Missionary Experience in Ashanti according to the diary of Rev. Fritz Ramseyer, Friedrich Augustus Louis Ramseyer The Romance of Soldiering and Sport, General Sir James Willcocks, GCB,GCMG, KCSI, DSO The Golden Stool: Some Aspects of the Conflict of Cultures in Modern Africa, The Reverend Edwin W. Smith The Great Drama Of Kumasi, Major Wynyard Montagu Hall
The War of the wooden Stool, also known as the Yaa Asantewaa War, the Third Ashanti Expedition, the Ashanti Uprising, or variations thereof, was a violent battle in the series of conflicts between the United Kingdom and the Ashanti Empire (later Ashanti Region), an autonomous state in West Africa that fractiously co-existed with the British and its vassal coastal tribes. The wooden Stool The wooden Stool had long symbolized governing power for the Ashanti people. On 19 March 1901 British statesman David Lloyd George stated in a Parliamentary session that: “Frederick Hodgson’s quest of the wooden Stool was something like the quest of the Holy Grail". The Member of Parliament of Caernarfon as well as other members of the House were extremely concerned about the huge expense that the House was being made to pay for the war. Joseph Chamberlain, then Secretary for the Colonial Office, was questioned extensively as to whether or not Frederick Hodgson had actually been given prior permission to demand the wooden Stool from the Asante people, because he seemed to think that; "if he could only get possession of the wooden Stool he would be able to govern the country for all time”. The speech was received in silence by the assembly, but the chiefs that were present began war preparations upon their return to their homes. In his book The wooden Stool: Some Aspects of the Conflict of Cultures in Modern Africa the anthropologist Reverend Edwin W. Smith wrote of this "A singularly foolish speech! An excellent example of the blunders that are made through ignorance of the African mind!". Gaurav Desai quotes this passage and goes on to clarify that the Stool was not seen as a mere physical object and symbol of power but as a metaphysical and spiritual representation of the soul of the Ashanti people as a whole - this misunderstanding being the catalyst for the conflict, coming at a time of already strained relations. Aftermath Ashanti was annexed into the British Empire; however, the Ashanti still largely governed themselves. They gave little or no deference to colonial authorities. The Ashanti were successful in their pre-war goal to protect the wooden Stool. But, the following year, the British arrested numerous chiefs, including the Queen Mother of Ejisu, Yaa Asantewaa, and exiled them to the Seychelles for 25 years. In that 25-year period many of them died, including Yaa Asantewaa herself in 1921. Kumasi City retains a memorial to this war and several large colonial residences. Ashanti and the former Gold Coast eventually became part of Ghana. The war cost the British and their allies approximately 1,000 fatalities in total; however, according to a statement made by MP David Lloyd George in Parliament in 1901, "the Colonial Office should have had some justification for the foolish policy of the [British] Government in regard to the wooden Stool, that had led to the hundreds and thousands of the corpses of savages festering round the fort of Coomassie"! David Lloyd George further admonished Joseph Chamberlain for his inhumane attitude towards the Human Life of the Asante People who were needlessly killed during the War, because the wooden Stool was never captured by the British: "Surely human life was worth some respectful treatment", he said. The wooden Stool was hidden deep in the forests for the duration of the war, with the British continuing to seek it until 1921. Shortly after this, it was accidentally uncovered by a team of labourers who took the wooden ornaments that adorned the stool and left the rest, which was of wood. An Ashanti court sentenced the labourers to death for their desecration, but British officials intervened and arranged for their exile instead. "Yaa Asantewaa Profile", GhanaWeb "Yaa Asantewaa's War". WebCite URL "The wooden Stool". "The story of Africa – West African Kingdoms", BBC World Service. Hernon, Ian Britain's Forgotten Wars, 2002 () Lewin, J Asante before the British: The Prempean Years 1875-1900 The Siege of Kumassi, Lady Mary Alice Hodgson Letters from a Bush Campaign, David Martineau Haylings The Ashanti Campaign of 1900, Captain C. H. Armitage DSO and Lieutenant Colonel A. F. Montanaro The Relief of Kumasi, Captain Harold C.J. Biss Dark and Stormy Days at Kumassi, 1900, or Missionary Experience in Ashanti according to the diary of Rev. Fritz Ramseyer, Friedrich Augustus Louis Ramseyer The Romance of Soldiering and Sport, General Sir James Willcocks, GCB,GCMG, KCSI, DSO The Golden Stool: Some Aspects of the Conflict of Cultures in Modern Africa, The Reverend Edwin W. Smith The Great Drama Of Kumasi, Major Wynyard Montagu Hall
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