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Fort Saint Anthony

January 03, 2023

Fort Saint Anthony (Portuguese: Forte de Santo António; Dutch: Fort Sint Anthony) was a fort built by the Portuguese in 1515 near the town of Axim, in what is now Ghana. In 1642, the Dutch captured the fort and subsequently made it part of the Dutch Gold Coast. The Dutch expanded the fort considerably before they turned it over, with the rest of their colony, to the British in 1872. The fort is now the property of the Ghanaian state and is open to the public.

Fort Saint Anthony
Part of Dutch Gold Coast
Fort Santo Antonio in Axim in 1709.
Fort Saint Anthony
Coordinates4°52′05″N 2°14′40″W / 4.8680°N 2.2444°W / 4.8680; -2.2444
Site history
Built1515 (1515)
Garrison information
OccupantsPortugal (1515–1642)
Netherlands (1642–1872)
United Kingdom (1872–1957)
Ghana (1957–Present)
Part ofForts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions
CriteriaCultural: (vi)
Reference34-005
Inscription1979 (3rd Session)
Fort Saint Anthony

As the westernmost fort of the Dutch possessions, Fort Saint Anthony was the first fort encountered by Dutch traders, and the place where provisions and fresh water were taken in.[1] Fort Saint Anthony remained an important fort in the Dutch possessions, with its commandant serving as senior commissioner (Dutch: oppercommies) in the Colonial Council in Elmina, together with the commandant of Fort Nassau at Moree, the commandant of Fort Crèvecoeur at Accra, and the commandant of the factory at Ouidah, on the Dutch Slave Coast. In contrast to many other Dutch possessions on the Gold Coast, Fort Saint Anthony was never abandoned during the 19th century, and remained occupied until 1872.[2][3] Because of its testimony to European pre-colonial and colonial trade and exploitation, Fort Saint Anthony was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 along with several other castles and forts in Ghana.[4]

History

Due to a lack of study of the Portuguese archives of the sixteenth century, little is known about the early years of Fort Saint Anthony and about the reason for the Portuguese to settle themselves at Axim, although a desire to control the gold trade in the area seems a logical motivation.[5] The first evidence of Portuguese involvement near Axim is a letter from the governor of Elmina to the King of Portugal from 1503, to send construction materials to captain Diogo d'Alvarenga, who was in charge of the construction of the "House of Axem." After this house was destructed by local peoples, the Portuguese constructed a new post slightly more to the east, probably on the site on which the current Fort Saint Anthony still stands.[5][6]

In contrast to the other forts on the Gold Coast, the authority of the commander of fort Saint Anthony reached far beyond the fort and the town of Axim.[7] In the Treaty of Axim that the Netherlands signed in 1642 with local peoples after their conquest of Saint Anthony from the Portuguese in the same year, they claim joint jurisdiction over a number of settlements surrounding Axim, pretending to have inherited this jurisdiction from the Portuguese.[5] Moreover, in November 1656, at the request of Director-General Jan Valckenburgh, a declaration was signed by representatives of Gyommre, "Abripiquem," Ankobra, Ebokro, Axim and "Encasser," in which they declared to have been allies since time immemorial, and to always have put their disputes in front of the commandant of Fort Saint Anthony at Axim.[8][9]

The large area of jurisdiction is thought to be the result of Portuguese attempts in the early 17th century to restore their dominance in the gold trade—which in recent years had been taken over by the Dutch—by directly accessing the sources of the gold trade in the interior.[10] In 1623, the Portuguese founded a fortified outpost on the Ankobra River, some 20 kilometres from Axim, near the present-day village of Bamianko, from which they established a gold mine on Aboasi Hill, some eight kilometres from this outpost.[11] After the Dutch conquered Axim, they took over the Portuguese attempt to control the gold trade in the interior. However, the fort that they built for this purpose on the Ankobra River, Fort Ruychaver, was blown up by its commandant only five years after its construction, after a conflict with local people.[12]

After the Dutch West India Company lost its monopoly on the slave trade in 1730, it tried to develop cotton plantations at Axim.[1]

The commandant of Fort Saint Anthony continued to have some legal jurisdiction over the mentioned indigenous states well into the 19th century. When in the late 1850s the Dutch reformed their possessions on the Gold Coast into districts and instructed their fort commandants—now referred to as "residents"—to make reports of the peoples under its jurisdiction, the resident of Fort Saint Anthony, Julius Vitringa Coulon, indeed drew a map which displays a jurisdiction similar to the one proclaimed by Valckenburgh.[13]

3D Model

In 2013, the Zamani Project documented Fort Saint Anthony with terrestrial 3D laser scanning.[14][15][16] The non-profit research group from the University of Cape town (South Africa) specialises in 3D digital documentation of tangible cultural heritage. The data generated by the Zamani Project creates a permanent record that can be used for research, education, restoration, and conservation.[17][18][19] A 3D model, panorama tour and plans of Fort Saint Anthony are available on www.zamaniproject.org.

Gallery

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    Fort Saint Anthony today.

  •  

    Floor plan of Fort Saint Anthony from the 18th century.

  •  

    Map of the District of Axim drawn by Julius Vitringa Coulon in 1859.

  •  

Notes

  1. ^ a b Doortmont 2013, p. 78.
  2. ^ Doortmont 2013, p. 71.
  3. ^ Doortmont & Smit 2007, p. 263.
  4. ^ "Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions". UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Retrieved 9 Oct 2022.
  5. ^ a b c Van Dantzig 2013b, p. 211.
  6. ^ Anquandah, James. (1999). Castles & forts of Ghana. Atalante: Ghana Museums & Monuments Board. ISBN 2951390106. OCLC 41624572.
  7. ^ Van Dantzig 2013b, p. 210.
  8. ^ Van Dantzig 2013b, p. 215.
  9. ^ Valsecchi 2013, pp. 45–47.
  10. ^ Valsecchi 2013, p. 36.
  11. ^ Valsecchi 2013, p. 37.
  12. ^ Van Dantzig 2013a.
  13. ^ Van Dantzig 2013b, p. 218.
  14. ^ "Site - Fort Saint Anthony in Axim". zamaniproject.org. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  15. ^ Rüther, Heinz; Rajan, Rahim S. (2007). "Documenting African Sites: The Aluka Project". Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. 66 (4): 437–443. doi:10.1525/jsah.2007.66.4.437. ISSN 0037-9808. JSTOR 10.1525/jsah.2007.66.4.437.
  16. ^ Rüther, Heinz (2002). "An African Heritage Database: The Virtual Preservation of Africa's Past" (PDF). International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  17. ^ Rüther, Heinz. "An African heritage database, the virtual preservation of Africa's past" (PDF). www.isprs.org.
  18. ^ Rajan, Rahim S.; Rüther, Heinz (2007-05-30). "Building a Digital Library of Scholarly Resources from the Developing World: An Introduction to Aluka". African Arts. 40 (2): 1–7. doi:10.1162/afar.2007.40.2.1. ISSN 0001-9933.
  19. ^ Rüther, Heinz; Rajan, Rahim S. (December 2007). "Documenting African Sites: The Aluka Project". Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. University of California Press. 66 (4): 437–443. doi:10.1525/jsah.2007.66.4.437. JSTOR 10.1525/jsah.2007.66.4.437.

References

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fort San Antonio (Ghana).
  • Doortmont, Michel R. (2013). "The Dutch Forts at Axim and Butre: Buildings, people, politics". In Doortmont, Michel R.; Valsecchi, Pierluigi; Anquandah, James R. (eds.). The Ankobra Gold Route: Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch. Accra: The Ankobra Gold Route Project. pp. 63–96. ISBN 978-90-367-6210-6.
  • Doortmont, Michel R.; Smit, Jinna (2007). Sources for the mutual history of Ghana and the Netherlands. An annotated guide to the Dutch archives relating to Ghana and West Africa in the Nationaal Archief, 1593-1960s. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-15850-4.
  • Valsecchi, Pierluigi (2013). "European and Africans in the Seventeenth Century Western Gold Coast". In Doortmont, Michel R.; Valsecchi, Pierluigi; Anquandah, James R. (eds.). The Ankobra Gold Route: Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch. Accra: The Ankobra Gold Route Project. pp. 33–52. ISBN 978-90-367-6210-6.
  • Van Dantzig, Albert (2013a). "The Ankobra Gold Interest". In Doortmont, Michel R.; Valsecchi, Pierluigi; Anquandah, James R. (eds.). The Ankobra Gold Route: Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch. Accra: The Ankobra Gold Route Project. pp. 183–196. ISBN 978-90-367-6210-6.
  • Van Dantzig, Albert (2013b). "The Jurisdiction of Fort St. Anthony at Axim". In Doortmont, Michel R.; Valsecchi, Pierluigi; Anquandah, James R. (eds.). The Ankobra Gold Route: Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch. Accra: The Ankobra Gold Route Project. pp. 209–218. ISBN 978-90-367-6210-6.

January 03, 2023
fort, saint, anthony, portuguese, forte, santo, antónio, dutch, fort, sint, anthony, fort, built, portuguese, 1515, near, town, axim, what, ghana, 1642, dutch, captured, fort, subsequently, made, part, dutch, gold, coast, dutch, expanded, fort, considerably, b. Fort Saint Anthony Portuguese Forte de Santo Antonio Dutch Fort Sint Anthony was a fort built by the Portuguese in 1515 near the town of Axim in what is now Ghana In 1642 the Dutch captured the fort and subsequently made it part of the Dutch Gold Coast The Dutch expanded the fort considerably before they turned it over with the rest of their colony to the British in 1872 The fort is now the property of the Ghanaian state and is open to the public Fort Saint AnthonyPart of Dutch Gold CoastFort Santo Antonio in Axim in 1709 Fort Saint AnthonyCoordinates4 52 05 N 2 14 40 W 4 8680 N 2 2444 W 4 8680 2 2444Site historyBuilt1515 1515 Garrison informationOccupantsPortugal 1515 1642 Netherlands 1642 1872 United Kingdom 1872 1957 Ghana 1957 Present UNESCO World Heritage SitePart ofForts and Castles Volta Greater Accra Central and Western RegionsCriteriaCultural vi Reference34 005Inscription1979 3rd Session Fort Saint Anthony As the westernmost fort of the Dutch possessions Fort Saint Anthony was the first fort encountered by Dutch traders and the place where provisions and fresh water were taken in 1 Fort Saint Anthony remained an important fort in the Dutch possessions with its commandant serving as senior commissioner Dutch oppercommies in the Colonial Council in Elmina together with the commandant of Fort Nassau at Moree the commandant of Fort Crevecoeur at Accra and the commandant of the factory at Ouidah on the Dutch Slave Coast In contrast to many other Dutch possessions on the Gold Coast Fort Saint Anthony was never abandoned during the 19th century and remained occupied until 1872 2 3 Because of its testimony to European pre colonial and colonial trade and exploitation Fort Saint Anthony was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 along with several other castles and forts in Ghana 4 Contents 1 History 2 3D Model 3 Gallery 4 Notes 5 ReferencesHistory EditDue to a lack of study of the Portuguese archives of the sixteenth century little is known about the early years of Fort Saint Anthony and about the reason for the Portuguese to settle themselves at Axim although a desire to control the gold trade in the area seems a logical motivation 5 The first evidence of Portuguese involvement near Axim is a letter from the governor of Elmina to the King of Portugal from 1503 to send construction materials to captain Diogo d Alvarenga who was in charge of the construction of the House of Axem After this house was destructed by local peoples the Portuguese constructed a new post slightly more to the east probably on the site on which the current Fort Saint Anthony still stands 5 6 In contrast to the other forts on the Gold Coast the authority of the commander of fort Saint Anthony reached far beyond the fort and the town of Axim 7 In the Treaty of Axim that the Netherlands signed in 1642 with local peoples after their conquest of Saint Anthony from the Portuguese in the same year they claim joint jurisdiction over a number of settlements surrounding Axim pretending to have inherited this jurisdiction from the Portuguese 5 Moreover in November 1656 at the request of Director General Jan Valckenburgh a declaration was signed by representatives of Gyommre Abripiquem Ankobra Ebokro Axim and Encasser in which they declared to have been allies since time immemorial and to always have put their disputes in front of the commandant of Fort Saint Anthony at Axim 8 9 The large area of jurisdiction is thought to be the result of Portuguese attempts in the early 17th century to restore their dominance in the gold trade which in recent years had been taken over by the Dutch by directly accessing the sources of the gold trade in the interior 10 In 1623 the Portuguese founded a fortified outpost on the Ankobra River some 20 kilometres from Axim near the present day village of Bamianko from which they established a gold mine on Aboasi Hill some eight kilometres from this outpost 11 After the Dutch conquered Axim they took over the Portuguese attempt to control the gold trade in the interior However the fort that they built for this purpose on the Ankobra River Fort Ruychaver was blown up by its commandant only five years after its construction after a conflict with local people 12 After the Dutch West India Company lost its monopoly on the slave trade in 1730 it tried to develop cotton plantations at Axim 1 The commandant of Fort Saint Anthony continued to have some legal jurisdiction over the mentioned indigenous states well into the 19th century When in the late 1850s the Dutch reformed their possessions on the Gold Coast into districts and instructed their fort commandants now referred to as residents to make reports of the peoples under its jurisdiction the resident of Fort Saint Anthony Julius Vitringa Coulon indeed drew a map which displays a jurisdiction similar to the one proclaimed by Valckenburgh 13 3D Model EditIn 2013 the Zamani Project documented Fort Saint Anthony with terrestrial 3D laser scanning 14 15 16 The non profit research group from the University of Cape town South Africa specialises in 3D digital documentation of tangible cultural heritage The data generated by the Zamani Project creates a permanent record that can be used for research education restoration and conservation 17 18 19 A 3D model panorama tour and plans of Fort Saint Anthony are available on www zamaniproject org Gallery Edit Fort Saint Anthony today Floor plan of Fort Saint Anthony from the 18th century Map of the District of Axim drawn by Julius Vitringa Coulon in 1859 Notes Edit a b Doortmont 2013 p 78 Doortmont 2013 p 71 Doortmont amp Smit 2007 p 263 Forts and Castles Volta Greater Accra Central and Western Regions UNESCO World Heritage Convention Retrieved 9 Oct 2022 a b c Van Dantzig 2013b p 211 Anquandah James 1999 Castles amp forts of Ghana Atalante Ghana Museums amp Monuments Board ISBN 2951390106 OCLC 41624572 Van Dantzig 2013b p 210 Van Dantzig 2013b p 215 Valsecchi 2013 pp 45 47 Valsecchi 2013 p 36 Valsecchi 2013 p 37 Van Dantzig 2013a Van Dantzig 2013b p 218 Site Fort Saint Anthony in Axim zamaniproject org Retrieved 2019 10 08 Ruther Heinz Rajan Rahim S 2007 Documenting African Sites The Aluka Project Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 66 4 437 443 doi 10 1525 jsah 2007 66 4 437 ISSN 0037 9808 JSTOR 10 1525 jsah 2007 66 4 437 Ruther Heinz 2002 An African Heritage Database The Virtual Preservation of Africa s Past PDF International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing Retrieved 2 October 2019 Ruther Heinz An African heritage database the virtual preservation of Africa s past PDF www isprs org Rajan Rahim S Ruther Heinz 2007 05 30 Building a Digital Library of Scholarly Resources from the Developing World An Introduction to Aluka African Arts 40 2 1 7 doi 10 1162 afar 2007 40 2 1 ISSN 0001 9933 Ruther Heinz Rajan Rahim S December 2007 Documenting African Sites The Aluka Project Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians University of California Press 66 4 437 443 doi 10 1525 jsah 2007 66 4 437 JSTOR 10 1525 jsah 2007 66 4 437 References Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fort San Antonio Ghana Doortmont Michel R 2013 The Dutch Forts at Axim and Butre Buildings people politics In Doortmont Michel R Valsecchi Pierluigi Anquandah James R eds The Ankobra Gold Route Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch Accra The Ankobra Gold Route Project pp 63 96 ISBN 978 90 367 6210 6 Doortmont Michel R Smit Jinna 2007 Sources for the mutual history of Ghana and the Netherlands An annotated guide to the Dutch archives relating to Ghana and West Africa in the Nationaal Archief 1593 1960s Leiden Brill ISBN 978 90 04 15850 4 Valsecchi Pierluigi 2013 European and Africans in the Seventeenth Century Western Gold Coast In Doortmont Michel R Valsecchi Pierluigi Anquandah James R eds The Ankobra Gold Route Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch Accra The Ankobra Gold Route Project pp 33 52 ISBN 978 90 367 6210 6 Van Dantzig Albert 2013a The Ankobra Gold Interest In Doortmont Michel R Valsecchi Pierluigi Anquandah James R eds The Ankobra Gold Route Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch Accra The Ankobra Gold Route Project pp 183 196 ISBN 978 90 367 6210 6 Van Dantzig Albert 2013b The Jurisdiction of Fort St Anthony at Axim In Doortmont Michel R Valsecchi Pierluigi Anquandah James R eds The Ankobra Gold Route Studies in the Historical Relationship between Western Ghana and the Dutch Accra The Ankobra Gold Route Project pp 209 218 ISBN 978 90 367 6210 6 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Fort Saint Anthony amp oldid 1129707376, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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