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 The Bond Of 1844 

The Bond of 1844 was an agreement signed between some Fante chiefs and the British government. It was signed on 6th March 1844 in Ghana, which was then known as the Gold Coast.

It specified a relationship between the British and the local chiefs who were the main parties in the treaty. The British viewed the agreement as an understanding to take part in the administration of justice and the enforcement of their laws in the local states but the local leaders saw the agreement as a military and defense contract only.

  History 

For nearly three centuries European interests on the coast of West African was mainly commercial. The British who had been on the shores of Ghana from as early as 1555 devoted their first 175 years to the building of their trade stations and their trading activities, which indeed included the trading of slaves, with the locals. This resulted in the rise of two formidable indigenous states, the Fantes who were along the coast and the Asantes in the adjacent forest.

The united Fantes had control of over the trade routes to the sea and trading activities along these routes were on their terms. The Asantes also secured control over the supply of gold and slaves to the coastal markets. The distribution of European imports they received in exchange was also managed by the Asantes.

As the Asante kingdom grew in wealth and influence, they sought to eliminate the middle men (The Fantes) from the supply chain. This led to a long period of conflict between the two ethnic groups.

In 1755, the Asantehene, the king of the Asantes, who was at that time Osei Bonsu began preparing for war with the Fantes. He however passed away before preparations could be completed. A twenty year succession dispute followed this but eventually Osei Kojo became the leader of the Asantes and carried out a series of attacks against the Fantes.

By early 1806, the main Fante army had been met and utterly subdued by the Asantes. The Asantes would then have authority over some Fante states.

The political instability in the Gold Coast caused the British to abolish the slave trade in 1807 and this received an unfavourable response from the Asantes because this trade was the major reason for waging war against the Fantes.

It caused significant tension in Anglo-Asante relations and all attempts at peace were unsuccessful. A major consequence was that the Asantehene ordered Asante traders to not visit the forts in Cape Coast belonging to the British but deal only with the Dutch and the Danes.

This made the British increasingly more concerned over their traders on the coast and the coastal ethnic groups from attacks by the Asantes.

A select committee of the British recommended that measures needed to be put in place to ensure the safety of their people and a new governor had to be appointed by the British crown. It was also decided that a form of government over the cape coast forts should also be instituted. The Gold Coast settlements were soon placed under the governor of Sierra Leone, Sir Charles Macarthy by 1821. He arrived on the shores of Gold Coast by 1822.

He inherited a strong likelihood of war with Asantes but mistook it to be a local quarrel which could have no effect on the British. He initiated policies unfavorable to the Asantes which included forcing them to release the Fantes they had hostage, predictably the Asantes sought revenge afterwards.

Asante armies moved south early in 1824 and on the 21st of January, they met and defeated a small force under Sir Charles Macarthy himself at Adamanso. Sir Charles Macarthy was killed in action.

After this incident, the British decided to protect their forts and traders and leave the locals to their own devices while the Asantes continued to wage war on the Fantes.

But under Lieutenant-Colonel Purdon, the British with the contribution of the eastern chiefs, won a decisive victory against the Asante at Katamanso on August 7th, 1826.This battle would be named the battle of Katamanso.

After this, the British tried to bring peace between the Asantes and Fantes but the coalition of coastal chiefs were unwilling to negotiate.

The British merchants then formed an association or body to protect themselves and their interest. This led to a committee sending out Governor George Maclean in 1830. By February 15, George Maclean assumed the duties of the president of the council of Merchants at Cape Coast.

His major task was to ensure peace between the British and Asantes as well the Fantes and Asantes. He was able to build a cordial relationship with both parties and ultimately succeeded in bringing peace between all parties by 1831.

This led to the expansion of trade and British influence.

Peace with the Asantes also coincided with work of missionaries, which caused the building of schools especially along the coast. On the political front, the British government seized the opportunity to sign a political arrangement that extended British protection to the signatory confederation of the Fante in 1844. This would be known as the Bond of 1844. More Fantes states signed a similar bond with the British from then on through to 1850.

 Implications 

The signing of this bond by the coastal chiefs implied that British would have legal authority over the Fante states while they offered them protection from the Asantes.

It defined British legal jurisdiction in the area which came to be known as the Protectorate. The Bond of 1844 also gave the British a form of leverage which later became the basis for their colonial rule over Ghana.

The Bond of 1844 also created a conducive atmosphere which led to the coming of many missionaries into the country and therefore the spread of Christianity and establishment of vocational schools.

 References 

"The Politics of Heritage In Africa." Edited by Derek Peterson, Kodzo Gawa, Ciraj Rassol.

"White Man." By Gustav Jahoda.