The Asanteman Council – the highest traditional authority in Asante – has announced the dates for the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the 3rd Anglo-Asante war also known as the Sagrenti war, which led to the burning and looting of the palace of the Asantehene, Kofi Karikari.
Giving details, the Juabenhene, Nana Otuo Siriboe II said the anniversary will be marked with a symposium on February 6, 2024 , and a durbar on February 8, 2024.
“The war was fought on 6th February. The plan we have on the table is that we will hold a symposium on the 6th of February, and on the 8th, we will hold a durbar,” he said at the last meeting of the year of the Asanteman Council at the Manhyia Palace.
The anniversary of the Sagrenti war will be one of the important events to be celebrated in Asanteman in 2024, a year which will above all, witness the Silver Jubilee of the coronation of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
The Juabenhene further indicated that, a 700-page book on the history of the Asante Kingdom put together by the British in collaboration with traditional rulers of the Kingdom will be launched.
Sagrenti war
In 1874, the British army led by General Sir Garnet Wolseley charged on the Asante army which had earlier inflicted a crushing defeat on the British, and had also been attacking the coastal states of the Gold Coast.
Because the people of Gold Coast could not pronounce the name Sir Garnet Wolseley, the war was referred to as the “Sagrenti War”.
An article titled, “the Sagrenti war and the sacking of Kumasi” published by the Edward A. Ulzen Foundation, stated, “The capital, Kumasi, was abandoned by the Ashanti when the British arrived on February 4. They demolished the royal palace with explosives, leaving Kumasi a heap of smouldering ruins.”