Ashanti Empire: Map & History
The Asante Empire, also known as the Ashanti Empire, was an Akan state that lasted from 1701 to 1902, in what is now modern-day Ghana.
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The Asante Empire, also known as the Ashanti Empire, was an Akan state that lasted from 1701 to 1902, in what is now modern-day Ghana. It expanded from the Ashanti Region to include most of Ghana and also parts of Ivory Coast and Togo. Due to the empire's military prowess, wealth, architecture, sophisticated hierarchy, trade networks and culture, the Asante Empire has been extensively studied and has more historic records written by European, primarily British, authors than any other indigenous culture of sub-Saharan Africa.
Modern Countries Once Part of Ashanti Empire
At its mapped extent, Ashanti Empire covered territory in 2 present-day countries. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Ashanti Empire's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Ashanti Empire in Depth
History
Akan traditions preserve several types of historical narratives known as adomankomasem (creation stories), atetesem (migration traditions), and abakomsem (histories of political authority). In Asante traditions, Amansie is remembered as the early homeland of the Akan people and means the "Origin of the Nations" or the "Settlement of the Aborigines." The region was associated with the ancestors of the Aduana and Oyoko clans, who are said to have first settled at Asumennya–Santemanso. One tradition recounts how a golden chain descended from the sky carrying a stool and a herald woman, Ankyewea Nyame, the ancestor of the Oyoko lineage, who settled at Asantemanso where other people later emerged from the earth and joined her community.
Government and politics
The Asante state was a centralized state made up of a hierarchy of heads starting from the "Abusua Panyin" who was head of a family or lineage. The family was the basic political unit in the empire. The family or lineage followed the village organization which was headed by the Odikro. All villages were then grouped together to form divisions headed by a divisional head called Ohene. The various divisions were politically grouped to form a state which was headed by an Omanhene or Amanhene. Finally, all Asante states formed the Asante Empire with the Asantehene as their king.
The Asante government was built upon a sophisticated bureaucracy in Kumasi, with separate ministries to handle the state's affairs.
Military
While actual forces deployed in the field were less than potential strength, tens of thousands of soldiers were usually available to serve the needs of the empire. Mobilization depended on small cadres of regulars, who guided and directed levees and contingents called up from provincial governors.
Organization was structured around an advance guard, main body, rear guard and two right and left wing flanking elements. This provided flexibility in the forest country the Asante armies typically operated in. Horses were known to survive in Kumasi but because they could not survive in the tsetse fly-infested forest zone in the south, there was no cavalry. Asante high-ranking officers rode horses with the hauteur of European officers but they did not ride to battle.
Economy
The lands within the Asante Kingdom were also rich in river-gold, cocoa and kola nuts, and the Asante were soon trading with the Portuguese at coastal fort Sao Jorge da Mina, later Elmina, and with the Hausa states.
The Asante prepared the fields by burning before the onset of the rainy season and cultivated with an iron hoe. Fields are left fallow for a couple years, usually after two to four years of cultivation. Plants cultivated include plantains, yams, manioc, corn, sweet potatoes, millet, beans, onions, peanuts, tomatoes, and many fruits.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Asante Empire (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Ashanti Empire: Key Facts
| Capital | Kumasi |
|---|---|
| Form of government | absolute monarchy |
| Founded | 1670 |
| Dissolved | 1902 |
Facts from Wikidata Q722071 (CC0).
Ashanti Empire Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Ashanti Empire appears, with the other states of the time.
Ashanti Empire Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 186,800 km² in 1765 CE.
Ashanti Empire: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Ashanti Empire exist?
The Ashanti Empire is dated to 1702 CE – 1897 CE, in the Early Modern & Age of Discovery era.
What was the capital of the Ashanti Empire?
The capital of the Ashanti Empire was Kumasi.
How large was the Ashanti Empire at its peak?
At its peak in 1765 the Ashanti Empire covered about 186,800 km².
How did the map of the Ashanti Empire change over time?
The Ashanti Empire appears on 2 dated world maps in the atlas, from 1800 CE to 1850 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.
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