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List of castles in Ghana

{{Short description|Fortified colonial trading posts in Ghana}}

{{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site

| WHS = Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions

| image = Cape Coast Castle, Cape Coast, Ghana.JPG

| image_upright = 1.2

| caption = Cape Coast Castle

| location = {{flag|Ghana}}

| includes = {{flatlist|

  1. Fort Good Hope (Fort Goedehoop)
  2. Cape Coast Castle
  3. Fort Patience (Fort Leysaemhyt)
  4. Fort Amsterdam
  5. Fort St. Jago (Fort Conraadsburg)
  6. Fort Batenstein
  7. Fort San Sebastian
  8. Fort Metal Cross
  9. English Fort (Fort Vredenburg)
  10. Fort Saint Antony
  11. Elmina Castle (St. George's Castle / Fort St. Jorge)

}}

| criteria = {{UNESCO WHS type|(vi)}}(vi)

| ID = 34

| year = 1979

| area =

| buffer_zone =

| embedded =

}}

During the colonial period in Ghana, at the time known as the Gold Coast, roughly corresponding to the 15th through 19th centuries, European-style coastal forts and castles were built, mostly by the Portuguese, Dutch and British.{{cite web|title=Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/34/|website=UNESCO World Heritage Convention|access-date=9 Oct 2022}} These forts linked the trading routes established by the Portuguese and acted as important market places for the gold and slave trades.

Because of their testimony to precolonial and colonial Afro-European commerce, including the Atlantic slave trade, and their profound effect on the history of West Africa, a number of these fortifications and outposts were designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979.

Kumasi Fort in the Ashanti Region was originally built by an Asante king in imitation of these colonial forts.[http://www.ghanamuseums.org/kumasi-fort-millitary-museum.php Kumasi Fort and Military Museum] at {{url|www.ghanamuseums.org}}

Coastal regions

File:FortsGoldküste.JPG circa 1700]]

=World Heritage listed forts=

Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions is the collective designation by UNESCO of European-style fortifications and outposts (mostly Portuguese, Dutch and British) along the Gold Coast (modern-day Ghana) during the colonial period. The term specifically applies to a number of such fortifications designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979, including:

==Gallery==

File:Fort St. Sebastian (Shama, Ghana 2013).jpg|alt=|Fort São Sebastião de Xama.

File:Fort Williams Ghana (9 of 9).jpg|alt=|Fort William.

File:Fort Amsterdam (Ghana) 2012-09-29 08-31-04.jpg|alt=|Fort Amsterdam (Ghana)

File:Fort St Batenstein at Butre.jpg|alt=|Fort Batenstein

File:Osu Castle 3.jpg|alt=|Fort Christiansborg

File:Fort Victoria, Cape Coast B004.jpg|alt=|Fort Victoria, Cape Coast

File:Fort Metal Cross.jpg|Fort Metal Cross

=Other coastal forts=

Other coastal forts included in Ghana's material cultural heritage list of the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board:[http://www.ghanamuseums.org/forts/forts-castles.php Forts and Castles] at Ghana Museums and Monuments Board website

Not listed as heritage (mostly largely destroyed or otherwise lost):

File:Clickable Regions of Ghana.svg

By region (from East to West):

Other regions

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{Commons}}

  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20111026230210/http://ghana-net.com/forts.aspx Ghana-Net: Forts and Castles of Ghana] (with pictures)
  • [https://sites.google.com/site/ghanaplacenames/slideshow/forts Ghana Place Names: Forts & Castles] (meanings and origins of names)

{{Africa in topic|List of castles in|show=yes}}

{{Gold Coast}}

Castles

Castles

Ghana

Castles

Ghana

Castles

Category:Tourism in Ghana