Fort Goede Hoop, Ghana

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Fort Goede Hoop
Fort de Goede Hoop
Senya Beraku, Central Region, Ghana in Ghana
Fort Goede Hoop (Ghana).png
Fort Goede Hoop in 1709
Site information
TypeCoastal fort
OwnerGhana Museums & Monuments Board
Controlled byNetherlands (1667–1868)
Open to
the public		Yes
ConditionPreserved / repurposed
Location
Fort Goede Hoop, Ghana
Coordinates 5°23′15″N0°29′23″W / 5.3874°N 0.4898°W / 5.3874; -0.4898
HeightApprox. 12 m
Site history
Built1667
Built byDutch West India Company
In use1667–1868
MaterialsStone, brick
Battles/warsCaptured by Britain, 1782–1785
Garrison information
OccupantsNetherlands (1667–1868)
Part of Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions
Criteria Cultural: (vi)
Reference 34
Inscription1979 (3rd Session)

Fort de Goede Hoop (English: Fort Good Hope) is a historic Dutch fort located in Senya Beraku, Central Region, Ghana. Established in 1667, it was the last fort built by the Dutch on the Gold Coast and played a role in the gold and slave trade. [1]

Contents

It is part of the Forts and Castles of Ghana UNESCO World Heritage List site, inscribed in 1979 due to its role in European colonial trade and the Atlantic slave trade. [2]

History

The Dutch initially established a lodge at Senya Beraku in the 1660s, but it was abandoned after the British built a fort at nearby Winneba. In 1704, the Dutch requested and received permission from the Queen of Agona to construct a fort at Senya Beraku, primarily for the gold trade with Akim. [3]

The original fort was triangular, known as Fort de Goede Hoop. By 1715 it was expanded into a rectangular fort with four bastions and a slave prison in the southwest bastion. An outer defensive wall was added in the late 18th century. [4]

In 1782, during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, British Captain Thomas Shirley captured Fort Goede Hoop along with several other Dutch forts on the Gold Coast. The fort remained under temporary British occupation until 1785. [5] Between 1811 and 1816, the local Akim people briefly controlled the fort before it returned to Dutch administration. In 1868, it was ceded to the United Kingdom under the Anglo-Dutch Gold Coast Treaty (1867). [6]

Physical features

Initially, the Dutch built a small triangular fort on the promontory that is located near a cove because of the proximity to a good landing beach. The triangular fort has three bastions located at the northeast, southwest and southeast corners. [7]

In the year 1724, due to the limited size of the fort that could not cope with the increasing number of slaves, it was rebuilt into its present rectangular shape. It had four bastions with curtain walls, garrisons and halls for officers, kitchens, a female and male prison, stores, granary and powder magazine room. An outer wall was also built later on but the wall has almost disappeared. [8]

The fort presently serves as a rest house and also a tourist attraction site. [9]


References

  1. ↑ "Fort Good Hope – Ghana Museums & Monuments Board". Archived from the original on 2025-07-12. Retrieved 11 November 2025.
  2. ↑ "Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions". UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Retrieved 9 Oct 2022.
  3. ↑ van Dantzig, Albert (1980). Forts and Castles of Ghana. Sedco Publishing Limited. pp. 49–50. ISBN   9964720106.
  4. ↑ "Castles.nl – Fort Good Hope" . Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  5. ↑ "Ghana Museums & Monuments Board". www.ghanamuseums.org. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  6. ↑ Crooks, John Joseph (1973). Records Relating to the Gold Coast Settlements from 1750 to 1874. Taylor & Francis. p. 62. ISBN   978-0-7146-1647-6.
  7. ↑ Anquandah, James. (1999). Castles & forts of Ghana. Atalante: Ghana Museums & Monuments Board. ISBN   2951390106. OCLC   41624572.
  8. ↑ "Castles.nl – Fort Good Hope". www.castles.nl. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
  9. ↑ "Castles.nl – Fort Good Hope". www.castles.nl. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
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