Battle of Amoaful
The Battle of Amoaful, fought on January 31, 1874, was a significant conflict during the broader Ashanti-British War in what is now Ghana. This battle emerged from a decade of escalating tensions between the powerful Ashanti tribe and British colonial forces, who sought to protect their interests in the region. Major General Garnet Joseph Wolseley led a punitive expedition against the Ashanti after their raids into British territories, including attacks on local tribes sympathetic to British rule. At Amoaful, Wolseley's force of approximately 2,000 soldiers confronted a larger Ashanti army of around 10,000 men, leading to intense and chaotic fighting within the dense jungle.
Despite the numerical disadvantage, the British utilized artillery and rocket tubes effectively, resulting in substantial casualties for the Ashanti, with around 2,000 lost, while British losses were significantly lower at 4 killed and 194 wounded. The aftermath of the battle saw the British weaken the Ashanti's military capabilities, although the state itself remained intact. This conflict played a crucial role in the eventual British campaign to dominate the Ashanti region, culminating in the destruction of Kumasi shortly thereafter. The battle and its outcomes had lasting implications for the dynamics of power among various tribes in the Gold Coast, as some reconsidered their allegiances in the wake of the British victory.
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Battle of Amoaful
Type of action: Land battle in the Second British-Ashanti War
Date: January 31, 1874
Location: Twenty miles south of Kumasi, capital of Ashantiland (modern Ghana)
Combatants: British vs. Ashanti
Principal commanders:British, Major General Garnet Joseph Wolseley (1833–1913); Ashanti, King Calcalli
Result: British victory, leading to the destruction of the Ashanti capital of Kumasi
For more than a decade, the powerful Ashanti tribe had been attacking British outposts in the interior of the Gold Coast of Africa (modern Ghana). In December, 1872, they crossed the Pra River into the hinterlands of the British Gold Coast. On May 29, 1873, the Ashanti routed the Fante, a tribe friendly to the British, and on May 29, 1873, they unsuccessfully attacked Elmina, a small British post recently acquired from the Dutch. In August, it was determined that a full-scale punitive expedition was required. Major General Garnet Joseph Wolseley was given full civil and military powers in the region, with the goal of destroying the Ashanti capital during the dry season (December through February), before the deadly tropical heat and diseases returned in the spring.
After elaborate and efficient preparations, Wolseley led some 4,000 men, mostly native levies from a variety of local tribes, into Ashantiland. By January 24, 1874, he was within thirty miles of Kumasi. He sent a list of impossible demands, including the release of all Fante prisoners and the surrender of the Ashanti Queen Mother and heir apparent. One week later, Wolseley’s advance force of 2,000 marched into Calcalli’s army of 10,000, which was hiding in the undergrowth of tall trees near Amoaful. The fighting was confused, as the British tried to maintain a square in the midst of the jungle conflict. With the aid of artillery and rocket tubes, the Ashanti army was broken up with almost 2,000 casualties. British losses totaled 4 killed and 194 wounded.
Significance
After destroying the Ashanti army, Wolseley leveled Kumasi on February 5, 1874. While the Ashanti state was not destroyed, it was weakened, leading a number of tribes to withdraw allegiance.
Bibliography
Edgerton, Robert B. The Fall of the Asante Empire. New York: Free Press, 1995.
Farwell, Byron. Queen Victoria’s Little Wars. Ware, Hertfordshire, England: Wordsworth Editions, 1999.
Keegan, John. “The Ashanti Campaign, 1873–1874.” In Victorian Military Campaigns, edited by Brian Bond. New York: Praeger, 1967.
McIntyre, David. The Imperial Frontier in the Tropics: 1867–1875. London: Macmillan, 1967.