Fort James, Ghana

Fort James
Part of British Gold Coast
Fort Crèvecœur (left) and Fort James (right) in 1727.
Fort James
Coordinates	5.5337°N 0.2111°W / 5.5337; -0.2111
Site history
Built	1673 (1673)
Garrison information
Occupants	Britain (1673-1957)

James Fort from the direction of the sea

Fort James (alternatively referred to as James Fort) is a fort located in Accra, Ghana. It was built by the Royal African Company of England (RAC) as a trading post for both gold and slaves in 1673,^[1] where it joined the Dutch Fort Crêvecœur (1649), and the Danish Fort Christiansborg (1652) along the coast of the then Gold Coast. Along with other castles and forts in Ghana, Fort James was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 because of its importance during the European colonial period.^[2]

Fort James was likely named after James, then Duke of York, later King James II, who was Governor of the RAC at the time it was built and after whom the adjacent town of Jamestown in Accra is also named.^{[citation needed]}

The fort stands next to Jamestown Lighthouse and from the colonial era up to 2008, served as a prison.^[3][4] Ghana's first president, Kwame Nkrumah, was imprisoned from 1950 to 1951 with common criminals in Fort James.^[5]

Current situation

It is an historic castle and serves as a tourist site.^[6] James Fort is in a fairly good condition.^[7]

Additional images

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  James Fort, Ghana

Notes

1. Dow, George Francis (2013). Slave Ships and Slaving. Dover Publications. ISBN 1-306-35536-2. OCLC 868969351.
2. "Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions". UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Retrieved 9 Oct 2022.
3. Briggs, Philip. Ghana (Sixth ed.). Bradt Travel Guides Ltd. p. 147. ISBN 9781841624785.
4. Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions". whc.unesco.org. Retrieved 2018-09-17.
5. Rooney, David. Kwame Nkrumah: The Political Kingdom in the Third World. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-312-02479-6.
6. "James Fort, Greater Accra, Ghana". gh.geoview.info. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
7. "Ghana Museums & Monuments Board". www.ghanamuseums.org. Retrieved 2019-10-19.