conflict between them and the coastal states.
The Ashanti was a warrior state and a great
contributor of slaves to the trans-Atlantic
slave trade and the British had abolished the
slave trade and wanted to nip the problem
at the roots. Their solution was to go to war
with Ashanti and totally annihilate them.
T
ACTICAL
MISJUDGEMENT It
has been stated that
McCarthy’s ambition
outran his knowledge
of the terrain. He was
fighting jungle battle
he knew little of. The
weather was not favorable as it was raining
incessantly at the time. He planned to attack
the Ashanti in a three pronged strategy
with an army total of 12000 men divided
into four groups. The plan was to converge
on the Ashanti’s and obliterate them with
overwhelming force. Quite unfortunate for
McCarthy, the plan didn’t work out as his paltry
men of 600 encountered an Ashanti army of
about 10,000 men. The remaining contingency
didn’t show up. INCOMPETENCE: It’s on
record that McCarthy’s ordnance storekeeper
was partly responsible for the British defeat
at this battle. He mistakenly sent kegs of
pasta to the frontline instead of ammunition.
The Ashanti as their motto goes, if you “kill a
thousand, a thousand more will come” proved
true to their motto. The battle started with
the British opening fire on the daring Ashanti
soldiers trying to build a crossing over the Pra
river. However, the British forces were lightly
supplied; the bearers bringing the supplies
up in the rear, which included most of the
gunpowder and ammunition, mostly fled after
hearing the firing in the distance. Four cases
of supplies arrived; the first was opened and
the shot inside was distributed, but the other
three were found to contain only macaroni.
The firing stopped at the British front as they
62 | Colossium . March 2020
run out of ammunition. It later dawned on the
Ashanti’s that the enemy bad lost firepower
and then they then decided to advance across
the river. COWARDICE: The British had some
local Fanti’s as a large part of their army and
the more the Ashanti’s drew closer, the faster
they deserted the battlefront. The remaining
few British soldiers gallantly fought with their
bayonets. They were eventually overpowered
and McCarthy fearing to fall into enemy hands
killed himself. His body was beheaded and his
head taken as a trophy to Kumasi.
By Michael D. Dwomoh
Travel Consultant.
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