The Queen of Denmark visits Akwamufie

The Queen of Denmark, Margarethe II, on Saturday paid a courtesy call on the chiefs and people of Akwamu at Akuamufie in the Eastern Region as part of her three-day state visit to the country.  

The visit to Akwamufie was the climax of the Queen’s visitation to various cultural and historic sites that formed the itinerary of her first time trip to Ghana.

Prior to the visit to the Akwamu Palace, Queen Margarethe had visited the Odumase/Agomanya Market, which is well known for the sale of beads, to interact with the producers and dealers and have a feel of a true Ghanaian marketplace.

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The Queen also visited the Cedi Bead Factory, a popular bead manufacturing centre at Agomanya, where Mr Nomoda Ebenezer Djaba, the Chief Executive Officer of the Factory, briefed her on the process of beads making.

At Akwamufie, Odeneho Kwafo Akoto III, the Paramount Chief of Akwamu, on behalf of the people, welcomed Queen Margarethe and her entourage amidst drumming and singing of traditional songs.

An elder at the Palace recounted the history of the Danes who shared the dark story of the Slave Trade, and the interesting story related to shifting alliances and conflicts between the Danes and the Akwamu people.

The Christiansburg Castle, now called Osu Castle, originally built by the Danes in the 17th Century, has changed ownership several times.

He said in 1693 the Akwamu people took over the Castle disguised as tradesmen adding that a Prince of Akwamu, by name Assameni, who went to the Castle to study Dutch that same year, hatched a plan to overtake the Danes and later took the keys to the Castle to Akwamufie.

Later, when the then King Assameni sold the Castle back to the Danes for 12 kilograms of gold, he kept the keys and it had since been kept by the Akwamus as a trophy and a proud symbol of the resistance by the Akwamus from the Danes.

Odeneho Akoto recounted the long-standing historical relationship between the Danes and the Akwamus, and Ghana as a whole. 

He said the memories were both bitter and sweet but presently, the relationship had continued to be a healthy one with the Akwamus having good interactions with the Danish Embassy.

The Embassy officials had been assisting the Akwamu Community with so many infrastructure projects including schools, Odeneho Akoto said.

“Today you are going to have the opportunity to look at some of the beautiful things that exist between the two nations, that is; Ghana and Danmark, and for that matter Akwamu, representing Ghana now with those artefacts,” he said.

Queen Margarethe, on her part, said she was happy to be there “to listen to some of the fascinating stories about the connection between Denmark and this part of Ghana a long time ago.”

“But I’m touched to know that you still cherish the memory of those times and that you keep up the story. And that is something I should take back with me to Denmark, in particular, the memory of this part of Ghana,” she said.

The Queen was later taken to a room where the keys were being kept to have a look.