More European forts than anywhere else in Africa, built by six nations along one stretch of coast. Some are museums, some are crumbling, some have almost disappeared. Every one, region by region.
Between the late fifteenth and the nineteenth century, the Portuguese, Dutch, English, Danes, Swedes and the German state of Brandenburg built dozens of forts, castles and fortified lodges along Ghana's coastline, often within sight of a rival's walls. They were built first for the gold trade, then for the trade in enslaved people, and they changed hands through war, purchase and treaty. By 1872 Britain held them all.
Together the forts and castles of the Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1979. Some of the British forts carry the names of men and places still familiar in Britain: Fort William, Fort Victoria, James Fort, Ussher Fort.
Forts and castles of GhanaThe full portal, on ghana-net.com. British forts and castles in GhanaOn ghana-net.com. Ghana's UNESCO World Heritage sitesOn ghana-net.com. The slave trade, Britain and the Gold CoastThe history behind the walls.Accra grew up around three rival forts, Dutch, English and Danish, each with its own town. Old Accra, Jamestown and Osu still carry their names.
The one fort far from the sea. The British built it in Kumasi after occupying the Asante capital in the 1890s, and it was besieged in 1900 during the war led by Yaa Asantewaa. Today it houses a military museum.
Kumasi FortOn ghana-net.com. Nana Yaa AsantewaaOn ghana-net.com.Cape Coast and Elmina are maintained and staffed. Many of the others are not. Some are locked, some used as offices or homes, some disappearing into the sea or into the town around them, and a few are hard even to find. Heritage money has been announced, celebrated and spent with little to show at many sites. We document the decay because pretending otherwise helps nobody, least of all the forts.
Ghana's ghostsForts, castles and the graves they're letting die, on ghanamuseums.com. Where does the money go?On ghanamuseums.com. Landmarks at risk in 2026On ghanamuseums.com. Christiansborg's silent tollOn ghanamuseums.com.From Accra's forts in a morning to Cape Coast and Elmina in a full day. Entrance fees are included in the tour price. Tips for your guide and driver are not included, but they are always welcome.