Swedish Gold Coast
Cabo Corso
Svenska Guldkusten
1650–1658
1660–1663
Flag of Swedish Gold Coast
StatusColony of the Swedish Africa Company
CapitalFort Christiansborg
Common languagesSwedish
Administrator 
• 1650–1655
Henrik Carloff
• 1655–1658
J. F. von Krusenstierna
• 1658–1662
Occupation
• 1662–1663
Tönnies Voss
Historical eraColonial period
• Established
22 April 1650
• Partial Danish capture
27 January 1658
• Partial Dutch occupation
Mar 1659 – Dec 1660
• Futu occupation (on Swedish behalf)
Dec 1660 – Dec 1662
• Dutch capture
22 April 1663
22 July 1667
Preceded by		Succeeded by
1650:
Futu Kingdom
1660:
Dutch Gold Coast
1658:
Danish Gold Coast
1663:
Dutch Gold Coast
Today part ofGhana
Togo
Fort Carolusborg, built on the initiative of Carloff

The Swedish Gold Coast (Swedish: Svenska Guldkusten) was a colony of the Swedish Africa Company founded in 1650 by Hendrik Carloff on the Gulf of Guinea in present-day Ghana in Africa. Under foreign occupation for much of its existence, it disappeared for good in April 1663 when it became part of the Dutch Gold Coast.

History

Following the foundation of the Swedish Africa Company (1649) by Louis de Geer an expedition under the command of Hendrik Carloff was sent to Africa in 1650. Carloff made a treaty with the Akan King of Futu (also Feta) on selling some areas of land. On 22 April 1650 the Swedish Gold Coast was founded and Carloff became its first administrator. In 1652 the foundations were laid of the Fort Carlsborg

In 1656 Johan Filip von Krusenstierna (brother of the great-grandfather of Adam Johann von Krusenstern)[1] was appointed the new Governor. This enraged Carloff. He left Cabo Corso only to return on 27 January 1658 on the Danish Privateer Glückstadt. Fort Carlsborg was seized and made part of the Danish Gold Coast colony.

King Charles X Gustav of Sweden made this one of his reasons to go to war with Denmark-Norway. After the Treaty of Copenhagen in 1660, Cabo Corso Castle was to be returned to Swedish administration: However it then was revealed that Carloff's associate Samuel Schmidt (Smith, Smit) had already illegally sold the colony in April 1659 to the Dutch West India Company on his own, and had disappeared with the gold to Angola.

Later on the local population started a successful uprising against their new masters and in December 1660 the King of the Akan people subgroup-Futu again offered Sweden control over the area. A new expedition was sent to the colony which remained under Swedish administration only for a short period. Von Krusenstierna was reappointed as administrator.

On 20 April 1663 Fort Carlsborg and the capital Fort Christiansborg were again seized by the Dutch after a long defense under the Swedish commander Anton (Tönnies) Voss.

On 9 May 1664 the Dutch controlled area again was seized by Robert Holmes who made it part of the British Gold Coast colony.[2][3] Swedish claims to the colony were later formally relinquished in the 1667 Treaty of Breda.

Geography

The colony consisted of only a few forts and trading posts scattered around Cabo Corso (present-day Cape Coast) along the coast on the Gulf of Guinea in what later would become the British Gold Coast then Ghana. The eastern section of the colony later swapped hands from the German Empire (where it had noticeably expanded northward) to France, and then later gained independence as Togo.

The colony consisted of the following fortifications and trading posts (factories).

Place in Ghana Fort name Founded/
Occupied		 Ceded Comments
Cape Coast, Central Region Fort Carlsborg 1650,
1660		 1658,
1663		 Also known as Carolusborg and Cape Coast Castle. Under Swedish administration 22 April 1650 – January/February 1658, and again 10 December 1660 – 22 April 1663.
Anomabu, Central region Fort William 1650 1657 Also known as Annamabo
Butri near Sekondi-Takoradi, Western region Fort Batenstein 1650 1656 Also known as Batensteyn
Osu, Ghana in Accra Fort Christiansborg 1652 1658 Headquarter. Also known as Fort Frederiksborg and Osu Castle. Captured by the Danes in 1658.
Sekondi-Takoradi, Western region Fort Witsen 1653 1658 Also known as Taccorari
Beyin, Western region Fort Apollonia 1655 1657

The following factories were also held:

  • Gemoree Factory
  • Accara Factory

Colonial heads

Each of the three Swedish administrators had a different gubernatorial title:

  • Director: Hendrik Carloff, 22 April 1650 – 1655
  • Governor: Johann Philipp von Krusenstjerna (son of Philipp Crusius), 1655 – 27 Jan 1658
  • Danish occupation: 27 Jan 1658 – Mar 1659
  • Dutch occupation: Mar 1659 – 10 Dec 1660
  • Futu occupation (nominally Swedish): 10 Dec 1660 – 1662
  • Commander: Tönnies Voss 16 Mar 1662 – 22 Apr 1663

References

  1. ↑ (in German) Baltic nobility genealogy handbook Governor Johan Filip von Krusenstierna family
  2. ↑ "Svenska kolonin Cabo Corso i Västafrika 1649 – 1663" (in Swedish). Hans Högmans Släktforskning. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  3. ↑ "Kolonin Cabo Corso 1649–1658" (in Swedish). Historiesajten. Retrieved 12 March 2016.

Sources

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