Kumasi:According to Ghana Web, Nana Yaa Asantewaa, the Queen Mother of Ejisu, was about 60 years old when she led the Asante resistance against the British in 1900. Her leadership emerged during a challenging period for the Asante Kingdom, following the exile of Asantehene Prempeh I to the Seychelles in 1896 by the British.
The situation escalated in 1900 when Sir Frederick Hodgson, the British Governor of the Gold Coast, demanded the Golden Stool, a sacred symbol of Asante unity. This demand provoked anger among the Asante people, who viewed the stool as the soul of their nation. While some chiefs hesitated to oppose the British, Yaa Asantewaa urged them to defend their kingdom.
She questioned how the Asante could permit such actions from the British, warning the chiefs that if they refused to fight, they should adopt her undergarments instead of their traditional male attire. To emphasize her resolve, Yaa Asantewaa fired a gun in front of the men, rallying the Asante forces.
Under her leadership, the Asante laid siege to the British fort in Kumasi for almost three months. Although they eventually lost the war, the British failed to capture the Golden Stool. Yaa Asantewaa was captured and exiled to the Seychelles, where she passed away in 1921 at the age of 80 or 81.