Nana Prempeh II with his parents
King Prempeh I – Asantehene of the Ashanti Kingdom, Ghana
As the thirteenth ruler of the strong Ashanti Kingdom, King Prempeh I was only 16 years old when he took over the throne in 1888 but he’s remembered as one of the fiercest and strong-willed rulers of the Ashanti Empire. He is also the last ruler of the independent Ashanti Kingdom before it went under the rule of the British.
By the 19th century, the British Empire had officially taken over control of Ghana naming it the Gold Coast Colony. Led by Nana Prempeh I, the Ashanti fought the British in order to protect their Kingdom. Nana Prempeh declared that the Ashanti Empire will never be ruled by the British despite it having a good trading system with them. He believed that the British and Ashanti could work together without one being the controller of the other.
For his campaign against British sovereignty, Nana Prempeh I was labelled as a notorious leader. Unfortunately, the Ashanti were defeated by the British in the fourth Anglo–Ashanti war that happened between 1894-1896. The British looted the Ashanti Kingdom and Nana Prempeh together with his mother and other relatives and chiefs were captured and forcefully taken out of their kingdom to live in exile in Seychelles.
In 1901 other leaders including the great Yaa Asantewaa joined him in exile. By 1924, Nana Prempeh, who was one of the few exiled kings to survive was allowed to return to his kingdom and reign until he died in 1931.
