Fort Gross Friedrichsburg

Gross Friedrichsburg was built from 1683 by the Brandenburg African Company, the trading venture of the Elector of Brandenburg, making it the only fort on this coast founded by a German state, and it stands on a hill above the village now called Princes Town. Brandenburg withdrew and sold its holdings to the Dutch in 1717, though a local chief named John Conny held the fort against the transfer for several years, an episode still recounted locally. The Dutch renamed it Fort Hollandia and it later passed to Britain. The structure survives with walls, bastions and rooms, some in use as basic guest accommodation, and it is part of the World Heritage inscription.

History

The Brandenburg Africa Company, led by Benjamin Raule under the patronage of the Elector Frederick William, after whom the fort is named, built it in 1683-1684 as its headquarters, partly of stone shipped from Prussia, and it is the only fort in Ghana of German construction. When the Akan merchant John Canoe learned in 1708 that the Germans meant to sell it to the Dutch, he organised a resistance that lasted nearly twenty years and drove off warships, until the Dutch seized the fort in 1725 and called it Hollandia; he is remembered as a hero, though what became of him is unknown. About 300,000 Africans are believed to have been shipped through the fort, which the Dutch handed to Britain in 1872 (Wikipedia, Fort Gross Fredericksburg).

What you'll find

• The hilltop fort - the Brandenburg structure above Princes Town.
• Bastions and walls - the surviving defensive works.
• Interior rooms - the chambers around the courtyard, some now lodging.
• The village and shore - the fishing settlement and coast below.

When to go

November to March in the dry season; the road out to Princes Town is difficult after rain. Mornings are cooler. Guides are found at the fort.

Before you go

The access road is rough and can be impassable in the wet season. Conservation is limited and parts of the fort are decayed. Accommodation offered inside is very basic. Fees are informal and negotiated on arrival.

Nearby

Axim lies north-west; Cape Three Points is south-east along the coast.

Key facts