>> B. Danquah. It also vigorously campaigned for improvements in education, sanitation, health, and the provision of infrastructure. In 1892 his father died, arid he also took over his fattiers business. [6], The formation of the Gold Coast ARPS came at a period during the late 19th century in which the educated Gold Coast elite were systematically barred from high-ranking positions in the colonial government. [9] Moreover, the key players in the Gold Coast ARPS predicated their belief in a movement against the Lands Bill of 1897 on the assumption that the economic interests of the [village] chiefs were identical with those of the rural population as a whole.[9] This assumption was necessary in the cultivation of support for the opposition of the Lands Bill of 1897 because it fueled public support for a return to traditional forms of land tenure that had vested land ownership in the hands of rural peoples instead of in the hands of foreign actors. [5] Particularly, John Mensah Sarbah, a key member of the Gold Coast ARPS and a lawyer, helped to advocate against the introduction of the Lands Bill of 1897 by arguing that it was no different from a previous, unsuccessful bill in 1894; that its introduction would break family and society ties, and that the land was valuable to indigenous peoples for its religious significance. As the third child and a male born on Friday, he was called Kofi Mensah at home and by close friends. Over 50 years after his death, the University of Ghana, in 1963, named Mensah Sarbah Hall after him for his services to education. John Mensah Sarbah was born on Friday, 3 June 1864, in Anomabu, in the Fante Confederacy in the Gold Coast. Opera News does not consent to nor does it condone the posting of any content that violates the rights (including the copyrights) of any third party, nor content that may malign, inter alia, any religion, ethnic group, organization, gender, company, or individual. He deduced that his business was a key driver for his journey to better the lots of his people and the Methodist church. startxref de Graft-Johnson, Jacob Wilson Sey, J. P. Brown, J. E. Casely Hayford, and John Mensah Sarbah were co-founders. /Font << /F13 26 0 R /F19 32 0 R /F25 38 0 R /F31 44 0 R >> From Mfantsipim, Mensah Sarbah enrolled at the Taunton School in England, before studying law at Lincoln's Inn in 1884. He was Born into a wealthy family, and studied law in England. Some also critique members of the Gold Coast ARPS because many did not return to their ancestral African roots, despite their constant praise of a need to return to traditional African roots as a way to fully realize the cultural nationalist policies that they supported.[11]. John Mensah Sarbah CMG (3 June 1864 - 27 November 1910) was a lawyer and political leader in the Gold Coast (now Ghana). B. Danquah. He was interested in promoting agriculture, and wrote an article on The Oil Palm and Its Products in 1909. He was born at Cape Coast in 1864, and was the eldest son of John Sarbah, a merchant, and of his wife Sarah. [7] As part of the emergence of cultural nationalism during the late 19th century, members of the educated elite throughout the Western African region began to return to their traditional roots by either reclaiming their "original African names, when these could be discovered" or "new African names when they could not". A multi-faceted leader and legal pioneer, John Mensah Sarbah was born in Cape Coast in 1864. This achievement saved the Gold Coast from the evils of the alienation of African land, as occurred, for example, in the British colony of Kenya. Alternate Names: Kofi Mensa When Governor Sir William Maxwell (term of office 1895-97) refused to withdraw the bill, Sarbah advised the ARPS to send a delegation to England to petition against its . assumptions of the British imperial regime, he felt that, PS opposed the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened, Building on Custom: Land Tenure Policy and Economic Development in Ghana, Exhuming and Highlighting the Nearly Forgotten Gold Coast Intelligentsia: the Life and Times of Prince Kwamin Atta Amonoo V, The Rise of British Jurisdiction in Ghana Jonqil Van, Primary 5 History of Ghana Facilitator's Guide, Pan-African History: Political Figures from Africa and The, AFRICAN COASTAL ELITE ARCHITECTURE: CULTURAL AUTHENTIFICATION DURING the COLONIAL PERIOD in ANOMABO, GHANA By, The Case of John Mensah Sarbah and the Reconstruction of Gold Coast History, The Commission Shall Advise the President on Development Planning Policy and Strategy, Decolonising African History. What Happened To Mary Magdalene After Jesus Died? [10] The Gold Coast ARPS's interest in the affairs of people of colour abroad was predicated on the notion of the salience of race beyond the confines of an African context and the global prevalence of racial discrimination. For example, society never developed in the adjoining Eastern Province. In understanding the critiques of the Gold Coast ARPS nationalists aims, it is important to note that much of the skepticism about the true intentions of the members of the Gold Coast ARPS came from British colonial administrators who were dismissive of the attempts of the Gold Coast ARPS to oppose the Lands Bill of 1897. His successors in this field were J. E. Casely Hayford, and Dr. J. September 4, 1887: Arrival of John Mensah Sarbah, first Ghanaian called to the English Bar, September 7, 1817: Anglo-Ashanti Treaty signed between Osei Bonsu and African Company of Merchants, September 1, 1966: The National Liberation Council (NLC) establishes a commission to propose a new constitution. The ARPS remained the voice of colonized Africans until its demise in the 1930s. He attended Cape Coast Wesleyan School (later to be renamed Mfantsipim) and completed his secondary education at the Taunton School in Somerset, England. In 1892 Sarbah led the fight against a bill that proposed to transfer administration of public lands from African chiefs to British officials. John Mensah Sarbah was called to the English Bar in 1887. My latest banger got nothing to do with Mahama - Volkano_KM. The delegation was successful because the Colonial Office later asked the colonial government to abandon the Lands Bill and the hut tax. The African intelligentsia had the full support of the chiefs, especially from the inception of the ARPS to about 1912, when Governor Hugh Clifford effectively implemented the indirect rule, which used the chiefs as the main agents of local administration. When Governor Sir William Maxwell (term of office 1895-97) refused to withdraw the bill, John Mensah Sarbah advised the ARPS to send a delegation to England to petition against its passage. One of the initial goals of the Gold Coast ARPS was to ensure "that every person may understand [the Lands Bill of 1897] the same". /ProcSet [/PDF /Text] He was the eldest son of John Sarbah (18341892), a merchant of Anomabu and Cape Coast and a member of the Legislative Council of the Gold Coast, and his wife Sarah. John Mensah Sarbah was educated at the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, and at Taunton School Devon, England. An idea of particular interest to the Gold Coast ARPS was the creation of trade among "all of us who are of African blood". John Mensah Sarbah was one of the pioneers of Ghanaian politics and a distinguished African politician in the Gold Coast in the late 1800s and early 1900s. John Mensah Sarbah was born in Cape Coast on 3 June 1864. This achievement saved the Gold Coast from the evils of the alienation of African land, as occurred, for example, in the British colony of Kenya. 0000029963 00000 n He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. /Outlines 16 0 R /N 3 Some other sources (including Magnus Sampson, 1969) give 6 November 1910 as the date of Mensah Sarbahs death. stream [10] In addition to the news of successful anti-colonial movements, the Gold Coast ARPS was interested in the growing formation of pan-African conferences that sought to discuss "questions 'affecting the Native races'". He was born at Cape Coast in 1864, and was the eldest son of John Sarbah, a merchant, and of his wife Sarah. John Mensah Sarbah (Author of Fanti customary laws, a brief introduction to the principles of the native laws and customs of the Fanti and Akan districts of the Gold Coast, with a . Concerning the competence and compellability of a spouse as a witness in a criminal trial in which the other spouse was the accused, he proposed that no distinction should be made between the spouse in a Christian marriage and the spouse in a customary marriage. Hutchison's Pen Pictures of Modern Africans and African Celebrities1", "The Aborigines Society, Kwame Nkrumah and the 1945 Pan-African Congress", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gold_Coast_Aborigines%27_Rights_Protection_Society&oldid=1077681957, 1890s establishments in Gold Coast (British colony), Articles with unsourced statements from June 2012, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Asante, S. K. B. Early Life 22 0 obj document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. ARPS activities were not restricted to Cape Coast; as early as 1897, the society had local branches in cities along the Gold Coast littoral regions, including Elmina, Saltpond, Winneba, and Axim. 22 29 0000015327 00000 n /Size 51 He was Born into a wealthy family, and studied law in England. Fanti National Constitution, London, 1906. John Mensah Sarbah was one of the pioneers of Ghanaian politics and a distinguished African politician in the Gold Coast in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Ghana. 0000033565 00000 n [4], The Gold Coast ARPS formed as a conglomerate of different groups of intellectuals in Cape Coast and Southern Ghana who sought to protect the traditional land tenure practices of the indigenous Gold Coast peoples from being usurped by the British colonial government. Over 50 years after his death, the University of Ghana, in 1963, named Mensah Sarbah Hall after him for his services to education. << His first act in this direction was to found a Dutton scholarship at Taunton School in memory of his younger brother, Joseph Dutton Sarbah, who had died there in 1892. He compiled and published Fanti Law Reports in 1904, but this was incomplete because he was refused permission to take any more notes from court records. He had married Marian Wood of Accra in 1904, and they had three children. The Gold Coast Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS) was an African anti-colonialist organization formed in 1897 in the Gold Coast, as Ghana was then known. John Mensah Sarbah is said to have given the school its motto (Dwen Hwe Kan, meaning Think and Look Ahead) as well as its emblem. Methodist particularly, john mensah sarbah, a key member of the gold coast arps and a lawyer, helped to advocate against the introduction of the lands bill of 1897 by arguing that it was no different from a previous, unsuccessful bill in 1894; that its introduction would break family and society ties, and that the land was valuable to indigenous peoples 0000021045 00000 n He touted the late lawyer as one who represented the largest number of three thousand cases at the Cape Coast Supreme court in his days. Any/all written content and images displayed are provided by the blogger/author, appear herein as submitted by the blogger/author and are unedited by Opera News. John Mensah Sarbah returned the 400-guinea fee which the ARPS gave him because he felt that it was an honor to serve his country. [5] The Gold Coast ARPS eventually fell out of fashion in exchange for newer nationalist movements, such as the National Congress of British West Africa (NCBWA) in 1920. This led in 1904 to the foundation of Mfantsipim School, which in 1906 merged with the Collegiate School, retaining the name of Mfantsipim School. He was nominated as a member of the Legislative Council by the governor, Sir Mathew Nathan (term of office, 1900-04), in 1901, and sat, except for a short break, as a member until his death. As a lawyer, John Mensah Sarbah was interested in spreading knowledge of Fanti laws and of theFanti Constitution. XIV, No. The connection of the Gold Coast ARPS with the global movements for freedom and rights for people of colour began with interactions between the leaders of Gold Coast ARPS and other anti-imperialist and pan-Africanist leaders abroad and ended with Gold Coast ARPS involvement with the 1945 Manchester Pan-African Congress. Subscribe to receive notification everytime a new post is published. Mr. Henry Kwadwo Amoako is a Ghanaian Social Scientist, Researcher and Acclaimed Historian for over two decades. He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. /Type /Catalog The delegation, which Sarbah refused out of modesty to lead, went to London in 1898, and succeeded in getting the Lands Bill disallowed. He died in 1910, without, however, making any provision in his will for the education of his children, probably because he believed that the Akan family system would cater for them. 0000001010 00000 n When, for financial reasons, the Wesleyan Mission closed down the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, he and some other nationalists revived it, financed it, and renamed it the Collegiate School. At the age of 23, he returned to the Gold Coast to set up a legal practice. As a legislator he was interested in law reform, and tried his best to prevent the passage of laws inimical to the interests of his countrymen. Sarbah-Picot House at Mfantsipim School is named after him. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. W. T. Balmer. 0000019838 00000 n He was the first African barrister from the then Gold Coast. The Gold Coast Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS) was formed in 1897 in the historic city of Cape Coast, a hub of intellectual and political activism in Ghana. THE LIFE OF JOHN MENSAH SARBAH. These cookies do not store any personal information. But the chief justice did not accept the proposal, and in this respect matters have not improved much since Sarbahs day, in spite of the fact that all judges are now Africans. Members of the hall are known as Vikings as a reference to him who is a true Viking for his country. The Sacking of 8 SHS Girls for Slandering The President: Examining The Missing Father Equation, Gone but not forgotten by the Phobians fraternity as Hearts captain pens goodbye message to the fans, Seven Important Good Parenting Tips Parents Have To Know, Leaked Tape: NLA Deputy CEO "Rubbishes" Danquah Dombo Busia Tradition, Man City crushed out of the Carabao Cup; Jamie Redknapp slams Guardiola's side for poor performance, Opera News is a free to use platform and the views and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent, reflect or express the views of Opera News. John Peter Allotey Hammond was the Secretary and later a member of the Coussey Committee. The ARPS was led by elected officers; during its first years, its president was Jacob Wilson Sey, while the vice president was J. P. Brown. /CropBox [0.0000 0.0000 595.2756 841.8898] He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. "The neglected aspects of the activities of the Gold Coast Aborigines Rights Protection Society. The inaugural lecture was attended by the Minister of Information; Alhaji Mustapha Hamid, Mr. Supi Nkrumah Bentsi-Enchill of Aswells Chambers, Takoradi, Madam Anna Badu-Arthur Mother of Nana Kobina Nketsia V,Nana Owiansa V, Gyantuahene of Anomabo Traditional Area Nana Kwamina Nyimfa IX, Adontehene of Oguaa Traditional Area, Alfred Kweku Ampah-Mensah Vice President of Mfantsipim Old Boys Association of the Central Region and Nana Kwame Edu VI, Tufohene of Oguaa Traditional Area. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. [3], J.W. Although he accepted the basic assumptions of the British imperial regime, he felt that some of the evils of the crown colony system should be checked. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. On his return to the Gold Coast, he became a leading critic of British Imperial rule. Most significantly, in 1898 it sent a delegation, including President Jacob Wilson Sey and other prominent members, such as T. F. E. Jones and George Hughes, to England to meet directly with British officials to discuss problems of colonial rule, especially the Lands Bill. The Mfantsi Amanbuhu Fekuw had been founded in 1889 to promote African cultural values that were being undermined by the corrosive effects of the European presence. In 1897 he worked with JE Casely Hayford, JP Brown, JW de Graft Johnson, and others to form the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS). He encouraged farmers to grow cocoa and gave them loans for the purpose. 0000029344 00000 n [2] /P 0 A notable aspect of the delegation is that it included not only members of the Gold Coast elite, but also "prominent merchants". He was educated at the Cape Coast Wesleyan . He also proposed that native tribunals should be given a definite and well-defined place in the judicial structure. This led in 1904 to the foundation ofMfantsipim School, which in 1906 merged with the Collegiate School, retaining the name of Mfantsipim School. 0000020815 00000 n [5] This is highlighted in controversy that suggests that despite the beliefs of the colonial administrators of the Gold Coast ARPS' self-interest in the protest movements, "there was overwhelming evidence of a long history of cooperation between the intellectuals and the indigenous political authorities, at least in Cape Coast. He waborn at Cape Coast in 1864and was the eldest son of John Sarbaha merh nd o SaahHe [2][3], In 1897, along with J. W. de Graft-Johnson, J. W. Sey, J. P. Brown and J. E. Casely Hayford, Mensah Sarbah co-founded the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society, which became the main political organisation that led organised and sustained opposition against the colonial government, laying the foundation for Ghanaian independence. 0000014334 00000 n Despite this inability to create their own pan-African conference, the Gold Coast ARPS in 1912 participated in a pan-African conference at what is now Tuskegee University. Opera News furthermore does not condone the use of our platform for the purposes encouraging/endorsing hate speech, violation of human rights and/or utterances of a defamatory nature. John Mensah Sarbah had opposed such proposals before, and people had expected him to oppose the amendment outright. This reform, too, has now been adopted. /Linearized 1 The statue of Queen Victoria at Victoria park in Cape Coast is a sign of treaty between ARPS and the British Government to abandon the Lands Bill. We promise to be discrete. Prof. Nana Kobina Nketsia V, Paramount Chief of Essikado Traditional Area in the Western Region in delivering the keynote address encouraged participants to emancipate and deconstruct their minds and share passionately the patriotism of the late John Mensah Sarbah, describing him as an embodiment of a deeply intellectual great son of the land. He was interested in court reforms, and tried to obtain better protection for accused persons during trials, especially in cases in which colonial district commissioners were biased against certain Africans. It has emerged that he was a business man par excellence who groomed his late father's business in agriculture and mining merchandise in the Gold Coast era. /Root 23 0 R In 1898 ARPS sent a delegation to London and successfully got the Lands Bill overturned. x}$9Z|_ /.!3n93. During the early twentieth century, the ARPS occupied itself with colonial policies on education, sanitation, health, the provision of infrastructure, and imperial labor and military recruitment in the Gold Coast during World War I. He therefore helped J. P. Brown, J. W. de Graft Johnson, and others, to form theAborigines Rights Protection Society (ARPS) to watch over the interests of the African population. He was a good churchman, and bought a pipe organ for the Methodist Church at Cape Coast. He became known for defending the rights of Africans against British colonial authorities. . He played a major role in the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS), founded to oppose the 1896 Crown Lands Bill and the 1897 Lands Bill that . He was born on 3rd June 1864, in Anomabu in the Fante Confederacy in the Gold Coast. Although the Lands Bill was its immediate preoccupation, the aims of the ARPS were broad and encompassing. 0000014189 00000 n Instead, he suggested that the dismissal or the suspension of chiefs should be carried out by a resolution of the Legislative Council instead of by Order in Council. The ARPS opposed the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened the traditional system of African land tenure, and sent John Mensah Sarbah to argue against its passage in the Legislative Council. He entered Lincolns Inn in London in 1884 to study law, and qualified as a barrister in 1887, being the first African from the Gold Coast to gain this qualification. >> When the Gold Coast Native Jurisdiction Ordinance (1883) was being amended in 1910, Section 29 caused a stir among the people because they felt it would empower the governor to usurp the rights of the people in the destooling of chiefs. Originally established by traditional leaders and the educated elite to protest the Crown Lands Bill of 1896 and the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened traditional land tenure, the Gold Coast ARPS became the main political organisation that led organised and sustained opposition against the colonial government in the Gold Coast, laying the foundation for political action that would ultimately lead to Ghanaian independence. His successors in this field were J. E. Casely Hayford, andDr. J. All rights reserved. He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. Indeed, by the first two decades of the twentieth century, the influence of the ARPS was being felt colony-wide as it extended its concerns to cover problems of colonial rule, including forced labor and taxation in Asante and the Northern Territories. Above all, it served as a precursor to revolutionary nationalism not only in the Gold Coast but in the entire West African region in the 1930s. ARPS successfully defended the interests of native African people against colonizers for decades and began to form an early forum for sentiments of independence. By the mid-1930s, the ARPS was in a state of decline. He was educated at the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, and at Taunton School Devon, England. Content created and supplied by: Royalvibes (via Opera Although colonial society was dominated by men, throughout the period of colonial rule several women's groups teamed up with men or supported men in anticolonial protest politics. An Alumnus of the University of Cape Coast in Ghana, a Journalist, Author and a Philanthropist. The ARPS opposed the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened the traditional system of African land tenure, and sent Sarbah to argue against its passage in the Legislative Council. /Parent 20 0 R The ARPS delegation met with Joseph Chamberlain (18361914), the colonial secretary, with whom they discussed the questions of land, taxation, and constitutional reform.
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