He was born at Cape Coast in 1864, and was the eldest son of John Sarbah, a merchant, and of his wife Sarah. He himself founded a scholarship at Mfantsipim School and helped to pay the salaries of the staff when the school encountered financial difficulties. 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. The passage of the bill, however, made him very unpopular, especially since subsequently he received the British decoration-of the CMG (Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St.George), an honor some thought that he had sought, though he denied it. [9], John Mensah Sarbah was dedicated to the promotion of secondary education and was responsible for various initiatives, including the founding of a Dutton scholarship at Queen's College, Taunton, in memory of his younger brother, Joseph Dutton Sarbah, who had died there in 1892. He encouraged farmers to grow cocoa and gave them loans for the purpose. 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. /Contents 25 0 R From Taunton he matriculated to Lincoln's Inn to train as a barrister. B. Danquah. 0000030045 00000 n The activities of the ARPS were not always an all-male affair. Content created and supplied by: Royalvibes (via Opera He became disillusioned with what he deemed to be injustice in governance from the British Crown toward the Ghanaian people and felt that the actions of the colonial system should be checked. "Sarbah, John Mensah", in Keith A. P. Sandiford, "Ghana Early Manifestations of Nationalism", "Action and Reaction: An Overview of the Ding Dong Relationship between the Colonial Government and the People of Cape Coast", John Mensah Sarbah, an outstanding nationalist of the Gold Coast, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Mensah_Sarbah&oldid=1105403308, This page was last edited on 20 August 2022, at 02:51. Telling the business story of the late lawyer, senior law partner, Kojo Bentsil Enchil said the late Sarbah was the greatest aggregate of an achiever in the Gold Coast and in present day Ghana in the lawyer profession. HisFanti Customary Laws is still regarded as an indispensable book for lawyers in Ghana. L. H. Ofosu-Appiah. He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. 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. A multi-faceted leader and legal pioneer, John Mensah Sarbah was born in Cape Coast in 1864. It empowered chiefs to pass local bylaws for forest preservation. When Governor Sir William Maxwell (term of office 1895- 97) refused to withdraw the bill, Sarbah advised the ARPS to send a delegation to 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. startxref John Mensah Sarbah was called to the English Bar in 1887. 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. [5] The Gold Coast ARPS then sent a delegation to London in order to advocate for the dismissal of the Lands Bill of 1897 in front of Joseph Chamberlain, the Secretary of State of Britain at the time. >> x}$9Z|_ /.!3n93. He was educated at the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, and at Taunton School Devon, England. Several developments in the preceding decades, including the lack of African representation on the Gold Coast Legislative Council, the problem of direct taxation, and the implementation of the Native Jurisdiction Ordinance of 1883, contributed to the formation of the ARPS. 25 0 obj Sarbah called the battle for education a prime social demand, a leading civil rights issue, and urged the nation to take up the fight, to make education transform the life chances of the nation . Jacob Kwaw Wilson Sey (10 March 1832 - 22 May 1902), also known as Kwaa Bonyi, was a colonial era Fante artisan, farmer, philanthropist, nationalist and the first recorded indigenous multi-millionaire on the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana). He was responsible for various initiatives, including the founding of a Dutton scholarship at Taunton School in memory of his younger brother, Joseph Dutton Sarbah, who had died there in 1892. By Royalvibes (self media writer) | 2 years ago. He therefore published two books,Fanti Customary Laws(1897), andFanti National Constitution (1906). In 1892 his father died, arid he also took over his fattiers business. Azu Crabbe, John Mensah Sarbah: His Life and Works, Accra, 1971. New York: Reference Publications Inc., 1977. [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. Ghana. However, the middle class intellectuals who supported the Society broke with Nkrumah because they were less committed to full-scale revolutionary effort. /Names << /Dests 12 0 R>> Its overall influence was felt throughout the Gold Coast, especially in districts where there was a sizeable number of African intellectuals, such as Krobo and Akuapem in the Eastern Province. /Info 21 0 R For example, in 1906, following the campaigns against the Town Councils Ordinance championed by the ARPS, Cape Coast market women unleashed a large-scale, well-organized protest against the ordinance when Governor John Rodger visited Cape Coast to open an agricultural show. [2], In the first birthday honours of King George V, Mensah Sarbah was recognised with the award of a CMG in 1910, a few months before his sudden death at the age of 46, on Sunday, 27 November 1910. 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. The ARPS had been preceded by the activities of the Mfantsi Amanbuhu Fekuw (Fante National Association), led by members of the African intelligentsia, including John Mensah Sarbah, J. W. de Graft Johnson, Chief J. D. Abraham, and J. P. Brown. 22 29 0000000017 00000 n He founded a Dutton scholarship at Taunton College, in memory of his brother, Joseph Dutton Sarbah, who had died there in He also, together with other . The ARPS remained the voice of colonized Africans until its demise in the 1930s. The society was able to mediate between Africans and the colonial government, thereby moderating colonial rule. The Town Councils Ordinance dealt with the levying of municipal house rates. Upon returning from a visit to Europe in 1903 together with William Edward Sam, John Mensah Sarbah and Sam promoted an enterprise called the Fanti Public Schools Limited. [5] It was through their meeting with Joseph Chamberlain that the Gold Coast ARPS was able to get support for the denunciation of the Lands Bill of 1897 and the assurance that "native law would remain and prevail with regard to devolution of land". It cannot be said that the late lawyer did not engaged in any business because he was at a point prosecuted for invasion of Customs duties which had to be quashed by the then Chief Justice. John Mensah Sarbah was interested in promoting agriculture, and wrote an article on The Oil Palm and Its Products in 1909. /Pages 20 0 R 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. /CropBox [0.0000 0.0000 595.2756 841.8898] He was the eldest son of John Sarbah (1834-1892), a merchant of Anomabu and Cape Coast and a member of the Legislative Council of the Gold Coast, and his wife Sarah. S. Tenkorang, John Mensah Sarbah, 18641910, in Transactions of the HYistorical Society of Ghana, Vol. However, the Gold Coast ARPS was interested not only in the protection of the rights of the native peoples in the Gold Coast but also with the larger global struggles of the African diaspora, including the United States, Europe and the West Indies. John Mensah Sarbah (June 3, 1864-November 27, 1910), patriot and statesman, was one of the most outstanding nationalists of the Gold Coast at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. Part of this critique lay in a disjuncture between the espoused values of cultural nationalism by the Gold Coast ARPS that advocated a fight for the indigenous peoples given the connection that the Gold Coast ARPS had with the British colonial government. /ID [<28bf4e5e4e758a4164004e56fffa0108><28bf4e5e4e758a4164004e56fffa0108>] 0000015327 00000 n He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. He also identified the need for good interpreters in the courts, and proposed the establishment of a school for court interpreters 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. 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. Call: +233558280780, Your email address will not be published. Visit our, Akufo-Addo willing to legalize homosexuality - Inusah Fuseini. His suggestion, which was an improvement on the amendment, was not accepted. John Mensah Sarbah was interested in court reforms, and tried to obtain better protection for accused persons during trials, especially in cases in whichcolonial districtcommissioners were biased against certain Africans. On the strength of the good reports the school had received, the Wesleyan Mission resumed its management under the principal-ship of the Rev. John Mensah Sarbah (1864- 1910) John Mensah Sarbah, also known as "Kofi Mensah", patriot and statesman, was one of the most outstanding nationalists of the Gold Coast at the turn of the 20th century. Overall, however, the protest politics of the ARPS went beyond mere reformism. 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. On his return to the Gold Coast, he became a leading critic of British Imperial rule. It has turned out some of the countrys best known public figures in all walks of life, men such as Alex Quaison-Sackey, former President of the General Assembly of UN, Dr. K A Busia, Kofi Annan, the immediate past General Secretary of the United Nations. He was born at Cape Coast in 1864, and was the eldest son of John Sarbah, a merchant, and of his wife Sarah. It was at the same time as the implementation of this ordinance that the Gold Coast Gold Coast ARPS began to lose some of their power, as they could no longer use the Gold Coast indigenous chiefs as leverage from which to gain funds. He revealed that when he died in 1910 there was evidence in his will that he had shares in Ashanti Obuasi mines out of which he left shares for his mother and sisters and part for his wife and children. This reform, too, has now been adopted. /ProcSet [/PDF /Text] [10] The Gold Coast ARPS was particularly interested in the Pan-African Conference that took place in July 1900 in London, the first conference of its kind to occur. 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. More importantly, the ARPS demanded radical constitutional reforms to enable the African intelligentsia to participate in the administration of the colony. At the age of 23, he returned to the Gold Coast to set up a legal practice. The ARPS used the money to establish a press, which published The Gold Coast Nation (founded 1912) and The Gold Coast Times (founded 1923). [10], The impact of the Gold Coast ARPS' interaction with global pan-Africanist and anti-imperialist movements rested on the ability of these interactions to not only bring the grievances of the Gold Coast natives to the global stage but also to help the Gold Coast ARPS gain leverage with which to lobby the colonial government in Gold Coast to recognize the legitimacy of their cultural nationalist and political aims. 0 He also identified the need for good interpreters in the courts, and proposed the establishment of a school for court interpreters. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Bonds: Citizens warn government not to touch their individual bond investments. Gold Coast Aborigines' Rights Protection Society, Influences on the founding of the Gold Coast ARPS, Perception of aims of the Gold Coast ARPS, S. K. B. Asante, "The neglected aspects of the activities of the Gold Coast Aborigines Rights Protection Society. 0000001690 00000 n The delegation, which Sarbah refused out of modesty to lead, went to London in 1898, and succeeded in getting the Lands Bill disallowed. 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. John Mensah Sarbah was the first lawyer of the Gold Coast that helped in the documentation of the customary laws of the Gold Coast and present day Ghana. /Size 51 0000034269 00000 n We promise to be discrete. It also vigorously campaigned for improvements in education, sanitation, health, and the provision of infrastructure. J. M. Sarbah, Fanti Customary Laws, London, 1897. [10] This interest in pan-Africanism manifested itself in attempts by the Gold Coast ARPS to hold a similar conference on the Gold Coast, although the idea never came to fruition. Sarbah was the eldest son of John Sarbah, a successful merchant, and was subsequently well-educated. Although the Lands Bill was its immediate preoccupation, the aims of the ARPS were broad and encompassing. << THE FE OF JOHN MENSAH SARBAH ah Sarbah (June 31864November 271910), patriot and statesmanwas one of te o o g atonalsts of the Gold Coast at the end of the 19th century and the begnnng othe 0 e atng ark on national life in politics, education, and law. 1, Legon, June 1973 (pp. At the age of 23, he returned to the Gold Coast to set up a legal practice. Eventually, the Forest Bill led to the establishment of forest reserves. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. 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. In 1901 he was appointed to the Legislative Council. The idea of forming the society had been incubated as early as 1895 but was shelved 1 year ago ago He also proposed that native tribunals should be given a definite and well-defined place in the judicial structure. John Mensah Sarbah was born on Friday, 3 June 1864, in Anomabu, in the Fante Confederacy in the Gold Coast. arbah failed to sway the opinon of Governor Sir William Maxwell, honored with the Order of St. Michael and St. George, "did not strive for popularity nor was he vainglorious nor egotistical. 1864-1910 Methodist /MediaBox [0.0000 0.0000 595.2756 841.8898] In addition to his political achievements, Sarbah wrote two books about the Fante and played an important role in establishing public schools in the colony. Our, Akufo-Addo willing to legalize homosexuality - Inusah Fuseini in Anomabu, in the Gold...., a successful merchant the role of john mensah sarbah in the arps and wrote an article on the strength of the.. Pioneer, John Mensah Sarbah was born on Friday, 3 June 1864, in Anomabu in! To legalize homosexuality - Inusah Fuseini the forest Bill led to the English Bar in 1887,,. He was appointed to the Legislative Council his father died, arid he also identified the need good... 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