British Togoland
British Togoland was a part of West Africa that shared a southern boundary with the Gulf of Guinea. Ghana now includes the western portion of Togoland, formerly known as British Togoland. The Conference of Berlin (1884-1885) recognized a German protectorate over Southern Togoland. Treaties with France (1897) and Great Britain (1904) established Togoland’s borders.
The Germans lost Togoland to British and French forces in August 1914. The area was split into French and British mandates by the League of Nations in 1922. The mandates were designated as UN trust territories in 1946. A total of 13,041 square miles (33,776 square kilometers) were under British control.
The southern portion became a district of the colony’s eastern province, while the northern portion was placed under the jurisdiction of the Northern Territories of the Gold Coast, Ghana’s former name. In May 1956, a vote was held in the southern portion to decide whether to join Ghana when it gained independence. British Togoland joined Ghana as an independent state in 1957.
As stated in its July 1922 treaty, the League of Nations said that the mandatory’s job was to “promote to the utmost the material and moral well-being and the social progress of its inhabitants, as well as the peace, order, and good government of the territory.”
Ethnic groups from British Togoland’s northern region also resided in the protectorate. The mandate granted the Gold Coast administration the authority to manage them collectively for this purpose. There were roughly 400,000 people living in the trust territory in 1946. In 1932, the districts of Kete-Krachi, Dagomba, Eastern Mamprussi, and Kumassi were included in the northern section.
Including most of this region, Eastern Dagomba’s primary industries were agriculture and cattle rearing, as well as crafts including ceramics, weaving, ropemaking, and leather tanning. However, compared to the Gold Coast, British Togoland lacked the mineral riches and extensive cocoa plants.
The uncertainty surrounding the region’s future made the British hesitant to invest in an area governed by a foreign power. The decentralization of native authority occurred between 1890 and 1930. Following 1930, the several smaller parts of North Togoland and the Northern Territories were combined to form a number of sizable states, including Mamprussi and Dagomba.
Three ordinances pertaining to financial, judicial, and executive restructuring were issued in 1933. These newfound powers allowed the chiefs to implement social and economic reforms. The chief commissioner was able to specify the scope of its civil and criminal jurisdiction by establishing tribunals under the Native Tribunal Ordinance.
Additionally, in 1932, the government passed the Native Treasuries Ordinance, which granted the chief commissioner the authority to create treasuries, specify the sources of income, set up particular taxing schemes, and more. Roads, dispensaries, sanitary facilities, and regular wages for chiefs and tribunal members were all funded with the money raised.
The region’s economy was growing gradually, and there was a gradual rise in interest in religion, health care, and education. A Northern Territory council of all of the chiefs was formed in 1946. At 5,845 square miles, South Togoland was substantially smaller. Southern Togoland was subject to the ordinances of the Gold Coast Colony, but Northern Togoland was subject to those of the Northern Territories.
District commissioners oversaw the mandate’s five districts. Similar to the Northern Territories, the government sought to integrate minor ethnic groups starting in 1930. Of the 68 divisions, all but 15 had united to form four sizable states by 1939. The governor then had the authority to designate local authorities, strengthening local institutions. State and divisional councils were acknowledged and given the authority to look into constitutional and political conflicts.
Each native authority area could have a tribunal set up by the governor. The divisions were given the authority to establish their treasuries and collect taxes by a decree of 1932. Under the mandate, missionaries, with financial support from the government, were in charge of education. The increased production of cocoa led to economic progress.
Conditions in Togoland started to alter after 1951 as a result of the Gold Coast’s constitutional reforms. With the greater representation granted by the 1951 and 1954 constitutions, the government had taken steps to guarantee that Togoland’s citizens were represented at all levels of government. After the Gold Coast gained independence, the British government told the UN in June 1954 that it would not be able to manage the trusteeship of Togoland independently.
The majority of UN members first opposed British Togoland’s creation as an independent state, but they quickly realized that this meant British Togoland would be governed as an independent African government rather than as a colonial annexation.
A British Togoland referendum was approved by the UN General Assembly in December 1955 to ascertain whether the people wanted their country to become a part of the Gold Coast following independence or to remain independent. Aware of its neighbor’s impending independence, the majority of voters in the May 9, 1956, plebiscite supported Togoland’s union with the Gold Coast.
Thus, with the independence of this final province, the UN General Assembly approved the reunion of British Togoland and the Gold Coast. In February 1957, the final constitution before independence was released. On March 6, 1957, the day of independence was set. On this day, Ghana, the amalgamated Gold Coast and British Togoland, gained independence within the British Commonwealth.
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