Archibald "Archie" Casely-Hayford (1898 – 20 August 1977) was a British-trained Ghanaian barrister and politician, who was involved in nationalist politics in the former

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

(present-day Ghana). Having joined the

Convention People's Party The Convention People's Party (CPP) is a Socialism, socialist political party in Ghana based on the ideas of the first President of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah. The CPP was formed in June 1949 after Nkrumah broke away from the United Gold Coast Conven ...

(CPP), in 1951 he was elected Municipal Member for

Kumasi Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...

and was appointed by

Kwame Nkrumah Kwame Nkrumah (born 21 September 190927 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He was the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, having led the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. An in ...

Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the government of the First Republic."The men who flanked Nkrumah on Independence eve"
National Commission on Culture, 14 April 2007. . When Nkrumah declared Ghana's Independence on 6 March 1957, he was photographed on the podium flanked by Casely-Hayford, together with

Kojo Botsio Kojo Botsio (21 February 1916 – 6 February 2001) was a Ghanaian diplomat and politician. He studied in Britain, where he became the treasurer of the West African National Secretariat and an acting warden for the West African Students' Union. He ...

Komla Agbeli Gbedemah Komla Agbeli Gbedemah (17 June 1913 – 11 July 1998) was a Ghanaian politician and Minister for Finance in Ghana's Nkrumah government between 1954 and 1961. Known popularly as "Afro Gbede", he was an indigene of Anyako in the Volta Region of Gh ...

Nathaniel Azarco Welbeck Nathaniel Azarco Welbeck (1915–1972) was a Ghanaian politician and a diplomat. He was a founding member of the Convention People's Party and minister of state in the first republic. He was briefly resident minister of Ghana in Guinea and also ...

and

Krobo Edusei Krobo Edusei (26 December 1914 – 13 February 1984) was a Ghanaian politician and a high-profile member of Kwame Nkrumah's government. He was a popular, outspoken and prominent Ashanti activist and at the forefront of the Ghanaian independenc ...

The National Archives UK - CO 1069-43-65

Biography

Early years and education

Archie Casely-Hayford was born in

Axim Axim is a coastal town and the capital of Nzema East Municipal district, a district in Western Region of South Ghana. Axim lies 64 kilometers west of the port city of Sekondi-Takoradi in the Western Region, west of Cape Three Points. Axim has ...

, Gold Coast, to Beatrice Madelene (''née'' Pinnock) and respected pan-Africanist Joseph Ephraim Casely Hayford. Archie was educated at

Mfantsipim School Mfantsipim is an all-boys boarding secondary school in Cape Coast, Ghana, established by the Methodist Church in 1876 to foster intellectual, moral, and spiritual growth on the then Gold Coast. Its founding name was Wesleyan High School and ...

Cape Coast Cape Coast is a city, fishing port, and the capital of Cape Coast Metropolitan District and Central Region of Ghana. It is one of the country's most historic cities, a World Heritage Site, home to the Cape Coast Castle, with the Gulf of Guinea ...

, and then in Britain at

Dulwich College Dulwich College is a 2–19 independent, day and boarding school for boys in Dulwich, London, England. As a public school, it began as the College of God's Gift, founded in 1619 by Elizabethan actor Edward Alleyn, with the original purpose of ...

, London. He subsequently studied at Clare College, University of Cambridge, receiving an MA degree in law and economics.Casely-Hayford, A., ''Makers of Modern Africa: Profiles in History'', London: Africa Journal Ltd for Africa Books Ltd, 1981, p. 125. After returning home to the Gold Coast, he practised as a lawyer from 1921 until 1936. He became a member of

Sekondi Sekondi-Takoradi is a city in Ghana comprising the twin cities of Sekondi and Takoradi. It is the capital of Sekondi – Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly and the Western Region of Ghana. Sekondi-Takoradi is the region's largest city and an indus ...

Town Council in 1926, and was made a district magistrate in 1936, rising to be senior district magistrate by 1948, before resuming private legal practice.

National politics

Entering nationalist politics, he joined

(CPP), and before the 1951 elections acted as defence counsel for Nkrumah and other CPP leaders, thereby earning the title "Defender of the Verandah Boys". In Nkrumah's first government Casely-Hayford was appointed Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources in 1951, and later became Minister of Communications and, in 1954,

Minister for the Interior Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of governme ...

Honours

Casely-Hayford was honoured by Ghana with the

Grand Medal There are four orders in Ghana: Order of the Star of Ghana, Order of the Volta, Medal for Gallantry and Grand Medal. These were instituted in 1960 as a replacement for the British honours system that was conferred under the Gold Coast and the Do ...

and was awarded the Queen's Coronation Medal from Britain.

Death and family

At the time of his death, at the Ridge Hospital,

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

, on 20 August 1977, he held the post of Chancellor of the

University of Cape Coast The University of Cape Coast is a public collegiate university located in the historic town of Cape Coast. The campus has a rare seafront and sits on a hill overlooking the wide Atlantic Ocean. It operates on two campuses: the Southern Campus (O ...

. In the years prior, he also had been serving as the head of the wider

Casely-Hayford Casely-Hayford is an English language patronymic surname that is native to Ghana. It is most commonly borne by the Casely-Hayford family, descendants of the famous 19th century Euro- Fante and Pan-Africanist, J. E. Casely-Hayford of Cape Coast. ...

family. His eldest son

Beattie Casely-Hayford Beattie Casely-Hayford (June 1922 – 6 August 1989) was a Ghanaian engineer. He was the first director of the Ghana Arts Council, a co-founder of the Ghana National Dance Ensemble, and a director of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). Fa ...

became the first director of the Ghana Arts Council, and his other son Louis Casely-Hayford was a chartered engineer who served as CEO of the

Volta River Authority The Volta River Authority (VRA) is the main generator and supplier of electricity in Ghana. They are also the responsible for the maintenance of the hydro power supply plant. Establishment The VRA was established by the Volta River Development ...

References

External links

* Marc Woons
"Inspiring Visit to Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park"
– includes Independence Day photograph. {{DEFAULTSORT:Casely-Hayford, Archie 1898 births 1977 deaths Archie 20th-century Ghanaian lawyers Agriculture ministers of Ghana Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge Communications ministers of Ghana Convention People's Party (Ghana) politicians Fante people Ghanaian Methodists Ghanaian MPs 1951–1954 Ghanaian MPs 1954–1956 Ghanaian MPs 1956–1965 Ghanaian people of English descent Ghanaian people of Irish descent Interior ministers of Ghana Mfantsipim School alumni People educated at Dulwich College