Badu Bonsu II was a leader of the

Ahanta The Ahanta/Ayinda are Akan People who live to the north and east of the Nzema. The Ahanta land has been historically known as one of the richest areas on the coast of what is now Ghana. The Ahanta land spans from Beposo to Ankobra in what is no ...

and a

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

ian king who was executed in 1838 by the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

, who, at the time, were in control of the

Dutch Gold Coast The Dutch Gold Coast or Dutch Guinea, officially Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea (Dutch: ''Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea'') was a portion of contemporary Ghana that was gradually colonized by the Dutch, beginning in 1612. ...

Rebellion against the Dutch

In 1837, Badu Bonsu II rebelled against the Dutch government, and killed several officers, including acting governor Hendrik Tonneboeijer. The Dutch government used the

Treaty of Butre The Treaty of Butre between the Netherlands and Ahanta was signed at Butre (historical spelling: ''Boutry''), Dutch Gold Coast on 27 August 1656. The treaty regulated the jurisdiction of the Netherlands and the Dutch West India Company over the to ...

as the basis for military action against Badu Bonsu and an expeditionary force was sent to Ahanta. In the war that followed, the king was captured, sentenced for murder, and hanged. The Dutch disorganised the Ahanta state, appointing their commandant of

Fort Batenstein Fort Batenstein was a fort and trading post established by the Dutch on the Gold Coast in 1656. It was situated near Butre (old spelling: ''Boutry''). The fort was ceded with the entire Dutch Gold Coast to Britain in 1872. At this fort, the Trea ...

at Butre as regent, keeping the country under close control with an enlarged military and civilian presence. Following the execution of king Badu Bonsu, his body was desecrated as a Dutch surgeon removed his head. The head was taken to the Netherlands, where it was soon lost for more than a century.

Rediscovery and return of the head

The head was rediscovered in the

Leiden University Medical Center Leiden University Medical Center (Dutch: ''Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum'') or LUMC is the university hospital affiliated with Leiden University, of which it forms the medical faculty. It is located in Leiden, Netherlands. LUMC is a modern un ...

(LUMC) in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

by Dutch author

Arthur Japin Arthur Valentijn Japin (born 26 July 1956 in Haarlem) is a Dutch novelist. Biography His parents were Bert Japin, a teacher and writer of detective novels, and Annie Japin-van Arnhem. After a difficult childhood—his father killed himself when ...

, who had read the account of the head during research for his 1997 novel ''

De zwarte met het witte hart ''The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi'' () is the 1997 debut novel by Dutch author Arthur Japin. The novel tells the story of two Ashanti princes, Kwame Poku and Kwasi Boachi, who were taken from what is today Ghana and given to the Dutch king Will ...

''. Japin found the head in 2005, stored in formaldehyde at the LUMC. In March 2009, government officials announced that it would be returned to its homeland for proper burial, a promise fulfilled on July 23, 2009, after a ceremony held in The Hague.

Citations

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Badu Bonsu Ii History of Ghana 1838 deaths Executed Ghanaian people 19th-century executions by the Netherlands People executed by the Netherlands by hanging Executed monarchs Year of birth unknown Ghanaian royalty