The Big Six were six leaders of the
United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), one of the leading
political parties
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...
in the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
colony of the
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 ...
, known after independence as
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 ...
. They were detained by the colonial authorities in 1948 following
disturbances that led to the killing of three
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
veterans
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military veteran that has ...
. They are pictured on the front of the
Ghana cedi
The cedi ( ) (currency sign: GH₵; currency code: GHS) is the unit of currency of Ghana. It is the fourth historical and only current legal tender in the Republic of Ghana. One cedi is divided into one hundred pesewas (Gp).
After independen ...
notes.
The Big Six
Considered the founding fathers of present-day Ghana, the members of the Big Six were:
[
* ]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 ...
– first prime minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
and first president of Ghana
The president of the Republic of Ghana is the elected head of state and head of government of Ghana, as well as commander-in-chief of the Ghana Armed Forces. The current president of Ghana is Nana Akufo-Addo, who won the 2020 presidential elec ...
*Ebenezer Ako-Adjei
Dr. Ebenezer Ako Adjei (17 June 1916 – 14 January 2002) was a Ghanaian statesman, politician, lawyer and journalist. He was a founding member of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), the first political party of Ghana (then Gold Coast). A ...
– founding member of the UGCC
*Edward Akufo-Addo
Edward Akufo-Addo (26 June 1906 – 17 July 1979) was a Ghanaian politician and lawyer. He was a member of the " Big Six" leaders of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) and one of the founding fathers of Ghana who engaged in the fight for ...
– founding member of the UGCC and subsequently chief justice and president of Ghana
*Joseph Boakye Danquah
Joseph Kwame Kyeretwie Boakye Danquah (18 December 1895 – 4 February 1965) was a Ghanaian politician, scholar, lawyer, and one of the founding fathers of Ghana. He played a significant role in pre- and post-colonial Ghana, which was formerl ...
– founding member of the UGCC
*Emmanuel Obetsebi-Lamptey
Emmanuel Odarkwei Obetsebi-Lamptey (26 April 1902 – 29 January 1963) was a political activist in the British colony of the Gold Coast. He was one of the founding fathers of Ghana and one of the founders and leaders of the United Gold Coast Co ...
– founding member of the UGCC
*William Ofori Atta
William Ofori Atta (10 October 1910 – 14 July 1988), popularly called "Paa Willie", was a founding member of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) and one of the founding fathers of Ghana, as one of "The Big Six" detained by the British col ...
– founding member of the UGCC
Background
AWAM boycott
An organized boycott of European imports took place in January 1948. The aim was to get the foreign traders known as the Association of West African Merchants (AWAM) to reduce the prices of their goods.[ AWAM has become a term synonymous with cheating or profiteering in Ghana.
]
Christianborg cross-roads shooting
On 20 February 1948, Dr. Nkrumah and Dr. J. B. Danquah met and addressed World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
veterans who had been agitating for their end-of-service benefits following World War II at the Palladium Cinema, 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, , ...
.[ These veterans had fought with the ]Gold Coast Regiment
The Ghana Regiment is an infantry regiment that forms the main fighting element of the Ghanaian Army (GA).
History
The regiment was formed in 1879 as the Gold Coast Constabulary, from personnel of the Hausa Constabulary of Southern Nigeria, to pe ...
of the Royal West African Frontier Force
The West African Frontier Force (WAFF) was a multi-battalion field force, formed by the British Colonial Office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia. In 1928, it received royal recognition ...
and had not been paid their gratuities on their return home.Gerald Creasy
Sir Gerald Hallen Creasy (1 November 1897 – 9 June 1983) was a British colonial administrator. He served as Governor of the Gold Coast and Malta.
The "Christiansborg cross-roads shooting incident" that led to the 1948 Accra Riots occurred whi ...
about their poor conditions, unpaid war benefits and neglect.[ This led to another round of riots and looting in Accra during which foreign (European and Asian) stores were looted. The riots lasted for five days.][
]
Arrest of the Big Six
On the same day, following these disturbances, the United Gold Coast Convention
The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was a political party founded in 1947 whose aim was to bring about Ghanaian independence from their British colonial masters after the Second World War. The United Gold Coast Convention appointed its leade ...
(UGCC) leaders sent a cable to the Secretary of State in London.[
]"...unless Colonial Government is changed and a new Government of the people and their Chiefs installed at the centre immediately, the conduct of masses now completely out of control with strikes threatened in Police quarters, and rank and file Police indifferent to orders of Officers, will continue and result in worse violent and irresponsible acts by uncontrolled people.Constituent Assembly
A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...