British imperialism, administration, and society in Colonial Ghana, 1874-1957

This study explores the impact of British imperialism on states in colonial Ghana. The study attempts to examine colonial Ghana states' social, political, and economic structures both within the context of the colonial power structure and among the local states. Extensive literature exists on the history of Ghana as well as on colonialism. However, most of the works shed light on African responses and reactions to colonialism rather than how their approaches aided the social transformations that occurred. The present study seeks to challenge that by highlighting the role of the Traditional Rulers and educated Gold Coasters in tandem with the British imperial policies. To unravel this, the study requires the explanation of longitudinal social transformations, overtime politico-economic activities, natives' propositions, British imperial policies, and their denouement. In brief, the work seeks to highlight the role of the Traditional Rulers and educated Gold Coasters in what could be classified as the processes of institutionalization and bureaucratization in colonial Ghana. The study used archival sources with secondary sources. A corpus of first-hand data on colonial records, chieftaincy, reports of committees of inquiry, etc., provided vital information on imperial and local policies that profoundly influenced change in Ghana. The archival documents explicated how deeply the Traditional Rulers were involved in establishing Indirect Rule in the country. Adding information from the memoirs of both imperial and local officials further clarified the nature of their interactions. Keywords: Ghana, Britain, Society, Colonisation, Native Administration System