British Togoland
British Togoland was a mandate of the League of Nations or Trust Territory of the United Nations in West Africa between 1918 and 1957 .
Creation of British Togoland
British Togoland was created as a result of the division of the former German colony of Togo in the wake of the First World War . At the end of August 1914, a few weeks after the outbreak of war, France and Great Britain occupied this German colony after rejecting the German governor's offer to accept Togo as a neutral territory. The German governor had advertised his offer by pointing out “the bad example for the natives” when European soldiers and local auxiliaries shoot at each other. Nevertheless, French troops had marched into the north and British troops into the south of the German colony. Large parts of the Ewe people , who made up the majority in South Togo, had welcomed this division, since they were now united under British rule with their relatives in the British colony of Gold Coast . However, the French and British agreed on a division into a British west and a French east part of the area, whereby the people of the Ewe were again divided, this time into a British and a French part.
In 1918 the British part became the “Mandate British Togoland” by a decision of the League of Nations, which was incorporated into the Gold Coast as Trans-Volta-Togo.
Incorporation into the state of Ghana
In May 1956 there was a referendum in British Togoland as to whether the area should be added to the newly emerging state of Ghana . The majority of the population as a whole spoke out in favor, even if the majority of the Ewe (i.e. the majority in the south of the voting area) voted against. British Togoland then became independent in 1957, together with the then British colony of the Gold Coast as part of the new state of Ghana, but Ewe nationalism was a problem for the young state of Ghana for a long time. So several rebel groups such. B. Togoland Unification Movement (movement to unite Togolands) and Ewe Unification Movement (movement to unite the Ewe).
The French part, on the other hand, gained its independence in 1960 under the name Togo .
Individual evidence
- ↑ History of the Volta Region ( Memento of the original from September 26, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved February 13, 2011
