Opoku Ware II.

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Otomfu Opoku Ware II during an audience in 1980

Otumfuo Opoku Ware II (born November 30, 1919 in Kumasi , Ghana ; † February 26, 1999 ibid) was the 15th Asantehene , i.e. ruler, of the Kingdom of the Ashanti in Ghana.

Career

The future ruler was born in 1919 with the name Jacob Matthew Poku in Kumasi, central Ghana, in the then British colony of Gold Coast into a royal family of the Ashanti . At that time, Prempeh I was Asantehene, who was succeeded by his nephew Prempeh II in 1931 . Prempeh II in turn was the uncle of Opoku Ware II. Jacob Matthew Poku was one of several successor candidates for the office of Asantehene, among which the Queen Mother or Nana Asantehemaa had to choose. After attending an Anglican school, Poku attended Adisadel College in Cape Coast . He then worked as a building inspector and from 1937 to 1943 for the Office for Public Buildings.

He trained as a surveyor and worked at the Kumasi Traditional Council Hall and Kwame Nkrumah University . In 1945 he married Victoria, who was also a member of the royal family. In 1950 he went to Britain to study law and received a license as 1962 Lawyer . After returning to his home country, he first worked in the capital Accra and finally founded a company in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti region. Because of his success as a lawyer, Poku gained great respect within the politics of the Ashanti area. In 1968 the National Liberation Council of the military government appointed him Commissioner of Communications.

In 1970 he was appointed Ghanaian ambassador to Italy , but shortly afterwards his uncle, the Asantehene Prempeh II, died. Due to his successes in the fields of law and politics, he was chosen as his uncle's successor and enthroned as Asantehene. As king, Opoku Ware II maintained good relations with the Ghanaian President Ignatius Kutu Acheampong and later also with the next President Jerry Rawlings . He focused on trying to enforce traditional Ashanti law rather than meddling in national politics. Similar to his predecessors, he rarely appeared in public and was usually represented by a speaker. When he appeared in public he was, as tradition dictated, dressed in gold and fine Kente fabric.

In 1995 or 1996 his wife Victoria died. He died on February 26, 1999. His successor was Osei Tutu II after a period of mourning on April 26 .

swell

  1. ↑ a b c Walker, James: "Obituary: King Opoku Ware II of Ashanti". The Independent. March 5, 1999.
  2. ↑ a b Kaufman, Michael T .: "Opoku Ware II, King of Asante, Is Dead at 89." New York Times . March 4, 1999.
  3. ^ "Hail The New King". In: Africa News Service. April 29, 1999.
personal data
SURNAME Opoku Ware II.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Otumfuo Opoku Ware II.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Ghanaian ruler of the Ashanti Kingdom in Ghana
DATE OF BIRTH November 30, 1919
PLACE OF BIRTH Kumasi
DATE OF DEATH February 26, 1999
Place of death Kumasi