If you are like me, you probably did not know that Denmark (and Norway) was involved in slavery in Africa, and that Denmark had several colonies, and forts in Africa, and exported slaves to its colonies in the Americas. Just last week, Denmark erected its first public statue of a Black woman, a rebel Queen, in Copenhagen; this was the statue of Queen Mary, a Black slave who led the slave uprising in the Virgin islands. The sculpture was inspired by Mary Thomas, known as one of “the three queens.” Thomas , along with two other female leaders Agnes and Matilda, unleashed an uprising in 1878 called the “Fireburn.” Fifty plantations and most of the town of Frederiksted in St. Croix were burned, in what has been called the largest labor revolt in Danish colonial history.
Denmark was one of the Signatory Powers to the Berlin Act of 26th February, 1885 (No. 17), as well as to the Brussels Act of 2nd July, 1890 (No. 18); she has also entered into Treaty Arrangements with the Congo Free State (No. 45).
By a Convention dated 17th August, 1850, ‘the Danish forts and Possessions on the Gold Coast were ceded to Her Britannic Majesty for the sum of £10,000.
The following are extracts from that Convention:—
Preamble.
“ HIS Majesty the King of Denmark having offered to cede to Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland all the forts and Possessions belonging to the Crown of Denmark, situated on that part of the coast of Africa which is called the Gold Coast, or the Coast of Guinea, and Her Britannic Majesty having resolved to accept that offer, their said Majesties have named as their Plenipotentiaries to conclude a Convention for carrying such cession into effect, that is to say :”
[Here follow the names of the Plenipotentiaries.]
Cession of Danish Forts and Territorial Rights on the Gold Coast, or Coast of Guinea.
“ART. I. In consideration of the sum of £10,000 sterling, to be paid by Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to His Majesty the King of Denmark, on the exchange of the Ratifications of the present Convention,+‘
His Danish Majesty cedes to Her Britannic Majesty, to be possessed by Her Britannic Majesty, her heirs and successors, in full property and Sovereignty, all the forts belonging to the Crown of Denmark, which are situated on that part of the Coast of Africa called the Gold Coast or the Coast of Guinea, and which comprise Fort Christiansborg,1 Fort Augustaborg,2 Fort Fredensborg,3 Fort Kongensteen,4 and Fort Prindsensteen,5 with their appurtenances and all the guns and stores contained therein, together with all other Possessions, property, and territorial rights whatever belonging to His Danish Majesty on the said coast.” The exact extent of the Possessions thus ceded was not at that time clearly defined; but, on the 9th May, l887, the Kings and Chiefs of the country of Aquamoo signed a Declaration acknowledging that they and their country formed part of the Protectorate of Her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland on the Gold Coast, and that they were subject to the jurisdiction and authority of Her Majesty, and declaring that they had that belief inasmuch as their country of old enjoyed similar protection from His Majesty the King of Denmark, who, they said, they understood had ceded his right and title to their country to the British Crown in 1850.
On the 1st July, 1890, an Agreement was entered into between Great Britain and Germany, for defining their respective spheres of influence on the Gold Coast and in other parts of Africa (No. 129); and on the 14th April, l893, a further agreement was entered into between the two countries for defining the limits of their respective spheres from the Gulf of Guinea into the Interior (No. 131).
1 Fort Christiansborg (Accra).
2 Fort Augustaborg (Adda).
3 Fort Fredensborg (Fingo).
5 Fort Prindsensteen (Quetta).
African Heritage 
Danish forts – this was news to me, Dr. Y. Thank you for this enlightening post.
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That was eye-opening. Your post gave me some theories about the maternal side of my family. Since Denmark and Norway were involved in colonization and slave trade given your findings and where they were in Africa, I think there’s something more atrocious in hindsight for my ancestors. The lowest percentage I got in my DNA test was Norwegian and I found out it came from my mom’s side with my dad being mainly of British and Welsh descent with no Scandinavian heritage. Since we both have multiple West African groups (many of them would’ve lived on what’s considered the Gold Coast) outside of what I got from Congo and Cameroon, I think some of those colonizers could’ve possibly sexually abused my ancestors. It’s just a theory, but you seriously made me think about this.
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Wooo… such a history… If you ever get a chance to read “Ama, a story of the Atlantic Slave Trade” by Manu Herbstein, you will read about the Dutch in the slave trade in the Gold Coast. It is a historical fiction tough to read… but has some good historical information. It also describes some of the slave trade in Brazil.
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Thanks for the book recommendation. I’ll check it out whenever I get some reading time. Those stories can be so heartbreaking, but powerful.
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