As a Ghanaian child growing up, you possibly should have heard stories about the great warrior Queen of the Ashanti Kingdom, Yaa Asantewaa who led his people to fight several wars.
One of these wars which made her popular in our Social Studies textbooks is the Yaa Asantewaa War which was fought between 1896 and 1900.
The genesis of the Yaa Asantewaa war was when the Ashanti peoples began to rebel against the British presence in their lands and the British attempt to construct the “Gold Coast” colony. To retaliate, the British captured and exiled Asantehene Prempeh I, King of the Ashanti, and Asantewaa’s grandson Kofi Tene, who was also a powerful leader.
Well, in those times, there were no cameras to capture the actual pictures of Yaa Asantewaa and many other individuals who did great things and achieved the unthinkable.
Most of the books had a picture of Yaa Asantewaa clad in a traditional bulletproof war jacket and combat holding a gun to her chest.
But a Twitter handle named “The Asante Nation” has said the popular picture of Yaa Asantewaa is actually misleading and does not represent who she actually is or how she looks.
According to this page; Yaa Asantewaa couldn’t have donned such a costume and pose purposely for the camera especially when there were no cameras in those days.
Yaa Asantewaa's effigy at Manhyia Palace Museum.
In the 1900’s cameras were rarely seen at the time. So it comes as no surprise if the image is not Yaa Asantewaa. Who is seriously and angrily going to war will stand a pose in a picture with such a drip adɛn? Imagine. pic.twitter.com/W9BcOOejKv
— The Asante Nation (@Ashanti_Kingdom) March 15, 2021
The Asante Nation believes the picture below is the actual image of Yaa Asantewaa and was taken at a time when she has fought the war and was later captured and exiled to the Seychells.
Yaa Asantewaa at the time of her capture at Sereso Temponmu after the war.
She was later taken to Seychelles Island. pic.twitter.com/1NtFLFMoM0
— The Asante Nation (@Ashanti_Kingdom) March 15, 2021
It is the same image captured as Yaa Asantewaa in my AFRICAN STUDIES" lecture notes. Smh https://t.co/priPY1dLAs
— Saddick Adams (@SaddickAdams) March 15, 2021
It doesn't matter Which picture Of Yaa Asantewaa is the truth or not, what matters is What she did.. No one should play down her Bravery And Heroic over what she looks like pic.twitter.com/0xYr4M03dV
— 1RexSarkcess👑🇬🇭🇰🇷 (@RexfordKingsley) March 15, 2021