Fort Patience (Dutch: ''Fort Lijdzaamheid'', or, in 17th-century spelling, ''Fort Leydsaemheyt'') is a Dutch-built fort located in the township of

Apam Apam is a coastal town and capital of Gomoa West District in the Central Region of Ghana, located approximately 45 kilometers east of the Central Region capital, Cape Coast. Apam is the site of Fort Lijdzaamheid or Fort Patience, a Dutch-built ...

, in the Central Region of

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

. Originally built in 1697, it served as a defensive fortification and a trading post. Because of its testimony to European pre-colonial and colonial influence in West Africa, the fort was inscribed on the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

along with several other forts and castles in Ghana.

History

The fort was first built as a stone trading lodge in 1697 at the request of the King of Acron, with whom the Dutch had a treaty, and which was situated between the kingdoms of Fante and Agona, with whom the British had a treaty. The executives of the

Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company ( nl, Geoctrooieerde Westindische Compagnie, ''WIC'' or ''GWC''; ; en, Chartered West India Company) was a chartered company of Dutch merchants as well as foreign investors. Among its founders was Willem Usselincx ( ...

were quite wary to establish a fort in an area with minimal trade, and only consented on the condition that it would be built at minimal costs. The Acron were not happy with this, and frequently threatened the Dutch with expulsion if they would not extend the fortifications. As a result, it took the Dutch five years to complete the building, which is why they gave it the name ''Fort Patience''. By 1721 the lodge had been converted into a defensive fortification, which sat on a craggy peninsula just out from the township to the south, offering a commanding view of Apam's harbour to the north, and the Gulf Of Guinea coast to the south, east, and west. Early in 1782, Captain Thomas Shirley in the 50-gun ship ''Leander'' and the

sloop-of-war In the 18th century and most of the 19th, a sloop-of-war in the Royal Navy was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. The rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above; thus, the term ''sloop-of-war'' enco ...

''Alligator'' sailed to the

Dutch Gold Coast The Dutch Gold Coast or Dutch Guinea, officially Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea ( Dutch: ''Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea'') was a portion of contemporary Ghana that was gradually colonized by the Dutch, beginning in 161 ...

. Britain was at war with The Netherlands and Shirley captured the small Dutch forts at Moree ( Fort Nassau - 20 guns),

Kormantin Fort Amsterdam, is a former slave fort in Abandze, Central region, Ghana. It was built by the English between 1638 and 1645 as Fort Cormantin or Fort Courmantyne, and was captured by admiral Michiel de Ruyter of the Dutch West India Company in 1 ...

(Courmantyne or

Fort Amsterdam Fort Amsterdam was a fort on the southern tip of Manhattan at the confluence of the Hudson and East rivers. It was the administrative headquarters for the Dutch and then English/British rule of the colony of New Netherland and subsequently ...

- 32 guns),

(Fort Lijdzaamheid or Fort Patience - 22 guns),

Senya Beraku Senya Beraku is a residential area in the Awutu Senya District of the Central Region of Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Oce ...

( Fort Goede Hoop - 18 guns), and Accra (

Fort Crêvecoeur Ussher Fort is a fort in Accra, Ghana. It was built by the Dutch in 1649 as Fort Crèvecœur, and is a day's march from Elmina and to the east of Accra on a rocky point between two lagoons. It was one of three forts that Europeans built in the reg ...

- 32 guns).

Physical Structure

The original structure of the fort was a small two-storey stone lodge. The fort was reinforced by the Dutch between 1701 and 1721 into a demi-bastion on the northwest and the southeast. It served as a police station and a post office.

Call for Rehabilitation

On April 9, 2008, The Apam Youth and Development Association made an appeal to the National Museums and Monuments Board, the Dutch Embassy in Ghana, Gomoa District Assembly and other stakeholders to take urgent steps to save Fort Patience from further deterioration.

Gallery

File:Overzicht binnenplaats - Apam - 20375237 - RCE.jpg File:Overzicht voorgevel met bordes binnen de buitenmuur - Apam - 20375240 - RCE.jpg File:Overzicht gevel aan binnenplaats - Apam - 20375229 - RCE.jpg File:Overzicht voorplein vanaf de buitenmuur - Apam - 20375241 - RCE.jpg File:Overzicht bovenop hoekpunt rechts voor - Apam - 20375238 - RCE.jpg

References

Sources

External links

Ghana-pedia webpage - Fort Lijdzaamheid
{{Gold Coast Buildings and structures completed in 1679 Buildings and structures completed in 1721 History of Ghana Castles in Ghana Dutch Gold Coast World Heritage Sites in Ghana 1697 establishments in the Dutch Empire

Patience (or forbearance) is the ability to endure difficult circumstances. Patience may involve perseverance in the face of delay; tolerance of provocation without responding in disrespect/anger; or forbearance when under strain, especially when face ...