DEI, KWADZO
- 2 Min Read
Kwadzo Dei I was the ruler of Peki, about 70 mi (12 km) northeast of Accra, one of the component states of Krepi, who reigned during the earlier 19th century. In 1833 he ended the hegemony of Akwamu over Peki and other Krepi states. He also laid the foundations of a greater Peki state.
In the 18th century Akamu had extended its control over Peki and its neighbours. When Kwadzo Dei became the chief of Peki he did so as a vassal of Akwamu, to which, in the earlier years of his reign, he remained loyal. In 1826 he led a division of the Akwamu forces commanded by Akoto, ruler of Akwamu, at the battle of Katamanso (Akantamansu), at which a coalition of forces, including the Akwamu and the British, defeated the Asante army.
In 1829 and 1831 he again supported Akoto when he repressed rebellion in the towns of Awudome, and Nyive, about 70 mi (112 km) on what is now the Ghana-Togo border. Not long after, however, Kwadzo Dei himself rebelled against Akwamu authority. Tiring of fighting Akoto’s battles for him, he defied him in 1833, and then made preparations for the inevitable war that was to follow. Mobilising the chiefs and people of Peki, he appealed to the Krepi states and town to unite and fight for independence. He also arranged a pact of unity between Peki and the neighboring towns of Awudome, Anum, a few miles southwest of Peki, and Boso, near Anum, which had also renounced their allegiance to Akwamu.
This pact was the genesis of a new composite state of Peki, comprising the original Peki plus the three towns. The ruler of Peki was paramount in the new state, with the chiefs of Awudome and Boso ranking next in authority to him.
About 35 Krepi states responded to Kwadzo Dei’s call. In a series of fierce battles, Akwamu and its allies were defeated, thus establishing Krepi independence. Following these victories, the other Krepi towns began to regard Peki as their protector and to accept its leadership.
D. E. K. AMENUMEY
