Кумаси қаласының негізін қалаушылар туралы даулар

It is unclear about who out of Oti Akenten, Obiri Yeboa and Osei Tutu founded Kumasi, or at least had its name changed. This is because Kwaaman is in the same place as Kumasi (Kwaaman is Kumasi). Most accounts tell that it was Osei Tutu who, with the help of Akomfo Anokye, founded Kumasi after growing trees in 3 places and seeing which tree grew the best. However, it is also said that it was Obiri Yeboa who founded Kumasi in an attempt to move his capital away from his Denkyrian overlords, which makes sense as he was the first hene to form the "Asante" (It wasn't called the Asante yet) coalition against the Dormaa. But then there's Oti Akenten, who waged a series of successful military operations against neighbouring Akan states, bringing a larger surrounding territory into alliance with the Kwaaman state, which can also be known as the Kumaseman state from this point forwards. This suggests that the chief settlement of Kwaaman has already been renamed Kumasi or Kumase and that the tale of its founding by Osei Tutu has been lifted from earlier tradition. The first time we hear the term Asante in history is out of the mouth of the king of Denkyira, Ntim Gyakari before his execution. He utters "esa nti" which means "because of war". He said this because it was because of war with the Denkyiras that the Akan city states that would form the Asante Union joined. The Amantoo was the region of Akan speaking peoples, with almost all of the chiefs of the Amantoo belonged to the same clan, which gave them an idea of a union of peoples was already instilled.

The man said to be the creator of the Asante Empire was born Osei Kofi Tutu Opemsoo in around 1660 in the town of Kokofu Anyinam, in the Ashanti Region of modern day Ghana, which was also the hometown of his mother. His father was Owusu Panyin, an Akan noble from the Adanse area, who was the chief Esiase. His mother Maanu Kotosii, was from Kokofu and was the sister of the hene of the Asantemanso and later Kwaaman, Obiri Yeboa, and his brother, who was either the ruler of the lost Asante city of Asantemansu or the ruler of Kwaaman, Oti Akenten. It is said that Osei Tutu's mother was barren for many years, and she, her husband and her brother Obiri Yeboa consulted a powerful and famous shrine called Otutu, whose deity was the deity of the river Kakaawere, in the land Akuapem to obtain a blessing so his sister and brother in law could have a child, with Kotosii making two promises: 1) She would reward the river's deity if it allowed her to reach home before she gave birth and 2) she would also show appreciation to the deity if it allowed her to reach home before she gave birth. She fulfilled her promises by naming her child Tutu, after the shrine. Due to the matrilineal succession the Akan practiced, it meant that Osei Tutu was to be the heir to the Kwaaman throne. Osei Tutu was of the Oyoko abusua (tribe), an abusua which (according to legend) was formed from the Eukona abusua after a portion of the clan who broke the Eukona abusua taboo and ate the meat of a buffalo. The people were then referred to as Owekuo, or Oyoko: Those who eat buffalo meat.

Little is known about the childhood of Osei Tutu, but most of what is known and told about his life is from when he turned sixteen. At the age of sixteen, the age where Akan boys were now seen as men, a representative of the Denkyirahene travelled into Kwaaman and demanded that Osei Tutu to come with him. This was not unusual, as the Denkyira had a long standing practice of holding the heirs to their subordinate kings as hostage to ensure compliance. However, while he was a captive, Osei Tutu was not a prisoner in the traditional sense. Political prisoners like the Osei Tutu were treated with intense respect, thus they have a positive view of the Denkyira when they are eventually released to rule their state. So, rather than being locked in a dungeon, Osei Tutu was essentially a guest in the Denkyirahene's palace, albeit one that was not allowed to leave.

However, these were not the only activities Osei Tutu was partaking in Abankesesso. It is said that Osei Tutu, even in his childhood, was a strong, handsome male, with all the marks of Akan royalty. Others say that it was in Akwamu, where some stories state that the two met after Osei Tutu interceded to save the life of Okomfo Anokye when Anokye killed his own grandmother. However, it was certain that by the time Osei Tutu was in Akwamu, the two had certainly met and became best friends, becoming inseparable. Okomfo Anokye would aid Osei Tutu in his future war with the Denkyrians and in the making of the Asante Empire using his spiritual, strong oratorical skills and considerable intellectual and psychological abilities to influence many of the regional states to unite under Osei Tutu and gain military and political strength, which they could use to confront their enemies. Osei Tutu agreed, and he sent word to Okomfo Anokye via his 'mouth' (the royal linguist). Manu knew he would come to Kwaaman to reunite with Osei Tutu, whom he loved and honored, so she decided to make Kwaaman ready for the arrival for the famous Okomfo. So, she sent out, via her servants, for the plants and animals which would be pleasing to the abosom, and she and her women busied themselves with the necessary rites. Then Osei Tutu sent out messengers, summoning his people and those of the Amantoo to Kwaaman telling the messengers to tell the chiefs that the main agenda being the amalgamation of all the Amantooe Chiefs under one paramount Chief whose stool would be greater than all the other stools. He knew in his mind that Okomfo Anokye would in some way have prepared for him a great thing against his enemies.

Osei Tutu's greatest reforms were that of the military of the Amantoo coalition. Using what he had learned in Akwamu and the Akwamu warriors who were now effectively military advisors, he quickly got to work using his funds and money in the coalition's treasury to improve his military. He promised pay to his soldiers after battle, raising morale and giving the soldiers a reason not just for why they should fight, but why they should try to win. He also split the army into several components. A scouting regiment tracked enemy forces, sabotaged their paths, and launched guerrilla style sniper attacks. They were originally made up with hunters, who were skilled in the requirements needed for the military component of the scout. The forward guard, composed of the best trained members of the Ashanti army would fiercely attack the enemy, forcing the enemy into a static defensive position. The four wings would then move around the pinned enemy, attempting to encircle the enemy. The main body provided a manpower reserve for whichever part of the army needed reinforcements. Meanwhile, the rear guard of the army sat at the back of the force, protecting against encirclement. Officers and nobility were protected by a specialized group of bodyguards meant to protect these critical people from being hurt or killed in a potential defeat, a call back to the death of Obiri Yeboa. Either later or at the same time a horde of medics, engineers, supply transporters, and foragers, meant to support the army in non combat matters, were introduced. Most accounts, though, say that Boamponsem was dead by the time, having ruled for around 40 years at that point. The casus belli most sources agree on for the start of the war was that Ntim Gyakari started to demand higher payments from his tributes, specifically from the Amantoo after hearing of their alliance turn into a union without his consent. He sent ambassadors with a large brass pan and demanded the following:

That each chief was to cut off one of his fingers and add to the gold dust to be sent to Denkyira. but in other accounts, it was around half left Denkyria to go and join the Amantoo, as by most accounts Ntim Gyakari was not a good ruler. His last words are also debated as some sources don't state Ntim's last words, whilst some say they were "esa nti"; "because of war". He would've said this because it was because of war with the Denkyiras that the Akan city states that would form the Asante Union joined. One thing is clear, however. The Denkyrians were completely ransacked by the war's end in 1707, with vast amounts of war treasure being brought back to Kumase. It is said that the period of plundering went on for 15 consecutive days, with the body of Boamponsem being exhumed, the flesh being removed to feed to serpents and snakes, and his skull and thigh bones being carried off as war trophies, as well as 3 small cannons gifted to Gyakari by the Dutch East India Company to fight the Amantoo. (If only I knew), an apparent reference to his having underestimated the Akyem. Till the present day the occupant of the Golden Stool is forbidden to cross River Pra.

Osei Kofi Tutu I and his adviser, Okomfo Anokye, forged the Asante Union from a number of different Abusua groups who submerged their old rivalries and hatred for the common good—the overthrow of their common oppressor, the Denkyira. Skillfully utilizing a combination of spiritual dogma and political skill, and ably supported by military prowess, he tripled the size of the small kingdom of Kumasi which he had inherited from his uncle Obiri Yeboa and laid the foundation for the Empire of Ashanti in the process. A shrine in Anyinam commemorates the birth of Osei Tutu. The village chief told Gus Casely Hayford regarding Osei Tutu: "He was more than a man, he was our messiah, brave, intelligent, someone who through almost force of will forged this country. He built a culture, it did not evolve; it was made by a great man."