Ghana was the British colony in Africa known as the Gold Coast. The British Gold Coast occupied territory on the Gulf of Guinea and became independent as Ghana on March 6, 1957.
European traders used the name “Gold Coast” because the region had significant gold resources. Portuguese traders reached the coast in 1471 and built Elmina Castle in 1483. Dutch, Danish, British, and other merchants later established forts and trading posts along the coast, including places involved in the Atlantic slave trade.
British control expanded gradually through treaties, purchases, and conflicts with African states, especially the Asante kingdom. The British acquired the Danish Gold Coast in 1850 and the Dutch Gold Coast, including Elmina, in 1872. Asante was incorporated into the British colonial system in the early 20th century.
At independence, Ghana united the Gold Coast Colony with Ashanti, the Northern Territories, and British Togoland. The names Gambia, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria refer to separate British colonies in West Africa.