African Company Act 1783

African Company of Merchants

Company type	Chartered company
Industry	Atlantic slave trade, trading
Predecessor	Royal African Company
Founded	1752
Defunct	1821
Headquarters	Cape Coast Castle , Gold Coast (modern Ghana)
Area served	Gold Coast (modern Ghana)
Key people	John Shoolbred (secretary), Charles MacCarthy (Governor of Sierra Leone, administrative control)

The African Company of Merchants, also known as the Company of Merchants Trading to Africa, was a British chartered company that operated between 1752 and 1821 along the Gold Coast—the area now part of modern Ghana—and was involved in the Atlantic slave trade.

Background

Formed under the provisions of the African Company Act 1750 (24 Geo. 2. c. 49), this company succeeded the earlier Royal African Company (founded in 1660) in 1752. Unlike its predecessor, it functioned as a regulated entity rather than a joint stock company. According to Clause IV of the Act:

The company managed nine trading posts or factories including Fort William, Fort James, Fort Sekondi, Fort Winneba, Fort Apollonia, Fort Tantumquery, Fort Metal Cross, Fort Komenda, with Cape Coast Castle serving as its main administrative hub. The coastal region was primarily inhabited by the native Fante people.

African Committee

Oversight rested with the African Committee, which consisted of nine members—three representatives each from the cities of London, Liverpool, and Bristol. These members were elected annually from among traders who paid an admission fee of 40 shillings. Committee service was limited to a maximum tenure of three years. Nonetheless, their conduct came under public scrutiny through pamphlets published in 1772.

The committee's operations were financed by an annual Parliamentary subsidy that covered expenses related to the London office and maintenance of forts. It submitted reports to the Exchequer, the Admiralty, and starting in 1782, to the Secretary at War. Among its notable officials was John Shoolbred (1740–1802), who served as secretary for several years and was related to a prominent vaccination proponent.

After the 1807 imperial abolition of the African slave trade, the company briefly maintained its activities. Administrative control transferred to Governor Charles MacCarthy of Sierra Leone—a settlement established for freed enslaved individuals—who later lost his life during the First Anglo-Asante War. In 1817, the company entered into a treaty acknowledging the sovereignty of the Asante over extensive coastal territories, including areas claimed by the Fante. However, once it became known that slave trading had continued within its jurisdiction, the British government terminated the company in 1821.

See also

• List of committee members of the African Company of Merchants
• Ashanti–Akim–Akwapim War
• Thomas Edward Bowdich