“The War of the Insects” (<i>nkoekoemmaa no akodi</i>)

I was perhaps the earliest researcher to work consistently in the very rich Asante royal archives placed on public deposit in Kumasi. These were and are fundamental to any deep understanding of Asante history and culture. This work was forbiddingly onerous and demanding in the 1970s. My persistence then earned me the trust and support of Asantehene Opoku Ware II (1970–1999) and this has been maintained by his successor, the present Asantehene Osei Tutu II. The broader lesson I draw from my experience is that the history of any African people can only be recuperated through long term research on the ground among those people.