Cape Coast Castle

First built by the Swedes in 1653 as Fort Carolusborg, Cape Coast Castle was fought over by Danes, Dutch, local Fetu chiefs and, finally, the British, who seized and renamed it in 1664. From a booming hub of the trans-Atlantic slave trade it became Britain’s colonial headquarters in the Gold Coast until 1877, later shifting to commerce and education.

Today the restored seaside fortress operates as a museum and Ghana Museums & Monuments Board office, inviting visitors to walk through nearly four centuries of layered history.