Thomas Edward Bowdich was a British explorer whose 1817 diplomatic mission to the Ashanti Empire in modern-day Ghana provided the earliest and most detailed European account of the kingdom at the peak of its power. Whats most disturbing is how Bowdich and his wife parlayed with the Ashanti: negotiated a peace treaty, explored their massive gold treasury, celebrated with them during their majestic Yam Festival, detailed their court pageantry, all -with the sole intention of conquering and slaught