Building the Ghanaian Nation-State: Kwame Nkrumah’s Symbolic Nationalism (African Histories and Modernities)

African countries. and internationally have used similar symbols of nationhood to rewrite, reinterpret, or reaffirm this Nkrumah-centric version of Ghanaian history. Indeed, all of the accomplishments and challenges of the late Ghanaian leader, coupled with the various books and articles that continue to be published about him, go a long way in demonstrating axiomatically that, in line with the thinking of the members of the Ghana Young Pioneers Movement, maybe Nkrumah, in symbolic terms, never really dies intellectually, but, of course, physically! As the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from a European imperial power, Ghana has always occupied a position of primacy in the African political and historical imagination. This is due in no small part to the indelible impression left by its first president, the charismatic and self-promoting Kwame Nkrumah, who by his death had become one of the most iconic figures of the postcolonial era. Nkrumah's legacy has long been the subject of debate, with some depicting him as a pioneering nationalist and others as a dictatorial megalomaniac, and the political, social, and global-historical dimensions of his presidency have been thoroughly studied. At the same time, the symbolic, semiotic, iconographical, and ephemeral strategies he used to consolidate power and construct a coherent Ghanaian nation-state have been largely neglected by scholars. This innovative study of Nkrumah and Ghana offers a fascinating look at his propagandistic use of political iconography through 'symbols of nationhood' such as currency, postage stamps, museums, monuments, Adinkra symbols, the national anthem, emblems, and both national and party flags. As author Harcourt Fuller demonstrates here, the premiership of the self-proclaimed Founder of the State of Ghana was mainly characterized by a cult of personality wherein Nkrumah branded the national flock with his image by personalizing public symbols of nationhood Front Matter....Pages i-xxxii Introduction....Pages 1-19 Banal Symbols of the New Nation-State....Pages 21-38 Philatelic Nationalism....Pages 39-53 Economic Nationalism....Pages 55-68 Civitatis Ghaniensis Conditor....Pages 69-80 Exhibiting the Nation....Pages 81-117 Monumental Nationalism....Pages 119-132 Pan-African Nationalism....Pages 133-147 The Downfall of Kwame Nkrumah....Pages 149-162 The Death and Symbolic “Resurrection” of Kwame Nkrumah....Pages 163-174 From “Redeemer” to Redeemed?....Pages 175-188 Conclusion....Pages 189-192 Back Matter....Pages 193-262 The Symbolism Of Ghanaian Nationalism -- Banal Symbols Of The New Nation-state -- Philatelic Nationalism -- Economic Nationalism -- Civitatis Ghaniensis Conditor -- Exhibiting The Nation -- Monumental Nationalism -- Pan-african Nationalism -- The Downfall Of Kwame Nkrumah -- The Death And Symbolic Resurrection Of Kwame Nkrumah -- From Redeemer To Redeemed? Harcourt Fuller. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 231-249) And Index. Ghana has always held a position of primacy in the African political and historical imagination, due in no small part to the indelible impression left president Kwame Nkrumah. This study examines the symbolic strategies he used to construct the Ghanaian state through currency, stamps, museums, flags, and other public icons.