William Towerson

William Towerson was an English merchant and adventurer who is credited with opening the African trade to England. His three maritime expeditions (1555, 1556-1557, and 1558) represented the beginning of interference in the monopoly over the maritime trade with the West Africa imposed by the Portuguese. His crew reached Guinea and Benin where in a peaceful manner exchanged goods and returned back to England with the valuable cargo of ivory, gold and pepper. In 1589 his detailed record of his experiences that serve as a valuable source of the Gold Coast, its business potential and people was published.