Fort Dorothea, 17th-century fort in Akwidaa, Ghana

Fort Dorothea is a fort at Akwidaa, Ghana, begun in 1684 as a triangular field schanze with a palisade fence and a simple stone shelter. From 1686 granite and lime from Königsberg were shipped in; the final layout had two landward bastions, a seaward front, a curtain wall with the main gate, and a dwelling and storehouse behind it. It was fully built by 1693.

Brandenburg colonists built the fort in 1684 following an agreement with local leaders, establishing a trading base on the Gold Coast. It later faced military attacks that weakened it, eventually passing into Dutch control.

The fort is named after the second wife of Brandenburg's ruler and stands as a meeting point between European traders and coastal African communities. Visitors walking through can sense how this historical exchange shaped what the place became.

The fort sits near Akwidaa village on the coast and can be reached on foot or by local transportation. It is best visited during the dry season when local roads are more passable.

In 1711, the African broker Jan Conny withdrew into the fort, which was then stormed and badly damaged by African forces under Dutch and English command; the three Brandenburgers inside were taken prisoner. The new governor Nicholas Dubois, who arrived on 27 December 1711, recovered it by negotiation on 8 February 1712. In June 1712 heavy rain undermined a bastion and it collapsed.