 After the Dutch had driven the Swedish out of Butre , the director general of the Dutch West India Company , with headquarters in St. George d 'Elmina in the central Gold Coast , decided that it would be beneficial to negotiate a treaty with the local political leadership in order to establish a peaceful long @-@ term relationship . The Ahanta leaders found it equally beneficial to enter into such an agreement . The 1656 treaty signalled the definitive switch in European jurisdiction in the area until 1872 . 
