Swakopmund History 1
The Germans were somewhat daunted at the enormous task of trying to develop this vast and primitive desert
The Germans were somewhat daunted at the enormous task of trying to develop this vast and primitive desert land. The early pioneers were soon to realize that the new found colony would…
Swakopmund the German Colonial Period 1884 - 1915
Walvis Bay as early as 1878 and had an established firm presence there, so the mouth of the 'Tsauk-Haub' river with its lagoon of drinkable water was considered a possible location. In 1884 the Imperial Navy Gunboat 'Wolf' anchored off the mouth of the river and sent a landing party ashore to raise the German flag.
1889 Captain Kurt Von Francois with a small contingent of Schutztruppe landed at Sa Bay, previously named by the British, and known as Sandwich Harbour. They brought with them several camels, the first of many that would see service the country. The party journeyed north and scouted the area around the mouth of the Swakop River and submitted an encouraging report to the German authorities.
1892: Kurt von Francois:
The German Imperial Navy Gunboat 'Hyena' anchored off the mouth of the Tsauk-Haub River and
a landing party erected two beacons. One was positioned at point where the Mole is presently situated, and a second on a high dune, possibly where the lighthouse was eventually built. These beacons marked the place where the new town was to be built.
The ship offloaded at ' Swakopmund ' 120 Schutztruppe and 40 civilians along with a few livestock and equipment considered necessary to establish a settlement. There were no buildings in which to house the early pioneers and many dug and lived in sand caves in order to gain some shelter from the elements.
1894: The year witnessed the visit of four merchant vessels carrying many of the goods required to help with the building of the new town, and the following year saw five more vessels deliver goods to Swakopmund .
1897: The population had risen to 113. Post and Telegraphic services were quickly introduced and enabled contact with Europe and the world. The first telephone service in the country was introduced in Swakopmund in October 1901.
1904: The Herero Uprising on 11 January brought an initial chaos to the fledgling colony. The economy collapsed, but soon thousands of reinforcement troops along with all the paraphernalia of early twentieth century warfare would pour through Swakopmund until 1907 when the 'rebellions' were finally quelled.
Acknowledgements and further reading: A1,H5, H8, H11, M3, P2
Of Interest: The Hottentots referred to the mouth of the river as the 'Tsoak-haub' meaning to push out. They viewed the river when it flooded to the coast as being the earth's way of excreting the rubbish of the seasonally dry river into the sea. The Swakop River last flooded down to the sea in 1999. Silt and tree debris was washed into the sea which was colored brown for about three weeks.
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