Colonial Roots and Rising Tensions (1884-1903)
The seeds of the Herero and Namaqua genocide were planted in 1884, when Namibia, then known as German South West Africa, was officially colonized by the German Empire. The Herero and Nama, two prominent ethnic groups of the region, had thrived as semi-nomadic pastoralists for centuries, with their livelihoods centered on cattle farming. Initially, relations between the indigenous groups and the German settlers were relatively peaceful, but the discovery of diamonds and the increasing influx of settlers in the 1890s changed everything.
German colonizers, under imperial policy, began systematically seizing land and resources, forcing the local Herero and Nama people into marginalized, resource-poor areas. As the settlers took control of prime land, the indigenous populations were stripped of their access to vital resources, particularly grazing land and water, which were essential for their cattle and survival. The Germans introduced oppressive laws, including labor regulations that forced the Herero and Nama into near-slave labor conditions, working for German settlers and the colonial administration.
As conditions worsened, resentment grew. The Herero, under the leadership of their chief, Samuel Maherero, tried to negotiate with the Germans to no avail. The colonial administration’s blatant disregard for their rights, compounded by aggressive land seizures, led to widespread suffering and loss. By 1903, the Herero population, in particular, was on the brink of starvation, with many forced into debt slavery to keep their cattle and families alive. Frustration, exploitation, and broken promises paved the way for open rebellion.
The situation escalated in early 1904 when a German trader killed a Herero man over a trivial dispute, igniting long-buried anger. Tensions reached a boiling point, and on January 12, 1904, Samuel Maherero led the Herero in a coordinated uprising. The Herero attacked German settlements and military outposts, killing around 100 German settlers. The uprising marked the start of what would become one of the most brutal genocides of the early 20th century.
Books for Reference
“The Kaiser’s Holocaust: Germany’s Forgotten Genocide and the Colonial Roots of Nazism” by David Olusoga and Casper Erichsen
This book provides a comprehensive history of the Herero and Namaqua genocide and its broader context within German colonial rule. It explores the racial ideologies that were developed during the genocide and how they influenced later events in Nazi Germany. The authors also discuss the long-lasting impact of the genocide on Namibia.“Genocide in German South-West Africa: The Colonial War of 1904-1908 and its Aftermath” by Jürgen Zimmerer and Joachim Zeller
This academic work focuses on the broader implications of the genocide and its aftermath. It includes essays from various scholars examining the genocide from multiple perspectives, such as its influence on future genocidal policies and its significance in the broader context of European colonialism.
German Retaliation and the Order of Extermination (1904)
The Herero uprising in January 1904 caught the German colonial authorities by surprise. In retaliation, the German government sent General Lothar von Trotha to quell the rebellion. Known for his ruthless military tactics in suppressing uprisings in East Africa, von Trotha arrived in Namibia in June 1904 with a large force of 10,000 soldiers, intent on crushing the Herero and imposing absolute control.
Von Trotha’s approach was brutal and uncompromising. In August 1904, the decisive Battle of Waterberg marked the turning point in the conflict. The Herero, led by Chief Samuel Maherero, were trapped by the Germans near the Waterberg plateau. The Herero forces, armed mostly with spears and a limited supply of firearms, were no match for the well-equipped German military. Although some Herero managed to break through the German lines and flee into the arid Kalahari Desert, many were killed in the battle.
In the aftermath of the battle, von Trotha issued his infamous Vernichtungsbefehl (Extermination Order) on October 2, 1904. The order stated:
“The Herero are no longer German subjects. They have chosen the path of war. Within the German borders, every Herero, with or without a weapon, will be shot. I no longer accept women and children; I will drive them back to their people or have them shot.”
This declaration was the formal beginning of genocide. Under von Trotha’s orders, the German forces hunted down the fleeing Herero in the desert, blocking access to water sources, poisoning wells, and shooting anyone they encountered. Those who survived the initial slaughter faced an equally harrowing fate: death by starvation or dehydration in the unforgiving Kalahari Desert.
The Nama people, who had initially remained neutral, were next to be targeted. In 1905, under their leader Hendrik Witbooi, the Nama joined the resistance, realizing that the Germans sought to annihilate all indigenous groups. Von Trotha extended his campaign of extermination to include the Nama, who faced similar brutality.
This phase of the conflict marked a shift from rebellion to systematic ethnic cleansing, with von Trotha using genocidal tactics to assert German dominance. His extermination order resulted in the near-destruction of the Herero people, with estimates suggesting that over 80% of the Herero population was wiped out during this period. The Nama suffered similarly catastrophic losses, with around half of their population killed.
Concentration Camps and Forced Labor (1904–1908)
After the initial slaughter in the Kalahari Desert and the failure of the German forces to completely annihilate the Herero and Nama in battle, the German colonial administration shifted tactics. Those Herero and Nama who survived were systematically rounded up and sent to concentration camps, where the true horrors of the genocide unfolded.
The most notorious of these camps was on Shark Island, located near the coastal town of Lüderitz. Shark Island became a death camp where Herero and Nama prisoners were subjected to horrific conditions. Men, women, and children were held in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions, without adequate shelter, food, or water. Disease was rampant, and malnutrition claimed many lives. Prisoners were forced into brutal labor, constructing railways and roads under the harshest conditions, often working to the point of collapse or death.
By 1906, it was estimated that the death rate in these camps was as high as 45%. The German colonial authorities viewed the prisoners as expendable labor, and there were few efforts to improve conditions. The work was grueling, and even for those who survived the camps, the physical and psychological toll was devastating. Those who were not worked to death often succumbed to diseases like typhus or smallpox.
Women in the camps were subjected to sexual violence at the hands of German soldiers, and many children born from these assaults became targets of further abuse. Dr. Eugen Fischer, a German anthropologist, conducted medical experiments on mixed-race children born from the rapes. Fischer’s so-called “scientific” findings on racial purity and inferiority would later influence Nazi ideology, particularly the racial policies that Adolf Hitler embraced in the 1930s. Fischer’s racist theories formed the foundation for much of the Nazi regime’s racial pseudoscience, including the justification for medical experimentation during the Holocaust.
Shark Island and other camps symbolized the dehumanization and systematic extermination of the Herero and Namaqua people. The death toll in these camps was staggering, and historians estimate that tens of thousands perished in these brutal conditions. The survivors, broken physically and mentally, faced a future in which their lands, cattle, and independence were completely lost, their cultures forever scarred by the genocide.
Aftermath, Legacy, and the Road to Recognition
The Herero and Nama genocide left deep scars not only on the survivors but also on the future of Namibia. By the end of the campaign in 1908, over 80% of the Herero and nearly 50% of the Nama people had been exterminated. Survivors were left landless, their cattle—their primary source of wealth and sustenance—confiscated by the Germans. Their culture, once vibrant and autonomous, was reduced to a shadow of its former self, as they were either assimilated into the German colonial structure or driven into poverty and exile.
Following the genocide, Namibia remained under German colonial rule until the end of World War I, when the League of Nations transferred control of the region to South Africa. Under South African rule, a system of apartheid was imposed, which continued to marginalize the indigenous population. Despite the genocide, the oppression and exploitation of the Herero, Nama, and other indigenous groups continued throughout much of the 20th century.
Efforts to gain international recognition of the genocide were slow. For decades, the atrocities were largely forgotten by the global community, overshadowed by later genocides, such as the Holocaust. However, as the 20th century progressed, the descendants of the Herero and Nama began to demand recognition and reparations.
In 1999, the discovery of mass graves in the Kalahari Desert helped reignite calls for justice. In 2004, a century after the atrocities, the German government officially acknowledged its responsibility for the genocide. In a symbolic gesture, Germany’s development minister expressed regret for the atrocities committed by their colonial ancestors. However, this acknowledgment fell short of offering financial reparations to the victims’ descendants. Negotiations between the Namibian government and Germany over reparations have continued, but these efforts remain complex and controversial.
The Herero and Nama genocide has also been recognized as an early precursor to the genocidal policies that would later be used in Nazi Germany. The racial pseudoscience developed by Eugen Fischer and the brutal tactics of ethnic cleansing employed during this genocide laid a grim foundation for the ideologies that culminated in the Holocaust.
To this day, the legacy of the genocide continues to affect Namibia, as descendants of the survivors struggle with the long-lasting socioeconomic impacts of land dispossession and cultural destruction. The Herero and Nama people continue to fight for justice, land restitution, and proper acknowledgment of the horrific crimes committed against them.