Fort Namutoni
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Fort Namutoni - Schutztruppe Outpost of the North |
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The small water
fountain at Namutoni - an introduction:
The
explorers Charles John Andersson and Francis Galton were the first
Europeans to 'discover' the Etosha-Pan passed by the Water-Hole at Namutoni
on 29 May 1851, Galton wrote,
"passing a reedy, boggy fountain (Namutoni),
we came an hour after to Omutchamatunda, which was thronged with
Ovampos and their cattle. We were received very hospitably, and had
a tree assigned to camp under."
In 1897 the Rinderpest
swept through Southern Africa decimating the vast cattle herds. The
proactive response of the German authorities was establish quarantine stations
at Okaukuejo and Namutoni and to draw a quarantine cordon
between them bordering the southern edge of the Etosha-Pan.
All known of animals that crossed the line were shot. The original
constructions at Namutoni were built of reeds. The small garrison consisted of a non-commissioned officer, a medical orderly and
two troopers. The huts were situated near to the reedy, boggy water hole.
Convenient, but accompanied by the threat of malaria, living
conditions were primitive.
Following the end of the cattle plague the little
frontier post served the purpose of monitoring trade with the Ovambo.
The movement of firearms and ammunition was of concern to the German
authorities. The previous fifty years had witnessed a brisk trade in
fire arms within the territory.
In 1901 the first German a military presence was
established at Okaukeujo. A tall round lookout tower (not the one
that can be seen today) was built, and by 1903 it was decided that
the post at Namutoni should be upgraded, militarised, and a more substantial
building of stone and mud-brick was erected that measured 24m x 10m as can be
seen below.
Rumblings from the South:The vast area of land running south of the Etosha
to the approximate latitude of the Swakop River was inhabited by the
Damara and Herero tribes. The German colonial administration's
oppressive expansionist policies had been the cause of ongoing
frustration to the Hereros for nearly twenty years. 1896 had
witnessed a liberation uprising that was brutally suppressed, but
had not dampened the will of the people. On 11 January 1904 Chief
Samuel Maharero gave the order for the Herero tribes to take up arms
and declared war on the German occupiers. The Herero had invited the
Ovambo to join them in the native uprising, but had received no
response from the Ovambo leadership. The Ovambo tribal lands laid
roughly from the southern edge of the Etosha-Pan northwards into
Angola and were not under German administration. The Ovambo Chiefs
had maintained a relatively cool, but diplomatic relation with the
Germans.
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Chief Nehale Mpingana
The Station at Namutoni
The 'Seven' |
Chief Nehale Mpingana:
The one exception was Chief Nehale Mpingana of
the Ondonga tribe, a man who had a proven track record of opposition
to any form of white colonialism from when in 1886 had attacked the Dorsland
Trek-Boers and killed their leader and scattered the survivors on to
Angola or back to the Transvaal.
The Attack On Fort Namutoni
At 11h30 on the morning of 28 January 1905 Chief Nehale's warrior Captain Shivute
with a force of men, of whom it was reported that 300 were armed
with Martini-Henry rifles, plus about 200 other men armed with traditional weapons attacked the
fort. At the time, the fort at Namutoni was manned by four regular
schutztruppe and three reservists. The Germans fought and managed to
hold off the attack until about 15h30 when the Ovambo warriors
withdrew into the bush leaving behind 70-80 dead and wounded warriors,
but taking with them their spoils of war that included horses,
cattle and other small livestock. The German garrison's ammunition store had
held 450 rounds for the Mauser 71 models rifles and 1100 rounds for the model
88s. Of this only 150 rounds of were left, so the seven took the
opportunity to abandon the post and flee, assisting their comrade Albert Lier who was incapacitated due
to a bout of malaria (one report states rheumatic fever). Basendowski and Becker
were settler-farmer-reservists who were familiar with the area |
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and it was to their farm (Sandhup) about 40km
south east of Namutoni that the men made an overnight trek of 14
hours arriving at dawn.
Four days earlier, and in the anticipation that
Namutoni may experience an attack the German authorities at the
Schutztruppe Fort at Grootfontein had dispatched a patrol to relieve
if necessary, and withdraw the Namutoni garrison. On 1st February
the patrol arrived at the farm Sandhup where they found the
survivors of Namutoni and learned of their ordeal.
The Aftermath:
On the morning of 29 January 1904 the Ovambos
returned and finding the building deserted ransacked it and then
burned it to the ground. A Finnish missionary later reported to the
magistrate at Outjo that the Ovambo had lost 68 dead, 40
missing and 20 wounded. During the raid the Ovambos had driven off
with the livestock a prize pedigree stud bull. When the Germans in
later negotiations with Chief Nehale requested that the bull be
returned to them, the chief had it shot dead in their presence to
demonstrate his authority. The Germans never were able to get either
and apology or any form of restitution for the losses incurred.
Chief Nehale died in the early months of 1908, and is today honoured
as being one of Namibia's Heroes who resisted colonialism. The water
hole at Namutoni is today referred to as being Chief Nehale's
Waterhole. On the left hand gate post entrance to Fort Namutoni is
a plaque that reads:
"On 28 January 1904, 500 Ovambo attached the station NAMUTONI. Seven
brave me victoriously repulsed the attack."
IN HONOURABLE MEMORY OF: Lance-Sergeant Fritz
Grossman, Medical Orderly Bruno
Lassmann, Lance-Corporal Richard Lemke, Lance-Corporal Albert Lier, Reserve Lance-Sergeant
Jacob Basendowski, Reserve
Lance-Corporal Franz Becker,
Reserve Lance-Corporal Karl Hartmann
The Second Fort:
The German authorities were quick to replace the sacked building
with a larger and more easily defendable fort in 1906. The basic
structure stands to this day having been converted into
accommodation units.
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Ready |
The 'New' Fort Namutoni 1906 |
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A photo for home |
Cavalry by the north tower |
Checking the map |
Heliograph crew |
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Field bakery |
Servicing a feild gun |
Smoke break |
Smoking club |
A day at the races |
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The Fort served little purpose following the end of the
Herero - Nama uprising of 1904 - 1907. Apparently it was handed over
to the Police on 1 September 1910 and was manned by only five
officers and for economic reasons was closed on 1 April 1912.
The fort did serve for the further period of the First World War in
South West Africa and was occupied by the Union of South troops from
24 August 1915.
Between the 'War Years' the fort was sporadically
used as a Police outpost. It was
renovated in the early fifties and again in 1983, and improvements to
suite the needs of tourism are on-going.
Acknowledgements and further reading:
H6, H9, H12, H18, P2
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Local Area Attractions and Articles of
Associated Interest
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Did You Know ?
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- The eastern entry to the park
is called the Von Lindquist Gate and is named after the German
Governor who proclaimed the area a Game Reserve in 1907
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