German South West Africa
German South West Africa (German: Deutsch-Südwestafrika) was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915, though Germany did not officially recognise its loss of this territory until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles.
German South West Africa Deutsch-Südwestafrika | |||||||||||||
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| 1884–1915 | |||||||||||||
Service flag of the Colonial Office
Coat of arms of the German Empire
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Green: German South West Africa Dark gray: Other German colonial possessions Darkest gray: German Empire (1911 borders) | |||||||||||||
| Status | Colony of Germany | ||||||||||||
| Capital | Windhuk | ||||||||||||
| Official languages | German | ||||||||||||
| Recognised regional languages | Makhuwa, Sena, Tsonga, Lomwe, Changana, Afrikaans, Khoekhoegowab, Oshiwambo, Otjiherero, Setswana | ||||||||||||
| Ethnic groups | 99% Black African 0.8% White 0.2% other | ||||||||||||
| Religion | Christianity Indigenous beliefs | ||||||||||||
| Governor | |||||||||||||
• 1894–1905 | Theodor von Leutwein | ||||||||||||
• 1905–1907 | Friedrich von Lindequist | ||||||||||||
• 1907–1910 | Bruno von Schuckmann | ||||||||||||
• 1910–1919 | Theodor Seitz | ||||||||||||
| Historical era | Scramble for Africa | ||||||||||||
• Start of colonial occupation by the German Empire | 7 August 1884 | ||||||||||||
| 1904–1908 | |||||||||||||
• Union of South Africa occupies German South West Africa | 9 July 1915 | ||||||||||||
• Treaty of Versailles | 28 June 1919 | ||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
| 1912 | 835,100 km2 (322,400 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
• 1912 | 250,000 | ||||||||||||
| Currency | German South West African Mark | ||||||||||||
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| Today part of | Namibia | ||||||||||||
German rule over this territory was punctuated by numerous rebellions by its native African peoples, which culminated in a campaign of German reprisals from 1904 to 1908 known as the Herero and Namaqua genocide.
In 1915, during World War I, German South West Africa was invaded by the Western Allies in the form of South African and British forces. After the war its administration was taken over by the Union of South Africa (part of the British Empire) and the territory was administered as South West Africa under a League of Nations mandate. It became independent as Namibia on 21 March 1990.