Herero and Nama massacres
The Herero and Nama massacres refer to a tragic series of events that took place in Namibia between 1904 and 1908, where German colonial forces brutally suppressed the Herero and Nama peoples. Following the influx of German settlers who sought to exploit the region's resources, tensions escalated as the settlers, feeling economically disadvantaged, resorted to violence against the Indigenous populations. Their actions, coupled with racist ideologies of superiority, led to a violent uprising by the Herero, which the German government then used as a pretext to deploy military force.
Under the command of General Lothar von Trotha, German troops encircled the Herero, driving them into the Kalahari Desert, resulting in thousands of deaths from dehydration, starvation, and execution. Survivors were then forced into concentration camps where many faced inhumane conditions and forced labor. The Nama, who protested these atrocities, also suffered severe repression. Estimates suggest that around 75,000 Herero and 10,000 Nama people were killed during this period. The massacres are now recognized as one of the first genocides of the 20th century, and in 2015, the German government acknowledged its responsibility for these acts. The events have had lasting repercussions, influencing global discussions about colonialism and genocide.
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Herero and Nama massacres
The Herero and Nama peoples come from the region now known as Namibia. During the late nineteenth century, the region experienced a sudden influx of German settlers and fell under the colonial rule of the German government. The Herero and Nama had based much of their society around raising herds of cattle and were wealthier than many of the German settlers. However, the German settlers believed they were racially superior to the Native peoples and should be permitted to seize their property.
The German settlers used violent crimes to provoke the Herero people into rioting against the German government. They then used propaganda to convince the German government to send an army to defeat the Herero. The Herero were forced off their land, which was given to the settlers, and then moved into concentration camps where they were used as slave labor. When the Nama spoke out against the treatment of the Herero, they were also moved into concentration camps. Between about 1904 and 1908 German forces slaughtered up to seventy-five thousand people.
Background
Prior to the twentieth century, Namibia was home to several prominent tribal groups. Some of the most notable were the San, Ovambo, Herero, and Nama. The Nama and Herero tribal groups were the largest in the region. These tribes controlled large portions of Namibia.
Much of the Herero and Nama culture revolved around cattle farming. Because raising cattle was such a large part of their lives, the Herero and Nama devoted much of their time and resources to finding land for their cattle to graze on. Because of this, the tribes had taken control of much of the most valuable land in Namibia. Though this land contained large deposits of other natural resources, including gold, tungsten, diamonds, copper, tin, and uranium, the Herero and Nama primarily used them for farming and grazing.
During the late nineteenth century, the Berlin Conference granted Germany control of numerous African territories, including the region now known as Namibia. German settlers flocked to the region, hoping to utilize its natural resources. The German settlers immediately adopted an attitude of superiority toward the Herero and Nama. However, interactions between the German settlers and the Indigenous peoples did not immediately result in violence. Because the Herero and Nama owned most of the local land and cattle, the settlers were at an economic disadvantage.
The German settlers believed they were the superior race and as such were entitled to Namibia’s wealth and resources. As their resentment grew, settlers began to use violence to intimidate the Herero and Nama. This caused growing tension between the Indigenous peoples and the German settlers.
Overview
At the time, the German colonial leadership favored negotiations with the Herero and Nama, believing that continued talks between the two groups could result in the return of peaceful cohabitation. However, many settlers hoped to spark widespread conflict between the Indigenous peoples and the German settlers. They thought that if military conflict broke out between the two groups, they would be able to forcefully redistribute the local resources, seizing land, cattle, and other valuables.
In 1903, a group of German settlers took advantage of the sudden absence of the governor to attack the Herero. They looted Herero homes and committed violent crimes against the Herero, including rape and murder. When these infractions were not immediately punished by the German colonial government, the Herero rioted against the settlers. The revolt began in the territory of Okahandja and initially was limited to this region of Namibia.
German settlers realized that they could use this rebellion to justify seizing the resources of the Herero and Nama. However, the revolt was initially contained in too small of an area to do this. The settlers used their military forces to provoke additional Herero tribes into rebellion against the colonial government. They also published propaganda depicting the Herero as vicious savages who should be exterminated for the settlers’ safety.
German Emperor Wilhelm II believed the propaganda and fulfilled their wishes. He sent the German army to crush the Indigenous peoples. Determined to completely eradicate the Herero, the army surrounded them and drove them into the Kalahari Desert. Thousands of men, women, and children died as they fled. Some died of thirst and starvation, others were shot to death. The army proclaimed that any remaining Herero who would not surrender their land would be immediately executed.
After the German military defeated the Herero, the survivors were forced into concentration camps to perform hard labor. They were also beaten and starved. Prisoners were shipped from the concentration camps to various labor sites, including the harbor at Swakopmund, where they were used as slave labor.
After seeing the continued mistreatment and extermination of the Herero, the Nama stood up against the German government. The government responded by sending the Nama to nationalized concentration camps. They were exploited to fuel the colonial economy. Though their land was never officially seized, the Nama faced horrific mistreatment by the colonial government.
Between 1905 and 1908, nearly two thousand Herero were killed in Swakopmund alone. Roughly 65,000 Herero, more than three-quarters of their total population, were killed. About half the Nama, or 10,000 people, were similarly exterminated by the colonial government.
Following the massacres of the Herero and Nama, colonists seized their ancestral lands. Later, the German military fabricated stories of a war between the Herero and the Nama, arguing that they had won a glorious victory against a fierce opponent. However, evidence shows that no large-scale war between the tribes and the German army took place. These massacres later served as inspiration for the concentration camps and exterminations carried out by the Nazis during World War II. In 2015, the German government accepted responsibility for the genocide of the Herero and Nama.
Bibliography
Ahmed, Kaamil. “Descendants of Namibia’s Genocide Victims Call on Germany to ‘Stop Hiding.’” The Guardian, 3 Feb. 2023, www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/feb/03/namibia-genocide-victims-herero-nama-germany-reparations. Accessed 7 June 2023.
“Herero and Nama Genocide.” Gariwo, 2023, en.gariwo.net/education/insights/herero-and-nama-genocide-21602.html. Accessed 7 June 2023.
“Herero Genocide in Namibia.” MuseeHolocaust.ca, 2023, museeholocauste.ca/en/resources-training/herero-genocide-namibia/. Accessed 7 June 2023.
Hitchcock, Roberto, and Melinda Kelly. “Reconciliation Between Germany and Namibia: Towards Reparation of the First Genocide of the 20th Century.” International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs, 12 Oct. 2021, www.iwgia.org/en/news/4538-reconciliation-between-germany-and-namibia-towards-reparation-of-the-first-genocide-of-the-20th-century.html. Accessed 7 June 2023.
“The Herero and Namaqua Genocide.” The Holocaust Explained, 2023, www.theholocaustexplained.org/what-was-the-holocaust/what-was-genocide/the-herero-and-namaqua-genocide/. Accessed 6 June 2023.