Visiting Namibia (ex-GSWA)

[Martin Bennitt]

I'm off for a two week holiday in Namibia soon, with wife and daughter, and was wondering what was left of interest from the Great War period. I know there is the Wilhelmine architecture in the main towns, and a museum at Tsumeb, but otherwise not much clue. I will not be making it as far south as Luderitz, unfortunately, but will be doing a rough circle from Windhoek, south to Rehoboth then west to the edge of the Namib desert, up to Walvis Bay and Swakopmund, north and west through Damaraland to Etosha, then back to Windhoek via Tsumeb. If any experts can advise, I'd be obliged, and if anyone wants any relevant photos, I will do my best to provide them.

cheers Martin B

[clive_hughes]

Martin,

what an offer! Surprisingly, one Anglesey-born man died (accidentally, I think) during the SWA Campaign and is buried at:

Tsumeb Cemetery

Jones, Griffith Hugh Gnr 375 MGC 4 July 1915 age 36, born Holyhead.

Curiously he is listed by CWGC as a member of the (British) MGC, whereas he was actually in a S.African Motor MG Battery. He had gone out to S.Africa during the Boer War as a butcher supplying the Army, and stayed there.

The CWGC info says that there are 11 War Graves scattered through the old section of the cemetery (at the junction of Ilse Schatz Road and 8th Street), but gives no other clue as to location. The regional offices of the CWGC can usually supply directions, so I'll ask them for more detail.

If you can get a photo of his grave I'd be most grateful.

LST_164

[LarsA]

The visits I have made to Namibia is mainly in the south, where the old architecture is still very prevalent. The Imperial German camel stables and barracks in Warmbad is still there, and should anyone want any pictures from the cemetery in Warmbad I can oblige. Too far south for you I think though.

Very nice and friendly country, The Kudu and springbok meat is recommended should it be on the menu. Look out when driving on the gravel roads, they are like driving on ice in the winter when you come to a curve. I'll see if I have anything else of WWI interest in the notes,

Kind regards,

Lars

[clive_hughes]

Martin,

I have been in touch with CWGC's South African branch and they very kindly sent me a sketch map of the locations of the War Graves at Tsumeb Cemetery.

if it turns out that you can go there, please PM me and I'll endeavour to email the plan to you (or at worst, describe where the grave is).

Many thanks,

LST_164

[Martin Bennitt]

Thanks

I have PM'd you

Any more contributions to this thread appreciated

cheers Martin B

[LarsA]

I have not found anything more specific, but here is a linke that might be useful if you haven't got it already, especially the maps in the scroll list. http://www.kaiserscross.com/41992/home.html

Have a good trip!

/Lars

[athelstan]

I'm off for a two week holiday in Namibia soon, with wife and daughter, and was wondering what was left of interest from the Great War period. I know there is the Wilhelmine architecture in the main towns, and a museum at Tsumeb, but otherwise not much clue. I will not be making it as far south as Luderitz, unfortunately, but will be doing a rough circle from Windhoek, south to Rehoboth then west to the edge of the Namib desert, up to Walvis Bay and Swakopmund, north and west through Damaraland to Etosha, then back to Windhoek via Tsumeb. If any experts can advise, I'd be obliged, and if anyone wants any relevant photos, I will do my best to provide them.

cheers Martin B

hello Martin

If it's not too late you may wish to check out some of the following sites in Namibia:

Swakopmund - museum has displays of German uniforms and other WW1 material. The main cemetery has the graves of South African and a couple of Rhodesian soldiers plus various German graves. Just back from the sea front there is the German WW1 memorial plus a statue commemorating an earlier 1905 campaign. 27km or so east of Swakopmund on the B2 road to Windhoek the regimental badges of the Kimberly Regiment and the Durban Light Infantry are picked out in white quartz pebbles. Blink and you'll miss them!

Trekkopies - 70km from Swakopmund on the B2 road to Windhoek there is a small cemetry on the site of the battle that took place here on 26 April 1915. If you look hard enough you can still find bits of camp debris from the men of the Transvaal Scottish and the Kimberly Regiment who were guarding the railway line here when the Germans attacked.

Khorab -between Otavi and Tsumeb. Scene of the German surrender at km 500 on 9 July 1915. Monument was signposted (in 2001) but down a very rough track.

Lake Osikoto near Tsumeb - Germans dumped the last of their artillery and other arms in the lake. Some of it has been retrieved and on display in the adjacent park.

Naumtoni - old German fort (heavily restored). Used to have a small museum in the main tower with list of South Africans held prisoner there but museum moved to an out building and firmly shut in April 2009.

Gibeon - on the B1 road to Keetmanshoop if you get that far south. Scene of a battle here between the Germans and the Natal Light Horse on 27 April 1915. Cemetery and memorials.

If you can find a copy there is a map called 'Soldatengraber in Namibia von 1884 bis 1918' which shows all the cemeteries where German and South African soldiers are buried. It is a very useful map!

Best book to read up on the campaign is "Urgent Imperial Service" by Gerald L'Ange.

Hope this information is useful and have a good trip. I will try to upload some images which may be of interest.

james

[healdav]

There is a cemetery near the camp site for the Waterburg plateau. Ask at the camp reception and the tourist office for directions. It's walkable but a bit dificult to explain as its a case of 'turn right at the termite nest' type.

Apart from WW2 there are a couple of places with ancient carvings which I am sure you will go to.

The people are marvellous and likely to ask you whether you are having a good time and to be sure to ask if you have difficulties.

One tip if you are driving yourself. FILL UP EVERY TIME YOU CAN even if you did so ten minutes before. Filling stations are few and far between. Carry plenty of water.

Camp sites at Etosha especially are amazing. Much better than any equivalent in Europe - at one camp the manager apologised because the toilet block was about to be redone and was substandard. Tiled throughout with private bathrooms is good enough for me.

Just to tell a tale, a first secretary at the British High Commission a few years ago was ordered back to London. He went, resigned and now lives permanently in Windhoek. Can't say better than that.

For photos, we found that there were places in Windhoek and Swakopmund willing to do them in an hour and willing and able to make sure that your film 1 went into a bag marked 1 and to come out in a package marked 1.

[Martin Bennitt]

Thanks for all your advice

I am now back and had a great time though didn't manage to see as much Great War stuff as I wanted. I hadn't quite realised what a BIG country it is, and while some roads are very good indeed others are quite the opposite. We were told we were lucky to cover some 1,800 kilometres in two weeks with only two punctures.

I was surprised by how much of the German colonial feel persists, with many memorials to the Schutztruppe and German a widely spoken language. Swakopmund and other towns still bear the old street names, even though some have been officially changed, including Kaiser Wilhelmstrasse, Moltkestrasse (I suspect Moltke senior) and I even spotted a Hindenburgstrasse. Also found a number of German books on the period, but unfortunately I don't read the language.

I was also outvoted two to one on some of my suggestions for visits -- my zoologist daughter just had to cover Etosha from dawn to dusk for two days, plus another half day, though I must admit it was quite impressive.

I think the only answer is to return some day. I can certainly recommend it, and it's not a difficult sort of place. We did all our reservations by internet and everything worked. Unfortunately for UK-dwellers Air Namibia no longer flies from Gatwick, only from Frankfurt, but it's a small inconvenience.

cheers Martin B

[healdav]

Re Namib Air. My friend who was High Commissioner wasn't allowed to fly on the. They don't do First Class and he was a HIGH COMMISSIONER and had to travel first class otherwise civilisation would end or something. He had to fly to Johannesburg and then back on an airline that does do first class. So, upset the locals by not using their airlone says the Foreign Office.

When he had a long leave he was given first class tickets to Britain to use privately. He was able to change them and fly economy all over Europe to see fries, As he saidi they were paying anyway.

I would love to go back to Namibia, Marvellous country

[DSWA]

Hallo all.

I`m glad those who visited Namibia enjoyed their stay.

If you do visit again or anybody else who wants to visit Namibia you are welcome to contact me and I could give places of historical value to see.

Kind regards from Namibia

Charl

email address is charlv@mtcmobile.com.na