A Deterritorialized History: Investigating German Colonialism ...

This short introduction to the main motivations of colonial expansion has
provided some context for the following brief survey of the history of German expansion
in Africa. After the extension of German protection over Lüderitz’s claim, German
traders traveled throughout the newly-German territories of Southwest Africa, Togo and
Cameroon signing treaties with local chieftains. In these treaties, German “commercial
houses on the coast” were often specifically mentioned as having economic rights to
territory. 58 Finally, rights to the East African territory were initially gained in 1885 but
German rule was finally cemented in 1890 for four million marks. As with Southwest
Africa, the borders of all of the colonies were further extended throughout the colonial
period. After the first 835,000 square kilometers of coastal territories had been agreed
upon, Bismarck justified his right to further expansion with the statement: “[e]ine
genaure Abgrenzung auch nach dem Innern zu, behält die Regierung seiner Majestät
späten Festsetzungen nach Maßgabe der Entwicklung der Ansiedlungen und ihres
Verkehrs vor.” 59 Further territory was important to Bismarck’s plans for huge,
centralized conglomerates to administer the early colonies, but the trading houses refused
to merge. As mentioned above, the four colonies soon devolved into crown colonies
when the companies could no longer manage their administration. The consolidation of
German territory ended with the outbreak of war in 1914 and the loss of German territory
in Africa.
Yet before this there was a long period of expansion, from four small charter
colonies to much larger territories. However, there were also incidents of stymied
German colonialism. Germany held the Witu district of East Africa until 1890 when it
was relinquished to Britain in exchange for the Heligoland territory. Significant German
18