Calendar. On August 11, 1904, German forces under the command of General Lothar von Tlyh fought the decisive battle of Waterberg in the then German South-West Africa, today’s Namibia. It was a carefully planned operation in which colonial troops, equipped with modern rifles, artillery and 14 machine guns, circled the gathered herero – both warriors and their families – forcing them to escape to the anhydrous Omaheke desert. Although the battle ended with the tactical victory of the Germans, most victims died not from the bullets, but due to the desire, hunger and exhaustion in the desert, where colonial patrols guarded all sources of water. Shortly after the battle, on October 2, 1904, von Troth published the so -called “Vernichtungsbefehl” – an order of extermination, ordering to kill every herero regardless of gender and age. The effect of this strategy was genocide, in which life lost from 65,000 to even 100,000 Herero and about 10,000 NAMA. This meant the destruction of 75 to 80 percent of the Herro population and half of the inhabitants of Nama. Those who survived the march through the desert went to concentration camps, including On the island of a shark, where inhuman conditions prevailed – hunger, illness, exhaustion and violence became everyday life. Deaths in these camps were massive and mortality reached several dozen percent. These events are considered the first genocide of the 20th century. Their effects were felt by decades – the Herero and Nama communities were decimated, deprived of land, property, and their culture and social structure were seriously damaged. Germany, which for years avoided full responsibility, in 2021 officially recognized these crimes as genocide, declaring the transfer of Namibia 1.1 billion euros in 30 years as a gesture of reconciliation, although without a formal status of reparations. In May 2025, Namibia for the first time celebrated the National Day of Remembrance for the genocide of herero and Nama, paying tribute to the victims and reminding the still unfinished fight for justice. #Herero #nama #genocide #waterberg1904 #nambia #genocide #history #memory #kolonialism #reparities #sharkisland
Posted by HistoricaDayAfterDay