v39_1064 - GERMAN EAST AFRICA Eine Rupie 1913 Berlin

GERMAN EAST AFRICA

(1885-1919)

German East Africa spans present-day territories of Burundi, Rwanda and mainland Tanzania. In March 1885, the German government authorized Carl Peters, founder of the Society for German Colonization, to establish a German protectorate in East Africa. To put an end to the protests of the Sultan of Zanzibar, who also considers himself sovereign on the mainland, Bismarck sends five warships which attack the Sultan's palace on August 7, 1885. Germany and Great Britain then shared the territory of what is now mainland Tanzania.. Germany takes possession of several cities and, with British help, puts down some local revolts. In 1890, the two European countries signed the Treaty of Heligoland-Zanzibar, which gave Heligoland to Germany and defined the limits of German East Africa, although the exact borders were not drawn until 1910.. The Hehe, led by their chief Mkwawa, resist German expansion until 1894 but are finally defeated after the rallying of several local tribes to Germany. The German occupation forces were small in number and relied on a few officers to maintain order, collect taxes, and manage cash crops such as cotton, coffee, and sesame. The result is a highly centralized and authoritarian system. Unlike other colonial powers such as Great Britain, France or Portugal, Germany is inexperienced in Africa, which is felt in the way it manages its colonies.. The colony was conquered by the British and Belgian armies during the First World War.