Schuckmannsburg was established in Caprivi early in 1909, when Captain Streitwolf arrived with twenty-three men and created a mission at a site opposite Mwandi in modern Zambia. The post represented a marked departure from the indirect approach used in much of Owambo. German authorities instituted direct rule in Caprivi through this small but strategically placed colonial presence.

The location was chosen in part because Caprivi bordered three British colonies and was viewed as potentially important for mineral exploration. German officials also wanted to control the unregulated activities of settlers in eastern Caprivi, especially the movement of arms and cattle toward the Police Zone. The post therefore combined administrative, military, intelligence, and frontier-control functions.

Streitwolf used the new station to reshape local political relationships. He recognised Simaata Kabende Mamili for the Fwe and Chikamatondo for the Subiya, seeking to create a distinct Caprivi identity. His policies also restricted Lozi subjects living in Zambia from harvesting reeds and fishing on the South West African side of the river, causing hardship and separating eastern Caprivi more sharply from the Lozi kingdom.

After Streitwolf left in 1910, his successors continued a policy of limited intervention in African politics, although Viktor von Frankenberg, who arrived in 1911, was known for strict punishments of African offenders. The post and the administrative system around it remained part of German colonial rule until the South African conquest during the First World War.