XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Africa
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The African campaigns of the First World War comprised Allied operations against German colonial possessions, defensive and guerrilla warfare by German forces, campaigns mounted from Egypt against the Ottoman Empire, and extensive African military and carrier mobilization. Their strategic importance varied: early attacks sought to neutralize ports and communications, while later colonial campaigns mainly diverted troops and secured prospective territorial spoils. The fighting also intensified labour demands, administrative disruption, disease, and resistance to colonial authority.
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Le récit
When the First World War began, the neutrality provisions associated with the Congo Basin did not prevent the conflict from spreading across Africa. Britain sought to disable German communications and ports, while France, Belgium, and South Africa saw military participation as a means of securing influence and possible territorial gains. South African leaders Louis Botha and J. C. Smuts therefore committed forces against German South West Africa and later German East Africa, despite opposition from Afrikaner irreconcilables.
The first phase of the fighting focused on Germany’s offensive capability and the use of African ports by its fleet. Allied forces occupied Lomé in Togo, Duala in Cameroon, Swakopmund, and Lüderitz Bay soon after the outbreak of war. British cruisers bombarded Dar es Salaam and Tanga in August, while Egypt became the principal base for British operations after Turkey entered the war on Germany’s side and a Turkish expedition was repulsed in February 1915.
Later campaigns were less decisive for the outcome of the global war but remained important to the Allied empires. The conquest of German South West Africa took six months after the South African government suppressed an Afrikaner rebellion supported by Germany. The Cameroon campaign lasted more than fifteen months despite Allied numerical superiority. In East Africa, Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck used guerrilla tactics to keep a much larger Allied force engaged until the end of hostilities, marching through Portuguese East Africa and into Northern Rhodesia before learning of the European armistice.
The war also transformed colonial administration and labour relations. European officials and commercial personnel left Allied colonies for the European front or for African campaigns, leaving districts such as Borgu in Northern Nigeria without European administrators for long periods. Africans were trained to fill some administrative vacancies, while the movement of troops and carriers helped spread the influenza epidemic of 1918–19. The extract presents the war as both a military conflict and a severe test of colonial authority.
XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Africa
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The African campaigns of the First World War comprised Allied operations against German colonial possessions, defensive and guerrilla warfare by German forces, campaigns mounted from Egypt against the Ottoman Empire, and extensive African military and carrier mobilization. Their strategic importance varied: early attacks sought to neutralize ports and communications, while later colonial campaigns mainly diverted troops and secured prospective territorial spoils. The fighting also intensified labour demands, administrative disruption, disease, and resistance to colonial authority.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
When the First World War began, the neutrality provisions associated with the Congo Basin did not prevent the conflict from spreading across Africa. Britain sought to disable German communications and ports, while France, Belgium, and South Africa saw military participation as a means of securing influence and possible territorial gains. South African leaders Louis Botha and J. C. Smuts therefore committed forces against German South West Africa and later German East Africa, despite opposition from Afrikaner irreconcilables.
The first phase of the fighting focused on Germany’s offensive capability and the use of African ports by its fleet. Allied forces occupied Lomé in Togo, Duala in Cameroon, Swakopmund, and Lüderitz Bay soon after the outbreak of war. British cruisers bombarded Dar es Salaam and Tanga in August, while Egypt became the principal base for British operations after Turkey entered the war on Germany’s side and a Turkish expedition was repulsed in February 1915.
Later campaigns were less decisive for the outcome of the global war but remained important to the Allied empires. The conquest of German South West Africa took six months after the South African government suppressed an Afrikaner rebellion supported by Germany. The Cameroon campaign lasted more than fifteen months despite Allied numerical superiority. In East Africa, Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck used guerrilla tactics to keep a much larger Allied force engaged until the end of hostilities, marching through Portuguese East Africa and into Northern Rhodesia before learning of the European armistice.
The war also transformed colonial administration and labour relations. European officials and commercial personnel left Allied colonies for the European front or for African campaigns, leaving districts such as Borgu in Northern Nigeria without European administrators for long periods. Africans were trained to fill some administrative vacancies, while the movement of troops and carriers helped spread the influenza epidemic of 1918–19. The extract presents the war as both a military conflict and a severe test of colonial authority.