XIXᵉ siècle – XIXᵉ siècle
Central and southern Namibia
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Herero-speaking political communities that consolidated power in central and southern Namibia after the 1870 Okahandja peace accord. During the period, leaders such as Maharero, Zeraua and Kambazembi controlled substantial populations and cattle herds, negotiated with William Coates Palgrave, and sought to preserve or expand authority amid Boer, British and German intervention.
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Le récit
The peace accord reached at Okahandja in 1870 marked a transformation in central Namibian politics. Herero-speaking groups consolidated and expanded their prosperity north of Windhoek, while their growing engagement with merchant-capital networks helped produce an identity centred on cattle, guns and horses. In the same decades, Nama-Oorlam communities in the region faced increasing restrictions on access to land and water and were increasingly compelled to work as migrant labourers.
Herero political authority rested largely with influential ovahona, or big men, and kapteins. Maharero was described as the most influential ovahona of the 1870s: his people numbered about 23,000 and his cattle herds perhaps as many as 40,000. Zeraua at Omaruru controlled more than 4,000 people, while Kambazembi at the Waterberg and his successor at the Omatako are presented as important regional powers.
Herero leaders used diplomacy as well as military and economic resources to defend their interests. In 1874, Zeraua, Maharero and Kambazembi jointly requested British protection against a possible Boer incursion. Maharero later negotiated with Palgrave, obtaining a formal definition of Ebi rOvaherero, while also seeking land and cattle consolidation for Herero groups. These arrangements remained contested and were weakened when Palgrave failed to keep Maharero informed about the annexation of Walvis Bay.
XIXᵉ siècle – XIXᵉ siècle
Central and southern Namibia
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Herero-speaking political communities that consolidated power in central and southern Namibia after the 1870 Okahandja peace accord. During the period, leaders such as Maharero, Zeraua and Kambazembi controlled substantial populations and cattle herds, negotiated with William Coates Palgrave, and sought to preserve or expand authority amid Boer, British and German intervention.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
The peace accord reached at Okahandja in 1870 marked a transformation in central Namibian politics. Herero-speaking groups consolidated and expanded their prosperity north of Windhoek, while their growing engagement with merchant-capital networks helped produce an identity centred on cattle, guns and horses. In the same decades, Nama-Oorlam communities in the region faced increasing restrictions on access to land and water and were increasingly compelled to work as migrant labourers.
Herero political authority rested largely with influential ovahona, or big men, and kapteins. Maharero was described as the most influential ovahona of the 1870s: his people numbered about 23,000 and his cattle herds perhaps as many as 40,000. Zeraua at Omaruru controlled more than 4,000 people, while Kambazembi at the Waterberg and his successor at the Omatako are presented as important regional powers.
Herero leaders used diplomacy as well as military and economic resources to defend their interests. In 1874, Zeraua, Maharero and Kambazembi jointly requested British protection against a possible Boer incursion. Maharero later negotiated with Palgrave, obtaining a formal definition of Ebi rOvaherero, while also seeking land and cattle consolidation for Herero groups. These arrangements remained contested and were weakened when Palgrave failed to keep Maharero informed about the annexation of Walvis Bay.