author
Theodor Gotthilf von Leutwein
1849–1921
A German officer and colonial governor, he played a central role in Germany’s rule over South West Africa at the turn of the 20th century. His career is closely tied to the expansion of imperial power in the region and the conflicts that followed.
1 Audiobook
Elf Jahre Gouverneur in Deutsch-Südwestafrika
by Theodor Gotthilf von Leutwein
About the author
Born in Baden in 1849, Theodor Gotthilf von Leutwein trained as a Prussian officer after briefly studying law. He rose through the military and later became commander of the imperial Schutztruppe and governor in German South West Africa, serving there from the 1890s into the first years of the 20th century.
Leutwein is often remembered for trying to combine military force with negotiation as Germany tightened control over the colony. Even so, his administration was part of a violent colonial system, and his time in office overlapped with major conflicts involving African communities, especially the Herero and Nama.
He left office in the middle of that turbulent period and died in Freiburg in 1921. Today he is mainly studied as an important and controversial figure in the history of German colonial rule in what is now Namibia.