In 1904, in reaction to the rules imposed by the German colonial administration as well as the abuses and mistreatment by settlers, a revolt broke out in German South West Africa, today Namibia. The forces of the German Empire crushed it brutally and defeated the Herero. An extermination order – issued by General Lothar von Trotha on 2 October 1904 – instructed the Kaiser's troops to kill indiscriminately, thus condemning men, women and children. The Nama in turn took up arms against the Germans and suffered the same fate as the Herero. In the concentration camps opened in 1905, such as those at Windhoek, Swakopmund and Shark Island, Nama and Herero prisoners were worked to death and succumbed to disease, mistreatment and malnutrition. Skulls of victims were then sent to Germany for racial scientific research. Between 1904 and 1908, about 80% of the Herero and 50% of the Nama were exterminated: a crime of African colonial history considered the first genocide of the 20th century.
Scientific curator: Leonor Faber - Jonker, Leiden University, Netherlands.
Coordination: Sophie Nagiscarde, Élise Arnaud, Mémorial de la Shoah.
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