My Reminiscences of East Africa

by Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck

The feeling of comradeship which our Askari had for us Germans, and which was tremendously developed by the numerous expeditions undertaken together, led on this occasion to a curious incident. After climbing Kasigao Mountain by night, among rocks and thorn-bushes, an Askari noticed that Lieutenant von Ruckteschell was bleeding from a scratch on his face. He at once took his sock, which he had probably not changed for six days, and wiped the “Bwana Lieutenant’s” face with it, anticipating the somewhat surprised question with the remark: “That is a custom of war; one only does it to one’s friends.”

In order to study the situation on the spot and to push on the attacks on Kasigao, I had gone by rail to Same, thence by car to Sonya Mission, and then either by cycle or on foot in the direction of the mountain to the German border, where a company was encamped at a water-hole. From there we had fair communication to Kasigao by heliograph, and we were thus enabled to make good the success we had gained there. Troops were at once pushed up, so that until the arrival of the South Africans the mountain was held by several companies. It was, indeed, decidedly difficult to keep them supplied; for although the German frontier territory west of Kasigao was fertile, it could not permanently support a force which with carriers amounted to about one thousand.

I then drove in the car round the South Pare Mountains, on a road that had been made in time of peace. The construction of this road had been dropped on account of expense, and for years the heaps of metal had been lying unused at the roadside. The culverts—consisting of pipes passing under the road—were to a great extent in good order. But little work was needed to make this road suitable for supply by lorry. Supplies were sent from near Buiko on the Northern Railway by lorry to Sonya, and thence to Kasigao by carriers. The telephone line was already under construction as far as the frontier, and was completed in a few days’ time. From then on patrols pushing out from Kasigao had several encounters with detachments of the enemy, and did some damage to the Uganda Railway. But the ruggedness of the country and the dense thorn-bush made movement so difficult that by the time the South Africans arrived, we had not derived full benefit from Kasigao as a base for patrols. However, the continual menace to the railway had, at any rate, obliged the enemy to take extensive measures for its protection. Wide clearings had been made along it, of which the outer edges had been closed by thick zarebas (abattis of thorns). Every couple of miles there were strong block-houses, or entrenchments with obstacles, from which the line was constantly patrolled. Mobile supports, of the strength of a company or more, were held in readiness, so that, whenever the railway was reported to be in danger, they could at once go off by special train. In addition, protective detachments were pushed out in our direction, who tried to cut off our patrols on their way back on receiving reports from spies or from observation posts on the high ground. We also identified English camps on the high ground south-east of Kasigao, as far as the coast, and also in the settled country along the coast. They also received attention from our patrols and raiders. Our constant endeavour was to injure the enemy, to force him to adopt protective measures, and thus to contain his forces here, in the district of the Uganda Railway.

While thus establishing points of support for our fighting patrols from the coast to Mbuyuni (on the Taveta-Voi road), we worked in the same sense further north. The enemy’s camp at Mzima, on the upper Tsavo River, and its communications, which followed that river, were frequently the objective of our expeditions, even of fairly large detachments. On one occasion Captain Augar, with the 13th Company, was surprised south-west of Mzima Camp in thick bush by three European companies of the newly-arrived 2nd Rhodesian Regiment. The enemy attacked from several directions, but being still inexperienced in bush fighting, failed to secure concerted action. So our Askari Company was able first to overthrow one part of the enemy’s forces, and then by quickness and resolution to defeat the other, which had appeared behind it.

Further north, also, there was some fighting in the bush which went in our favour; we worked with whole companies and inflicted painful losses on the enemy, who was often in greater force. North of the Engare Len the 3rd Field Company from Lindi worked with special energy, and sent its fighting patrols out as far as the Uganda Railway. The mere fact that we were now able to make raids with forces amounting to a company and more in the midst of a desert devoid of supplies, and in many places waterless, shows the enormous progress the force had made in this type of guerilla warfare. The European had learned that a great many things that are very desirable when travelling in the Tropics simply have to be dispensed with on patrol in war, and that one can at a pinch get on for a time with only a single carrier-load. The patrols also had to avoid camping in such a way as to betray themselves, and as far as possible to carry food ready prepared. But if food had to be cooked, this was particularly dangerous in the evening or morning; the leader had to select a concealed spot, and invariably shift his camp after cooking before going to rest. Complete hygienic protection was incompatible with the conditions of patrol duty. A number of cases of malaria invariably occurred among the members of a patrol after its return. But as, in spite of the continual damage done to the enemy, patrol duty only required comparatively few men, only a part of the companies had to be kept in the front line. After a few weeks each company was withdrawn to rest camps in healthy regions, European and Askari were able to recover from their tremendous exertions, and their training and discipline could be restored.

Towards the end of 1915 the shortage of water at Mbuyuni Camp had become so serious, and supply so difficult, that only a post was left there, the detachment itself being withdrawn to the westward to the vicinity of Oldorobo Mountain. Meanwhile, the enemy’s camp at Makatan grew steadily larger. A frequent train service was maintained to it, and one could clearly see a big clearing being made to the west for the prolongation of the railway. Our fighting patrols had, indeed, many opportunities of inflicting losses on the enemy while at work, or protecting his working parties, but the line continued to make progress towards the west.

It was necessary to consider the possibility of the country through which the Northern Railway passed soon falling into the hands of the enemy. Steps had, therefore, to be taken to safeguard the military stores in that district in time. Where railways were available this was, of course, not difficult; but the further transport by land needed much preparation. The bulk of our stocks of ammunition, clothing and medical stores was at New Moshi and Mombo. It was evident that we would be unable to carry away the factories, or parts of them, by land; they must, therefore, be made use of and kept working for as long as possible where they were. Assuming the enemy would attack from the north, our evacuation would obviously be towards the south, and not only the preparations, but the movement itself, must be started without loss of time—that is, as early as August, 1915.

The Commandant of the Line, Lieutenant Kroeber, retired, therefore, in an able manner, collected light-railway material from the plantations, and built a line from Mombo to Handeni, at the rate of about two kilometres (one and a quarter miles) per day. The trucks were also brought from the plantations, and after mature consideration, man draught was decided on in preference to locomotives. Thus our stores were moved from the north by rail, complete, and in time, to Handeni. From there to Kimamba, on the Central Railway, we principally used carriers, except for a few wagons. It was, after all, necessary not to hurry the movement unduly, for, in spite of all the visible preparations for a hostile attack on the Kilima Njaro country, I still thought it possible that the main force of the enemy, or at least a considerable proportion of it, would not operate there, but in the Bagamoyo-Dar-es-Salaam area.

At the end of 1915 the enemy was pushing his rail-head further and further westward, and Major Kraut, who was opposing him, reinforced his position on Oldorobo Mountain with three companies and two light guns. This mountain rises from the flat thorn desert near the main road, seven and a half miles east of Taveta, and dominates the country for a great distance all round. Entrenchments and numerous dummy works had been made, part being cut out of the rock, and formed an almost impregnable fort. The disadvantage of the position was the complete lack of water. A planter who had been called to the Colours, Lieutenant Matuschka, of the Reserve, was an expert water finder; at Taveta he had discovered excellent wells; but on Oldorobo no water was found, although at the points he indicated we dug down more than one hundred feet. Water had therefore to be taken from Taveta on small donkey-carts to Oldorobo, where it was collected in barrels. This carriage of water was an extraordinary strain on our transport. Strangely enough, it did not occur to the enemy to interfere with it, and thus render Oldorobo Mountain untenable. Instead of that, basing himself on his railway, he pushed up to within about three miles of the mountain, where he established strongly fortified camps. We had been unable to prevent this, as, owing to difficulties of water and transport, larger forces could only move away from Taveta for short periods. The enemy obtained his water supply by means of a long pipe-line, which came from the springs in the Bura Mountains. The destruction of the enemy’s reservoir by patrols under Lieutenant von S’Antenecai, of the Reserve, only caused him temporary inconvenience.

At this time, also, the first hostile aeroplanes appeared, and bombed our positions on Oldorobo Mountain, and at Taveta and later even New Moshi. On the 27th January one of these airmen, while on his way back from Oldorobo, was successfully fired on and brought down by our advanced infantry. The English had told the natives that this aeroplane was a new “Munga” (God); but now that this new Munga had been brought down and captured by us, it rather increased our prestige than otherwise.