Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
History
In April 1883 Heinrich Vogelsang, under orders from Bremen merchant Adolf Lüderitz,
entered into a treaty with Nama chief Joseph Fredericks and secured lands within an 8km
radius of Angra Pequeña (Little Bay). Later that year Lüderitz made an appearance in
Little Bay and, following his recommendation, the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck
designated southwestern Africa a protectorate of the German empire. Following the dis-
covery of diamonds in the Sperrgebiet in 1908, the town of Lüderitz was officially foun-
ded, and quickly prospered from the gem trade.
Indeed, the history of diamond mining in Namibia parallels the history of Lüderitz. Al-
though diamonds were discovered along the Orange River in South Africa, and among the
guano workings on the offshore islands as early as 1866, it apparently didn't occur to any-
one that the desert sands might also harbour a bit of crystal carbon. In 1908, however, rail-
way worker Zacharias Lewala found a shiny stone along the railway line near Grasplatz
and gave it to his employer, August Stauch. Stauch took immediate interest and, to his ela-
tion, the state geologist confirmed that it was indeed a diamond. Stauch applied for a pro-
specting licence from the Deutsche Koloniale Gesellschaft (German Colonial Society) and
set up his own mining company, the Deutsche Diamanten Gesellschaft (German Diamond
Company), to begin exploiting the presumed windfall.
In the years that followed, hordes of prospectors descended upon the town of Lüderitz
with dreams of finding wealth buried in the sands. Lüderitz became a boom town as ser-
vice facilities sprang up to accommodate the growing population. By September 1908,
however, diamond dementia was threatening to escalate out of control, so the German
government intervened by establishing the Sperrgebiet. This 'Forbidden Zone' extended
from latitude 26°S southward to the Orange River mouth, and stretched inland for 100km.
Independent prospecting was henceforth
verboten,
and those who'd already staked their
claims were forced to form mining companies.
In February 1909 a diamond board was created to broker all diamond sales and thereby
control prices. However, after WWI ended, the world diamond market was so depressed
that in 1920, Ernst Oppenheimer of the Anglo-American Corporation was able to pur-
chase Stauch's company, along with eight other diamond-producing companies. This am-
bitious move led to the formation of Consolidated Diamond Mines (CDM), which was ad-
ministered by De Beers South Africa and headquartered in Kolmanskop.
In 1928 rich diamond fields were discovered around the mouth of the Orange River,
and in 1944 CDM decided to relocate to the purpose-built company town of Oranjemund.
Kolmanskop's last inhabitants left in 1956, and the sand dunes have been encroaching on
the town ever since.
