Old Fortress | |
 The Alte Feste in April 2006 | |
  Location within Namibia | |
| Established | 1890 |
|---|---|
| Location | Robert Mugabe Avenue, Windhoek, Namibia |
| Type | Fortress and museum |
| Founder | Captain Curt von François |
| Owner | National Museum of Namibia |
| Website | National Museum of Namibia |
The Alte Feste (English: Old Fortress) is a fortress and museum in downtown Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. It is situated in Robert Mugabe Avenue, next to the Independence Memorial Museum. [1]
The building was designed by captain Curt von François to serve as headquarters of the imperial German Schutztruppe (colonial military force) during German colonization of South West Africa. The location of Windhoek, which was deserted and completely destroyed at that time, was chosen because the Germans felt it would serve as a buffer zone between the Nama and Herero tribes. The fort was, however, never involved in any military action.
The foundation was laid on 18 October 1890 by the then Schutztruppe private Gustav Tünschel. The building was redesigned multiple times during the first years; its final layout was only completed in 1915. [2] It consists of an inner courtyard with high walls and accommodation for the troops on the inside, as well as four towers. The Alte Feste is the oldest surviving building in the city which subsequently developed around it.
After the World War I German surrender in South West Africa, Windhoek was occupied by the South African Army [3] in March 1915. The Alte Feste now served as military headquarters for the South African Union troops.
In 1935 the fort was used for a more peaceful purpose when it was converted into a hostel for the adjacent Windhoek High School. [4] [ failed verification ] Already severely dilapidated, it was declared a National Monument in 1957. The building was renovated extensively in 1963. [5]
In 2010, the Reiterdenkmal, Windhoek's well-known equestrian monument, was placed in front of the Alte Feste. [6] It was removed and placed in storage on Christmas Day in 2013.
The building today [update] accommodates the historic collection of the National Museum of Namibia. [1] As of 2023 [update] Alte Feste is closed and in urgent need of renovation. [7] It is planned to repurpose the building into a centre of arts, craft, and heritage. [8]
Windhoek is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around 1,700 m (5,600 ft) above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 2020 was 431,000 which is growing continually due to a continued migration from other regions in Namibia.
Swakopmund is a city on the coast of western Namibia, 352 km (219 mi) west of the Namibian capital Windhoek via the B2 main road. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. As of 2011, the town has 44,725 inhabitants and covers 196 km2 (76 sq mi) of land.
Grootfontein is a town with 23,793 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia. It is one of the three towns in the Otavi Triangle, situated on the B8 national road that leads from Otavi to the Caprivi Strip.
Curt Karl Bruno von François was a German geographer, cartographer, Schutztruppe officer and commissioner of the imperial colonial army of the German Empire, particularly in German South West Africa where he was responsible on behalf of Kaiser for the foundation of the city of Windhoek on 18 October 1890 and the harbor of Swakopmund on 4 August 1892.
Duwisib Castle, sometimes spelt Duwiseb or Duweseb, is a grand pseudo-medieval looking fortress in the hills of the semi-arid Southern Namib region of Namibia, 72 km southwest of Maltahöhe, Hardap Region. It was built in 1909 to serve as the residence of Hans Heinrich von Wolf, a German military officer. Since 1979 the castle has been owned by the government.
Erich Victor Carl August Franke was a German military officer and the last commander of the Schutztruppe in German South West Africa. Franke was born in Zuckmantel, Austrian Silesia. He was Bezirksamtmann in several German South West Africa locations, especially Ovamboland and Kaokoveld. He was stationed at Outjo from 1899 until 1910. He was involved in several campaigns against native tribes who resisted German colonial rule. In the early phases of the Herero Genocide of 1904, he was dubbed "Hero of Omaruru", because of his victory over numerically superior Herero forces at Omaruru. He also had successful campaigns against the Herero at Okahandja and Windhoek.
Heroes' Acre is an official war memorial of the Republic of Namibia. Built into the uninhabited hills 10 kilometres (6 mi) south of the city centre of Windhoek, Heroes' Acre opened on 26 August 2002. It was created to "foster a spirit of patriotism and nationalism, and to pass [this] to the future generations of Namibia".
The Battle of Sandfontein was fought between the Union of South Africa on behalf of the British Imperial Government and the German Empire on 26 September 1914 at Sandfontein, during the first stage of the South West Africa Campaign of World War I, and ended in a German victory.
Schwerinsburg is the biggest of three castles in Windhoek, Namibia. Today it is the private residence of the Italian ambassador in Namibia.
German South West Africa was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915, though Germany did not officially recognise its loss of this territory until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles.
ǁKhauxaǃnas is an uninhabited village with a ruined fortress in south-eastern Namibia, east of the Great Karas Mountains. It is the oldest systematically designed and built structure in Namibia, pre-dating all buildings erected by Europeans. Built at the end of the 18th century, most likely between 1796 and 1798 by Klaas Afrikaner and his two sons Jager and Titus, ǁKhauxaǃnas served as a hidden retreat and a fortress to fend off possible pursuits by Cape authorities. The Orlam Afrikaner tribe left the place in the 1820s but it continued to be inhabited by the Veldschoendragers (ǁHawoben) tribe until the mid-19th century.
The history of rail transport in Namibia began with a small mining rail line at Cape Cross in 1895. The first major railway project was started in 1897 when the German Colonial Authority built the 600 mm gauge Staatsbahn from Swakopmund to Windhoek. By 1902 the line was completed.
The Equestrian Monument, more commonly known under its German original name Reiterdenkmal and the name Südwester Reiter, was a monument in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. It was inaugurated on 27 January 1912, the birthday of German emperor Wilhelm II. The monument honoured the soldiers and civilians that died on the German side of the Herero and Namaqua War of 1904–1907, a situation that caused controversy about its role in a democratic Namibia that has shed its colonial occupation and gained independence.
Namibia is a multilingual country wherein German is recognised as a national language. While English has been the sole official language of the country since 1990, in many areas of the country, German enjoys official status at a community level.
The Independence Memorial Museum is a history museum in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. It focuses on the anti-colonial resistance and the national liberation movement of Namibia.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Windhoek, Namibia.
The Imperial Schutztruppe for German South West Africa was the official name of the military formation that maintained the German Empire in its colony of German South West Africa. The Schutztruppe are held responsible for numerous atrocities in the Herero and Nama uprising in 1904. During the First World War, the Schutztruppe was defeated by the troops of the Union of South Africa.
Squatting in Namibia is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. European settlers arrived in the nineteenth century and acquired land, leaving only 38 per cent of land in indigenous hands by 1902. This led to squatting and the Herero Wars, which ended with the Herero and Namaqua genocide. After Namibian independence in 1990, squatting increased as people migrated to the cities and land reform became a goal for those who had participated in the liberation struggle. By 2020, 401,748 people were living in 113 informal settlements across the country. Squatting continues to be regulated by the Squatters Proclamation of 1985; a challenge to this law was dismissed by the High Court in 2023.
The National Museum of Namibia is a historical and zoological museum in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. It is governed by the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture of the Namibian government.