| 1856-1860 | The Cape-based Walfish Bay Mining
Company and the Great Namaqua Mining Company try to exploit the copper deposits in central
and southern Namibia. The first company exploits the deposits of the Matchless Mine
located west of Windhoek in the Khomas Hochland. It is not clear who discovered the
Matchless Mine. Informal historical evidence claims that it was Jonker Afrikaner together
with Frank Bassingthwaighte. Andersson, the major trader between the Oranje and Kunene
Rivers, later serves as their manager, supported by Reid. Copper mining is soon abandoned,
however, due to, inter alia, the high transport costs, although Andersson had
improved the Bay Road from Windhoek via Remhoogte, Otjimbingwe, Tsaobis and Tinkas to
Walvis Bay originally built by Jonker Afrikaner. Piet Gertse works for the Walfish Bay Mining Company. The Great Namaqua Mining Company negotiates mining rights with David Christian Frederiks from Bethany. However, there are no developments worth mentioning. The European mining companies pay minimal or no levies to the local communities for the mining rights. The arrival of European miners intensifies various conflicts between Jonker Afrikaner and other Namaland chiefs, such as ||Oaseb of the Kai||khaun and Willem Swartbooi (!Huiseb #Haobemab) from Rehoboth. Jonker has Hendrik Henricks (or !Nanib gaib #Arisemab) of the ||Hawoben and Piet Koper !Gamab (successor of Captain Willem Franzman who died in February 1854) of the Fransman Nama or !Khara-khoen as allies. In the end, the Kai||khaun-Swartbooi alliance becomes the weaker party. Jonker is, however, not successful in winning over Kido Witbooi (or #A-||êib). But the dividing lines between Jonker and the other Nama groups are not clear cut. Jonker attempts to induce his relatives in Blydeverwacht as well as the Bethany and Goliath Nama from Berseba, to fight against the Swartboois and the ||Oaseb group. However, the communities of Berseba and Bethany are strongly admonished by their Rhenish missionaries and are not actively involved. At the same time ||Oaseb, apart from coveting his strong alliance with the Swartboois, tries to motivate his old Nama associates, the Bondelswarts (!Gami-#nun) and even Jonker's allies, the Goliath Nama, to move against Jonker’s allies. The Bondelswarts, as before, largely remain uninvolved in the conflicts in Namaland. They can afford to do so primarily because of their position as "border police", which is a source of income and protection from the Cape Government. Jan Boois or Jan Frederiks from Bethany fights firstly with ||Oaseb of the Kai||khaun and the Swartboois and switches later to Jonker Afrikaner’s side. Piet Koper !Gamab of the Fransman Nama and Hendrik Henricks of the ||Hawoben join Jonker. |
| 1855 |
The first printing press is
established in Rooibank (later called Scheppmannsdorf") near Walvis Bay.Amraal
Lambert from the Kai|khauan moves from Naosanabis (present-day Leonardville) to Gobabis. James Chapman, one of the first people to take photographs in the territory, travels from Lake Ngami in present-day Botswana, via South Africa to Walvis Bay. James Todd arrives as a copper prospector in the country. JH van Reenen prospects for copper at Baker’s Cove, south of present-day Lüderitz. He also prospects near Bethany, but when the Bethany chief denies him permission to prospect at Aus, he terminates his prospecting activities. Barnabas Hörnemann serves as a mission worker at Otjimbingwe (until 1861). |
| March | The first crew of the Walfish Bay
Mining Company under the leadership of the mining prospector Stead land in Walvis Bay.
They first contact Willem Swartbooi (!Huiseb #Haobemab) to get permission to exploit some
promising copper deposits at Klein Aub, south-west of Rehoboth. Also ||Oaseb of the
Kai||khaun derives profit from these activities. However, the mine doesn’t materialise and the company establishes itself in 1856 at the Matchless Mine. |
| 02.03. | Missionaries Kleinschmidt and Vollmer complete a Nama-Dutch dictionary. |
| 13.04. | The Rhenish Missionary Society resumes its work at Naosanabis (present-day Leonardville) with Friedrich Simon Eggert as missionary (until 19.08.1856). |
| 21.04. | Rhenish missionary Franz Heinrich Vollmer proposes to use the Nama language instead of the Dutch language in the Nama mission. |
| 18.11. | David Livingstone is the first European to discover the Zambezi Falls (present-day Victoria Falls). |
|
|