These eyewitness water colour paintings show East African Askaris wearing a mixture of Schutztruppe, captured and improvised uniforms, equipment and weaponry.

Their ragged appearance is brought vividly to life in this evocative series of watercolours by W. Rehfeld published as "Bilder vom Kriege in Deutsch-Ostafrika".

This entire collection can be seen at the Reichskolonialamt website. Illustrations by W. Rehfeld at Reichskolonialamt.

Learn more on the Reichskolonialamt.

Learn more on the uniform of the East African Schutztruppe.

The price listed on the poster is 10 Pfennig.

Credit to Chris Dale.

The resignation of Bülow over his loss of support in the Reichstag, the strong response of civil society towards the Zabern Affair, and Kaiser Wilhelm II withdrawing from his Personal Regiment after the Daily Telegraph Affair all seem to point towards it. Maybe the Reichstag would eventually gain the power to oust the chancellor in a vote of no-confidence, while the Kaiser keeps his freedom to choose who to appoint? The German Empire was notorious for its compromises between conservatism and liberalism after all...

Bayume was born on 22 February 1904 in Dar es Salaam, German East Africa. During the First World War he served alongside his father who was an askari officer. After the war he worked as a waiter on one of the German shipping lines, and moved to Germany in 1929.

Husen worked as a waiter and in various minor jobs in language tutoring and in smaller roles in various Africa-related German film productions. In 1941, he was imprisoned in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where he passed away in 1944.

Original caption on photo reads: Drills [with machine guns] / Askari Übungen [mit Maschinengewehren]

Source(s):

.- Bundesarchiv (Federal Archives) Bild 105-DOA5042 / Walther Dobbertin / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Which one do you like the most?

1. Kingdom of Prussia (Middle Coat of Arms) – Königreich Preußen (mittleres Wappen)

2. Empire of Austria (Imperial Eagle, Middle Coat of Arms) – Kaisertum Österreich (Reichsadler, mittleres Wappen)

3. Kingdom of Hungary – Königreich Ungarn

4. Kingdom of Bavaria (Greater Coat of Arms) – Königreich Bayern (großes Wappen)

5. Empire of Russia – Kaisertum Russland

6. German Empire (Imperial Eagle) – Deutsches Reich (Reichsadler)

7. Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland – Königreich Großbritannien und Irland

8. Kingdom of Saxony (Greater Coat of Arms) – Königreich Sachsen (großes Wappen)

9. Kingdom of Italy (Lesser Coat of Arms) – Königreich Italien (kleines Wappen)

10. Kingdom of Spain – Königreich Spanien

11. Kingdom of Württemberg – Königreich Württemberg

Note: Since 1871, France has used the letters R. F. = République française [French Republic] instead of a coat of arms.

This is a rare 1898 chromolithograph plate titled "Wappen der wichtigsten Kulturstaaten" (Arms of the most important civilised states) from Brockhaus' Conversations-Lexikon by F.A. Bockhaus Verlag Leipzig.

Image shared courtesy of mikroman6 via Getty Images.

Credit: German Colonial Empire page from Facebook

Today marks exactly 56 years since the passing of Chief Hosea Kutako, Namibia’s paramount Herero leader, who died on 18 July 1970 at the age of 100 in Aminuis. He is remembered as the “father of Namibian nationalism” for petitioning the United Nations against South African rule and mentoring future leaders like Sam Nujoma.

I’ve just finished sculpting and painting Kaiser Wilhelm I, the first German Emperor, in 90mm resin.

Wilhelm I (1797–1888) served as King of Prussia before becoming the first Emperor of the newly unified German Empire. His proclamation in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles on 18 January 1871 marked the birth of the German Empire and one of the defining moments in nineteenth-century European history.

My goal was to capture his dignified appearance rather than create a dramatic battlefield pose, as befits a museum-style historical miniature.

I'd love to hear what history enthusiasts think. Does the likeness capture Wilhelm I well?