Medical Expeditions and Scramble for Africa: Robert Koch in Africa 1896-1907 Facil Tesfaye ...

291 Pages·2013·35.67 MB·English

Medical Expeditions and Scramble for Africa:

Robert Koch in Africa 1896-1907

Facil Tesfaye

Department of History and Classical Studies, McGill University, Montreal

September 2013

A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the
requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

“©” Facil Tesfaye 2013
Table of Content

Abstract ........................................................................................................................................................... iv(cid:1)
Aknowledgments ............................................................................................................................................. v(cid:1)
List of illustrations .......................................................................................................................................... vi(cid:1)
List of Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................................... vii(cid:1)
Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................... 1(cid:1)
Chapter I. Becoming a Mobile Colonial Actor ................................................................................................ 7(cid:1)
Chapter II. First Expedition to Southern Africa 1896-1897: Intervention during the “Great Continental
Cattle Plague” ................................................................................................................................................ 37(cid:1)
Chapter III. Second Expedition to Southern Africa 1902: The Controversial Expedition ............................ 84(cid:1)
Chapter IV. First German East Africa Expedition 1897-1898: The Beginnings of the “Medicalization” of
the New Colony ........................................................................................................................................... 133(cid:1)
Chapter V. German East Africa Expeditions 1905 - 1907: Pursuing “Medicalization” through Colonial
Public Health Care Measures ....................................................................................................................... 183(cid:1)
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................... 239(cid:1)
Annex ........................................................................................................................................................... 243(cid:1)
Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 260(cid:1)

ii
For Endale: Yihew yene lij!

iii
Abstract

The history of colonial medical expeditions and those involved in them is usually
left to medical professionals who use their expertise to decrypt the technical and scientific
aspects of the activities conducted on the ground. In addition, such works do not
necessarily pay attention to the general historical context in which the expeditions
occurred.
This study is a historical examination of five medical expeditions that Robert
Koch conducted in the African continent between 1896 and 1907. It places the activities
of the German scientist in the general historical context of the late nineteenth century
Africa, which was described by scholars as a “time of trouble and transformation”. The
extreme environmental conditions of African continent at the time, and the Scramble for
Africa that was unfolding on the ground will thus provide the framework of analysis
proposed by this study.

Résumé

L'histoire des expéditions médicales coloniales et de ceux qui y ont été impliqués
est généralement laissée aux professionnels de la santé qui utilisent leur savoir-faire pour
décrypter les aspects techniques et scientifiques des activités menées sur le terrain. En
outre, ces travaux ne paient pas nécessairement beaucoup d'attention au contexte
historique général dans lequel les expéditions ont eu lieu.
Cette thèse est un examen historique de cinq expéditions médicales que Robert
Koch a mené sur le continent africain entre 1896 et 1907. Cette étude place les activités
du scientifique allemand dans le contexte historique général africain de la fin du XIXe
siècle, qui a été décrit par certains spécialistes comme un «temps de détresse et de
transformation". La situation environnementale extrême du continent Africain de
l'époque, ainsi que la ruée vers l'Afrique qui se déroulait au même moment serviront de
cadre de l’analyse proposée par cette étude.

iv
Aknowledgments

I would like to express my deepest appreciation and gratitude to:
• My supervisors, Professor Myron Echenberg and Professor Gwyn Campbell, for
all their support, guidance and patience.
• The Department of History and Classical Studies and the Indian Ocean World
Centre for the opportunity I was given to evolve in a motivating, and intellectually
stimulating research environment.

Financial support for this study was provided by:
• The FQRSC doctoral scholarship (2010-2013)
• The Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (2010-2011)
• The Indian Ocean World Centre, McGill University
• Department of History and Classical Studies, McGill University

Additional thank you to:
• The staff of the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin who gave me full access to the
archive of the Institute during my research in 2010-2011
• My family and friends: For the support and encouragements you have given me
all along; and most importantly, for being with me during the ups and downs that
accompanied this journey. This dissertation would not have been possible without
you!
• I would particularly like to thank Eyob Girma (Harstad, Norway), Alexander
Deguise, Vilelmini Tsagkaraki, Sarah Ghabrial (McGill, Montreal) and Merertu
Mogga (Ottawa) who read and commented earlier versions of my chapters.

v
List of illustrations
TABLE 1. SUMMER 2010 PRESS COVERAGE OF ROBERT KOCH’S DEATH ANNIVERSARY IN GERMAN
SPEAKING NEWSPAPERS ................................................................................................................. 11(cid:1)
MODEL OF AN INSTRUMENT OF MICROPHOTOGRAPHY MADE BY THE FIRM LAUTENSCHLÄGER FOR
ROBERT KOCH ................................................................................................................................ 19(cid:1)
MAP 1. ROBERT KOCH’S AFRICA EXPEDITIONS 1883-1907 ........................................................... 22(cid:1)
TABLE 2. SUMMARY OF ROBERT KOCH’S AFRICA EXPEDITIONS ................................................... 25(cid:1)
MAP 2. THE SPREAD OF RINDERPEST IN AFRICA BETWEEN 1888 AND1900 ................................... 41(cid:1)
A GROUP PICTURE WITH KOCH AND HIS WIFE WITH HUTCHEON, HENNING, O’DONNOGUE,
PHILIPPS AND KOHLSTOCK (A.O.) TAKEN IN KIMBERLEY IN 1896 ................................................. 58(cid:1)
VICTORIA COMPOUND PHOTOGRAPHED BY ROBERT KOCH IN 1896 .............................................. 65(cid:1)
THE AUTOPSY AREA AND THE MASS GRAVE OF VICTORIA COMPOUND ......................................... 68(cid:1)
‘DR KOCH EXTRACTING BILE’ AT VICTORIA COMPOUND .............................................................. 76(cid:1)
VIEW FROM THE VERANDA OF ROBERT KOCH’S ROOM IN THE GRAND HOTEL OF BULAWAYO .... 99(cid:1)
MAP 3. “GERMAN AFRICA” IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY ............................................................. 131(cid:1)
MAP 4. DETAILED MAP OF GERMAN EAST AFRICA ...................................................................... 140(cid:1)
MAP 5. “HEALTH CONDITIONS FOR EUROPEANS” IN GERMAN EAST AFRICA ............................. 171(cid:1)
TABLE 3. EXAMPLES OF NEWSPAPER ARTICLES THAT REPORTED ABOUT ROBERT KOCH’S
SLEEPING SICKNESS EXPEDITION ................................................................................................. 188(cid:1)
MAP SHOWING THE VARIOUS CARAVAN ROUTES OF GEA ........................................................... 194(cid:1)
CHROMATIN (COMBINATION OF DNA AND PROTEIN) OF THE BACTERIA CAUSING RELAPSING
FEVER ........................................................................................................................................... 195(cid:1)
SPIRILLUM (CELL BODY) OF RELAPSING FEVER CAUSING BACTERIA FOUND IN TICK EGGS ......... 196(cid:1)
A PICTURE OF ORNITHODORUS MOUBATA MURRAY TAKEN BY KOCH ....................................... 197(cid:1)
PICTURES SHOWING THE VARIOUS DEVELOPMENT CYCLES OF TEXAS FEVER PARASITES IN TICKS
...................................................................................................................................................... 200(cid:1)
PICTURE OF EAST COAST FEVER PARASITES FOUND BY KOCH IN RHIPICEPHALUS AUSTRALIS ... 201(cid:1)
TRYPANOSOMES OBSERVED BY KOCH (FIG 15, 16 & 17) ............................................................ 204(cid:1)
TRYPANOSOMES OBSERVED BY KOCH (FIG 18-19) ...................................................................... 205(cid:1)
TRYPANOSOMES OBSERVED BY KOCH (FIG 20, 21, 22, 23) .......................................................... 205(cid:1)
MAP 6. SLEEPING SICKNESS IN GERMAN EAST AFRICA ............................................................... 207(cid:1)
MEMBERS OF THE 1906 SLEEPING SICKNESS EXPEDITION IN GEA .............................................. 217(cid:1)
MAP 7. THE ROUTE TAKEN BY THE MEMBERS OF THE SLEEPING SICKNESS EXPEDITION ............ 218(cid:1)
A PICTURE OF MUANZA TAKEN BY KOCH .................................................................................... 219(cid:1)
MAP SHOWING THE DISTRIBUTION OF SLEEPING SICKNESS AND GLOSSINA PALPALIS ON THE
SHORES OF LAKE VICTORIA .......................................................................................................... 223(cid:1)
UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COLONIAL AFFAIRS BERNHARD DERNBURG IN
GEA (AUGUST-OCTOBER 1907) ................................................................................................... 237(cid:1)

vi
List of Abbreviations

BSAC British South African Company
ECF East Coast fever
EMD Evangelischen Missionsgesellschaft für Deutsch-Ostafrika
FAO Food and Agriculture Organization
GEA German East Africa
Gl Glossina
Rf Relapsing fever
RKI Robert Koch Institute
RKM Robert Koch Museum
Tf Texas fever

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Introduction

The many medical expeditions that took place in Africa prior to or during
the Scramble for Africa are generally not given their proper place in historical
studies. They are either considered as marginal manifestations organized by
medical doctors, or as part of larger scientific explorations conducted by pioneers
like the now unavoidable David Livingstone (1813-1873) and Henry Morton
Stanley (1841-1904). Scientists in such expeditions are therefore known for their
participation in the exploration of an “unknown continent,” rather than for their
scientific work.1
Perusal of the existing studies that address the history of medical
expeditions and those involved in them reveals that this area of research is usually
the territory of medical professionals or microbiologists. These scholars use their
specialized knowledge to decrypt the technical and scientific aspects of the
activities conducted on the ground. However, as a result, they tend to produce
biographic (or hagiographic) works that do not necessarily attend to the general
historical context in which the expeditions occurred.2
The current study is about a German scientist—Robert Koch (1847-
1910)—who conducted a series of expeditions between 1896 and 1907. He began
his career as a small-town medical officer during the Franco-German War (1870-
1871), but by the late 1880s, he had become a prestigious German scientist and a

1 See for instance Lawrence Dritsas, Zambesi David Livingstone and expeditionary science in
Africa, (London ; New York: I.B. Tauris ; Palgrave Macmillan, 2010).
2 See for instance Thomas D. Brock, Robert Koch: A Life in Medicine and Bacteriology,
(Madison, WI Berlin ; New York: Science Tech Publishers ; Springer-Verlag, 1988).
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darling of Emperor Wilhelm II. Summoned by various colonial powers to conduct
health-related investigations in Africa, he was involved in the fight against major
diseases, such as cholera, bubonic plague, and Rinderpest, as well as in the
formulation of colonial health policies. Among his colleagues, Koch was known
for his difficult character and “Faustian weaknesses.”3 Nevertheless, his
increasing prominence as a scientist placed him at the center of international
solicitations. When he won the Nobel Prize in 1905, Koch became a popular hero,
and today, more than a century after his death, he still enjoys “superstar” status in
Germany and within the international scientific community.4
Purpose and objective of the study
Previous studies on Koch have been limited primarily to narrow accounts
of his scientific achievements in the laboratory. The few studies that cover his
Africa expeditions tend to be panegyric, extolling the man and uncritically
overrating his achievements.5 Evidently, Koch’s larger-than-life reputation has
rendered it difficult for historians to undertake critical evaluations of his work in
Africa.6
This study breaks with this tradition. It offers a critical evaluation of
Koch’s expeditions in Africa by situating them within the framework of the

3 Claude E. Dolman (1906-1994), a Canadian microbiologist wrote that Koch’s “faustian
weaknesses and shortcomings do not diminish the good deeds which he has bequeathed to
mankind and will continue to persist.” http://www.personenlexikon.net/d/robert-koch/robert-
koch.htm (Accessed February 28, 2012)
4 Magnus Heier, "Robert Koch Superstar," Der Tagesspiegel, Thursday 27 May 2010b.
5 See for instance Bernhard Möllers, Robert Koch, Persönlichkeit und Lebenswerk, 1843-1910,
(Hannover,: Schmorl & Von Seefeld, 1950). Brock, Robert Koch. Paul F. Cranefield, Science and
Empire : East Coast Fever in Rhodesia and Transvaal, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1991).
6 See for instance Wolfgang Ulrich Wachs, "Die Pestexpedition unter Leitung von Robert Koch
nach Indien und Deutsch-Ostafrika 1897" (PhD, Humboldt Universitaet zu Berlin, 2006). Hirokuyi
Isobe, Medizin und Kolonialgesellschaft. Die Bekaempfung der Schlafkrankheit in den deutschen
"Schutzgebieten" vor dem Ersten Weltkrieg, (Muenster: Lit Verlag, 2009).
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environmental crisis in the continent at that time. Moreover, they are viewed in
light of European colonial expansion, which provoked dramatic changes in the
economic, political, and social relationships between colonial powers and
European settlers, on the one hand, and between colonial powers and indigenous
populations, on the other.7
Such an approach opens up new possibilities for evaluating the impact of
Koch’s work in Africa. For instance, this study shows the crucial role of medical
professionals in the early stages of the colonial process. In fact, their expert
recommendations were often the backbones of public health measures and
policies adopted by colonial governments. This study also demonstrates how such
intrusive measures helped undermine local African social, economic, political,
and religious belief systems, thereby promoting white economic and political
dominance. Alongside his work as a prestigious scientist, Koch was also an
important colonial actor who was particularly crucial in the formative years of the
colonization of German East Africa (GEA).
Sources
This study is based on research into a series of primary sources related to
Koch’s expeditions in colonial Africa. These are comprised of reports written by
Koch or his assistants at the time, official government documents, and private
correspondence. These are located chiefly in two German archives in Berlin: the
Geheimes Staatsarchiv and the Robert Koch Institut. It also draws upon
publications by scientific contemporaries of Robert Koch and biographical works

7 Giblin called this period a “time of trouble and transformation”. James Giblin, "Trypanosomiasis
Control in African History: An Evaded Issue?," The Journal of African History 31, no. 1 (1990b):
74.
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