Following on from yesterday’s post is another book about the Great War in East Africa. This time by the German commander Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck himself.

Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck, also known as the Lion of Africa, was one of Germany’s most prestigious and well-respected generals both during and after World War I.

Returning from the war a hero, he would be remembered as one of the most well-respected commanders of the era, so popular and influential that even during the reign of the Nazis, he was able to insult Hitler to his face (he told Hitler to go @#%$ himself), refuse any positions offered by the regime, and survive their reign of terror with his popularity and honour intact.

In this work, General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck of the German East-Africa campaign shares his narrative of the war, and how his effective use of guerilla warfare kept the Allied army in check. Unlike his counterparts in Europe, whose war degenerated to infamous trench warfare,

German Askari’s on parade.

Lettow-Vorbeck led a highly effective campaign that impressed commanders on both sides. His campaign took place over modern-day Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania, with parts of Britain’s colonial holdings eventually also subject to skirmishing. The cunning use of terrain, weather, ambush, guns from the sunken ship Konigsberg, and local auxiliaries meant Lettow-Vorbeck’s small force kept an Allied army roughly ten times as large occupied.

One of the 105mm guns salvaged from the Konigsberg

Lettow-Vorbeck and other military figures in Germany had calculated how effective a guerilla campaign could be in Africa prior to the war commencing in 1914. Frustrated by his successes, the British sent reinforcements totalling over 70,000 men in 1916 – these too failed to gain a decisive victory

German led Askaris man a machine gun

The account is written in a first-person, and I consider it a primer for a more in-depth study of this brilliant and effective tactician. Search also for “Lion of Africa” and “African Kaiser” for additional readings. Like a lot of period works the English is in an older style and can be sometimes difficult to read but this is the fault of the translator and not the author.

Highly recommended, especially for those interested in military history in general and the East Africa campaign in specifically.