Walk Through Time
Historical Tourism in Tanzania
Discover the rich colonial history of Arusha, the story of the Boma, the Waarusha people, and the majestic Mount Meru — a journey through Tanzania's captivating past.
Discover the rich colonial history of Arusha, the story of the Boma, the Waarusha people, and the majestic Mount Meru — a journey through Tanzania's captivating past.
Step back in time with our handpicked heritage journeys. From ancient wonders to medieval marvels — each package is a portal to the past.
German Captain who built the Arusha Boma in 1899–1900, establishing colonial control over the Waarusha.
Led Chagga troops in the retaliatory attack against the Waarusha on 31 October 1896.
German missionaries killed during the Waarusha attack on 19 October 1896.
First commander of the Arusha Boma garrison; nicknamed "Bwana Fisi" (Mr. Hyena).
On the 19th of October 1896, Captain Kurt Johannes, while visiting Chief Matunda and other influential leaders within the Akeri area, was attacked by Waarusha warriors. The attack was an attempt to avenge a raid Captain Johannes and his troops had made earlier in 1895. Two missionaries, Ewald Ovir and Karl Segebrock, who were accompanying the Captain, were killed during the attack.
Captain Johannes survived and rushed back to his station in Moshi to organize Chagga troops under Lt. Moritz Merker for a retaliatory attack on the Arusha.
On the 31st of October, the troops struck at the Waarusha and defeated the proud warriors. From this victory, Captain Johannes gained control over the Waarusha and their territory. He confiscated all the warriors' traditional weapons and, with the help of his troops, destroyed their houses and food reserves.
Three years after the conflict, Captain Johannes received consent from his superiors to construct a fort that would symbolize German control over the territory. The Waarusha suffered their worst humiliation — they were forced to participate in the actual construction of the Boma.
The once-fiery warriors used their swords to dig out limestone and their shields to carry it to the site. Younger women brought banana fibres for thatching, older women pounded mud with their feet, and others fetched grass for the Captain's donkeys.
By 1900 the fort was completed. Captain Johannes used it to house a troop of 150 Nubian soldiers, and soon the Imperial German Ensign was flying from the flagstaff. The fortification was used by the Germans for regional government offices until 1934.
The boma that Meru and Arusha were forced to build in 1900 was a solid statement of the imposition of a new political and moral order. Set on a small hill at the base of Mount Meru, the fortress-like building faced out over the plains below.
Standing amidst the lush plantations of the Waarusha, one approached the fort along a wide straight path and entered through a heavy stone portal into an open courtyard. Water from neighbouring gullies was laid on throughout the building. The station was walled off and furnished with a Maxim gun and a machine gun.
Mount Meru is an active volcano located just 70 kilometers west of Mount Kilimanjaro. It reaches 4,566 meters (14,978 feet) in height but has lost much of its bulk due to an eastward volcanic blast sometime in its distant past, perhaps similar to the 1980 eruption of Mount Saint Helens.
The last eruption was probably in 1877, and lava rock was blown out during October and December 1910. The Maasai name Oldoiny'orok means "the black mountain," while another meaning is "that which does not make a noise."
The local Waarusha people regard Mount Meru as sacred. Every year, a bull or sheep is sacrificed and offered to the mountain to ensure rain in the coming season. While local people have been visiting the forest and crater floor for generations, it is not known whether anyone reached the summit before European explorers.
The first European to record a sighting of Meru was the German explorer Karl von der Decken in 1862. The first ascent to the summit is credited to either Carl Uhlig in 1901 or Fritz Jaeger in 1904.
German officers ruled through local Arusha and Meru leaders. Unlike Meru, Arusha had no tradition of chiefdom, so the Germans appropriated the tradition of regional spokesmen (laigwenak) and called them Mangi after the Meru term for chief.
Chiefs and headmen appointed by the Germans after 1900 saw their potential power increase as a result of their newly institutionalized authority. However, they became increasingly unpopular as they answered to their German patrons rather than their own people. The German administration was viewed as harsh and unjust — Lieutenant Küster was nicknamed "Bwana Fisi" (Mr. Hyena) by the local people.
Eleven district officers served an average of just sixteen months each during German rule from 1901 to 1916, meaning few remained long enough to understand the local situation.
Shortly after the brutal German punitive expeditions, the Germans granted huge blocks of land on north Meru to a hundred Afrikaner families newly arrived from South Africa, subsequently alienating a solid block of land across the southern slopes.
When the British expelled German settlers after 1917, they confiscated the farms but reallocated them to Greek and British settlers rather than returning them to the Arusha and Meru peoples. The amount of alienated land actually increased by 81 percent as new lands were opened for sisal production.
Boma completed; Arusha town begins around the fort
"White House" built in Ilboru; road links it to Boma
Railroad to Moshi completed; population influx begins
350,000+ people; 82.5 km² metropolitan area
In just over a hundred years, the village around the German fort grew into a bustling metropolitan area. Today, Arusha opens its doors to newcomers just as it did in the time of the Boma's glory — a testament to resilience, transformation, and the enduring spirit of Tanzania.
Visit the Arusha Boma Museum, explore the streets where German and African history intertwined, and experience the living story of Tanzania.
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