THE END OF THE FRONTIER DEFENCE IN THE SUBSIDIARY THEATRES
IN August, 1916, Major Kraut had gradually retired from Kilossa on
Mahenge, leaving only Schoenfeld’s division at Kidodi, on the Ruaha.
Captain Braunschweig’s force was embodied in Major Kraut’s command. Of
these Captain Falkenstein, with the 5th Field Company, had retired,
at the end of May, 1916, from Ipyana, and Captain Aumann, with his
company, from the Mbozi region in the direction of Lupembe and Maubire.
During the retirement there was continual skirmishing. Our weak
divisions had to make a stand against the pursuing enemy, at least a
brigade strong.
At the end of June, 1916, Captain Braunschweig, who was then at
Dodoma, was sent through Iringa, and his force was strengthened to
five companies by the addition of the Kondoa troops and others brought
from Dar-es-Salaam, including the two companies from Langenburg. One
hundred of the crew of the _Königsberg_ from Dar-es-Salaam and a field
howitzer were added to this force. At Malangali he accepted battle with
the enemy, and apparently inflicted heavy losses. Then, however, he
evacuated the position, and abandoned the howitzer, which was difficult
to move, first making it useless. The difficulties of Braunschweig’s
position were increased by the action of an important Wahehe chief in
his rear, who rebelled and went over to the enemy with all his people
and cattle. Captain Braunschweig then retired on Mahenge, fighting a
succession of minor rearguard skirmishes, and put himself under the
orders of Major Kraut.
[Illustration: Fig. xv. March of Major-General Wahle in the West]
After numerous minor engagements Major Kraut’s retiring divisions
established themselves on the line of the Ruhudje and Ruaha rivers.
In the fertile region round Mahenge the supplies were excellent, even
after the evacuation of a large part of the rice-field west of the
Ruhudje. On this river the enemy had established a strongly fortified
camp at Mkapira. With our insufficient resources it was impossible to
take this position by force, but there was a chance that by cutting
the enemy’s line of communication with Lupembe, we might force him to
evacuate the camp owing to shortage of food.
Major Kraut crossed the river with five companies and a light field
gun, and occupied a position in a semi-circle of hills in the enemy’s
rear and right across his line of communication. In the enemy’s front
weak forces covered the river bank on the Mahenge side. Unfortunately
the fortified positions of our companies were so extended that, owing
to the difficulties of the country, there was no guarantee that support
could be brought up in time. On the——, before daybreak, the 10th
Company on the right wing was surprised by a heavy enemy attack. The
enemy also cleverly took the company’s position in the rear and, after
inflicting heavy losses, put the machine guns out of action. On the
left wing Lieutenant von Schroetter’s company was also attacked from
all sides, and had to cut its way out with the bayonet, losing the
light field gun and a machine gun. In view of the heavy casualties of
the enemy, Major Kraut would have been able to remain on the west bank
of the Ruhudje, in spite of this partial disaster, but fighting could
be heard from the direction of Lupembe, where the 25th Field Company
was covering his rear. Major Kraut thought, wrongly, that there,
too, a sharp attack had been made, and, therefore, retired again to
the east bank of the Ruhudje. To his astonishment the enemy’s strong
entrenchments at Mkapira were found to be evacuated a few days later,
the enemy having withdrawn in the night. Closer inspection showed that
he had suffered heavy losses in the recent fighting. This, however, was
not enough to explain his withdrawal; this riddle was not solved until
later, on the appearance of General Wahle, with whom no communication
had been established.
In expectation of the opening of the big operations of 1916 the
reinforcements that had been provisionally sent to Victoria Nyanza,
Ruanda, the Russissi and the Tanganyika area were brought back and
embodied into our main forces along the North railway. A single command
for these minor theatres of war was required, and with this object a
“western command” was established under Major-General Wahle, who for
the most part co-ordinated and directed these operations from Tabora.
In April and May, 1916, when the British main forces in the Kilima
Njaro area had completed their march, and, after the rainy season,
were beginning a fresh advance to the south, English and Belgians from
Muansa, Lake Kiwu, the Russissi and Bismarckburg began to advance
concentrically on Tabora through these minor theatres of war. Our weak
divisions retired on this place.
Major von Langenn retired at once from Tschangugu to Issawi, followed
by Captain Wintgens from Kissenji. Heavy casualties were inflicted on
the pursuing Belgian brigades in successful rearguard actions. The
German detachment later continued its retirement on Mariahilf. The
danger to our district from the strong Belgian forces on our heels
had been correctly estimated by Captain Gudovius. When in June, 1916,
strong English forces advanced across the Kagera, he retired south from
Bukoba with his division. Owing to the difficulties of communication
and getting information, a part of his force unfortunately ran upon
strong Belgian forces in Ussuwi district. Captain Gudovius himself was
wounded in the abdomen and fell into the enemy’s hands. The engagement
went badly for us and cost us heavy losses. Individual bodies of the
detachment, however, managed to fight their way through to Muansa and
Uschirombo.
In the middle of July, 1916, the English succeeded in effecting a
surprise landing with about a brigade in the neighbourhood of Muansa.
There, too, there was some skirmishing, favourable to us, and there the
Commanding Officer, Captain von Chappuis, retired in the direction of
Tabora. The troops from Muansa and those under Major von Langenn and
Captain Wintgens established a new front, approximately on the line
Schinjanga-St. Michael, and repulsed several Belgian attacks. Captain
Zimmer had sunk the steamer _Goetzen_ at Kigoma and blown up the Wami.
He then retired slowly along the railway to Tabora. Captain Hering
von Usumbura followed suit. The fact that the operations were nearing
Tabora gave General Wahle the opportunity to bring up quickly part of
the troops from the north of Tabora, to make a dash west by rail and
retire again at once. In this raid the 8th Field Company completely
routed a Belgian battalion west of Tabora, and Wintgens’ detachment
brought off a successful surprise attack west and north of Tabora.
These minor victories were often considerable, and on several different
days of skirmishing the enemy losses amounted to hundreds; several
light howitzers were also captured in these raids.
On 2nd June, 1916, the 29th Field Company was surrounded in its
fortified position in the Namema mountains. In fighting his way
through, the brave company commander, Lieutenant Franken, was severely
wounded and taken prisoner. Lieutenant Hasslacher retired step by step
on Tabora. In an affair of patrols south of this place he met with a
hero’s death.
In this way the troops of the western command were actually assembled
at Tabora, and the moment had come for a systematic retirement to the
south-east. These last operations and the capture of Tabora were not
known at Headquarters until long afterwards. There was no means of
communication with the western command. Major-General Wahle was aware
that this retirement of our main forces was of first importance for
the Mahenge area. Accordingly he gave orders for the march. At first
the railway could be used for supplies and transport. The eastern
column, under Major von Langenn, marched on Iringa, the centre column,
under Captain Wintgens, on Madibira, and the western column, under
Lieutenant Huebener, on Ilembule. Major Wahle accompanied the centre
column. In this way they came upon the line of communication between
Neu-Langenburg and Iringa, and the enemy’s dumps along this line.
Huebener’s detachment lost touch, and surrendered, being enveloped by
a superior force of the enemy at Ilembule. Langenn’s detachment was
most unfortunately surprised by a burst of fire while crossing a ford
near Iringa and lost heavily. The subsequent attack on Iringa was also
costly and without success.
Wintgens’ detachment surprised enemy dumps and columns near Madibira,
and also captured a gun and some wireless apparatus. In spite of
several days of stubborn fighting, they were unable to take Lupembe and
the surrounding farms. The influence of Wahle’s advance immediately
made itself felt in the Mahenge district. The apparently strong enemy
troops, who from their fortified positions at Mkapira had carried out
the successful raid against Major Kraut, now felt themselves seriously
threatened in their rear. They evacuated their strong positions and
retired on Lupembe. General Wahle took over the command of all the
forces at Mahenge.
At the end of 1916 the troops of General Wahle’s western command were
grouped round Mahenge. From here he directed the operations extending
approximately to the line Ssongea—Lupembe—Iringa—Kidodi.
It has been said that all touch with General Wahle had been lost since
July, 1916, until in October, 1916, his patrols joined up with those of
Major Kraut south of Iringa.
It was not, therefore, until after the fighting at Mkapira that Major
Kraut, and through him Headquarters, learned of General Wahle’s
advance; the development of the situation made a very different
impression on the enemy. He must have regarded the advance of General
Wahle’s columns against the English line of communication from Iringa
to Langenburg, and Major Kraut’s accidentally simultaneous threat to
Mkapira, as a widely-planned joint operation, which was seriously
endangering his troops at Mkapira, even after Major Kraut had withdrawn
to the east bank of the Ruhudje. He avoided this danger by a hasty
retirement from Mkapira in a westerly direction.
General Wahle’s columns at once concentrated in the Lupembe-Mkapira
area. No news was received of Huebener’s western column. Its
capitulation was not known until much later.
Welcome though this reinforcement of the forces in the west was,
there were difficulties of supplies, and it became necessary to put
under cultivation a considerable area, stretching almost to Ssongea.
Major Grawert’s detachment advanced to Likuju on the Ssongea—Liwale
road, that of Major Kraut to the Mpepo region and Captain Wintgens’
surrounded an enemy detachment in a fortified camp at Kitenda. The
enemy quickly marched to the relief of this force, but the relieving
troops were driven off with heavy losses. At the same time the position
of Grawert’s detachment took a very unfavourable turn. The enemy had
succeeded in driving off this force’s live-stock. As other supplies
in the district were scanty, Major von Grawert, exaggerating the
difficulties of supply, thought his position hopeless and surrendered
in January, 1917. A transportable 8.8 air naval gun which had been
brought to Lihuju with great difficulty fell into the enemy’s hands,
as well as a number of good machine guns. In reality the position
of Grawert’s force does not appear to have been so desperate as he
supposed; at any rate, a strong patrol under Sergeant-Major Winzer, who
refused to surrender, made its way south without being molested by the
enemy, and, a few days later, found abundant supplies at small cost in
the districts west of Tunduru. The conduct of this patrol gave further
proof that there is almost always a way out, even of an apparently
hopeless position, if the leader makes up his mind to face the risks.
Meanwhile General Wahle’s supply difficulties were increasing. Whether
they could have been modified by ruthlessly reducing the number of
non-combatants, as had been done on the Rufiji, or whether the material
welfare of the western command could have been substantially improved
by greater care in procuring and rationing the available resources,
could not be decided from my position on Lake Utungi. The temporary
telegraph to Mahenge was very inefficient and often interrupted, and
it took several days to get a despatch through from General Wahle in
Mahenge to the troops. This made it difficult for me to get a view of
the situation from the incomplete information at hand. Suffice it to
say that the difficulties of supply in Mahenge were regarded as so
acute that it was not considered possible to keep such strong forces
concentrated there, and part of them would have to be withdrawn.
Kraut’s and Wintgens’ forces were marched west to Gumbiro, whence
they were to press on across the Ssongea-Wiedhafen road. It was
thought that they would find adequate supplies in the mountains south
of Ssongea. The report of this move reached me too late for me to
interfere. From Gumbiro Captain Wintgens turned north and, near Lake
Rukwa, successfully engaged an enemy column which had been following
him; on nearing Tabora he got typhus and was taken prisoner. Captain
Naumann led the force on until finally he surrendered to the pursuing
enemy column near Kilima-Njaro towards the end of 1917. It is to be
regretted that this operation, carried out with so much initiative and
determination, became separated so far from the main theatre of war as
to be of little use.
Major Kraut had separated from Captain Wintgens in Gumbiro, and,
carrying out General Wahle’s orders, had marched south. There was no
difficulty about crossing the line of communication Ssongea-Wiedhafen,
but as the enemy had strongly entrenched and secured his supply
dumps, no booty was captured. In the open little was to be found in
March, 1917, the poorest season of the year, a few months before the
new harvest. After some rearguard actions against English troops a
success was scored in a surprise attack on the small Portuguese camp at
Mitomoul, on the Rovuma. Major Kraut then followed the river downstream
to Tunduru and himself came to Headquarters to report. Two of his
companies remained at Tunduru to guard the fertile district. The other
three marched further east and were temporarily taken over by Captain
Loof at Lindi.