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Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek
The rapid post-Independence development of the city of Windhoek, Namibia; and the ensuing destruction of a substantial number of German colonial buildings in the capital city, prompted speculation as to why these buildings are inadequately protected as heritage – and whether they are, in fact, consi...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Conservation of the Built Environment
2019
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| _version_ | 1867613143845306368 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Ruhlig, Vanessa Jane |
| author2 | Townsend, Stephen |
| author_browse | Ruhlig, Vanessa Jane Townsend, Stephen |
| author_facet | Townsend, Stephen Ruhlig, Vanessa Jane |
| author_sort | Ruhlig, Vanessa Jane |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | The rapid post-Independence development of the city of Windhoek, Namibia; and the ensuing destruction of a substantial number of German colonial buildings in the capital city, prompted speculation as to why these buildings are inadequately protected as heritage – and whether they are, in fact, considered to be heritage.
The study explores the issues pertaining to the presence of German colonial architecture, as artefacts of the German colonial period, within the postcolonial context of Windhoek. The trauma and pain of the Namibian War and genocide (1904 – 1908) are recurring themes in the body of literature on postcolonial Namibia; and this informs a wider discourse on memory. Memory is found to play a crucial role in evoking a sense of both individual and shared ownership, through its capacity to create meaning, which can in turn ascribe value to a place. Memory is also dependent on visual cues for its continued existence, which suggests the importance of colonial architecture as a material prompt to sustain memory. The research therefore investigates the memories and multiple meanings attributable to colonial architecture in this plural society, and how these meanings can be created, or possibly reinvented, through the continued use of these buildings.
The study is based on an assessment of three halls in Windhoek – the Grüner Kranz Hall (1906), the Kaiserkrone Hall (1909), and the Turnhalle (1909; 1912), all designed by the German architect Otto Busch – which illustrates in part, the need for the development of historical building surveys that assess the social values and significances of these contested spaces; and moreover, the potential that these spaces have to support memory work through their continued use. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/30196 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:31:28.055Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | Conservation of the Built Environment |
| publisherStr | Conservation of the Built Environment |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/30196 Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek Ruhlig, Vanessa Jane Townsend, Stephen Colonial Architecture Post-Colonial Values Heritage Significance Historical buildings Survey Namibia The rapid post-Independence development of the city of Windhoek, Namibia; and the ensuing destruction of a substantial number of German colonial buildings in the capital city, prompted speculation as to why these buildings are inadequately protected as heritage – and whether they are, in fact, considered to be heritage. The study explores the issues pertaining to the presence of German colonial architecture, as artefacts of the German colonial period, within the postcolonial context of Windhoek. The trauma and pain of the Namibian War and genocide (1904 – 1908) are recurring themes in the body of literature on postcolonial Namibia; and this informs a wider discourse on memory. Memory is found to play a crucial role in evoking a sense of both individual and shared ownership, through its capacity to create meaning, which can in turn ascribe value to a place. Memory is also dependent on visual cues for its continued existence, which suggests the importance of colonial architecture as a material prompt to sustain memory. The research therefore investigates the memories and multiple meanings attributable to colonial architecture in this plural society, and how these meanings can be created, or possibly reinvented, through the continued use of these buildings. The study is based on an assessment of three halls in Windhoek – the Grüner Kranz Hall (1906), the Kaiserkrone Hall (1909), and the Turnhalle (1909; 1912), all designed by the German architect Otto Busch – which illustrates in part, the need for the development of historical building surveys that assess the social values and significances of these contested spaces; and moreover, the potential that these spaces have to support memory work through their continued use. 2019-06-05T07:07:37Z 2019-06-05T07:07:37Z 2018 Thesis MPhil http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30196 en application/pdf Conservation of the Built Environment Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Colonial Architecture Post-Colonial Values Heritage Significance Historical buildings Survey Namibia Ruhlig, Vanessa Jane Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek |
| title_full | Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek |
| title_fullStr | Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek |
| title_full_unstemmed | Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek |
| title_short | Colonial architecture as heritage: German colonial architecture in post-colonial Windhoek |
| title_sort | colonial architecture as heritage german colonial architecture in post colonial windhoek |
| topic | Colonial Architecture Post-Colonial Values Heritage Significance Historical buildings Survey Namibia |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30196 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ruhligvanessajane colonialarchitectureasheritagegermancolonialarchitectureinpostcolonialwindhoek |