“My War Experiences in Samoa”

Abstract

In Weimar Germany, in the aftermath of defeat and the loss of the colonies, there was a popular demand for accounts of the colonial front and colonial life in general, leading to a boom in colonial literature and memoirs, lasting well into the interwar period. The genre of colonial fiction and non-fiction portrayed a lost world of imperial grandeur and Empire. Yet, these accounts were not just a form of nostalgic-sentimental entertainment and reminiscence. Many of them were used to stir up popular agitation to re-establish an Empire and address the Kolonialschuldlüge (colonial guilt lie) as part of the pro-colonial movement in interwar Germany. This chapter presents an analysis of pro-colonial and revisionist sentiments in wartime memoirs focussing on the German Pacific colonies, especially German Samoa. Aiming to raise the profile of “their” colonies in the pro-colonial debate in an effort to ensure popular support for their recovery, many of these accounts particularly relied on the long-established tropes of the Südseeparadies (South Sea paradise), while also espousing common notions of “the loyal native,” “the good and the bad colonisers,” and “Germans as victims,” which were employed to further revisionist aims and challenge the accusations of the “colonial guilt lie.” These memoirs also offer an insight into how the experiences of war, defeat, occupation, often internment or deportation, as well as the loss of property and homes, are reflected in these accounts. Yet, through their audiences, the memoirs helped shape the collective memory of that period during the 1920s and beyond. Therefore, the analysis of the Pacific wartime memoirs helps us understand not just the individual story, but also how this experience informed the collective memory of these colonies.