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Shattered Dreams At Kilimanjaro

by Helmut Glenk with Horst Blaich and Peer Gatter

269 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #07-1582; ISBN 1-4251-3922-1; US$30.00, C$34.50, EUR23.39, £15.51

This is an historical account of German settlers from Palestine who started plantations and businesses in German East Africa and Tanganyika during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

About the Book

Shattered Dreams at Kilimanjaro covers the period from the establishment of the former colony of German East Africa in the late 19th century until the formation of the independent State of Tanganyika in 1961. The book focuses on a small group of German settlers who ventured into a new world - German East Africa - to establish farms and businesses in the Mt Kilimanjaro region.

This venture was ultimately not successful due, in part, to the tropical diseases contracted by some of the settlers, whilst others were disillusioned with the poor economic returns. The main reason for its failure, however, was the outbreak of World War I and the devastating effects this had on the settlers, culminating in dispossession and deportation. Before the war the settlers had achieved a great deal by clearing virgin land and cultivating it with coffee and an array of vegetables and fruits. Others had started businesses such as building and flour milling.

After World War I the former German colony became the British Mandate Territory of Tanganyika. Some former settlers returned only to lose everything again when World War II broke out and all Germans were interned and their properties confiscated. Many of the settlers were deported to Germany in 1940; others were interned in Africa for the duration of the war before being repatriated to Germany.

It is fitting to record the history of these adventurous and hard working people. They overcame severe personal hardships and disappointments and, in the end, earned little reward for their toils. Nevertheless, they left a lasting legacy because agriculture was brought to a region in tropical East Africa from which crops are still grown and food produced. Similarly, their businesses gave rise to ongoing enterprises in that region.

The book is illustrated with many historical photographs.

Reviews

"Helmut Glenk, together with Horst Blaich and Peer Gatter are to be congratulated on their meticulous research on the migration of Templer families from Palestine to German East Africa at the beginning of the 20th century. Their research has culminated in this substantial historical book.

I admire the authors' capability for finding so many interesting personal accounts of the settlers who ventured to Arusha, Mt Meru and Tanga. The numerous photographs and illustrations interspersed throughout the text enhance the value of the book."

Peter Lange
President, Temple Society, Stuttgart, Germany

"In Shattered Dreams at Kilimanjaro the authors expose an unknown chapter in the history of the German Templer settlers in Palestine. Created between 1868 and1948, this tiny group's unique phenomenon in the Holy Land, was actually the leading factor in the modernisation process. Their story became familiar to many; their heritage on the Israeli landscape is still remarkable and well preserved to this day. Yet, only few knew about the experimental adventure of some families, who migrated to German East Africa, in order to seek a new future.

The book leads the reader through the saga of the settlers, the debates among the community members regarding the impact of such an emigration on their mission in Palestine, the hard work in the shadow of Mt Meru and Mt Kilimanjaro, and the fate of the families during the World Wars which were the main factor to the ending of this fascinating story. The book is an excellent example of historical research, based on archival sources, personal evidences and illustrations which open to the reader a window to a forgotten piece of history."

Professor Dr. Yossi Ben-Artzi
Rector, University of Haifa, Israel

"Helmut Glenk spreads out before us the story of an unknown pioneering exploit of the second and third generation of the German settlers from Palestine, who had linked their fate with the awakening continent and who had established an agricultural settlement in East Africa.

Glenk, a descendant of the first settlers in Palestine, tells the story of settlement in Africa in his flowing style, enlightening the reader with another fascinating episode in the history of the Templers, as he had done in his previous book about Sarona - the settlement of his forefathers."

Dr. Yaron Perry
Haifa University, Israel

"The book Shattered Dreams at Kilimanjaro is of great significance. Helmut Glenk, Horst Blaich and Peer Gatter document the commencement of colonisation of German East Africa; the first contacts by the Templers with that continent and their interest in East Africa onwards from 1896. The book is in chronological order, meticulously written, detailing the hardships and difficulties the settlers encountered when they migrated to Africa.

We are indebted to Helmut Glenk, Horst Blaich and Peer Gatter for this book which provides the readers with an important contribution to the history of the Temple Society."

Dr Jakob Eisler
Historian Landeskirchliches Archiv Stuttgart und Hochschule Ludwigsburg bei Stuttgart, Germany

About the Authors

Helmut was born in 1943 at Tatura, Victoria, Australia where his parents were interned during World War II. He is a descendant of the Glenks who migrated to Palestine in 1876 and who settled in the German Templer settlement of Sarona as one of the pioneering families. His paternal grandfather and grandmother, Gottlieb and Paula (nee Knoll) were both born in Sarona, Palestine in the 1880s and migrated to German East Africa in 1909 for a short period of time. His father Ewald was born in Palestine in 1909. His mother Anne (nee Schurr), came from Geislingen, Germany and went to Palestine in the 1930s. Helmut's brother, Dieter, was also born in Palestine before World War II. The Glenks were part of the contingent of deportees who were brought to Australia in 1941.

After the War the Glenks settled in Bayswater, Victoria, Australia. They were the first Templers from Camp in Tatura to settle in Bayswater in November 1946. Helmut grew up there and finished his primary and secondary education in the local area.

On completion of secondary schooling he joined the Victorian Public Service and studied Public Administration at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology graduating with a Diploma. After a career spanning nearly 40 years with the Victorian Public Service, during which he held a number of senior positions in several Departments as well as being Chief Executive Officer of a Statutory Authority, he left the service in 2000 to pursue other interests. On leaving the VPS he was awarded Life Membership of the Institute of Public Administration for "outstanding contribution to the achievement of the Institute*s objectives and for exemplary service to the Victorian Community".

In the period 2001 to 2005 he researched and wrote a book titled From Desert Sands to Golden Oranges. This book, which has received international recognition, is an historical account of the former German Templer settlement of Sarona and the achievements of the settlers and their contribution to the modernisation of Palestine.

He has co-authored a short history of the Glenk family in Bayswater (published in "The Fruits of Bayswater/Wantirna" as well as contributing other articles for Bayswater Inside Out (a local newsletter). He was contributor to "Ringwood Recalls" (a History of the first 50 years of Ringwood High School/ Ringwood Secondary College). He was interviewed on the local Community Radio on some of his childhood experiences in Bayswater. In 2005/06 he was a finalist in the "Exiles and Emigrants" short story writing competition conducted by the Leader Newspaper Group.

After extensive personal research, and in conjunction with input from Peer Gatter and Horst Blaich, he wrote the text for this book.

Helmut lives in the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne with his wife Lorraine. They have three children and six grandchildren.

His interests are his family, history, travelling and reading. He is a keen vegetable gardener and likes the outdoors especially fishing and hunting.

Horst Blaich was born 1932 in Haifa, Palestine. His parents Albert and Herta nee Katz were both born in the Templer settlements in Palestine. During WWII Horst, his mother and brother were interned in Waldheim Camp and exchanged to Germany in November 1942. After the war Horst completed an apprenticeship as a colour-photo-lithographer then emigrated with his family to Australia and settled in Bayswater a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria in 1951.

Horst furthered his education and skills by completing an Advanced Printing Technology Course and then proceeded to study management and Industrial Engineering. As a member of the Institute of Industrial Engineering he served several years in their committee.

For years he was the production manager of a large Printing and Packaging Company with over 300 employees. As an Industrial Engineer Horst successfully installed Quality Circles at W. D. & H.O.Wills (Australia) a major company of the AMATIL Group in Melbourne. Horst was one of the Œpioneers* in the Quality Circle concept in Australia.

In 1985 Horst formed his own company Horst Blaich Pty Ltd , Total Quality Management Consultants and Publishers. Horst has a keen interest in Family History and has lectured and trained people in the science of Genealogy for over 30 years

Horst has been married to Irene for over fifty years and they have five children and twelve grandchildren.

He is now retired and is deeply involved in family history and maintains his 'Albert Blaich Family Archive-Australia' with a large German Templer family computer database.

Peer Gatter (born 1968) is a Political Scientist and Orientalist. He works on rural development, sustainable water resource management and drug policies for the World Bank, the United Nations and the German Development Cooperation. He is a descendant of the Temple Elder Phillip Friedrich Reinhardt (1814-1872), who had arrived in Palestine in 1869 and was among the founding settlers of the Haifa Colony. Four of his children would later emigrate to German East Africa. His sons Johannes, Ulrich and Christof were the first Templers to settle on the dark continent in the late 19th century.

Excerpts