Kamerun: Company, Colony or Country?

Kamerun was an African colony of the German Empire from 1884 to 1916, in the region that today comprises the Republic of Cameroon. Kamerun was indeed larger than present-day Cameroun and included northern parts of present-day Gabon and Congo, western parts of the Central African Republic, southwestern parts of Chad, and eastern parts of Nigeria.

As World War I raged in Europe, British troops from the British Protectorate of Nigeria to the west of Kamerun, and French troops from French Equatorial Africa to the east attacked Kamerun from both sides, eventually defeating the local German military forces in 1916. Following the defeat, Kamerun ceased to exist, transitioning initially to a British and French Condominium and subsequently to separate British and French Mandate Territories.

A little known fact is that although the German administration and army left in 1916, German entrepreneurs, businesses, and companies that had operated for decades in Kamerun either stayed back and/or returned by 1925. The German business community repurchased the companies and plantations they'd previously built from the British and French, continuing their operations in French Cameroun and British Cameroons until the outbreak of World War II in 1939.

For as long ago as Kamerun ceased to exist, many present-day Cameroonians harken back to German colonial days, often referring to Kamerun as their original country. Considering that Kamerun's founding was driven by economic interests spearheaded by individual German investors and companies, this docuseries details Kamerun's history, examining whether Kamerun was a company, a colony, or a country - or a combination thereof.

COMING January 2022

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About Menda Films

Breathing new life into forgotten or untold stories of people, history, and places of Africa. Our name derives from Bamenda, a city whose name means people (Ba) of Menda :)

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