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Origins
Steeped in Mystery
To this day there has been much speculation and
debate about the origins of the Wild Horses. There is
agreement only on one point: they are not indigenous,
because originally there never were horses in southern
Africa. They only started to appear in the region from
the 17th century onwards, imported by Europeans. Therefore
the Wild Horses of the Namib are the descendants of
domesticated animals which - similar to the mustangs
of North America - have adopted a feral existence.
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Horses of the German colonial
forces near Aus.
Source: National Archive of Namibia
 Image
Download (1,19 KB) |
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But how come
did domesticated horses stray into this area? And how
did it happen that they turned feral? Some theories
point to a ship with a cargo of horses and other domestic
animals which was wrecked about 25 km south of the Orange
River mouth, roughly 200 km from Garub, in the late
19th century. Others refer to the stud farm at Duwisib
owned by Hansheinrich von Wolf - about 250 km north-east
of Garub. However, a farm manager was in charge when
von Wolf was absent during the First World War and after
he was killed in action. And according to the farm’s
bookkeeping no horses were lost until the late thirties,
whereas reports about Wild Horses near Garub already
started to circulate in the twenties. Furthermore, neither
of these theories takes into account that horses do
not migrate over large distances but usually stay in
the area they know. |
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Thus it can
be concluded that the Wild Horses are descendants of
horses lost in the vicinity of Garub and Aus. But the
basis of the herd existing today can hardly have been
formed by a few run-away horses. The number of animals
and the diversity of their characteristics rather suggest
that the initial group was fairly large. |
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to yet another theory horses were left behind
by German colonial forces during the First World
War as they retreated from advancing South African
troops. Apparently up to 2,000 horses were indeed
kept at Aus. It is said, however, that the retreat
largely proceeded in an orderly fashion. At the
same time reports contain another reference to
the presence of large numbers of horses: 10,000
South African soldiers with 6,000 horses pitched
camp at Garub in March 1915. There |
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Horse-breeders (l.t.r.):
11 - Emil Kreplin; 12 - Hansheinrich von Wolf.
Source: National Archive of Namibia |
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was a borehole
for replenishing locomotives on the nearby railway line.
The borehole had been blown up by German forces, but
it was repaired quickly enough. Just imagine: around
8,000 horses within a radius of just under 30 km at
the edge of the desert! |
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But it gets
better still. A report, compiled later about the events
of war at Aus, in fact says:
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"In
the morning of 27 March the indefatigable pilot
officer Fiedler flew to Garub and caused great
bewilderment by successfully dropping bombs onto
the enemy camp and among about 1700 grazing cavalry
horses." (Hans von Oelhafen: Der Feldzug
in Südwest 1914/15, Berlin 1923, page 117).
The South African forces were about to start their
offensive and had orders to follow hot on the
heels of the retreating German soldiers. Most
likely there was no time to catch all of the dispersed
animals. |
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Aerial view of a South
African army camp bombarded by German pilot Fiedler.
Source: National Archive of Namibia |
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Namibian amateur
historian Walter Rusch came across another piece of
the puzzle which completes the picture: in photo albums
which belonged to Emil Kreplin, the mayor of Lüderitz
from 1909 to 1914, he found pictures of a stud farm
at Kubub, south of Aus. Kreplin bred workhorses for
mining – and racehorses for flourishing Lüderitz.
The resemblance of stallions from Kubub and Duwisib
is remarkable. What is more, the photos of the Kreplin
Stud show horses with characteristics which even now,
90 years later, are still prominent in the Wild Horses
(see graph). The characteristics are mostly those found
in the Kap-Boerperd, the Hackney and Trakehner. |
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Substantiated
biologically and historically, several theories can
thus be brought together. The core of the herd probably
consists of horses which belonged to the South African
army, the German colonial forces and the Kreplin Stud
(with connections to Duwisib). Animals which were dispersed
or left behind in the turmoil of war gathered in the
mountains around Aus where many natural watering places
can be found; in those days there were no fences yet
so that the horses were able to move about freely. It
is possible that later on these groups were joined by
horses which had been abandoned during the depression
and as a result of the automobile’s triumphant
progress. |
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Corresponding characteristics.
The pictures of the Kreplin Stud (source: private collection
Walter Rusch, Windhoek) were taken 90 years before those
of the Wild Horses (Telané Greyling).
Image
Download (1,34 MB)
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It is probably thanks to the diamond finds
at the coast that the horses were not caught
again. As early as 1908 the German colonial
administration established restricted areas
which extended about 100 km inland and were
strictly controlled. The surroundings of Garub
were part of Sperrgebiet II. Nobody was allowed
access, with no exception made for hunters or
horse-catchers either. Garub with its borehole
and the drinking trough, which was set up later,
became the pivotal point in the horses’
existence. Since the feral horses were able
to develop in almost complete isolation for
90
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The drinking trough
at Garub.
Photo: Telané Greyling. |
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years they
may now be regarded as a breed in their own right, the
'Namibs'. |
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In 1986
the Restricted Area II was declared open and annexed
to Namib Naukluft Park. After Namibia became independent
in 1990, tourism increased in leaps and bounds. A shelter
was erected at the drinking trough at Garub to give
visitors the opportunity to watch the Wild Horses. |
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