The Imperial Navy - The III Sea Battalion in Tsingtau - Photo Collection

Kiautschou Bay was taken into possession by the German Reich on 14 November 1897. Early on this area had already been identified as a suitable trading base.

From the outset the naval leadership regarded the new leased territory as an area of particular interest to them; they aimed for a kind of model colony.

The protectorate consisted of two peninsulas in China. The northern peninsula covered 462 sq km. The city of Tsingtau arose here. The southern peninsula comprised only 47 sq km.

Two islands (Yintau and Huangtau) also belonged to the high-water boundary of the bay. The area of the bay itself is given at high tide as 560 sq km (Graudenz/Schindler, p. 297).

At the time of the taking of possession the population of the protectorate numbered 84,000 people. However, this rose rapidly after the German takeover. In Tsingtau itself, as early as 1903, 928 white residents lived there. In addition there were 26,000 Chinese inhabitants. By 1907 there were already 1,184 white residents and 31,500 Chinese (Graudenz/Schindler, p. 298). In 1913 Tsingtau had a total of 55,700 inhabitants, of whom 53,000 were Chinese (Gründer, p. 191).

Under a policy carefully directed by the Imperial Naval Administration, the originally small Chinese village experienced steady building development toward a predominantly European-style townscape. In particular, land speculation was largely prevented by strict regulations.

The harbor located further north of Tsingtau was expanded and had a basin protected against storms and waves with an area of 293 hectares.

In a memorandum from 1906/07 it states: "The Kiautschou territory represents, in contrast to the other German colonies, the pure type of a trading colony, i.e., a spatially narrowly bounded area whose main economic function lies in mediating the exchange of goods between two large economic regions" (quoted in: Graudenz/Schindler, p. 296).

At the same time, however, the port and bay of Tsingtau were one — or rather the — most important base for the German cruiser squadron and thus also had a military function.

Overall, however, a rather restrained China policy was pursued, above all to avoid provoking other competing powers. The Anglo-Japanese agreement of 1902, however, significantly weakened the German position, and at the outbreak of war it then became apparent that this location could not be held militarily (Gründer, p. 197).

The economic goals pursued by the Germans were also not achieved, above all coal production, which was so important for the navy's needs, and the intended silk production. The educational ambitions, with approx. 5,400 pupils in the German mission schools, are likewise judged critically in retrospect (Gründer, p. 204). The Shantung Railway project, however, developed more favorably.

Governors of the protectorate over time were:

Captain at Sea Rosendahl (1898 – 1899),

Captain at Sea Jäschke (1899 – 1901),

Captain at Sea von Truppel (1901 - 1911) and

Captain at Sea Meyer-Waldeck (1911 – 1914).

Among the naval units on land was the naval infantry. According to Friedag (p. 288), in 1914 it consisted of 3 Sea Battalions, namely:

I.                     Sea Battalion – 4 companies, 1 fortress telegraph detachment and 1 machine-gun detachment (Kiel)

II.                   Sea Battalion - 4 companies, 1 fortress telegraph detachment and 1 machine-gun detachment (Wilhelmshaven)

III.                 Depot Sea Battalion - 2 companies and depot battery (Cuxhaven)

Furthermore, the III Sea Battalion was part of the East Asian naval detachment (Tsingtau).

Infantry service was part of the training of the naval infantry.

Furthermore, the branches of service important for fortress duty were practised.

In addition, the training program included gun drill and boat rowing.

The III Sea Battalion stationed in Tsingtau comprised 5 companies, of which the 5th was mounted.

Also attached were 1 naval field battery, 1 naval engineer company, and 2 machine-gun detachments in a company formation.

A naval detachment was stationed in Tientsin and a sailors' artillery detachment in Kiautschou.

A part of the East Asian naval detachment was also stationed in Peking.

In the protectorate there was also an artillery depot, a mine depot, the fortification administration, a harbor office, an observatory, a government hospital, the government administration, the construction administration, the education administration, a slaughterhouse, a waterworks, a provisioning office, and the Tsingtau shipyard.

According to Haupt (p. 146), the government staff in peacetime numbered 15 officers and 30 enlisted men, the III Sea Battalion 30 officers and 1,269 enlisted men. In addition there were 11 officers and 1,790 enlisted men of other military personnel (e.g., of the dockyard division, medical staff, etc.) as well as 19 officers and 755 enlisted men of the sailors' artillery detachment.

Text

Friedag, Guide to Army and Fleet. Eleventh year 1914, reprint Krefeld 1974.

Graudenz, Karlheinz/ Schindler, Hanns-Michael, The German Colonies. 100 Years in Word, Image and Map. Augsburg 1988.

Graichen, Gisela/ Gründer, Horst, German Colonies. Dream and Trauma, Berlin 2005.

Gründer, Horst, History of the German Colonies, Paderborn 1985.

Haupt, Werner, The German Schutztruppe 1889 - 1918, 1989.

Kleist, Herbert von, The Battles of the 3rd Sea Battalion during the Upheavals 1900/01, Mission Press Tsingtau

Knopp, Guido, The World Empire of the Germans. On Colonial Dreams, Wars and Adventures, Munich 2010.

Melchior. Historical Publishing House, German Troops in the Land of the Dragon. Boxer Uprising and War with China. Wolfenbüttel 2007.

Ruhl (ed.), The German Navy and the German Schutztruppe for East Africa in their Latest Uniforms. Reprint Starnberg 1989.

Wiesinger, Otto, As a War Volunteer in Tsingtau. Pictures and Experiences from the Siege Period, Shanghai 1915.