Researchers are currently engaged in a collaborative effort to locate a German boat from the First World War (WWI) believed to be submerged in Lake Kivu off the Rwandan shore. The initiative is a joint venture between the Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy (RCHA) and researchers from Rhineland-Palatinate, aiming to uncover the vessel used by the German army in 1916 during WWI. ALSO READ: Return of Rwandan skulls from Germany will reach crucial stage early next year Globally, WWI unfolded between 1914 and 1918, but in Rwanda, the conflict was limited to the period between 1914 and 1916, involving the Germans stationed in Rwanda and the Belgians in the Belgian Congo (now DR Congo). Researchers are searching for a WWI German boat off the Rwandan shore in Lake Kivu! A partnership between @IntekoyUmuco & @JumelageRwanda is leading the hunt. Have you heard any stories about this boat? #RwandanHistory #WW1Discovery pic.twitter.com/622W9lHH4f — Inteko y'Umuco | Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy (@IntekoyUmuco) February 17, 2024 Named the Bodelschwingh, the boat was named after Friedrich von Bodelchwingh, the elder, founder of the Bodelschwinghsche Anstalten Bethel charitable foundations in Germany. Originally intended for use by Protestant missionaries in Rubengera to facilitate travel and spread the gospel, the boat fell into the hands of the German army, repurposed for the war against the Belgians in the Lake Kivu region. ALSO READ: ‘Rebellion’ beyond baptism: Yuhi V Musinga's struggle against Belgian colonists As the First World War extended to colonial possessions in Africa, watercraft played a crucial role in supporting land troops. Lacking stationed units on East African Lakes, the Imperial Navy utilized small ships and boats initially designed for different purposes. According to a book by German author Hildegard Neumann titled Gustav Neumann and the Bodelschwingh boat, the Bodelschwingh never fulfilled its original mission. This boat never served its original purpose; it never sailed as a mission boat but was used for the troops immediately after it was assembled, the book reads. It also mentions that after the German army took the boat, it was equipped with a machine gun and, when WWI ended in Rwanda, it was intentionally sunk by the German staff on May 14, 1916, as they withdrew from the area. The current search for the sunken boat is not the first attempt. In 2023, researchers initiated a search without success. The current team, comprising experts from Rwanda's Charis UAS, Germany's Sensy's, and other specialists from Brazil, is intensifying efforts. Research is being conducted both underwater and in the mountainous areas surrounding Lake Kivu. The discovery of the Bodelschwingh holds the potential to provide valuable insights not only into the histories of Rwanda and Germany but also into the broader context of WWI, a global conflict fought between the Allies and the Central Powers across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia.
