Count Joachim von Pfeil (1857-1924) was a German explorer and colonist in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

Biography

He was born at Neurode, in

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

, studied at the gymnasium of

Göttingen Göttingen (, ; ; ) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. According to the 2022 German census, t ...

. In 1873, he went to the

Colony of Natal The Colony of Natal was a British colony in south-eastern Africa. It was proclaimed a British colony on 4 May 1843 after the British government had annexed the Boer Republic of Natalia, and on 31 May 1910 combined with three other colonies t ...

. There he learned the vernacular and stayed in the country four years. In 1879, after a visit to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, he settled in

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...

and with Wilson mapped the course of the

Limpopo river The Limpopo River () rises in South Africa and flows generally eastward through Mozambique to the Indian Ocean. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers led by Hosi Rivombo who settled in the mou ...

. After falling ill, he returned to Germany. In 1884, having entered the employ of the

Society for German Colonization The Society for German Colonization (, GfdK) was founded on 28 March 1884 in Berlin by Carl Peters. Its goal was to accumulate capital for the acquisition of German Colony, colonial territories in overseas countries. History Peters had just return ...

, Pfeil went to East Africa with

Carl Peters Carl Peters (27 September 1856 – 10 September 1918) was a German explorer and colonial administrator. He was a major promoter of the establishment of the German colony of East Africa (part of today’s Tanzania) and one of the founders of ...

and Karl Ludwig Jühlke, and in 1886 succeeded the latter as general manager of the company in

Somaliland Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, E ...

. This post he resigned in 1887, and entered the service of the New Guinea Company. He died on March 12, 1924 in Friedersdorf.

Works

* ''Studien und Beobachtungen in der Südsee'' (1899) Describes his travels and explorations in the South Seas. * ''Vorschläge zur praktischen Kolonisation in Ostafrika'' (1887) * ''Zur Frage der Deportation nach den deutschen Kolonien'' (1897)

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pfeil, Joachim von 1857 births 1924 deaths People from Nowa Ruda People from the Province of Silesia Counts in Germany Explorers from the German Empire 19th-century German explorers People of former German colonies German explorers of Africa Expatriates in the Colony of Natal Expatriates from the German Empire