A Guidebook for Passengers to North, East and South Africa by Leo Weinthal (1902)
“Round Africa” by the D.O.A. Line: A Guidebook for Passengers to North, East and South Africa, compiled and edited by Leo Weinthal.
Far from a simple modern travel brochure, this book is a heavy-hitting artifact of the late-Victorian "Scramble for Africa" and the intense imperial rivalry between Great Britain and the German Empire.
The D.O.A. Line (Deutsche Ost-Afrika-Linie)
The "D.O.A. Line" stands for the Deutsche Ost-Afrika-Linie (German East Africa Line), established in 1890. Imperial Germany realized that if it wanted to maintain its African colonies (like German East Africa, modern-day Tanzania) and compete with British dominance, it couldn't rely on British shipping lanes.
Backed by heavy subsidies from the German government, the D.O.A. Line launched a highly successful "Rund um Afrika" (Round-Africa) service. Their state-of-the-art steamships circumnavigated the continent—sailing down the West Coast, stopping in Cape Town, and heading back up via the East Coast, the Suez Canal, and the Mediterranean (and vice versa). This guidebook was handed to affluent passengers undertaking that grand, multi-month voyage.
The Visual Geometry of a New Century (1902)
The date 1902 printed at the bottom of of the cover is crucial to its context:
The Anglo-Boer War: The war in South Africa ended in May 1902. This book was published exactly as the dust was settling on a conflict where German public sympathy had heavily favored the Boers, yet German maritime capital was eager to resume highly lucrative commercial traffic with British-controlled South African ports.
The Flags on the Cover: The circular vignette at the top left perfectly captures the geopolitics of the day. It features a map of Africa flanked by maritime flags. The flag on the left is the black-white-red Imperial German Reichskriegsflagge/Handelsflagge (Imperial Merchant flag), explicitly stamping Germany's maritime presence onto the continent. On the right is the house flag of the D.O.A. Line itself.
The Editor: Leo Weinthal
The book was compiled by Leo Weinthal (1865–1930), a fascinating, chameleonic figure in South African media and imperial politics. Born in Graaff-Reinet, Weinthal was a journalist who became a close confidant and English state-pioneer for President Paul Kruger of the South African Republic (Transvaal).
Later, Weinthal moved to London and founded The African World newspaper. He was a master of commercial-imperial public relations, using lavishly illustrated volumes like this one to promote corporate investment, railway expansion, and luxury steamship travel across colonial Africa.
The Motto: A Gentle Irony
The banner beneath the globe reads:
"The seas but unite the nations they divide."
125mm x 155mm
Binding repaired; New end papers; spine fishmothed; boards stained however internally clean.
R3,000
