26
The Rhenish Mission House
The importance of the building was
summed up in the Official Gazette of
the time which said that “(a) portion of
the old Rhenish Mission House was built
in 1868 by Evangelist Daniël Cloete.
In 1870 Rev. Gottlieb Viehe erected a
house built from unbaked clay bricks
next to the existing portion. Between
1887 and 1900, Rev. Eduard Dannert
joined the two buildings into one.”
Furthermore, during the Nama-Herero
conflict of 1881, an extension was built
to care for casualties, and in 1885 Viehe
added a weather station.
desIgn Namibia October - December 2013
During the course of its history, the
mission house was used as military
barracks, as accommodation for highranking German officers, as a shelter
for German refugees of the Herero
insurrection, as a prison (albeit for only
one person), as a conference venue and
as a guest house.
Finally it was used for its intended
purpose again – as a mission house.
The Rhenish Mission House was
proclaimed a national monument on
15 January 1986 and it underwent
complete restoration in 1990.