| Occupation of German Samoa | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theAsian and Pacific theatre ofWorld War I | |||||||
 TheUnion Flag being raised at the courthouse atApia on 30 August 1914 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Robert Logan |  Erich Schultz-Ewerth | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1,413 (landing party)[1] 6 cruisers | 100 (militia /Fita-Fita)[2] | ||||||
TheOccupation of Samoa was the takeover – and subsequent administration – of the Pacific colony ofGerman Samoa byNew Zealand duringWorld War I. It started in late August 1914 with landings by theSamoa Expeditionary Force from New Zealand. The landings were unopposed and the New Zealanders took possession of Samoa for theNew Zealand Government on behalf of KingGeorge V. The Samoa Expeditionary Force remained in the country until 1915, while its commander, ColonelRobert Logan, continued to administer Samoa on behalf of the New Zealand Government until 1919. The takeover of Samoa was New Zealand's first military action in World War I.
Upon the outbreak of World War I on 5 August, theNew Zealand Government authorised the raising of theNew Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) for service in the war. Mobilisation for the war had already begun, with preparations discreetly beginning a few days prior.[3] The day after the declaration of war, the British Government requested New Zealand seize the wireless station atGerman Samoa, a protectorate of theGerman Empire,[4] deeming it "a great and urgent Imperial service."[5]
Since the days ofRichard Seddon, the Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1893 to 1906, the New Zealand Government had aspired to control Samoa.[6] Even prior to the war, plans for the occupation of Samoa had been laid down by the Commandant of theNew Zealand Military Forces,Major GeneralAlexander Godley, who believed that this would be one likely usage of New Zealand's military in the event of an outbreak of hostilities.[7] The British request was immediately accepted and instructions issued to Godley to raise a composite force specifically tasked for this purpose.[5]
What was to be known as the Samoa Expeditionary Force (SEF) was formed with volunteers drawn primarily from the Auckland and Wellington Military Districts. It included an infantry component, with three companies of infantry from the 3rd (Auckland) and5th (Wellington) Regiments, a battery of field guns, a section of engineers, companies of railway engineers and signallers, as well as personnel from the Royal Naval Reserve, Army Service Corps, a Field Ambulance section, as well as nurses and chaplains. There was also a detail from the New Zealand Post & Telegraph Company.[5]
ColonelRobert Logan, a member of theNew Zealand Staff Corps and commander of the Auckland Military District, was appointed to command of the SEF.[8] At the time of its first formal parade on 11 August 1914,[9] the SEF consisted of over 1,400 personnel.[10]
The SEF departed New Zealand on 15 August in a convoy of troopships escorted by theNew Zealand Naval Forces'HMSPhilomel along with the Australian Navy'sHMASPyramus andHMASPsyche.[11] The escorting cruisers, all"P" class ships, were third-rate vessels deemed to be obsolete and no match forVizeadmiral (Vice Admiral)Maximilian von Spee'sEast Asia Squadron with its armoured cruisersSMSScharnhorst andSMSGneisenau.[Note 1] Therefore, it was arranged that the convoy would liaise atFiji with the modernbattlecruiserHMASAustralia and the French cruiserMontcalm. However, the day after departing New Zealand and unbeknownst to the New Zealand Government, the British Admiralty decided that the convoy would rendezvous with the modern escorts atNoumea inNew Caledonia.[12]
Here the convoy was joined by HMASAustralia and theMontcalm, along with the cruiserHMASMelbourne,[13] the entire expedition, now under the command of Rear AdmiralGeorge Patey,[14] went on to Fiji. Here several Legion-of-Frontiersmen and Samoan interpreters joined the SEF and it then sailed for Samoa on 27 August.[15]
The convoy arrived offApia, on Samoa's main island ofUpolu, on the morning of 29 August.[16] At Apia, there were no defensive arrangements in place[1] with only around 100 local militia (known asFita-fita) available.[2] Intelligence provided by the Australian authorities had already indicated that opposition was likely to be around 80 constables with a cadre of German officers along with a gunboat.[17][Note 2] However, the Germans could not count on the support of the Samoans to defend any attempts at a landing.[1] The Governor of German Samoa,Erich Schultz-Ewerth, had proceeded to the wireless station upon observing the approach of the convoy.[19]
While the Australian warships, together with theMontcalm, stood off from Apia, thePsyche proceeded into the town's harbour under a flag of truce. Transmissions from the wireless station were detected but these ceased following orders from Patey.[16] After an hour, a message from Schultz indicated that although Germany would not officially surrender the Samoan islands, there would be no resistance to a landing by the New Zealanders.[19] Upon receiving this news, the troopships began transferring the New Zealand soldiers into launches and shuttling them to shore.[20] Government buildings, including the post office and telegraph exchange, were seized by early evening and a party dispatched to the wireless station, in the hills several kilometres away near the terminus of theTelefunken Railroad. By the time the New Zealanders arrived, close to midnight, the German operators had sabotaged much of the radio equipment rendering it inoperative. Troops dispersed to camps and were allocated patrol areas.[21]
The following day, a ceremonial raising of theUnion Jack took place in front of the courthouse, with Logan declaring the occupation of Samoa by the New Zealand Government on behalf of KingGeorge V.[22][Note 3] The damage to the wireless station prevented the success of the SEF being reported back to New Zealand until its repair on 2 September.[21] In the meantime, stores from the troopships were unloaded and a railway line constructed from the Apia harbourside to the wireless station.[23]
Having completed their escort duties and with Samoa now secured, the Australian ships, plus theMontcalm, departed to join up with theAustralian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force, which was tasked with the capture ofGerman New Guinea. Over the following days, the remaining P-class cruisers also left; two sailed forAmerican Samoa andTonga to inform the respective authorities of the occupation of Samoa. ThePyramus took five German prisoners, including Schultz, to Fiji.[24]
The German cruisersScharnhorst andGneisenau hastened to Samoa after Admiral von Spee learned of the occupation. He arrived off Apia on 14 September, three days after the departure of the last of the Allied cruisers and transports. The approach of the German ships was observed and the New Zealanders promptly manned their defences while many civilians, fearing exchanges of gunfire, made for the hills.[25] By this stage artillery had been set up on the beach but there was no exchange of gunfire. One historian,Ian McGibbon, wrote that this was likely due to von Spee's fears of damage to German property should he open fire.[12] Instead, von Spee steamed off and landed a small party further down the coast and learned from a German resident there the apparent strength of the occupation. Patrols dispatched to the area later interned the German resident.[26] According to the historian J. A. C. Gray, von Spee considered a landing by the forces under his control would only be of temporary advantage in an Allied-dominated sea[27] and so the German ships then made forTahiti, a French possession. Here, not having to be concerned with the welfare of the local population and their property, von Spee would direct thebombardment of Papeete. He then rejoined the rest of his fleet and headed for South America.[12]
.jpg)
The SEF remained in Samoa until March 1915, at which time it began returning to New Zealand. A small relief force arrived in Apia on 3 April and the troopship that brought them to Samoa transported the last of the SEF back to New Zealand.[28] Logan remained and would continue to administer the country on behalf of the New Zealand Government until 1919. His term was controversial because he significantly mishandled the arrival of theSpanish fluinfluenza pandemic in November 1918, resulting in over 7,500 deaths.[29]
From 1920 until Samoan independence in 1962, New Zealand governed the islands as theWestern Samoa Trust Territory, firstly as aLeague of Nations Class CMandate, and then from 1945 as a United Nations Trust Territory.[30]
