The former General Hospital situated in
Douala
Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and its economic capital. It is also the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Region. Home to Central Africa's largest port and its major international airport, Douala International Airport (DLA), it is the com ...
is a building constructed in 1896 by the Germans and designed by the architect
Henri Drees.
History
Designed by the German architect Henri Drees, this hospital was built in 1896 following Dr
Albert Plehn’s initiative. It was created to take care of Europeans patients only, since it was based on the colonialist ideology of that time which was highly segregationist.
It was first named "Nachtigal Hospital", on behalf of the roving Consul Nachtigal. Doctor
Gustav Nachtigal was in charge of representing
Emperor of Germany William I and the
Chancellor Bismarck all over the
gulf of Guinea
The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian (zero degrees latitude and longitude) is i ...
. He made legal the 1884 treaties signed with the kings of Douala, instituting German Protectorate on the territory. He supplanted ''The late consul'', nickname given to the British Consul
Hewett, still retained in his official duties in
Fernando Poo (now Malabo), who got to Cameroon Town too late to negotiate a British establishment in this city. Finally, Nachtigal's remarkable career ended with the official installation of
Julius von Soden
Julius Freiherr von Soden (5 February 1846 – 2 February 1921) was a German colonial administrator and politician. He was the Governor of the colonies of Kamerun and German East Africa, and later became ''Chef de Cabinet'' and Foreign Minister of ...
as the first German Governor, from 1885 to 1891, long before the construction of the hospital.
The French author
Louis-Ferdinand Céline, arrived in 1916 in a still German-speaking town, depicted his short stay in this hospital in a memorable extract from his novel ''
Voyage au bout de la nuit''.
This building, amazingly gorgeous at that time, was extended twice its size under the French Mandate in 1930. This same year, the French administration built "
Hôpital Laquintinie" for the natives, in the same spirit as during the German Freie Zone, a one-kilometer unoccupied zone, conceived to separate Europeans from the natives.
Renamed Hôpital Général when Independence took place, this building includes today the Police department and the Littoral Delegation of Culture.
In 2006 the building is highlighted by an urban sign produced by
doual'art
doual'art is a non profit cultural organisation and art centre founded in 1991 in Douala, Cameroon and focussed on new urban practices of African cities.
History
doual'art was registered as a non profit organization in 1992 and it was establis ...
and designed by Sandrine Dole; the sign presents an historical image of the building and a description of its history.
Former general Hospital of Douala
'' in ''Douala Ville d'art et d'histoire'', doual'art, Douala, 2006.
See also
*
Kamerun
References
Further reading
*
Former general Hospital of Douala' in ''Douala Ville d'art et d'histoire'', doual'art, Douala, 2006.
External links
{{Commons category, Old general hospital in Douala 1896
Buildings and structures in Douala