Recaps

Ernst and Constantin discussed building an East African landmark that would showcase world civilization while incorporating symbols unique to Africa. Ernst proposed a “Civilization Lighthouse” in Dar es Salaam, and Constantin approved the idea.

• Constantin asked Ernst to build a landmark that would give East Africa a distinctive presence.
• Constantin set requirements for the landmark: artistic value, cultural significance, practical use, and reasonable cost.
• Ernst rejected emphasizing East Africa’s national history because its slave-state past could invite criticism, and he suggested using world civilization as the main theme.
• Ernst proposed building a lighthouse, and he and Constantin settled on Dar es Salaam as the site.
• Ernst named the project the “Civilization Lighthouse,” and Constantin liked the name.

Ernst approved a design for East Africa’s Civilization Lighthouse as trade with Cape Town and India continued despite British sanctions. East African merchants and Indian colonial officials profited from exchanging Indian raw materials for East African industrial goods, leaving Britain’s restrictions ineffective.

• Ernst approved a hundred-meter Civilization Lighthouse design featuring a Goddess of Peace statue, lions, and a globe.
• East African border guards Hans and Charlie noticed fewer British troops near Cape Town and mocked the British soldier Laita.
• Dugin and the British merchant Max completed a profitable border trade deal despite Britain’s ban on commerce with East Africa.
• East Africa’s trade with Cape Town expanded after the Central Railway opened, bringing pounds into East African reserves.
• East African merchants and Indian colonial officials expanded trade in Indian raw materials and East African industrial goods, bypassing British sanctions.

Li Ge and Wei Jin discussed modernizing Chinese medicine in East Africa through scientific study, improved preparations, and access to Ernst’s collection of medical texts. East Africa’s medical research continued to expand, with Western medicine relying on clinical trials using its large Black population.

• Li Ge and Wei Jin discussed how microscopes and Western anatomy had challenged their understanding and showed the need for Chinese medicine to learn from modern science.
• Li Ge explained that East African Chinese medicine was reforming herbal remedies into tablets and plasters while testing which preparations preserved their efficacy.
• Li Ge told Wei Jin that Ernst had opened his collection of ancient Chinese medical books to copying, including texts stored in two warehouses.
• East African Chinese medicine developed along both Li Ge’s innovative path and a conservative path, while the government supported doctors’ free clinics.
• East African Western medicine advanced through clinical trials, using the large Black population as a ready source of human test subjects.

The Romanian Oil Development Company trained East African apprentices in oil extraction and refining while East Africa delayed developing its own oil resources. The apprentices received permission to visit home in rotating groups, but were reminded that they would eventually return to East Africa.

• Ernst kept East Africa’s oil reserves undeveloped and used Romania’s oil industry to train future East African workers.
• The East African apprentices asked the company manager to return home together to visit their families.
• The manager approved their leave in three batches so some apprentices would remain at work in Romania.
• An apprentice asked whether the government planned to keep them in Romania permanently, and the manager said they would eventually return to East Africa.
• The manager told the apprentices they could marry local women but should explain that they would later have to leave Romania.

East Africa built the Juba Comprehensive Training Base after the 311th Division arrived in Nile Province, using its varied tropical terrain to prepare troops for jungle, mountain, and land-water combat. The base was intended to support East Africa’s military readiness, especially for future operations in the Nanyang region.

• The 311th Division moved into Juba, where construction crews and Black slaves were also arriving in large numbers.
• Ernst considered Nile Province’s climate and terrain, noting that its northern Gezira Plain was better suited to development than the hot, swampy south.
• East Africa restricted access to areas around Juba as it began building a super-large military training ground.
• The Juba Comprehensive Training Base incorporated the province’s highlands, mountains, plains, rivers, swamps, deserts, jungles, and grasslands.
• East Africa made tropical jungle warfare, land-water coordinated operations, and mountain training its main priorities, with the Nanyang region in mind.

The 311th Division oversaw the Juba Comprehensive Training Base, whose unusual Soldier City was a completed urban-warfare simulation field rather than a settlement. Lieutenant General Roid explained that the division would likely remain there as the base expanded into a major training center.

• Juba City residents mistook the unfinished-looking structures southwest of the city for a wasteful, uninhabitable development.
• The 311th Division described the site as an urban simulation field with mock neighborhoods, a railway station, and a port for training in urban warfare.
• Lieutenant General Roid ordered the 311th Division to supervise construction and closely monitor the male black laborers.
• The division commander asked whether his unit would stay after construction, and Roid said it would probably remain to maintain the base and relocate from its former garrison.
• Roid explained that the base’s harsh Nile Province climate would help prepare East African soldiers for future fighting in hot, humid regions.

Far Eastern officials visited East Africa to assess its prosperity and growing power after its defeat of Portugal. Ernst considered the Far East’s diplomatic position and planned to use next year’s upheaval around the Ryukyu Islands to secure Pacific island bases for East African trade routes.

• Far Eastern officials arrived in Dar es Salaam and compared East Africa with Jiaozhou while local residents discussed their clothing and status.
• The Far Eastern delegation sought closer engagement with East Africa after its victory over Portugal raised its international standing.
• Ernst assessed the diplomatic strengths and weaknesses of Britain, Germany, Austria, and the Far East Empire, noting the Far East’s vulnerability among rival powers.
• Ernst anticipated that the Ryukyu Islands would be lost next year and saw an opportunity for the East African Navy to gain benefits without directly intervening.
• East Africa planned to seek Pacific islands in 1880, including islands in the southern Ryukyu Islands, as bases for routes linking East Africa, the Far East, and Alaska.

Dehr explained to the Far East delegation why East Africa’s colonial origins, slavery, and dependence on German territories made it a poor model for their reforms. The chapter left Ernst focused on shielding East Africa’s fragile system and securing decades of stability for the Hechingen Royal Family.

• Ernst considered East Africa’s unusual ties to the Principality of Hechingen and its special standing within Prussia.
• Dehr told the Far East delegation that East Africa remained an evolving colony-like state with slavery and German territories serving as intermediaries for external exchange.
• A Far East delegate praised East Africa’s rapid development, but Dehr argued that its circumstances differed too greatly from those of the Far East to provide a useful model.
• Dehr contrasted East Africa’s undeveloped land and limited entrenched interests with the Far East Empire’s deeply rooted domestic forces and resistance to reform.
• Ernst recognized that East Africa’s political system was fragile and needed protection from outside influence and at least fifty years of stability to develop.

East Africa assessed Britain’s plan to develop Maputo and Natal ports and concluded that its established ports and inland trade links would keep them competitive. Ernst decided to respond by opening Soko Port to foreign vessels while keeping East Africa’s gradual opening under its own control.

• Britain backed investment in Maputo and Natal to compete with East Africa’s ports, while France declined to join Britain’s effort.
• East African officials argued that Dar es Salaam and Mombasa had advantages in experience, infrastructure, hinterlands, and access to inland resources.
• Officials judged that Maputo and Natal would not threaten East Africa’s ports in the short term, despite Britain’s plans.
• Ernst decided to open Soko Port to foreign vessels, adding it to East Africa’s ports and railway links.
• East Africa maintained its gradual approach to opening trade, seeking to prevent foreign powers from forcing open its markets.

At the start of 1880, East African officials assessed the country’s population, health, labor, and economy, describing a fast-growing nation still dominated by agriculture and reliant on Black labor for large construction projects. East Africa had reached the scale of a major country but faced the challenge of transforming into an industrial nation while continuing its infrastructure expansion.

• Health Minister Berleide reported that East Africa’s population had reached about 54 million, average life expectancy was roughly 35 years, and disease and scarce medical resources remained major problems.
• Berleide said the Black population had fallen by more than four million in recent years, but East Africa’s growing demand for labor meant many Black workers would be used on projects and die on East African soil.
• Berleide reported that more than 85 percent of East Africans worked in agriculture and that agricultural taxes supplied about 80 percent of government revenue.
• The economic statistics showed that cash crops drove exports, while heavy industry—especially steel and railways—dominated East Africa’s industrial sector.
• The government concluded that East Africa had become a normal country after fifteen years of development but now needed to shift from an agricultural economy toward an industrial one.
• Ernst planned to use cheap Black labor to build infrastructure, including transportation projects in mountainous Hesse Province, before labor costs rose.

Prince Karl Anton arrived in First Town and saw the scale and prosperity of East Africa, especially Central Province. The chapter also described East Africa’s population, slaveholding society, and efforts to contain foreign espionage in its open zones.

• East African officials and the military band welcomed Prince Karl Anton at First Town Railway Station.
• Prince Karl Anton reflected on East Africa’s size and wealth after seeing Dar es Salaam and Central Province’s highly developed countryside.
• East Africa’s population had exceeded thirty million, and its agricultural prosperity depended in part on slavery and emigration from Europe.
• British and Portuguese agents tried to buy information from East African civilians and officials in ports and other open zones.
• East African police had uncovered four espionage cases in Dar es Salaam city and Mombasa, while strict controls made further spying difficult.

Constantin and Ernst welcomed Prince Karl to East Africa, where he visited First Town and questioned them about the colony’s population and development. Ernst gave him a heavily understated estimate of East Africa’s immigrants, leaving Prince Karl astonished as the chapter described how the economic crisis had fueled East Africa’s rapid growth.

• Constantin and Ernst greeted Prince Karl, who had traveled to East Africa to discuss Sigmaringen’s plans for African colonization.
• Constantin brought Prince Karl to Sveti Royal Palace, where Ernst told him First Town had about 150,000 people and Dar es Salaam about 300,000.
• Prince Karl asked about East Africa’s population, and Ernst claimed that several million, perhaps seven or eight million, had immigrated there.
• Prince Karl marveled that Ernst’s figure exceeded Bavaria’s population, while Ernst credited immigration to Europe’s economic crisis and favorable conditions.
• The chapter described how East Africa used the crisis to attract people, equipment, and talent and build up its industries, railway network, infrastructure, and navy.

Ernst offered Prince Karl a vast Central African colonial sphere centered on Chad, with East Africa providing transport, supplies, and Chinese immigrants. The plan left Sigmaringen and Romania to divide the colonization work while Ernst aimed to create a buffer separating East Africa from West Africa.

• Ernst showed Prince Karl Lake Chad and described the region’s agricultural potential and surrounding territories.
• Ernst offered Sigmaringen more than two million square kilometers, including a foothold in the former Wadai Empire, and promised access to East African railways.
• Prince Karl worried that Chad’s distance from the sea would make it difficult to govern, and Ernst offered inland transport and logistical support at cost.
• Ernst advised Sigmaringen and Romania to colonize separately, with Romania handling Darfur and Sigmaringen securing southern Chad.
• Ernst offered Far Eastern Chinese immigrants while explaining that Sigmaringen would need to recruit its own European settlers.
• Ernst planned to use Sigmaringen’s expansion to fill the gap between East Africa and West Africa with a colonial buffer zone.

Ernst advised Prince Karl to establish Sigmaringen’s colony in Chad quickly, using East Africa’s experience and support to build a populous, stable state. Karl agreed to claim territory and consolidate Sigmaringen’s position over the next few years.

• Ernst urged Prince Karl to remain in First Town and warned that developing Chad required caution and experienced support.
• Ernst explained that East African experts and troops could help Sigmaringen overcome colonial and practical challenges.
• Ernst told Karl that Sigmaringen should follow East Africa’s model, build a large settler population, and secure territory before European rivals advanced inland.
• Ernst described Chad’s size and resources, including fertile southern land and oil and mineral deposits in the north.
• Karl confirmed that he should first claim land and then spend several years consolidating control, and Ernst said immigrants could come from Europe or the Far East.

The Bureau of Cultural and Religious Affairs coordinated with Nairobi police and the Education Bureau to suppress unauthorized Italian-language schools and religious groups. Oscar was spared punishment for running an illegal school but was transferred from Nairobi to Kisumu, and the crackdown continued for three months.

• Nairobi officials agreed to crack down on illegal cultural dissemination and keep the Italian Cultural and Educational School under surveillance.
• Hans and the police arrested Oscar and found Italian lessons and handwritten teaching materials being taught to children in his home.
• Hans told the children their classes were over and arranged for them to get home safely.
• Interrogators questioned Oscar, then released him without punishment and transferred his job to Kisumu city.
• The Bureau of Cultural and Religious Affairs stayed in Nairobi for three months, closing three illegal schools and dismantling twelve cult organizations.

Ernst defended East Africa’s strict state control over religion and praised the nationwide crackdown on illegal religious groups. He left no doubt that he would continue the policy, despite Constantin’s concerns.

• The chapter described East Africa’s restrictions on religious activity, including government oversight of clergy, churches, and gatherings.
• The Bureau of Cultural and Religious Affairs reported dismantling 123 illegal religious cases, punishing three officials, acting against fifteen schools and gathering organizations, and arresting twenty-three people.
• Constantin asked Ernst whether he was prejudiced against religion, and Ernst argued that restrictions prevented frauds from doing harm under God’s name.
• Ernst praised Wali for the bureau’s work, and Wali affirmed his loyalty to the Crown Prince.

Ernst discussed the East African Navy’s needs with Archduke Ferdinand and explained that East Africa would build warships at home rather than purchase many new ones. He promised to buy an advanced capital ship whenever Karina became pregnant again, leaving Ferdinand hopeful for twins and Karina embarrassed.

• Ernst asked Archduke Ferdinand about the navy, and Ferdinand said its growing personnel had eased his workload while warship numbers remained inadequate.
• Ernst said East Africa had to limit military spending because it was building bases and other infrastructure, but agreed the navy would still need more ships.
• Ernst proposed building warships at Bagamoyo Shipyard and temporarily assigning more armed merchant ships to naval service.
• Ernst promised to purchase an advanced capital ship whenever Karina became pregnant again, and Ferdinand joked that twins would mean buying two.
• Princess Charlotte teased Ernst about having children every year to acquire a fleet, while Ernst held Karina’s hand and stayed silent.

Ernst proposed taking control of the Southern Ryukyu Islands by securing governing authority from the Far East Empire and establishing a dependent colony after Japan abolished the Ryukyu Kingdom. Archduke Ferdinand accepted the plan but warned that holding the islands would be difficult.

• Ernst told Archduke Ferdinand that East Africa would use three reassigned ironclads to secure a Far Eastern colony.
• Ernst identified the Southern Ryukyu Islands as his target, focusing on the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands rather than the entire Ryukyu Kingdom.
• Archduke Ferdinand recalled the dispute between Japan and the Far East Empire over the Ryukyu Islands, and Ernst explained that the countries remained deadlocked over their division.
• Ernst planned to obtain economic privileges from the Far Eastern government, then establish a dependent state in the Southern Ryukyu Islands after Japan abolished the Ryukyu Kingdom.
• Archduke Ferdinand agreed not to oppose the plan but cautioned that diplomatic authority alone would not ensure East Africa could hold the islands.

The East African government completed the Kui River Arch Dam near Farabana Village to retain water during the dry season and ease travel across the Kui River. The mayor of Chisang Town left Village Chief Hans responsible for its upkeep and warned him to keep villagers safe during the rainy season.

• East Africa developed Matabele Province as an industrial region, with steel mills and railway access supporting local agriculture and industry.
• Farabana Village received livestock to use alongside slaves as East Africa expanded its replacement of slave labor with draft animals.
• After three months of construction, the mayor of Chisang Town announced the Kui River Arch Dam was complete.
• The mayor explained that the dam would retain water in the dry season and serve as a crossing, while warning that floodwater could make passage dangerous.
• The mayor instructed Village Chief Hans to watch over children during the rainy season and manage the dam, reporting major problems to higher authorities.

Yang Fugui persuaded Third Uncle to let several orphaned children from Yang Family Village travel with him to East Africa. He explained that East Africa would send them to school and support them, and Third Uncle agreed to let them seek a better life there.

• Yang Fugui boasted to Third Uncle about his status as a citizen of East Africa and defended the country against his uncle's suspicions.
• Third Uncle questioned what East Africa would do with the orphaned children and whether rumors of abuse were true.
• Yang Fugui explained that recruitment had slowed as East Africa's immigration needs changed, while the children would be sent to school and later serve East Africa.
• Yang Fugui described East Africa's compulsory education system, and Third Uncle agreed to let the children leave with him.

East Africa asked Li Hongzhang for permission to establish a transit station in the Southern Ryukyu Islands, and he agreed despite warning that Japan might retaliate. East Africa then began moving troops and supplies there, secretly intending to take control of the islands and make them a dependent force.

• Ambassador Richard asked Li Hongzhang to let East Africa establish a transit station in the Southern Ryukyu Islands to protect its ships and support trade.
• Richard dismissed Li Hongzhang's warnings about Japan and cited East Africa's strength and its ties with Germany and Austria.
• Li Hongzhang permitted East Africa to develop the Southern Ryukyu Islands, leaving East Africa responsible for any trouble with Japan.
• East Africa began sending troops and supplies from its merchant ships to the Southern Ryukyu Islands.
• The East African government ordered ships in the Zhuhai Trade Zone to build military bases, planning to bring the islands under East African control.

East Africa landed troops and supplies on the Southern Ryukyu Islands to establish a foothold and prepare for colonization. Japanese intelligence discovered the landing and debated East Africa’s intentions, leaving Japan concerned about the new strategic presence.

• East Africa sent five armed merchant ships and more than three hundred personnel to Miyako Island, while Ernst planned to build up a force of at least three thousand troops.
• East African commanders requisitioned the island’s best residence, planned temporary shelters, and ordered a future purge of pirates while urging islanders to surrender.
• Japanese intelligence personnel spotted the ships and identified their flag as belonging to the German Far East Chamber of Commerce.
• Nonoki reported that the Germans had brought thousands of armed men and appeared to have permission from the Far East Empire to develop the islands.
• Ohara Masashi concluded that the landing was likely driven by strategic needs, while Nonoki worried that East Africa’s arrival could threaten Japan’s plans.

An East African middle-school history lesson prompted students to debate the Jin Dynasty’s collapse and East Africa’s ethnic policies. The chapter ended by explaining that East Africa’s education system emphasized selecting talented students because the country lacked resources for broad higher education.

• An East African teacher taught students about the Jin Dynasty, the Five Barbarians Uprising, and the fall of Rome.
• Students argued that internal conflict and incomplete ethnic integration had contributed to the Jin Dynasty’s collapse, then debated East Africa’s own ethnic policies.
• The teacher assigned an argumentative essay of at least five hundred words, drawing groans from the students.
• The narration described East Africa’s state-arranged marriages and efforts to promote ethnic integration among its population.
• The chapter explained that East Africa emphasized universal middle-school education and selecting promising students for scarce advanced educational opportunities.

Ernst examined East Africa’s improved bicycle with hollow rubber tires and ordered a major expansion of bicycle manufacturing across seven cities. He also called for military and civilian bicycle designs, including folding bicycles and cargo tricycles.

• Ernst rode the East African-made bicycle fitted with hollow rubber tires and judged it comfortable and capable, though still heavy.
• Ernst announced that East Africa would strongly support the bicycle industry and outlined plans to build factories in Mbeya, Harare, Bulawayo, Nairobi, Mombasa, Dar es Salaam, and Bagamoyo.
• Ernst said inland factories would serve the mainland while port-city factories would prepare for exports to industrially backward regions.
• Ernst proposed that the military order bicycles for rapid-response forces in difficult terrain, including tropical rainforest regions.
• Ernst directed that folding bicycles and cargo tricycles be researched for military and civilian use.

In Mbeya, Director Leiden persuaded Kevendi to have the Third Bearing Factory develop a new bicycle bearing, promising it would receive middle school graduates to strengthen its technical staff. The old army comrades then discussed how much military life and discipline had changed, while hardship remained in East Africa’s remote regions.

• Director Leiden introduced German technical expert Krimers and his team to Kevendi, who doubted that his factory could machine the bicycle bearing.
• Kevendi suggested sending the project to Dar es Salaam’s First Bearing Factory, but Leiden praised his management and promised that Third Factory would receive middle school graduates first next year.
• Kevendi agreed to take on the work and joked that he had refused to transfer to First Factory because he was sentimental about his old comrades.
• Leiden described the army’s improved facilities and stricter training, discipline, and hygiene, including exacting rules for folded quilts and neatly arranged belongings.
• Kevendi listened as Leiden explained the army’s new standards and noted that troops in remote western regions still faced harsh conditions.