Linie 4: Coffee and colonialism

Title page of the journal "Der deutsche Kulturpionier. Zeitschrift der Deutschen Kolonialschule Wilhelmshof", 1922, Vol. 22 No. 3

Coffee is one of many products that found their way into our German homes through colonialism. But even after the end of the German colonial period, coffee continued to be produced and consumed and colonialism continued by other means. In her presentation “Colonialism without colonies? The magazine 'Der Deutsche Kulturpionier' after 1919” in the public lecture series Linie 4, organised by the BGHS together with the vhs Bielefeld, Catharina Wessing uses the example of the history of coffee to look at the period of the Weimar Republic and its relationship to colonialism.

During this time, the German Empire had formally given up ‘its’ colonies. But there were many colonial enthusiasts who continued to pursue colonialism. This was also the case with the students of the German Colonial School in Witzenhausen, Hesse. This school had already existed since 1898 and trained young German white men to manage farms and ranches in the German colonies. Among other products, this also involved the cultivation of coffee. To improve the students’ networking, the magazine “Der Deutsche Kulturpionier” was founded in 1900. Former students reported there on their experiences and gave tips that were read by colonial enthusiasts worldwide.

Catharina Wessing works as a research associate at the Institute for World Society. She has been working on her doctorate since 2020 on the topic “Kolonial-landwirtschaftlicher Wissenstransfer in der Weimarer Republik. Eine Analyse aus globalgeschichtlicher Perspektive". In addition to all topics related to German colonialism, she is interested in intersectionality and post-colonial studies.

The lecture will take place on Monday, 05 June 2023 at 6.15 p.m. in room 240 at the vhs Bielefeld, Ravensberger Park 1. The event will be held in German.

Here you will find information about Linie 4 and the presentations in the series.