Today is the Sunset day of Jacob Morenga (1875 - September 20, 1907) chief leader in the Namibian insurrection against the German Empire which took place between 1904 and 1908, and was best known for forging an alliance between the rival Herero and Namaqua nations. Born in 1875 to a Herero mother and Nama father, Morenga was educated by missionaries and employed as a mineworker in South Africa. He joined the insurrections against German colonial rule in then South West Africa and took part in small attack forces during the early 1900s, but it wasn't until October 1903 that Morenga began to earn his reputation amongst his people and the enemy. With just 11 followers and few weapons, Morenga was forced to leverage the few advantages he had against one of the mightiest military powers in the world of that period. Where the enemy was overburdened with shiny weaponry and confusing chains of command, Morenga operated with speed, surprise and local knowledge - the essence of guerilla warfare. With every successful raid, his status grew and followers flocked to him. He performed stunts, stealing horses from sleeping sentries and leaving behind letters asking them to feed their animals better, adding to his growing legend. The 11 original men he started with soon became 150 and by 1905 he had 300 soldiers under his command. After more than fifty battles against German troops, Morenga was eventually captured, taken to South Africa and imprisoned. After a short period behind bars, the British forces released him under one condition: he could never return to his homeland again. Ignoring the command, he crossed the Orange River and travelled back into South West Africa. Wasting no time, he began where he had left off, gathering men around him from every tribe to continue the fight. On 20 September 1907, Morenga died during battle. He was shot by the German-British forces. He was just 32. As one of Namibia's nine national heroes, Sam Nujuma paid tribute to him at his inauguration: "Morenga had a vision of broad African nationalism which transcended narrow ethnic loyalties and he was therefore designated as 'the man of the future'."
