Lüderitz Bay
| Lüderitz Bay | |
|---|---|
| Lüderitzbaai(Afrikaans) | |
 View of the eastern headland and the inner bay. | |
  Lüderitz Bay Lüderitz town in the inner eastern bay | |
| Coordinates | 26°37′S15°9′E/ 26.617°S 15.150°E |
| Etymology | Adolf Lüderitz |
| Ocean/sea sources | Atlantic Ocean |
| Basincountries | Namibia |
| Max. length | 7.5 km (4.7 mi) |
| Max. width | 5 km (3.1 mi) |
| Islands | Penguin IslandandSeal Island |
| Settlements | Lüderitz[1] |
Lüderitz BayorLüderitzbaai(German:Lüderitzbucht), also known asAngra Pequena(Portuguese:[ˈɐ̃ɡɾɐpɨˈkenɐ],"small cove" ), is a bay in the coast ofNamibia,Africa.The city ofLüderitzis located at the edge of the bay.[2]
Geography
[edit]The bay is indented and complex in structure. It opens to theAtlantic Oceanin the west. Lüderitz town is located in the southern shore of the inner eastern bay, which is known asAngra Pequenain Portuguese and opens towards the north. Further westGriffith Bay,a deep inlet, stretches southwards in the southern part.
The bay west of 'Angra Point' is known asShearwater Bay,the location of a proposed port for the export of amongst other things, coal fromBotswana.This requires the construction of the 1600 km Trans Kalahari Railway.[3]
There are two islands facing Agate Beach in the northeastern part of the bay,Penguin IslandandSeal Island.[2]
In the southern part of the bay, a course has been created to hold theLüderitz Speed Challenge,an annual speed sailing event.
History
[edit]The easternmost bay was namedAngra Pequenawhen first mapped in 1487 byPortugueseexplorerBartolomeu Dias,[4]: 4 although in some maps it appeared asAngra de São Christóvão.In 1883 the bay area was made into atrading stationbyGermantraderAdolf Lüderitz.He renamed itLüderitzand concluded treaties with the neighbouring chiefs, who ceded large tracts of country to the newcomers. Under the belief thatBritainwas about to claim the area as a protectorate, Lüderitz transferred his rights over the bay on 24 April 1884 to theGerman Imperial Government,and on the following 7 August ChancellorOtto von Bismarckproclaimed a Germanprotectorateover the station and the surrounding area.[5]
RenamedLüderitzbucht(Lüderitz Bay) by the Germans, the location then became a naval base forGerman South West Africa,modern dayNamibia.
The two islands off Agate Beach, rich inguanodeposits, were annexed byGreat Britainin 1867 and added toCape Colonyin 1874 as part of the offshore territory known asPenguin Islands.[5][6]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^GoogleEarth
- ^ab"Lüderitzbaai".Mapcarta.Retrieved14 October2016.
- ^Railways Africa - Trans Kalahari Railway
- ^Chilvers, Hedley Arthur (1929).The seven wonders of southern Africa.Internet Archive. Johannesburg.
- ^abChisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911)..Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 42.
- ^Hertslet, Edward(1894).The map of Africa by treaty.Vol. 1. pp. 345–46.
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