Germany and the Deployment of Urban Planning to Create, Reinforce and Maintain Power in Colonial Cameroon

The study analyzes data from a range of secondary and primary sources, including in-situ observations, on German colonial urbanism in Cameroon. It shows how German colonial authorities deployed urban planning tools, talent and schemes to create, reinforce and maintain five overlapping variants of power, including military, economic, political, cultural and socio-psychological power. Thus, unlike previous studies, this one does not focus on the use of power to achieve urban planning objectives in built space. Instead, it draws attention to the many ways in which a colonial government summoned urban planning expertise and tools to bolster power in milieus other than urban planning.