World War I Shipwrecks of the Western Indian Ocean of Tanzania: Neglected Underwater Heritage Resources

Abstract

WWI shipwrecks of the western Indian Ocean along Tanzania coast constitute a neglected, often unseen and unmanaged maritime heritage resource with archaeological, historical and economic values. This chapter provides a review of shipwreck heritage on Tanzania’s coastline symbolic of both British and German sea power. It highlights the potentiality of these sites towards the development of underwater archaeology and cultural heritage management programmes. Attention is drawn to the assessment of the physical presence of the wrecks, their locations and profiles as documented by archival sources. The richness and diversity of underwater cultural heritage along the Tanzania’s coast presents challenges to conservation and management agendas. Thus, a particularized inventory pinpointing specific time period heritage, such as the state of WWI shipwrecks, provides explicit and informative case studies. The chapter offers information that can be used to sustain training and capacity building projects as applied by ongoing Tanzania maritime and underwater heritage management (MUCH) programmes.