Person

Emil von Zelewski

1854–1891 · 19th century

Emil von Zelewski was a German officer who commanded the colonial troops in German East Africa. In August 1891 he led an expedition against the Hehe chief Mkwawa and was killed with most of his column in an ambush at Lugalo near Iringa, one of the worst defeats suffered by German colonial forces in Africa.

Emil von Zelewski
Image: Unknown author · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 state history

Hehe Kingdom

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Emil von Zelewski. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/emil-von-zelewski
MLA
“Emil von Zelewski.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/emil-von-zelewski. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Emil von Zelewski.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/emil-von-zelewski.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Emil von Zelewski’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/emil-von-zelewski (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻