In 1914 Naulila was a Portuguese garrison fort. It is situated on the southern bank of the Kunene River in Angola. At the time, there was an unwritten agreement between old trading allies, Portugal and England, and martial law had been declared in Angola on 12th September 1914.

A few months after the outbreak of WW1 Outjo's district commander, Dr Schultze-Jena and 2 German officers, First Lieutenant A Lösch and Second Lieutenant K Roeder where killed by garrison soldiers on 19th October 1914.

The German High Command sent a force to Naulila led by Major Victor Franke and his unit, the Franke Regiment. They were transported by rail from Karasberg to Otjiwarongo with the remainder of the journey to the Kunene River being undertaken on foot. Franke had amassed a small battalion of over 500 men. Water was hard to come by on their journey.

On 18th December 1914, Franke's Regiment delivered an attack of the fort from the east and south-west. Although they were outnumbered and exhausted from their trek north, the Portuguese soldiers fled after a period of heavy fighting. It is believed that around 150 Portuguese soldiers were killed in action or wounded, as opposed to 31 losses on the Franke Regiment's side. German spoils of war included large amounts of small arms ammunition, a machine-gun and a field hospital wagon.

The Franke Regiment were re-titled The Naulila Regiment and they returned to South West Africa on the 19th December 1914. Almost 20 years later a monument was commissioned by the German Society and built by Mr C Wille. It was unveiled in Outjo on 12th June 1933.

The Naulila Monument was proclaimed a national monument on 4th June 1971 and it is situated in a small park in central Outjo.

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