At the end of World War I, when it consisted of a handful of government offices and a dozen stores, it was evacuated by its British population of a couple of dozen in the face of a surprise raid from the north-east by German East African forces under General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck.
During this time he marched over 2700 kilometres in pursuit of General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck's askari battalions.
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The German commander, Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck, decided to attack Jassin in order to prevent further danger to Tanga, which lay more than 50 kilometres to the south and had previously been successfully defended against a British attack.
During World War I, Ferreira Gil served as the Commander of the Portuguese Forces in Northern Portuguese Mozambique, leading them in combat in the East African Campaign against the German Forces of Paul Emil von Lettow-Vorbeck.