The influence of both local and global drivers on long-term changes in the vegetation of Namibia's extensive rangelands was investigated. Fifty-two historical photographs of the Palgrave Expedition of 1876 were re-photographed and used to document changes over more than 130 years, in grass, shrub and tree cover within three major biomes along a 1200 km climatic gradient in central and southern Namibia. We showed that patterns of change are correlated with mean annual precipitation (MAP) and that below a threshold of around 250 mm, vegetation has remained remarkably stable regardless of land-use or tenure regime. Keywords: repeat photography, climate change, bush encroachment, colonial ecological revolution, savanna ecology, pastoralism.