Role of Individuals Flashcards
What was David Livingstone’s role?
Missionary and explorer
Why did Livingstone help consolidate the Empire?
He stated that he goes back to Africa to “try to open up a path for commerce and Christianity.”
What was Livingstone’s impact?
He was seen by the British Victorian public as a martyr who sacrificed his life for Africa and the Empire, with stories of adventure captivating the British public.
What was John Kirk’s role?
He was a physician and explorer.
Why did Kirk help consolidate the Empire?
He explored Zanzibar as it was of commercial interest to the British because of its clove and ivory exports; it was also a wealthy state.
What was Kirk’s impact?
Kirk’s work ensured that Zanzibar was operated as a British Client State. Zanzibar’s slave trade was abolished, and, with British aid, its commerce grew. Kirk’s efforts thus gave Britain the toehold on Africa’s East Coast which was to grow into British East Africa in 1895.
What was Sir Richard Burton’s role?
He was a scholar, explorer and adventurer.
Why did Burton help consolidate the Empire?
He and John Hanning Speke disagreed on whether Lake Victoria was the source of the Nile. Burton’s unwillingness to accept Speke’s theory that it was led to the British Association for the Advancement of Science inviting both Burton and Speke to debate their theories.
What was Burton’s impact?
He acquired a wild and dangerous reputation for his daring essays on pornography, homosexuality and the sexual education of women. His journey to Mecca was a place no Western Christian had gone before.
