Unfolding the Mystery Clue Sheet 3- Student Reading

THE RACE TO

Wide Afric, doth thy sun Lighten, thy hills unfold a city as fair As those which starred the night o’ the elder world? Or is the rumor of thy Timbuctoo A dream as frail as those of ancient time?

-Alfred Lord Tennyson excerpt from "Timbuctoo"

On June 7, 1788, in England twelve distinguished men formed the Association for Promoting the Discovery of the Inland Parts of the Continent of Africa. They sought out young explorers to learn all they could about the mysterious, uncharted interior of Africa. Between the late 1500s and the 1870s, nearly 50 Europeans attempted to "go to Timbuktu." This is the story of three such men.

In June 1795, a young Scotsman with the interesting name of Mungo Park set out from Gambia (on Africa’s west coast). His mission was to determine the course of the River and to visit its principal towns, particularly Timbuktu. Braving local customs such as "mumbo jumbo," curiosity from the native peoples, and capture by the Moors, Park finally reached the .

He discovered the Niger was flowing eastward; Leo Africanus in the 1500s had stated it flowed westward. Finding out that Timbuktu was controlled by Muslims who allowed no Christians to live there, Park decided not to go there after all. Park’s journey home, however, was even more hazardous - rain, famine, sickness, delays, and no money. He finally reached England on December 22, 1797, and promptly wrote his Travels.

Intrigued by Africa, Park gained a second mission in 1805 - to trace the course of the Niger River as fully as was possible. Departing in April again from Gambia, Park finally reached the Niger at in August.

He wrote to the Colonial Secretary: " ...I am sorry to say that of the forty-four Europeans who left Gambia in perfect health, five only at present are alive.... but though all Europeans who are with me should die, and though I were myself half dead, I would still persevere; and if I could not succeed in the object of my journey, I would at last die on the Niger." He also wrote his wife. These were his last communications with England. In 1810 it was discovered that Park had been killed by natives in a battle on the River Niger. In December 1824 an award of 10,000 francs was offered to the first person to reach Timbuktu and return to Europe. Another Scotsman, Gordon Laing, organized his "Timbuktu Mission," setting out on July 18, 1825, from Tripoli. Meanwhile Hugh Clapperton, also Scottish, was landing on the west coast of Africa.

Laing reached In Salah (Algeria) on December 2, where reports of battles between two desert tribes kept everyone fearful and reluctant for the caravan to leave. By the end of January 1826, Laing and Clapperton were both about the same distance from Timbuktu, approaching from different directions. An attack on Laing’s caravan left many dead. Laing himself suffered 24 wounds, most of them severe. Next he was struck by yellow fever. Finally on August 26, 1826, Laing arrived at the fabled city of Timbuktu in the midst of two tribes’ fighting over control of the city.

Laing could now answer the question: was the fabled Timbuktu truly a city of gold? A letter home states that Timbuktu "has completely met my expectations" except in size - a somewhat vague description. He certainly wouldn’t have wanted to lose any chance at personal fame. When a sultan, who gained control of the city, ordered death or exile to any Christian, Laing decided to return home. On September 22, he left Timbuktu with a small caravan bound for Morocco. On September 24, he was slaughtered in his tent. Hugh Clapperton never visited Timbuktu after all.

As a child, the Frenchman Rene Caillie was fascinated by the map of Africa, which showed hardly anything but "desert" or "unknown." Hearing of the prize of 10,000 francs, he decided it would be his. He would use the money to help his crippled sister, Celeste. In March 1827, he set off from Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Three years earlier, he had lived with the Moors and learned their language and customs. Disguising himself as an Arab named Abd Allahi (meaning Slave of God), Caillie concocted a "cover" story. He said he had been captured by Napoleon’s army as a young boy, sold in slavery, and just recently brought to by his master. He was now trying to make his way home to Egypt. Caillie was trying to be inconscipuous and cautious.

Caillie survived a tremendous amount of walking, sickness, and used caution around the desert nomads. On April 20, 1828, he finally arrived at Timbuktu, which did not meet his expectations of grandeur and wealth. All he saw was "a mass of ill looking houses built of earth.... In a word, everything had a dull appearance."

People were kind to him, sympathetic because he had been a slave of the Christians. Caillie only stayed in Timbuktu for two weeks. He seemed to be most struck by his observation that Timbuktu was "created soley by the wants of commerce, and destitute of every resource except that its accidental position as a place of exchange affords." Founded as a meeting place between the desert and the river, Timbuktu continued to be just that.

On May 4, Caillie departed from Timbuktu and joined a caravan to cross the . He reached Fez on August 12, weakened from the thirst he experienced in the desert. He finally removed his disguise in Tangier. He reached French soil on October 8, 1828. Caillie received the award of 10,000 francs, a pension of 6000 francs, and the Legion of Honor for being the first European to reach Timbuktu and return alive. He wrote his tale in Travels Through Central Africa to Timbuctoo.