Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile
Encyclopedia
Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773 is a multi-volume account of the Scottish traveller James Bruce
(1730-94) of his journeys in the Horn of Africa
, which includes an eye-witness account of Ethiopia
n history and culture, as well as a description of that country and the neighboring kingdom of Sennar
and the Ottoman
province of Habesh
.
Bruce and his sensational stories were received with incredulity upon his return to London
in 1774 after more than a dozen years of travel in North Africa and Abyssinia (Ethiopia
) where he traced the Blue Nile
.
His Travels was issued in 1790, after he retired to his home at Kinnaird
, at the urging of his friend Daines Barrington
. It was published in five octavo
volumes, lavishly illustrated, but was ridiculed by scholars and other travellers as being exaggerated nonsense. An example of the criticism his account received would be the comments of Henry Salt
, who after visiting Ethiopia and interviewing a number of inhabitants who knew him, wrote:
However, the substantial accuracy of his Abyssinian travels was later confirmed by explorers who included William George Browne
and E.D. Clarke, and it is considered that he made a real addition to the geographical knowledge of his day.
A new edition of the Travels was prepared by Alexander Murray
in 1813, who added copious footnotes and appendices on Bruce's sources and accuracy, as well as a portion of Bruce's autobiography
. Murray's most notable revision to Bruce's account was replacing his chapter on Emperor Bakaffa
, removing the semi-legendary accounts of how Bakaffa met his future queen Mentewab
and her important supporter Waragna with a factual drawn from the Royal Chronicles of the ruler.
Of the 19th century abridgments, the best is that of Major (afterwards Sir) Francis Head, the author of a well-informed Life of Bruce (London, 1830).
James Bruce
James Bruce was a Scottish traveller and travel writer who spent more than a dozen years in North Africa and Ethiopia, where he traced the origins of the Blue Nile.-Youth:...
(1730-94) of his journeys in the Horn of Africa
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in East Africa that juts hundreds of kilometers into the Arabian Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. It is the easternmost projection of the African continent...
, which includes an eye-witness account of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
n history and culture, as well as a description of that country and the neighboring kingdom of Sennar
Sennar
Sennar is a town on the Blue Nile in Sudan and capital of the state of Sennar. For several centuries it was the capital of the Funj Kingdom of Sennar. It had an estimated population of 100,000 inhabitants in the early 19th century. The modern town lies 17km SSE of the ruins of the ancient capital...
and the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
province of Habesh
Habesh
Habesh Eyalet was an Ottoman eyalet that bordered the Red Sea. It comprised Massawa, Hergigo, Suakin and their hinterlands. Later it would also incorporate Zeila and western Somaliland...
.
Bruce and his sensational stories were received with incredulity upon his return to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1774 after more than a dozen years of travel in North Africa and Abyssinia (Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
) where he traced the Blue Nile
Blue Nile
The Blue Nile is a river originating at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. With the White Nile, the river is one of the two major tributaries of the Nile...
.
His Travels was issued in 1790, after he retired to his home at Kinnaird
Kinnaird
Kinnaird can refer to:* Kinnaird, Gowrie, village in Gowrie * Kinnaird, Atholl, village in Atholl * Kinnaird, Stirlingshire, estate of the Bruces of Airth* Kinnaird, British Columbia...
, at the urging of his friend Daines Barrington
Daines Barrington
Daines Barrington, FRS was an English lawyer, antiquary and naturalist.Barrington was the fourth son of the first Viscount Barrington. He was educated for the profession of the law, and after filling various posts, was appointed a Welsh judge in 1757 and afterwards second justice of Chester...
. It was published in five octavo
Octavo
Octavo to is a technical term describing the format of a book.Octavo may also refer to:* Octavo is a grimoire in the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett...
volumes, lavishly illustrated, but was ridiculed by scholars and other travellers as being exaggerated nonsense. An example of the criticism his account received would be the comments of Henry Salt
Henry Salt (Egyptologist)
Henry Salt was an English artist, traveller, diplomat, and Egyptologist.-Biography:Salt, the son of a physician, was born in Lichfield. He trained as a portrait painter, first in Lichfield and then in London under Joseph Farington and John Hoppner. In 1802 he was appointed secretary and...
, who after visiting Ethiopia and interviewing a number of inhabitants who knew him, wrote:
- The most material points (besides those noticed in a former part of this work) which affect Mr. Bruce's veracity, are those, of his never having received any district or command; his not having been engaged in the battles of Serbraxos -- the overthrow of his pretensions to an almost intuitive knowledge of the languages of the country -- his mis-statements respecting GuanguolAbba Seru GwangulAbba Seru Gwangul was a chieftain of the Yejju Oromo, an ethnic group of Ethiopia. He came to control Begemder and parts of Wollo, and his heirs were significant warlords of the Zemene Mesafint...
, Amha YasousAmha IyasusAmha Iyasus, better known as Ammehayes , was a Meridazmach of Shewa, an important Amhara noble of Ethiopia...
, and the living feast, and the unpardonable concealment of the fact, that Balugani attended him on his journey to the sources of the Nile.
However, the substantial accuracy of his Abyssinian travels was later confirmed by explorers who included William George Browne
William George Browne
William George Browne was an English traveller.Browne was born at Great Tower Hill, London. At seventeen he was sent to Oriel College, Oxford. Having had a moderate inheritance left him by his father, on quitting the university he applied himself entirely to literary pursuits...
and E.D. Clarke, and it is considered that he made a real addition to the geographical knowledge of his day.
A new edition of the Travels was prepared by Alexander Murray
Alexander Murray (linguist)
Alexander Murray was a Scottish linguist and professor of Oriental languages in Edinburgh University Murray was born at Dunkitterick, Kirkcudbrightshire, and after graduating from Edinburgh University, became parish minister of Urr in his native shire...
in 1813, who added copious footnotes and appendices on Bruce's sources and accuracy, as well as a portion of Bruce's autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
. Murray's most notable revision to Bruce's account was replacing his chapter on Emperor Bakaffa
Bakaffa
Bakaffa was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
, removing the semi-legendary accounts of how Bakaffa met his future queen Mentewab
Mentewab
Mentewab , was Empress of Ethiopia, consort of Emperor Bakaffa, mother of Iyasu II and grandmother of Iyoas I. She was also known officially by her baptismal name of Welete Giyorgis...
and her important supporter Waragna with a factual drawn from the Royal Chronicles of the ruler.
Of the 19th century abridgments, the best is that of Major (afterwards Sir) Francis Head, the author of a well-informed Life of Bruce (London, 1830).
Selected Editions
- Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773. Five Volumes, G.G.J. and J. Robinson, London, 1790.
- Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773, Second edition, Ed., Alexander Murray, 1805.
- Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773, Third edition, 8 volumes; Ed., Alexander Murray; Edinburgh, 1813.
- Travels. Abridged edition, by Major Francis Head, 1830.
- Travels. Abridged edition, by C.F. Beckingham. Horizon Press, New York, 1964.