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The Last Expedition

Stanley's Fatal Journey through the Congo

Jan 4, 2009 Joseph Allen McCullough

Daniel Liebotwitz & Charlie Pearson's book about the last and most controversial African expedition led by Henry Morton Stanley.

For most of the general public, the exploits of Henry Morton Stanley begin and end with his discovery of the lost African explorer Dr. Livingstone. However, the search for Livingstone was just the first of four great expeditions Stanley led into the heart of darkest Africa. In terms of history, his most important accomplishment was establishing the Congo Free State as a Belgian colony. Thus by the time that Stanley launched his fourth and final African expedition, he was already a house-hold name in both England and America.

The Emin Pasha Relief Expedition

When General Gordon was killed by the forces of the Mahdi in Khartoum in 1885, the British public mourned him as a martyr. Thus, when it was learned that one of his Lieutenants, a German named Emin Pasha was still holding out in the tiny province of Equatoria, there were cries that a relief expedition be sent. In the minds of most people, there was only one man for the job, Henry Morton Stanley.

The Last Expedition

The book by Daniel Liebowitz and Charlie Pearson presents the story of this expedition - a deadly journey that was plagued by politics and infighting as well as African diseases and deadly natives. From the beginning, Stanley determined the best way to reach Emin Pasha would be to cross the entire length of Africa, starting at the mouth of the Congo river and crossing all the way to Zanzibar. Gathering a small group of European adventurers and hundreds of Zanzibar pack bearers, he set off on a trip he predicted would take less than a year. In the end, it took three.

In terms of sources, this expedition is an historian’s dream. All of the surviving Europeans wrote accounts of the journey, and even the ones that didn’t make it had their letters from the expedition published. The authors do a terrific job of drawing on all of these sources that are often slightly (or greatly) conflicting to paint a likely picture of what actually happened. The narrative is also infused with a dry wit, often aimed at Stanley, whose double-dealing, exaggeration, and self-obsessed nature forms one of the main themes of the book.

In the end, this book is a wonderful adventure story that pulls no punches in talking about the horrors of Victorian African exploration. It is also a rather damning assessment of the character of Henry Morton Stanley and his leadership of an expedition that would cause the death of hundreds of people while accomplishing almost nothing of value.

The Last Expedition: Stanley’s Fatal Journey Through the Congo by Daniel Liebowitz and Charlie Pearson, Portrait, 2005.

The copyright of the article The Last Expedition in UK/Irish History is owned by Joseph Allen McCullough. Permission to republish The Last Expedition in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.