Livingstone, David

Livingstone, David
(1813-1873)
   legendary Scottish missionary and adventurer in Africa
   David Livingstone was born in Blantyre, Scotland, on March 19, 1813, into a deeply religious home. After completing his studies in medicine and theology at the University of Glasgow in 1838, he set his sights on a missionary career. He was inspired to choose Africa by Robert Moffat (1795-1883), a missionary who had first gone there in 1817. Livingstone joined Moffat and eventually (1845) married his daughter, Mary (1820-62).
   Ordained by the London Missionary Society (LMS) in December 1840, Livingstone left for South Africa. He made his way to Kuruman, the most northerly LMS station there, and set out to establish work farther north. A crippling encounter with a lion, a disagreement with a fellow missionary, and drought caused Livingstone to move his base camp several times. He became convinced that his task was to open new territory to the missionaries who would follow him.
   For the next quarter century, Livingstone conducted many wide-ranging exploratory excursions throughout South, East, and Central Africa, forging new routes connecting up the European colonies scattered along the continent's coasts. His triumphal visits back to England and his books made him a world-renowned celebrity. His lecture at Cambridge (1857) occasioned the founding of the Universities' Mission to Central Africa, for several generations an important missionary-sending agency.
   in 1857, Livingstone severed ties with the LMS after criticism from some of its more conservative members, but in 1858 the British government appointed him consul at Quilimane, Mozambique, and commander of an expedition to explore East and Central Africa. in 1861, he helped six missionaries sent by the Universities' Mission establish their station near Lake Nyasa.
   For a while in 1871, the outside world lost track of Livingstone's whereabouts. Henry M. Stanley, a reporter for the New York Herald, found him and uttered the famous phrase, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" In a vain attempt to find the source of the Nile, Livingstone set out on what proved to be his last journey. He died at Chit-ambo, in present-day Zambia, on May 1, 1873. He was buried in Westminster Abbey.
   Livingstone won legendary status among African missionaries. His adventures inspired many others to become missionaries, while those in the sending countries invoked his name to raise funds. His celebrity faded in the mid-20th century during a reappraisal and redirection of the missionary movement by most Protestant sending agencies.
   See also Africa, sub-Saharan.
   Further reading:
   ■ David Livingstone, Missionary Travels and Researches in South Africa (London: Murray, 1857)
   ■ ----, Narrative of an Expedition to the Zambesi and Its Tributaries, and of the Discovery of the Lakes Shirwa and Nyassa, 1858-1864 (London: Murray, 1865)
   ■ George Seaver, David Livingstone: His Life and Letters (New York: Harper, 1957)
   ■ Henry M. Stanley, How I Found Livingstone. Travels, Adventures, and Discoveries in Central Africa (London: Sampson Low, 1872)
   ■ Sam Wellman, David Livingstone: Missionary and Explorer (Uhrichsville, Ohio: Barbour, 1995).

Encyclopedia of Protestantism. . 2005.

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  • Livingstone, David — born March 19, 1813, Lanarkshire, Scot. died May 1, 1873, Chitambo, Barotseland Scottish missionary and explorer in Africa. Of working class origins, Livingstone studied theology and medicine in Glasgow before being ordained (1840) and deciding… …   Universalium

  • Livingstone, David — (1813–1873)    Scottish explorer, missionary, and philanthropist, David Livingstone was born in Blantyre Works, Lanarkshire. Of humble origins, he was nonetheless able to save sufficient money to attend medical school in Glasgow and win a degree… …   Encyclopedia of the Age of Imperialism, 1800–1914

  • Livingstone, David — (1813–73)    Missionary.    Livingstone was born in Blantyre, Scotland. He worked long hours in a factory as a child and he was largely selfeducated. After a conversion experience at the age of seventeen, he studied theology and medicine in… …   Who’s Who in Christianity

  • Livingstone, David — ► (1813 73) Explorador y misionero escocés. En Londres ingresó en la Sociedad de Misioneros y fue enviado a África. Descubrió el lago Ngami y reconoció el desierto de Kalahari y el río Zambeze, donde descubrió las cataratas Victoria. En 1868, se… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Livingstone, David — (1813 1873)    Missionary explorer, b. at Blantyre, Lanarkshire, spent the years between 10 and 24 as an operative in a cotton mill there. Becoming interested in foreign missions he qualified himself, and entering the service of the London… …   Short biographical dictionary of English literature

  • Livingstone,David — Liv·ing·stone (lĭvʹĭng stən), David. 1813 1873. Scottish missionary and African explorer. He discovered the Zambezi River (1851) and Victoria Falls (1855). Henry M. Stanley found him in Tanzania (1871), and together they attempted to find the… …   Universalium

  • LIVINGSTONE, DAVID —    African traveller and missionary, born in Blantyre, Lanarkshire; began life as a mill worker, studied medicine and theology at Glasgow, and was sent out to Africa by the London Missionary Society in 1840, landed at Port Natal, and addressed… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • LIVINGSTONE, David — (1813 1873)    MISSIONARY, explorer and opponent of the slave trade. In 1838, he joined the London Missionary Society and became passionately interested in Africa. Reports of his explorations and experiences aroused wide interest in England. His… …   Concise dictionary of Religion

  • Livingstone — Livingstone, David …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • David Livingstone — (* 19. März 1813 in Blantyre bei Glasgow; † 1. Mai 1873 in Chitambo am Bangweulusee) war ein schottischer Missionar und ein Afrikaforscher des 19. Jahrhunderts …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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