Page 80 - All About History - Issue 33-15

A-Z of the British Empire

The Boer Wars followed the Anglo-
Zulu Wars and was a bloody yet
successful two-year conflict

Livingstone

Amanwhodevotedhis
life to exploring many
David new countries
Livingstone
was one of David Livingstone
wasborninto
the first to link working-class
mosquitoes to the Glaswegian life and
deadly disease wastaughttoread
malaria and write by his
father. Studying at
Jingoism Anderson’s University, he had soon
gathered enough funds to move to
Theaggressiveforeign London. By 1841, his dream of
policy and the stubborn exploration was realised and he was
imperialism of the empire postedtoAfricaasamissionary
doctor.Livingstonewasamanof
Jingoism – the God,anduponreachingtheKalahari
nationalistic and patriotic Kitchener Desert region of Africa, he began
belief that your country converting many of the locals to
is best – was rife within The British military leader who was immortalised Christianity.Aswellashisreligious
the empire, especially at inthefamousarmyrecruitmentposter values, he learned about the true
its peak in the late-19th extent of the horrors of the slave
century. The aggressive Born in Ireland waspromotedtosecretaryof trade and explored Botswana and
shows of force by Britain to maintain andeducatedin stateforwarattheoutbreak lake Nagmi.
and expand its empire were naturally Switzerland, of war in 1914. Unlike many of Livingstone made several trips to
exaggeratedbythepressandclever Horatio Kitchener his contemporaries, Kitchener Africaandwhetheronfoot,canoe
propaganda spin put almost anything (and his instantly foresaw a long conflict and acted or ox-back, he regularly diced with
theempiredidinapositivelight. recognisable accordingly, creating the New deathfromwildanimalattackor
Theriseofothersuperpowers moustache) are Army.However,itwasherethathis disease. Meeting many local tribes,
such as Germany and Russia only nowiconicimagesofBritainand careertookaturnfortheworse.He Livingstone’s writings helped advance
helped fuel jingoism, resulting in its empire. Kitchener’s military was notoriously difficult to work knowledge of the slave trade and
arrogant ideology such as splendid career was extensive and lasted with and his support for the poorly thedangersofmalariaandscurvy.
isolationandthenavalarmsrace. from1871untilhisdeathin1916. planned Dardanelles campaign Governmentfundingranoutinthe
Invasion literature of the era such as Beginning as a royal engineer, wasaturningpoint;thentheshell late 1850s, but by 1866, the Scot had
HG Wells’s The War Of The Worlds Kitchener’s career soon took off, crisis of 1915 damaged his stock accumulatedenoughfundsofhis
also stoked the fires of Russophobia andby1886hewasappointed even further. own to finance another trip. This
and paranoia. Jingoism wasn’t a new governor general of Eastern Sudan. Kitchenerdidn’tsurvivethe time, the destination was the source
phenomenon (Britain had always This upward trajectory continued war and was killed when aboard of the River Nile, and it would end
hadfiercerivalrieswithSpainand and his efforts in the Mahdist War, the HMS Hampshire, which up being his final expedition. With
France, for instance) but politicians andinparticularthevictoryatthe was sunk on 5 June 1916 by a almost no crew left and suffering
wereworriedthataworking-class battle of Omdurman, made him a German mine while on a mission from pneumonia, Livingstone
electorate was dangerous to British national hero back in Britain. to encourage Russian resistance wentmissingandwasonlyfound
politics. Both the Conservatives Kitchener’s methods were not all againstGermany.Kitchenerhad in October 1871 in Ujiji, Tanzania.
and Liberals came to realise that an popularthough,andhisuseof questionable methods when it Physically exhausted but always
assertive foreign policy was the best concentration camps in the Boer came to war but he is remembered dedicated to his job, Livingstone died
waytoappealtothepublic.Thewave War was severely criticised. forthesheernumberofmenhe in May 1873. The British Empire owes
of jingoism lasted up until World Nevertheless, Kitchener was organisedatthestartofWorldWar him greatly for mapping out vast
WarI,whentheGreatWarchanged madeaviscountin1902and Iand,ofcourse,thatposter. swathes of the previously uncharted
people’s perception of conflict forever. African continent.
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