Mungo Park

See also: Park

Mungo Park (1771 - 1806) was a Scottish Explorateur .

Mungo Park was born in Fowlshiels in the Selkirkshire the September 10th 1771. After having made studies of medicine, he becomes surgeon. Impassioned voyages it goes voluntary to find the sources of the Niger, at the African Company of London. At that time, as for the the Nile in Eastern Africa, the principal geographical enigma of West Africa is the course of the Niger. A river, which because of the relief, takes its source to a few hundred kilometers of the coast but made a loop of 4.000 km inside, before regaining the gulf of Guinea. The European geographers know of this large river only what Pline had said which had spoken about Niger, then Idrisi and Leon the African. However this last had muddled the things by claiming that Niger ran towards the West. The most whimsical assumptions run up.

Mungo Park proposes to take again explorations of Houghton and share on May 22nd, 1795 for Gambia. June 21st, 1795 it reaches the mouth of the Gambia and it goes up the river to the counter of Pisania. He learns the local dialect thanks to the doctor from the counter and begins his tour in the grounds in December 1795. He crosses the bed of the Senegal, visit the Mould, Bondou, Kaarta and is stopped by the Moors and captive fact for four months, by their Ali chief who treats it as a slave. It is able to escape in the desert alone without almost anything at drinking and eating. After three weeks of sufferings, it reaches the town of Ségou, where it can finally see Niger. It goes up the river on 110 km, but being exhausted and sick it decides to join Ségou. Informed by natives, it learned that the city had fallen to the hand from its former geôlier. He then decides to rejoin the town of Kamalia. The rain season having started, the voyage is then even more painful than in the desert. There arrive exhausted at Kamalia and remain several days between the life and death. Given on foot it decides to join a caravan of slave who joined the coast. Six months later of return to the United Kingdom, it publishes the account of its voyage. In 1803, at the request of its government it agrees to carry out a new forwarding on Niger. It sets out again on January 30th, 1805 with Gorée, then rejoins Bamako. It builds a boat to descend Niger. The disease and the ambushes of the autochtones decimate forwarding (It loses 33 of his companions). In spite of its difficulties, it descends Niger on 1600 km, before being attacked by Haoussas. About to be submerged, it is withdrawn towards the river where it drowns with his remaining companions. A guide and a carrier survivors brought back his fine tragedy.

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