Mary Henrietta Kingsley (13 October 1862 – 3 June 1900) was an
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
writer and
explorerExploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
who greatly influenced European ideas about
AfricaAfrica is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and
African peopleAfrican people refers to natives, inhabitants, or citizen of Africa and to people of African descent.-Etymology:Many etymological hypotheses that have been postulated for the ancient name "Africa":...
.
Early life
Kingsley was born in
IslingtonIslington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
, London on 13 October 1862. She was the daughter and oldest child of doctor, traveller and writer George Kingsley and Mary Bailey, and was the niece of novelists
Charles KingsleyCharles Kingsley was an English priest of the Church of England, university professor, historian and novelist, particularly associated with the West Country and northeast Hampshire.-Life and character:...
and
Henry KingsleyHenry Kingsley was an English novelist, brother of the better-known Charles Kingsley.Kingsley was born at Barnack rectory, Northamptonshire, son of the Rev. Charles Kingsley the elder, Mary, née Lucas. Charles Kingsley came of a long line of clergymen and soldiers, and in addition to the two...
. The family moved to
HighgateHighgate is an area of North London on the north-eastern corner of Hampstead Heath.Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has an active conservation body, the Highgate Society, to protect its character....
less than a year after her birth, the same home where her brother Charles George R (Charley) Kingsley was born in 1866, and by 1881 were living in Southwood House,
BexleyBexley is an South East London]] in the London Borough of Bexley, London, England. It is located on the banks of the River Cray south of the Roman Road, Watling Street...
in [Kent]].
Her father was a doctor and worked for
George Herbert, 13th Earl of PembrokeGeorge Robert Charles Herbert, 13th Earl of Pembroke, 10th Earl of Montgomery , known as The Lord Herbert of Lea from 1861 to 1862, was a British Conservative politician...
and other aristocrats, and was regularly away from home on his excursions. During these voyages he was able to collect information for his studies. Dr. Kingsley and Lord Dunraven ventured to North America between 1870 and 1875 and Kingsley was offered the opportunity to join American General Custer and his men into Native American lands. Later reports describing the massacre of Custer's party left the Kingsley family at home in England terrified, but they were relieved to discover later that bad weather had kept Dr Kingsley from joining the Custer party. It is likely that her father's views on the injustices faced by the Native Americans helped shape Mary's later opinions on British
imperialismImperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
in West Africa.
Mary was neither baptised nor brought up as a Christian. She had little formal schooling other than German lessons at a young age, but she did have access to her father's large library and loved to hear her father's stories of foreign countries. "I don't know if I revealed to you that fact that being allowed to learn German was all the paid-for education I ever had. Two thousand pounds was spent on my brother's, I still hope not in vain." (The Life of Mary Kingsley by Stephen Gwynne, p 15). She did not enjoy novels that were deemed more appropriate for young ladies of the time, such as those by
Jane AustenJane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.Austen lived...
or
Charlotte BronteCharlotte Brontë was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood, whose novels are English literature standards...
but preferred books on the sciences and memoirs of explorers. Charley, however, was sent to school and entered Christ's College in 1886 with the intent to become a lawyer, allowing Mary the chance to make several academic connections and a few friends.
The 1891 England
censusA census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
finds Mrs Kingsley - Mary's mother - and her two children living at 7 Mortimer Road,
CambridgeThe city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, where Charles is recorded as a BA Student at Law and Mary as a Student of Medicine.
In her later years, Mary's mother became ill and Mary was expected to care for her well-being. Mary was unable to leave her mother's side for more than a few hours and therefore had limited travel opportunities. Her father also became bedridden with rheumatic fever after an excursion. Dr. Kingsley died in February 1892 and Mrs. Kingsley followed a few months later in April of the same year. Freed from her family responsibilities and with an inheritance of £8,600 to be split evenly with her brother, Mary was now able to travel as she dreamed. Mary decided to visit Africa to collect the material she would need to finish off a book that her father had started on the culture of the people of Africa.
Journeys to Africa
After a preliminary visit to the
Canary IslandsThe Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
, Mary made preparations to travel to the west coast of Africa. The only non-African women who regularly embarked on (often dangerous) journeys to Africa were usually the wives of missionaries, government officials, or explorers, a stereotype which she struggled to overcome throughout her lifetime. Exploration and adventure were not seen as fitting roles for a
VictorianThe Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
woman. Even African women were astonished that a woman of Mary's age was travelling without a man, as she was frequently asked why her husband was not accompanying her.
Mary landed in
Sierra LeoneSierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
on 17 August 1893 and pressed on into
LuandaLuanda, formerly named São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda, is the capital and largest city of Angola. Located on Angola's coast with the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is both Angola's chief seaport and its administrative center. It has a population of at least 5 million...
in
AngolaAngola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
. She lived with local people who taught her necessary skills for surviving in the African jungles, and often went into dangerous areas alone. Her training as a nurse at the Kaiserworth Medical Institute prepared her for slight injuries and jungle maladies that she would later encounter. Mary returned to England in December 1897.
Upon her return, Mary secured support and aid from Dr.Albert Günther, a prominent zoologist at the British Museum, as well as a writing agreement with publisher George Macmillan for she wished to publish her travel accounts.
She returned to Africa yet again in December 1894 with more support and supplies, as well as increased self assurance in her work. She longed to study 'cannibal' peoples and their traditional religious practices, commonly referred to as
fetishFetish may refer to:* Fetishism, the attribution of religious or mystical qualities to inanimate objects* Sexual fetishism, sexual attraction to objects, body parts, or situations not conventionally viewed as being sexual in nature....
during the Victorian Era. In April she became acquainted with Scottish missionary
Mary SlessorMary Mitchell Slessor was a Scottish missionary to Nigeria.Her determined work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals, spreading Christianity and promoting women's rights.-Early life:...
, another female living among native populations with little company and no husband. It was during her meeting with Slessor that Kingsley first became painfully aware of the custom of twin killing, a custom Slessor was determined to stop. The native people believed that one of the twins was the offspring of the devil who had secretly mated with the mother and since the innocent child was impossible to distinguish, both were killed and the mother was often killed as well for attracting the devil to impregnate her. Kingsley arrived at Slessor's residence shortly after she had taken in a recent mother of twins and her surviving child.
Later while in
GabonGabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
, Mary Kingsley travelled by
canoeA canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
up the
Ogooué RiverThe Ogooué , some 1,200 km long, is the principal river of Gabon in west central Africa. Its watershed drains nearly the entire country of Gabon, with some tributaries reaching into the Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea....
where she collected specimens of previously unknown fish, three which were later named after her. After meeting the Fang people and travelling through uncharted Fang territory, she climbed the daring 13,760 ft
Mount CameroonMount Cameroon is an active volcano in Cameroon near the Gulf of Guinea. Mount Cameroon is also known as Cameroon Mountain or Fako or by its native name Mongo ma Ndemi ....
by a route not previously attempted by any other European.
Return to England
When she returned home in November 1895 Kingsley was greeted by journalists who were eager to interview her. The reports that were drummed up about her voyage however were most upsetting to Kingsley, as the papers portrayed her as a "New Woman", an image which she did not embrace. Kingsley distanced herself from any feminist movement claims, arguing that she had never worn trousers during her expedition and even denounced equality for women in scholarly societies. She dressed conservatively and tried to avoid any more controversy than her studies already attracted her.
Over the next three years, she toured the country giving lectures about life in Africa to a wide array of audiences. She was the first woman to address the
LiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and
ManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
chambers of commerce.
Mary Kingsley upset the
Church of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
when she criticised missionaries for attempting to change the people of Africa. She talked about, and indeed defended, many aspects of African life that had shocked many English people, including
polygamyPolygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
. For example explaining the "seething mass of infamy, degradation and destruction going on among the Coast native... [as] the natural consequence of the breaking down of an ordered polygamy into a disordered monogamy". She argued that a "black man is no more an undeveloped white man than a
rabbitRabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
is an undeveloped
hareHares and jackrabbits are leporids belonging to the genus Lepus. Hares less than one year old are called leverets. Four species commonly known as types of hare are classified outside of Lepus: the hispid hare , and three species known as red rock hares .Hares are very fast-moving...
" as well asserting that she did not regard "the native form as 'low' or 'inferior'... but as a form of mind of a different sort to white men's - a very good form of mind too, in its way." After living with the African people, Kingsley became directly aware how their societies functioned and how prohibiting customs such as polygamy would be detrimental to their way of life. She knew that the typical African wives had too many tasks to manage alone and did not view their marriage situations as cruel or unfair. Missionaries in Africa often required converted men to abandon all but one of their wives, this leaving the other women and children without the support of a husband. Despite these seemingly radical views on justifying African ways of life, she was fairly conservative on other issues and did not support the
women's suffrageWomen's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
movement.
Publications
Kingsley wrote two books about her experiences:
Travels in West Africa (1897), which was an immediate best-seller, and
West African Studies (1899), both which granted her vast respect and prestige within the scholarly community. Some newspapers refused to publish reviews of her works, such as the
Times colonial editor
Flora ShawDame Flora Louisa Shaw, Lady Lugard, DBE , the daughter of an English father, Captain George Shaw and a French mother, Marie Desfontaines, was a British journalist and writer...
, likely on the grounds that her beliefs countered the imperialistic intentions of the
British EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
and the commonly accepted notion that African natives were inferior peoples. It is likely that she refrained from any suffrage connections in order to insure her work was received favourably.
Death
During the
Second Boer WarThe Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
, Kingsley travelled to
Cape TownCape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
and volunteered as a nurse. She was stationed at
Simon's TownSimon's Town , sometimes spelled Simonstown; is a town in South Africa, near Cape Town which is home to the South African Navy. It is located on the shores of False Bay, on the eastern side of the Cape Peninsula. For more than two centuries it has been an important naval base and harbour...
hospital, where she treated Boer prisoners of war. After contributing her services to the ill for about two months, she developed symptoms of typhoid and died on June 3, 1900. In accordance with her wishes, she was buried at sea.
Legacy
Kingsley's tales and opinions of life in Africa helped draw attention to British imperial agendas abroad and the native customs of African people that were previously little discussed or misunderstood by the European masses. The Fair Commerce Party formed soon after her death, pressuring for improved conditions for the natives of British colonies. Various reform associations were formed in her honour and helped facilitate governmental change. The
Liverpool School of Tropical MedicineThe Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine is a research and teaching institution focused on neglected tropical diseases and the control of diseases caused by poverty. It is a registered charity affiliated to the University of Liverpool...
founded an honorary medal in her name. Her understanding and empathy for the native African people and their interests, along with her stance on their so called "savage" way of life earned her unwanted fame and a mislabel as a feminist, an image she countered whenever given the chance.
Further reading
- The Life of Mary Kingsley by Stephen Gwynn (1932)
- The Travelling Naturalists by Clare Lloyd. (Study of 18th Century Natural History - Includes Charles Waterton
Charles Waterton was an English naturalist and explorer.-Heritage and Life:"Squire" Waterton was born at Walton Hall, Wakefield, Yorkshire to Thomas Waterton and Anne Bedingfield. He was of a Roman Catholic landed gentry family descended from Reiner de Waterton...
, John Hanning SpekeJohn Hanning Speke was an officer in the British Indian Army who made three exploratory expeditions to Africa and who is most associated with the search for the source of the Nile.-Life:...
, Henry SeebohmHenry Seebohm was an English steel manufacturer, and amateur ornithologist, oologist and traveller.Seebohm was born in Bradford. His interest in natural history led him to travel widely, in Greece, Scandinavia, Turkey, and South Africa...
and Mary Kingsley Contains colour and black and white reproductions. Published by Croom Helm (UK) in 1985 with ISBN 0 7099 1658 2
- Blunt, A. Travel, Gender and Imperialism: Mary Kingsley and West Africa, Gilford Press 1994
- Davidson, L.C. Hints to Lady Travellers, London 1889
- Dea, B. Mary Kingsley: Imperial Adventuress, Palgrave Macmillan 1992
- Kingsley, M.H. West African Studies, Frank Cass Publishers 1964
- Kingsley, M.H. 'Travels on the western coast of Equatorial Africa' Scottish Geographical Magazine, 12, p. 113-124, 1896
- Middleton, D. 'Some Victorian Lady Travellers' The Geographical Journal, 139(1), p. 65-75, 1973
- Mcloone, M., Women explorers in Africa: Christina Dodwell
Christina Dodwell FRGS is a British explorer, travel writer, and lecturer. She is Chairman of the Dodwell Trust and was awarded the Mungo Park Medal in 1989....
, Delia AkeleyDelia Julia Akeley , commonly known by her nickname, Mickie, was an American explorer. She was born in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, a daughter of Patrick and Margaret Denning, Irish immigrants....
, Mary Kingsley, Florence von Sass BakerSir Samuel White Baker, KCB, FRS, FRGS was a British explorer, officer, naturalist, big game hunter, engineer, writer and abolitionist. He also held the titles of Pasha and Major-General in the Ottoman Empire and Egypt. He served as the Governor-General of the Equatorial Nile Basin between Apr....
, and Alexandrine TinneAlexandrine Petronella Francina Tinne was a Dutch explorer in Africa and the first European woman to attempt to cross the Sahara...
(Capstone Press, 1997)
- 'Kingsley, Mary Henrietta' Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press 2004
- Three Guineas
Three Guineas is a book-length essay by Virginia Woolf, published in June 1938.-Background:Although Three Guineas is a work of non-fiction, it was initially conceived as a "novel-essay" which would tie up the loose ends left in her earlier work, A Room of One's Own...
by Virginia WoolfAdeline Virginia Woolf was an English author, essayist, publisher, and writer of short stories, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century....
, part one (1938)
- Bausch, Richard Hello To The Cannibals, HarperCollins, 2002 (fictional approach)
External links