The Man-eaters of Tsavo
Encyclopedia
The Man-eaters of Tsavo is a book written by John Henry Patterson
in 1907 that recounts his experiences while overseeing the construction of a railroad bridge in what would become Kenya
. It is most widely known for recounting the story of a pair of lion
s that he killed, known as the Tsavo maneaters
.
An appendix
contains advice to sportsmen visiting British East Africa. The book also includes photographs taken by Patterson at the time which include the railway construction; the workers; local tribes; scenery and wildlife; and the man-eaters.
Several publications about and studies of the man-eating lions of Tsavo have been inspired by Patterson’s account. The book has been adapted to film three times: a monochrome
, British
film of the 1950s, a 1952 3-D film
titled Bwana Devil
, and a 1996 color version called The Ghost and the Darkness
, where Val Kilmer
played the daring engineer who hunts down the lions of Tsavo.
, period style that may appear today as overwritten. However, the editor’s note to the reprint claims that the facts suggest that some aspects were actually downplayed, such as the death of Haslem, about which more and grisly facts are known. The book describes attacks
by man-eating lions on the builders of the Uganda Railway
in Tsavo
, Kenya in 1898 and how the lions were eventually killed by Patterson. It was remarkable that nearly 135 people were killed by the maneaters in less than a year before Patterson managed to kill them (although this number is contested).
Col. Patterson's 1907 book itself states that "between them (the lions) no less than 28 Indian coolies, in addition to scores of unfortunate African natives of whom no official record was kept" were killed. This lesser number was confirmed in Dr. Bruce Patterson's definitive book The Lions of Tsavo: Exploring the Legacy of Africa’s Notorious Man-Eaters published by McGraw-Hill in 2004. Patterson wrote the book at the Field Museum in Chicago, where the lions are on display. He showed that the greater toll attributed to the lions resulted from a pamphlet written by Col. Patterson in 1925, stating "these two ferocious brutes killed and devoured, under the most appalling circumstances, 135 Indian and African artisans and laborers employed in the construction of the Uganda Railway
."
The skins of the lions may be found at the Field Museum of Natural History
in Chicago.
. The railroad went through Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania
and included the major cities of Mombasa
, Nairobi
, Tanga, Dar Es Salaam
, Mpanda, Kigma, Tunduma, Kidatu, Tabora, Mwanza
, Arusha, Moshi, Nagedi, Nanyuki, Nakuru
, Kisumu, Kasese, Kampala
, Tororo, and Anua.
The bridge project was controversial and the British Press referred to it as “The Lunatic Express,” as critics considered it a waste of funds, while supporters argued it was necessary for transportation of goods. Though the project was successful and Patterson’s bridge sound, it was blown up by German forces in the East African Campaign
.
built to protect it and drags the water carrier away to his death. In the course of hunting these lions, Patterson encounters a red spitting cobra, a rhinoceros, a hippopotamus, a pack of wild dogs, a wildebeest that faked dying, and a herd of zebra, of which he captured six. He also shoots a new type of antelope, T. Oryx Pattersonianus
. Eventually, the first lion is defeated by baiting it with a tethered goat while Patterson keeps watch from an elevated stand – though for a few tense moments Patterson himself becomes the hunted. Patterson and Mahina hunt the second lion on the plains. When they find and shoot it, the lion charges them and it takes repeated shots to bring it down.
The lions are not the only challenge to completing the bridge project. Tensions between native workers and Sikhs brought in from British East India to work on the project (coolies - derogative term. Similar to Africans called niggers) threaten to stop the project. At one point, Patterson meets a danger far greater than the lions – a fierce flood. It wipes out the supply bridges and wraps iron girders around tree trunks like wire. Uprooted tree trunks act like battering rams trying to annihilate the bridge. But the well-built bridge stays intact. This challenge proves that the year spent working on the bridge has not been wasted.
After Patterson completes the bridge, he learns that a lion has been trying to destroy the train station. When he goes to see, he finds big bloodstains where the lion was trying to slash the roof. There were 3 men in one compartment and an uncertain number of coolies in another. Two of the men had been sleeping on the floor when the lion gained entrance. The lion was on one of the men while trying to attack another. The third man, in an effort to get to the other section, which the coolies had been holding shut with their turbans, leapt on to the lion’s back, and tried desperately to get through. The coolies opened the door just wide enough for him to get through, and then tied it shut again. As for the other men, one got carried off and eaten by the lion, while the other man lay very still, probably saving his own life. Hearing this, Patterson decides to go after this lion, eventually finding it and slaughtering it.
Another close encounter with a lion occurs when a lion is aboard a gharri, a means of transportation in Kenya similar to a small trolley. Another time, on the way back to the train station, Patterson converses with a friend who has never shot a lion. A couple of hundred yards away, Patterson points out a pair of lions and encourages the friend to shoot them. One runs off at the first shot, but he successfully bags the other lion. The end of the book includes a photo of the lion that the friend captured.
When the time comes for Patterson to leave, some of the coolies and the natives want to go with him. However, Patterson knows that they do not have the immune defense system to combat the diseases outside of Africa. So he politely says no and leaves Africa for some years. (He later returns to Africa, but this part of his life is not recorded in this book.)
Man Eater 2 (the Darkness) is 9'6" long and 3'11"high.
in the British army trained as an engineer. He was also an avid amateur hunter. Others include the following—
Mr. Anderson, superintendent of the railroad
Dr. McCulloch, medical person in charge
Dr. Rose is a medical officer and friend of Patterson
Dr. Brock, friend and fellow hunter
"Coolies
" was the term used for indian laborers brought in from British India to work on the railroad. Many stayed in East Africa after the completion of the project.
Heera Sing, a worker who nearly gets smashed by a falling rock
Purshotam Huree, overseer of the building of the railroad.
Karim Bux, a troublemaker whose scheme is exposed by Patterson.
Mr. Whitehead, District Officer, mauled by the lions.
Mr. Crawford is the British Consul.
Mr. Dalgairms, inspector who nearly gets mauled by a lion.
Abdullah, Mr. Whitehead's sergeant of askaris, killed by the lions.
Mr. Farquhar, member of a hunting party.
Mahina, Patterson’s gun-boy.
Mabruki, the camp cook
Moota, Muslim hunting assistant.
Mrs. O’Hara, whose husband is killed.
Roshan Khan, an assistant.
Spooner, Patterson’s great friend.
Imam Din, Spooner’s plucky servant.
Bhoota, a servant.
Landaalu, a native guide.
The book has been adapted to film three times: a monochrome
, British
film of the 1950s, a 1952 3-D film
titled Bwana Devil
, and a 1996 color version called The Ghost and the Darkness
, where Val Kilmer
played the daring engineer who hunts down the lions of Tsavo.
John Henry Patterson (author)
Lieutenant-Colonel John Henry Patterson, DSO , known as J.H. Patterson, was an Anglo-Irish soldier, hunter, author and Zionist, best known for his book The Man-Eaters of Tsavo , which details his experiences while building a railway in Kenyain 1898-99...
in 1907 that recounts his experiences while overseeing the construction of a railroad bridge in what would become Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
. It is most widely known for recounting the story of a pair of lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
s that he killed, known as the Tsavo maneaters
Tsavo maneaters
The Tsavo Man-Eaters were a pair of notorious man-eating lions responsible for the deaths of a number of construction workers on the Kenya-Uganda Railway, from March through December 1898.-History:...
.
Overview
Following the death of the lions, the book tells of the bridge’s completion in spite of additional challenges (such as a fierce flood) as well as many stories concerning local wildlife (including other lions), local tribes, the discovery of the maneaters' cave, and various hunting expeditions.An appendix
Appendix
Appendix may refer to:In documents:*Addendum, any addition to a document, such as a book or legal contract*Bibliography, a systematic list of books and other works...
contains advice to sportsmen visiting British East Africa. The book also includes photographs taken by Patterson at the time which include the railway construction; the workers; local tribes; scenery and wildlife; and the man-eaters.
Several publications about and studies of the man-eating lions of Tsavo have been inspired by Patterson’s account. The book has been adapted to film three times: a monochrome
Monochrome
Monochrome describes paintings, drawings, design, or photographs in one color or shades of one color. A monochromatic object or image has colors in shades of limited colors or hues. Images using only shades of grey are called grayscale or black-and-white...
, British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
film of the 1950s, a 1952 3-D film
3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
titled Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil is a 1952 drama based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters. It was written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and is considered the first color, American 3-D feature. It started the 3-D boom in the U.S. film making industry from 1952 to 1954...
, and a 1996 color version called The Ghost and the Darkness
The Ghost and the Darkness
The Ghost and the Darkness is a 1996 adventure film starring Michael Douglas and Val Kilmer set in Africa at the end of the 19th century.It was directed by Stephen Hopkins and the screenplay was written by William Goldman....
, where Val Kilmer
Val Kilmer
Val Edward Kilmer is an American actor. Originally a stage actor, Kilmer became popular in the mid-1980s after a string of appearances in comedy films, starting with Top Secret! , then the cult classic Real Genius , as well as blockbuster action films, including a supporting role in Top Gun and a...
played the daring engineer who hunts down the lions of Tsavo.
Historicity of the account of the man-eaters
The book is written in a VictorianVictorian literature
Victorian literature is the literature produced during the reign of Queen Victoria . It forms a link and transition between the writers of the romantic period and the very different literature of the 20th century....
, period style that may appear today as overwritten. However, the editor’s note to the reprint claims that the facts suggest that some aspects were actually downplayed, such as the death of Haslem, about which more and grisly facts are known. The book describes attacks
Tsavo maneaters
The Tsavo Man-Eaters were a pair of notorious man-eating lions responsible for the deaths of a number of construction workers on the Kenya-Uganda Railway, from March through December 1898.-History:...
by man-eating lions on the builders of the Uganda Railway
Uganda Railway
The Uganda Railway is a railway system and former railway company linking the interiors of Uganda and Kenya with the Indian Ocean at Mombasa in Kenya.-Origins:...
in Tsavo
Tsavo
Tsavo is a region of Kenya located at the crossing of the Uganda Railway over the Tsavo River, close to where it meets the Athi River. It is a KiKamba word meaning "a place of slaughter", a reference to the murderous attacks of Maasai morani on Kamba people there...
, Kenya in 1898 and how the lions were eventually killed by Patterson. It was remarkable that nearly 135 people were killed by the maneaters in less than a year before Patterson managed to kill them (although this number is contested).
Col. Patterson's 1907 book itself states that "between them (the lions) no less than 28 Indian coolies, in addition to scores of unfortunate African natives of whom no official record was kept" were killed. This lesser number was confirmed in Dr. Bruce Patterson's definitive book The Lions of Tsavo: Exploring the Legacy of Africa’s Notorious Man-Eaters published by McGraw-Hill in 2004. Patterson wrote the book at the Field Museum in Chicago, where the lions are on display. He showed that the greater toll attributed to the lions resulted from a pamphlet written by Col. Patterson in 1925, stating "these two ferocious brutes killed and devoured, under the most appalling circumstances, 135 Indian and African artisans and laborers employed in the construction of the Uganda Railway
Uganda Railway
The Uganda Railway is a railway system and former railway company linking the interiors of Uganda and Kenya with the Indian Ocean at Mombasa in Kenya.-Origins:...
."
The skins of the lions may be found at the Field Museum of Natural History
Field Museum of Natural History
The Field Museum of Natural History is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It sits on Lake Shore Drive next to Lake Michigan, part of a scenic complex known as the Museum Campus Chicago...
in Chicago.
Setting
The book is set in East Africa. The nearest large city to the man-eater attacks is Mombasa, the second largest city in Kenya, population 442,369. The Tsavo man-eater attacks occurred while working on the Uganda RailwayUganda Railway
The Uganda Railway is a railway system and former railway company linking the interiors of Uganda and Kenya with the Indian Ocean at Mombasa in Kenya.-Origins:...
. The railroad went through Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
and included the major cities of Mombasa
Mombasa
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
, Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
, Tanga, Dar Es Salaam
Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam , formerly Mzizima, is the largest city in Tanzania. It is also the country's richest city and a regionally important economic centre. Dar es Salaam is actually an administrative province within Tanzania, and consists of three local government areas or administrative districts: ...
, Mpanda, Kigma, Tunduma, Kidatu, Tabora, Mwanza
Mwanza
Mwanza is a mid-sized port city on the southern shores of Lake Victoria in northwestern Tanzania. With an urban population of 1.2 million and a metropolitan population of 2 million, it is Tanzania's second largest city, following Dar es Salaam and ahead of other major Tanzanian cities of Arusha,...
, Arusha, Moshi, Nagedi, Nanyuki, Nakuru
Nakuru
Nakuru, the provincial capital of Kenya's Rift Valley province, with roughly 300,000 inhabitants, and currently the fourth largest urban centre in the country, lies about 1850 m above sea level...
, Kisumu, Kasese, Kampala
Kampala
Kampala is the largest city and capital of Uganda. The city is divided into five boroughs that oversee local planning: Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division and Lubaga Division. The city is coterminous with Kampala District.-History: of Buganda, had chosen...
, Tororo, and Anua.
The bridge project was controversial and the British Press referred to it as “The Lunatic Express,” as critics considered it a waste of funds, while supporters argued it was necessary for transportation of goods. Though the project was successful and Patterson’s bridge sound, it was blown up by German forces in the East African Campaign
East African Campaign (World War I)
The East African Campaign was a series of battles and guerrilla actions which started in German East Africa and ultimately affected portions of Mozambique, Northern Rhodesia, British East Africa, Uganda, and the Belgian Congo. The campaign was effectively ended in November 1917...
.
Plot
Colonel John Patterson is to build a bridge in East Africa (later Kenya). While he is working on this, two man-eating lions show up. They will stop at nothing for a bite of human flesh and the first attempts to stalk, capture or keep them out of the camp fail. They attack the camp hospital and kill a patient. Even after the hospital is moved, one lion penetrates the thick, thorn fence called a bomaBoma (enclosure)
A boma is a livestock enclosure, a stockade or kind of fort, or a district government office. The term is used in many parts of eastern, central and southern Africa and is incorporated into many African languages as well as colonial varieties of English, French and German.As a livestock enclosure,...
built to protect it and drags the water carrier away to his death. In the course of hunting these lions, Patterson encounters a red spitting cobra, a rhinoceros, a hippopotamus, a pack of wild dogs, a wildebeest that faked dying, and a herd of zebra, of which he captured six. He also shoots a new type of antelope, T. Oryx Pattersonianus
Common Eland
The common eland , also known as the southern eland or eland antelope, is a savannah and plains antelope found in East and Southern Africa. It is the largest antelope in the African continent...
. Eventually, the first lion is defeated by baiting it with a tethered goat while Patterson keeps watch from an elevated stand – though for a few tense moments Patterson himself becomes the hunted. Patterson and Mahina hunt the second lion on the plains. When they find and shoot it, the lion charges them and it takes repeated shots to bring it down.
The lions are not the only challenge to completing the bridge project. Tensions between native workers and Sikhs brought in from British East India to work on the project (coolies - derogative term. Similar to Africans called niggers) threaten to stop the project. At one point, Patterson meets a danger far greater than the lions – a fierce flood. It wipes out the supply bridges and wraps iron girders around tree trunks like wire. Uprooted tree trunks act like battering rams trying to annihilate the bridge. But the well-built bridge stays intact. This challenge proves that the year spent working on the bridge has not been wasted.
After Patterson completes the bridge, he learns that a lion has been trying to destroy the train station. When he goes to see, he finds big bloodstains where the lion was trying to slash the roof. There were 3 men in one compartment and an uncertain number of coolies in another. Two of the men had been sleeping on the floor when the lion gained entrance. The lion was on one of the men while trying to attack another. The third man, in an effort to get to the other section, which the coolies had been holding shut with their turbans, leapt on to the lion’s back, and tried desperately to get through. The coolies opened the door just wide enough for him to get through, and then tied it shut again. As for the other men, one got carried off and eaten by the lion, while the other man lay very still, probably saving his own life. Hearing this, Patterson decides to go after this lion, eventually finding it and slaughtering it.
Another close encounter with a lion occurs when a lion is aboard a gharri, a means of transportation in Kenya similar to a small trolley. Another time, on the way back to the train station, Patterson converses with a friend who has never shot a lion. A couple of hundred yards away, Patterson points out a pair of lions and encourages the friend to shoot them. One runs off at the first shot, but he successfully bags the other lion. The end of the book includes a photo of the lion that the friend captured.
When the time comes for Patterson to leave, some of the coolies and the natives want to go with him. However, Patterson knows that they do not have the immune defense system to combat the diseases outside of Africa. So he politely says no and leaves Africa for some years. (He later returns to Africa, but this part of his life is not recorded in this book.)
The lions
Man Eater 1 (the Ghost) is 9'9" long, and 3'9" highMan Eater 2 (the Darkness) is 9'6" long and 3'11"high.
Cast
John Patterson is the author and main character in the book. At that time, he was a Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
in the British army trained as an engineer. He was also an avid amateur hunter. Others include the following—
Mr. Anderson, superintendent of the railroad
Dr. McCulloch, medical person in charge
Dr. Rose is a medical officer and friend of Patterson
Dr. Brock, friend and fellow hunter
"Coolies
Coolie
Historically, a coolie was a manual labourer or slave from Asia, particularly China, India, and the Phillipines during the 19th century and early 20th century...
" was the term used for indian laborers brought in from British India to work on the railroad. Many stayed in East Africa after the completion of the project.
Heera Sing, a worker who nearly gets smashed by a falling rock
Purshotam Huree, overseer of the building of the railroad.
Karim Bux, a troublemaker whose scheme is exposed by Patterson.
Mr. Whitehead, District Officer, mauled by the lions.
Mr. Crawford is the British Consul.
Mr. Dalgairms, inspector who nearly gets mauled by a lion.
Abdullah, Mr. Whitehead's sergeant of askaris, killed by the lions.
Mr. Farquhar, member of a hunting party.
Mahina, Patterson’s gun-boy.
Mabruki, the camp cook
Moota, Muslim hunting assistant.
Mrs. O’Hara, whose husband is killed.
Roshan Khan, an assistant.
Spooner, Patterson’s great friend.
Imam Din, Spooner’s plucky servant.
Bhoota, a servant.
Landaalu, a native guide.
Cultural Influence
Several publications about and studies of the man-eating lions of Tsavo have been inspired by Patterson’s account. Related books include:- The Lions of Tsavo: Exploring the Legacy of Africa's Notorious Man-Eaters by Bruce Patterson.
- Ghosts of Tsavo: Stalking the Mystery Lions of East Africa by Phillip Caputo
The book has been adapted to film three times: a monochrome
Monochrome
Monochrome describes paintings, drawings, design, or photographs in one color or shades of one color. A monochromatic object or image has colors in shades of limited colors or hues. Images using only shades of grey are called grayscale or black-and-white...
, British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
film of the 1950s, a 1952 3-D film
3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
titled Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil
Bwana Devil is a 1952 drama based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters. It was written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and is considered the first color, American 3-D feature. It started the 3-D boom in the U.S. film making industry from 1952 to 1954...
, and a 1996 color version called The Ghost and the Darkness
The Ghost and the Darkness
The Ghost and the Darkness is a 1996 adventure film starring Michael Douglas and Val Kilmer set in Africa at the end of the 19th century.It was directed by Stephen Hopkins and the screenplay was written by William Goldman....
, where Val Kilmer
Val Kilmer
Val Edward Kilmer is an American actor. Originally a stage actor, Kilmer became popular in the mid-1980s after a string of appearances in comedy films, starting with Top Secret! , then the cult classic Real Genius , as well as blockbuster action films, including a supporting role in Top Gun and a...
played the daring engineer who hunts down the lions of Tsavo.
External links
- The Man Eaters of Tsavo (Text)
- Unabridged audiobook at LibriVoxLibriVoxLibriVox is an online digital library of free public domain audiobooks, read by volunteers and is probably, since 2007, the world's most prolific audiobook publisher...
- National Geographic Story on the Tsavo Lions by Phillip and Robert Caputo, with extra photos, maps, and information.
- Photo Journal of 2005 Lion Research Trip to Kenya by Carl Palazzolo, DVM, and Dr. Bruce Patterson
- Science Daily, 3 November, 2009: Notorious 'Man-Eating' Lions Of Tsavo Likely Ate About 35 People -- Not 135, Scientists Say abstract of National Academy of Sciences article)