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Sir Burton

Sir Richard Francis Burton
The importance of his pioneering explorations to East Africa

“Do what thy manhood bids thee do, from none but self expect applause; He noblest lives and noblest dies who makes and keeps his self-made laws.”
-Sir Richard Francis Burton

Sir Richard Francis Burton was by all accounts, one of the foremost European explorers of his era. He was known as a free and indomitable spirit from the outset of his public life, when he joined Trinity College at Oxford in 1840. Burton’s actions during his college years were indicative of a man who felt bound to defend his ideals at every turn. From the trivial (challenging a fellow student to a duel for insulting his moustache), to the more profound (a battle with school authorities that eventually led to his expulsion), Burton felt compelled to challenge convention. Yet his rebellious nature was coupled with a thirst for knowledge that allowed Burton to master several languages, as well as falconry and fencing, before he was twenty years old. Burton matriculated from Oxford to India, joining the Army Regiments of the East India Trading Company.

He once again distinguished himself for defying convention to pursue knowledge, immersing himself in the culture and languages to the point that he was often indistinguishable from the natives to his commanders and colleagues. His extraordinary understanding of Eastern culture and customs led Burton to prepare rigorously for, and travel on the Hajj, a journey to the holy Muslim cities of Mecca and Medina that is rarely attempted by those outside the Muslim faith. That Burton was able to complete this trip in the guise of a Native Afghani without being identified as a European is a testament to both his dedication to learning the eastern way of life, and his nearly irrational spirit of adventure.

By 1849, the Royal Geographical Society of Great Britain decided that Britain’s quest for colonial

expansion should extend to the...