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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:Eduard Vogel and Eduard Robert Flegel: The Experiences of Two Nineteenth-Century German Explorers in Africa
Author:Adelberger, JörgISNI
Year:2000
Periodical:History in Africa
Volume:27
Pages:1-29
Language:English
Geographic terms:Nigeria
Northern Nigeria
Africa
Subjects:travel
History and Exploration
About persons:Eduard Robert Flegel (1855-1886)ISNI
Eduard Vogel (1829-1856)ISNI
External link:https://www.jstor.org/stable/3172104
Abstract:The Muri Mountains in Northern Nigeria may be counted among the regions of Africa about which academic knowledge was scarce until recent times. This article recounts the experiences of two nineteenth-century German explorers of Africa, Eduard Vogel and Eduard Robert Flegel, who played an important part in the history of research on the Muri Mountains. Approaching the region from different directions, Vogel (b. 1829) from Tripoli in 1853, and Flegel (b. 1855) from Lagos in 1879, they were the first Europeans to gain detailed knowledge of the area and its inhabitants. This article describes the travel routes of Vogel and Flegel, placing special emphasis on their differing dispositions, which influenced the outcome of their travels and their relationships with the local population. Vogel, a man with an academic background, travelled to Africa in order to increase scientific knowledge on unknown areas. Political or commercial goals were secondary to him. However, he felt little respect for the people he met and their cultures. His uncompromising character and his lack of empathy might have contributed to his violent end in Wara in 1856. Flegel, a man with a commercial background, combined business and nationalistic interests and pleaded for the colonization of the area. But despite his role as a 'colonial enthusiast', he was a sensible and perceptive person who treated the people he met with respect. Bibliogr., notes, ref.
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