David Livingstone “discovers” Lake Nyasa

Born in Scotland in 1813, Livingston was a renowned explorer, doctor and missionary. Of course, he is most remembered for his exploits as an explorer. In 1858 the British government appointed him British consul at Quelimane (now in Mozambique) and commander of an expedition to explore east and central Africa. He then led an expedition up the Shire River, a tributary of the Zambezi, and discovered Lake Nyasa, one of his many great discoveries of the African interior. Today it may seem strange to credit one with the "discovery" of lands that have been inhabited for thousands of years.  In those days however, the outside world simply knew very little about the interior of the African continent and the people who lived there. Apart from being a great explorer, Livingstone deserves credit for helping the rest of the world to learn African customs and geography. He was also a noted abolitionist, and as such learned more about mechanisms of the African slave trade than any other European of his day. During his career in Africa, He continued crossed continent during three different time periods: 1852-56, 1858-64, and 1866-73, becoming the first European to cross the entire width of southern Africa in the process. He was also the first European to see Victoria Falls.  During an expedition to discover the source of the Nile, he became first European to visit the Lualaba River, in present-day Zaire. He died in Chitambo (in modern Zambia) in 1873.