Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs
Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs (14 April 1831 – 2 June 1896) was a German geographer, explorer, author and adventurer.
Biography
Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs was born at
and was for some time personal physician to a nobleman there.Rohlfs then set off on his own, exploring the oases of Morocco. During this trip he was attacked and left for dead, his leg almost severed from his body. These injuries would keep him from returning to Europe for most of his life, the cold weather aggravating them. In 1864 he continued his travels in Morocco, and crossed the Atlas Mountains to the oasis of Tuat. His description and map of the country were the first made from personal observation and with scientific knowledge.[2]
After this trip, and a short visit to Germany,
At the close of 1867, by order of the
In 1873, with an expedition of 100 camels and 90 men, organized under the patronage of the
In 1875, he visited the United States, and lectured on his travels.
In 1885, when the rivalry between the British and Germans in East Africa was very keen, Otto von Bismarck appointed Rohlfs consul at Zanzibar, which Bismarck desired to secure for Germany. Rohlfs, untrained in diplomacy, was no match for John Kirk, the British agent, and he was soon recalled. He did not visit Africa again.[1]
Rohlfs died at Rüngsdorf , near Bonn.[1]
Bibliography
- Rohlfs, G.F. (1868), Reise durch Marokko, Übersteigung des großen Atlas, Exploration der Oasen von Tafilet, Tuat und Tidikelt und Reise durch die große Wüste über Rhadames nach Tripoli, Bremen: J. Kühtmann.
- Rohlfs, G.F. (1874), Adventures in Morocco and journeys through the oases of Draa and Tafilet, London: S. Low, Marston, Low, & Searle.
- Rohlfs, G.F. (1870), Land und Volk in Afrika: Berichte aus den Jahren 1865-1870, Bremen: J. Kühtmann.
- Von Tripolis nach Alexandria (1871)
- Quer durch Afrika (1874–75)
- Beiträge zur Entdeckung und Erforschung Afrikas (1876)
- Reise von Tripolis nach der Oase Kufra (1881)
- Quid Novi ex Africa (1886)
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Rohlfs, Friedrich Gerhard". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 23 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 461. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ^ The American Cyclopædia.
- ^ Hochschild, Adam. King Leopold's Ghost. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1999. p. 43.
- ^ Vivian, Cassandra (2008-01-01). "Western Desert of The Egypt". The Western Desert of Egypt.
- ^ W.B. Kennedy Shaw, Long Range Desert Group, Greenhill Books, 2000
- ^ International Plant Names Index. Rohlfs.
External links
- Works by Gerhard Rohlfs at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs at Internet Archive
- Gerhard-Rohlfs.de, works by Gerhard Rohlfs
- Newspaper clippings about Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW
- "Philipp Remelé photographs from Gerhard Rohlfs's 1873 expedition in the Libyan-Egyptian desert". Getty Library. Retrieved 2023-11-21.