River of the Gods: Genius, Courage and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile

“By bringing British explorers into direct contact with the interior of Africa this undertaking [expeditions looking for the Nile’s source] would effectively reconnect, as DNA analysis would later prove, a culture from a more recent site of development to some of the most ancient lands where human migration first began. It thus set the stage for the ‘discovery’ of regions that had in fact been occupied continuously by human beings for hundreds of thousands of years longer than London or Paris.”

From the opening pages of River of the Gods, Candice Millard routinely shows both The Rapaciousness of Western Colonialism and The Dangers of Obsession, Ignorance, and Arrogance—two key themes of the book. In this passage, Millard begins to hint at how dangerous these expeditions to find the source of the Nile were to the independence of the African people. While mapping might seem harmless at face value, it enabled European empires to take land and natural resources, enslave people, and destroy cultures that were hundreds if not thousands of years old. Moreover, many Europeans believed they were the first to charter these unknown lands, yet people had been living in these lands for millennia. Ignorance and arrogance fueled European obsession with conquering the “unknown,” which would have horrific consequences for millions of Africans.

“‘It is a great thing to be welcomed home by some little corner of the Great World, which takes a pride in your exploits, because they reflect honour upon itself,’ he wrote. ‘In the contrary condition you are a waif, a stray; you are a blaze of light, without a focus. Nobody outside your own fireside cares.’”

In Chapter 2, Millard notes that other British citizens viewed Burton as an outsider to British culture. Burton reinforces this perspective in his own writings, which Millard quotes. In the passage, Burton is reflecting on his successful ruse to impersonate a Muslim man to witness the Hajj. He understood that while what he did was a momentous undertaking, it would not bring him recognition or acceptance among his compatriots.