Friedrich Hornemann
Friedrich Conrad Hornemann ( born September 15, 1772 in Hildesheim, † February 9, 1801 in Boknane, Nigeria ) is one next to Mungo Park to the first successful explorers of the African Association in London.
Early life
The day of Horne 's birth is not certain, then moves on, but since a large delay between birth and baptism is not to be assumed. According to the parish register of St. Andrew's Church Hildesheim found the Protestant baptism with the name Frederick Conrad, on September 20, 1772 in his parents' house instead. Is obvious that the father performed the baptism.
His mother Katharina Dorothea John Hornemann (13 March 1744 - March 15, 1799 ) came from the family of the Consistorial and General Superintendent Friedrich Andreas Crome in Alfeld. His father Friedrich Georg Hornemann was first pastor at St. Andrew. Friedrich Hornemann grew up with two older sisters and a younger brother, and attended high school Andreanum to be, among other things, his father taught. When he died (July 2, 1787), Friedrich came in 1788 in the care of his uncle Ludwig Gottlieb Crome, Rector of Johanneums in Lüneburg, who lived in economic hardship with his large family. One of the cousins was Georg Ernst Wilhelm Crome.
In the spring of 1791 Hornemanns ended school. On the 5th of May of the year he wore in the matriculation of Georgia Augusta at Göttingen as a student of theology. After the winter semester 1793/1794 he completed his studies and taught as a private tutor and at a school in Hanover.
No later than March 1796 Hornemann asked the Göttingen scientist Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for a recommendation on Joseph Banks, the President of the Committee of The African Association for the Promotion the Interior of Africa. Between Blumenbach and Banks was a relationship of trust, on the Hornemann built. A long-cherished wish yielding he had decided to travel to "unknown parts of the world ." Defined goal was to join a caravan from Cairo in the Hausa States and to explore the largely unknown in Europe geographical conditions.
By Blumenbach's influence Hornemann was given the opportunity to conduct targeted by a financial grant from the African Association studies in Göttingen. He learned the Arabic language, to calculate local regulations on astronomical basis, discussing in detail the geography of Africa. There is evidence to suggest a physical training.
In December 1796 Horne man felt on his duties adequately prepared and informed the African Association with to be able to make the journey from Cairo to Katsina in a few weeks. In London, it was decided, first of all personally know him, to instruct and to define conditions.
Africa travel
Mid- February 1797 left Hornemann Göttingen, went by stagecoach and boat to Cuxhaven and London. For details, tasks, expenses and fees regarding the trip to Africa were agreed. It should take almost four months but then was able to continue his journey via Paris to Marseilles start. From there we went on August 11, 1797 on a ship under a neutral flag ( in Europe raged just the first coalition war ) continues to Larnaca in Cyprus and Limassol to Alexandria. A good five weeks later Hornemann arrived at Bulak, the Nilhafen outside Cairo.
There he made himself agreed with him foreign environment known, completed his language skills, took the identity of a Mamluk and established contacts with caravan merchants and pilgrim travelers. A plague epidemic difficult this task. The occupation of Egypt by the French army seemed to threaten his plan first. But then supported him General Napoleon Bonaparte and he could join a caravan on 5 September 1798. She moved through the Qattara Depression, through the oases of Siwa and Audjila through the Libyan desert and reached after nearly two months Murzuq.
This important trading center of the Fezzan was on the trans-Saharan route that led from Tripoli in the Western Sudan. Hornemann held in Mourzuk several weeks, then went to Tripoli for a short time to write his travel reports and send. End of January 1800, he returned to Murzuq. There he joined a merchant from Bornu. Together with him, Hornemann in his last letter of 5 April 1800 he wanted to go with a caravan south the next day.
It was not until around 20 years later met in Europe, the first news of his presumptive fate. After that, he had advanced almost to the lower reaches of the Niger, was considered Marabu, was but eventually died of dysentery.
Horne 's reports on his observations on the way from Cairo to Murzuq as well as the exploration of the countries in the Western Sudan were evaluated in London and contributed significantly to the improvement of the geographical map of North Africa. His description of Siwa confirmed an only recently been made by William George Browne presumption that we have found from ancient writings known Ammon oasis.
1802 and the following year appeared Horne 's reports along with commenting contributions from others first in London, then translated into French and two German publishers as so-called diary of his journey. Since then, the texts were repeatedly reissued. A reprint of the Weimar edition of 1802 was published in 1997 by the publisher Olms.
Writings
( English, French and German editions )
- The Journal of Frederick Hornemann 's Travels, from Cairo to Murzouk, the Capital of the Kingdom of Fezzan, in Africa, in the Years 1797-8, London 1802. ( Digitized )
- Voyage dans l' intérieur de l' Afrique, par Frédéric Hornemann, pendant les annes 1797, 1798, Traduite de l' anglais ..., Paris ( André ) 1802. ( Digitized )
- Ms. Horne 's diary of his journey from Cairo to Murzouk, the capital of the Kingdom of Fezzan in Africa, in the years 1797 and 1798, the same from the Teutonic manuscript published by Carl King, Weimar 1802 ( digitized )