BURNABY, FREDERICK GUSTAVUS (1842-1885)

This article appears in Volume V04, Page 848 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: BUN-CAL

BURNABY, FREDERICK GUSTAVUS (1842-1885) , English traveller and soldier, was born on the 3rd of March 1842, at

Bedford

BEDFORD

, the son of a clergyman. Educated at Harrow and in Germany, he entered the Royal Horse Guards in 1859. Finding no chance for active service, his spirit of adventure sought outlets in

balloon

BALLOON

-ascents and in travels through Spain and Russia. In the summer of 1874 he accompanied the Carlist forces as correspondent of The Times, but before the end of the war he was transferred to Africa to report on Gordon's expedition to the Sudan. This took Burnaby as far as Khartum. Returning to England in March 1875, he matured his plans for a journey on horseback to Khiva through Russian

Asia

ASIA

, which had just been closed to travellers. His accomplishment of this task, in the winter of 1875-1876, described in his book A Ride to Khiva, brought him immediate fame. His next leave of absence was spent in another adventurous journey on horseback, through

Asia

ASIA

Minor

, from Scutari to Erzerum, with the object of observing the Russian frontier, an account of which he afterwards published. In the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, Burnaby (who soon after-wards became lieut.-colonel) acted as travelling agent to the Stafford

House

HOUSE
HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in
Gothic
- GOTHIC
it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

(Red

Cross

CROSS

) Committee, but had to return to England before the campaign was over. At this point began his active

interest

INTEREST

in politics, and in 188o he unsuccessfully contested a seat at

Birmingham

BIRMINGHAM

in the Tory-Democrat

interest

INTEREST

. In 1882 he crossed the Channel in a

balloon

BALLOON

. Having been disappointed in his

hope

HOPE, ANTHONY
HOPE, THOMAS (c. 1770-1831)

of seeing active service in the Egyptian campaign of 1882, he participated in the Suakin campaign of 1884 without official leave, and was wounded at El Teb when acting as an intelligence officer under General Valentine Baker. This did not deter him from a similar course when a fresh expedition started up the Nile. He was given a post by Lord Wolseley, and met his death in the hand-to-hand fighting of the battle of Abu Klea (17th January 1885).

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