Ludwig Leichhardt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt
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Portrait of Ludwig Leichhardt
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| Born | 23 October 1813 Sabrodt, Germany (Kingdom of Prussia)
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| Disappeared | 3 April 1848 (aged 34) Mount Abundance, Australia |
| Occupation | Explorer |
| Parent(s) | Charlotte Sophie and Christian Hieronymus Leichhardt |
Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt, known as Ludwig Leichhardt, (born 23 October 1813 – disappeared around 1848) was a German explorer and naturalist. He is most famous for his journeys across northern and central Australia.
Contents
Early Life and Studies
Ludwig Leichhardt was born on 23 October 1813 in a small village called Sabrodt, in what was then Prussia (now part of Germany). He was one of eight children.
From 1831 to 1836, Leichhardt studied many subjects like philosophy, languages, and natural sciences at universities in Germany. However, he never finished his university degree. In 1837, he moved to England. He continued to study natural sciences in different places, including famous museums in London and Paris. He also did fieldwork, which means he studied nature outside in countries like France, Italy, and Switzerland.
Exploring Australia
Leichhardt arrived in Sydney, Australia, on 14 February 1842. His main goal was to explore the inland parts of Australia. He hoped to get a job from the government to study nature.
In September 1842, Leichhardt went to the Hunter River area north of Sydney. He wanted to study the rocks, plants, and animals there. He also observed how farms worked. After this, he started a journey on his own to collect specimens. He traveled from Newcastle to Moreton Bay in Queensland. On 23 September 1842, he visited Ash Island for a few days after being invited by Alexander Walker Scott.
The First Big Journey (1844–1846)
After returning to Sydney in early 1844, Leichhardt wanted to join a government trip from Moreton Bay to Port Essington, which is about 300 kilometres north of Darwin. When this government plan didn't happen, Leichhardt decided to lead his own expedition. He found volunteers and got money from private supporters.
His group left Sydney in August 1844 and sailed to Moreton Bay. Four more people joined them there. The expedition officially started on 1 October 1844 from Jimbour Homestead, which was the furthest settlement on the Queensland Darling Downs. During this trip, Leichhardt named Seven Emu Creek. He did this after seeing a group of emus nearby. This name is still used today by a large cattle station called Seven Emu Station.
After traveling nearly 4,800 kilometres (about 3,000 miles) overland, Leichhardt's group reached Port Essington on 17 December 1845. Many people had thought they were lost or dead. He returned to Sydney by boat, arriving on 25 March 1846. He was welcomed as a hero. Leichhardt wrote a book about this journey called Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia.
There is a memorial for John Gilbert, who was one of Leichhardt's companions on this trip. It is on the wall of St James' Church, Sydney. The memorial says that John Gilbert, an ornithologist (someone who studies birds), was killed by Aboriginal people on 29 June 1845. This happened during Leichhardt's first overland expedition to Port Essington. There is also another memorial to Gilbert at Gilbert's Lookout in Taroom.
The Second Big Journey (1846)
Leichhardt's second expedition began in December 1846. He received money from the government and many private donations for this trip. The plan was to travel from the Darling Downs all the way to the west coast of Australia, ending at the Swan River and Perth.
However, the expedition only covered about 800 kilometres. They had to turn back in June 1847 because of heavy rain, malaria (a serious illness), and not enough food. Some members of the group almost refused to follow Leichhardt when they found out he hadn't brought a medical kit. Leichhardt seemed to have a difficult time, and an Aboriginal guide named Harry Brown took over as leader. He successfully led the group back to the Darling Downs.
Later Activities and Awards
After getting better from malaria, Leichhardt spent six weeks in 1847 exploring the Condamine River in southern Queensland. He also explored the land between his route and another explorer's route, covering almost 1,000 kilometres.
In April 1847, Leichhardt shared an important award from the Paris Geographical Society for the most important geographic discovery. Soon after, on 24 May, the Royal Geographical Society in London gave Leichhardt its Patron's Medal. This was to recognize the new knowledge he brought about Australia from his Moreton Bay-Port Essington journey. Leichhardt never actually saw these medals himself, but he knew he had won them.
In 2012, the National Museum of Australia bought the medal that London's Royal Geographical Society gave to Leichhardt in 1847. It came from his family members in Mexico.
Disappearance
In 1848, Leichhardt started another expedition from the Condamine River. His goal was again to reach the Swan River. The group included Leichhardt, four other Europeans, and two Aboriginal guides. They had seven horses, 20 mules, and 50 bullocks.
The group was last seen on 3 April 1848 at a place called Cogoon, west of Roma. Leichhardt's disappearance after moving inland is still a mystery, even though many people have searched for him. The expedition was expected to last two to three years. When no one heard from Leichhardt, it was believed that he and his group had died. The latest clues suggest they might have died somewhere in the Great Sandy Desert in central Australia.
Four years after Leichhardt disappeared, the government of New South Wales sent a search party. They found nothing except one campsite with a tree marked "L" over "XVA". In 1858, another search party was sent out. This group found a tree marked "L" near what is now Blackall, beside the Barcoo River.
In 1864, Duncan McIntyre found two trees marked with "L" near the Flinders River close to the Gulf of Carpentaria. He believed they were about 15 years old. He then led another search, but found no more clues about Leichhardt.
In 1869, the government of Western Australia heard stories about a place where the remains of horses and men killed by indigenous Australians could be seen. A search party was sent, but they found nothing. They thought the story might have been about bones of horses left during another expedition.
The mystery of Leichhardt's fate stayed with explorers for many years. In 1896, during an expedition through the Gibson Desert and Great Sandy Desert, David Carnegie met some Aboriginal people. They had an iron tent peg, a matchbox lid, and part of a saddle made of iron. Carnegie thought these items might have come from Leichhardt's expedition. Except for a small brass plate found in 1900, no other items have been proven to be from Leichhardt's last journey.
In 1975, a park ranger showed photos of Aboriginal cave paintings in Darwin. These paintings showed white men with an animal.
The Leichhardt Nameplate
In 2006, Australian historians and scientists confirmed that a small brass plate was real. It was 15 by 2 centimetres and had "LUDWIG LEICHHARDT 1848" written on it. An Aboriginal stockman found it around 1900 near Sturt Creek, between the Tanami Desert and Great Sandy deserts in Western Australia. When it was found, the plate was attached to a partly burned shotgun hanging in a boab tree. The tree also had the letter "L" carved into it. This plate is now part of the National Museum of Australia collection.
Before this plate was confirmed, historians could only guess where Leichhardt went and how far he traveled before he died. The location of the plate showed that he made it at least two-thirds of the way across Australia during his attempt to cross from east to west. It also suggested that he was following a northern path from Moreton Bay in Queensland to the Swan River in Western Australia, following the beginnings of rivers, instead of going straight through the desert.
Aboriginal Stories
In 2003, a librarian found a letter that might help explain Leichhardt's disappearance. The letter was written in 1874 by W. P. Gordon, a station owner who had met Leichhardt before he vanished. Gordon later became friends with the Wallumbilla Aboriginal tribe. They shared a detailed story about the death of a white man who was leading mules and bullocks along the Maranoa River many years before. According to the Wallumbilla people, a large group of Aboriginals surrounded the party and killed everyone. Some people think that if this story is true, the expedition's belongings were traded widely after the event. This could explain why items that might have been from Leichhardt's expedition were found far away in the Gibson Desert, and why the rifle butt with the brass plate was found 4,000 kilometres west of the Maranoa River.
Leichhardt's Legacy
Leichhardt's work in science, especially his successful trip to Port Essington in 1845, was officially recognized. In 1847, the Geographical Society in Paris gave him an award. Also in 1847, the Royal Geographical Society in London gave him its Patron's Medal. Even Prussia, his home country, forgave him for not returning for military training because of his achievements. The Port Essington expedition was one of the longest land journeys in Australia. It was important because it helped discover excellent land for farming and raising animals.
Leichhardt's notes and collections were very valuable. His observations are generally thought to be accurate. He is remembered as one of the most important early people to record information about Australia's environment. He was also the best-trained natural scientist to explore Australia at that time. Leichhardt kept records of his observations in Australia from 1842 to 1848 in diaries, letters, notebooks, sketches, and maps. He also published some of his work.
A detailed map of Ludwig Leichhardt's route from Moreton Bay to Port Essington (1844 & 1845) was ranked highly in an exhibition about Queensland's history. This exhibition celebrated Queensland's 150th anniversary of becoming a separate state from New South Wales.
Some time after he disappeared, harsh criticism about Leichhardt's character was published, and his reputation suffered. People still debate whether this criticism was fair. Leichhardt's failed attempt to cross Australia from east to west can be compared to the Burke and Wills expedition of 1860–61. That expedition succeeded in crossing from south to north but failed to return. However, Leichhardt's success in reaching Port Essington in 1845 was a major achievement. It places him among other successful European explorers of Australia.
Australia has honored Ludwig Leichhardt by naming several places after him. These include:
- Leichhardt, a suburb in Sydney.
- Leichhardt, a suburb of Ipswich.
- The Leichhardt Highway and the Leichhardt River in Queensland.
- The Division of Leichhardt in the Australian Parliament.
The eucalyptus tree species Corymbia leichhardtii is named after him. The insect Petasida ephippigera is commonly known as Leichhardt's grasshopper. Also, the largetooth sawfish (Pristis pristis) is sometimes called Leichhardt's sawfish.
On 23 October 1988, a monument was put up next to Leichhardt's blazed tree at Taroom. This was done by the local historical society to celebrate Leichhardt's 175th birthday and Australia's Bicentenary. The tree was added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992.
See also
- List of people who disappeared
Literary Works
- Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia, from Moreton Bay to Port Essington, a Distance of Upwards of 3000 miles, During the Years 1844 and 1845 by Ludwig Leichhardt, available online.
- Letters from Leichhardt to his expedition team member Frederick Isaac are kept in the State Library of New South Wales.
Images for kids
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The first expedition of Leichhardt
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Memorial in St James' Church, Sydney to John Gilbert, a member of Leichhardt's expedition
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Memorial to John Gilbert at Gilbert's Lookout, Taroom in the Shire of Banana in Queensland, 2008
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Portrait of Ludwig Leichhardt
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Portrait of Ludwig Leichhardt, 28 May 1846, Isobel Fox
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Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia, 1847
