The Last Journals of David Livingstone

The Last Journals of David Livingstone is a book edited by Horace Waller, first published in 1874. The work presents the final journals of the famous Scottish missionary and explorer David Livingstone, recording his travels and observations in Central Africa during the last years of his life, from 1865 until his death in 1873. These writings form a remarkable primary source of nineteenth-century African exploration, combining travel narrative, personal reflection, and historical documentation of a period when European interest in the African interior was rapidly expanding.

The journals describe Livingstone’s difficult final expedition, during which he sought both to trace the sources of the Nile and to investigate the geography of Central Africa. Readers encounter vivid accounts of arduous journeys through remote landscapes, encounters with local communities, illness and hardship, and the complex political realities of the region. Livingstone also writes passionately about the East African slave trade, which he condemned and hoped his explorations might help expose to the wider world. These firsthand entries offer an intimate glimpse into the mindset of one of the nineteenth century’s most famous explorers as he struggled with failing health but remained determined to continue his work.

After Livingstone’s death, his surviving journals were brought back from Africa and prepared for publication by Horace Waller, an anti-slavery activist and writer who had known him personally. Waller edited the material and helped shape the narrative that introduced Victorian readers to Livingstone’s final years, presenting him as a heroic missionary explorer and humanitarian. The book also includes accounts of Livingstone’s last days, preserved by his loyal attendants Chuma and Susi, who carried his body and papers across the continent so they could reach the outside world. As a historical document and travel narrative, The Last Journals of David Livingstone remains an important record of African exploration, missionary history, and nineteenth-century perspectives on Central Africa.