Pioneering on the Congo

William Holman Bentley (1855–1905) was a missionary who spent twenty-one years in the area of the Congo. Originally published in 1900, these two volumes document the pioneering work of travellers to the area between 1879 and 1899. During that time it progressed from being virtually unexplored to a fully charted region with government officers, traders and missionaries operating far and wide. As the only foreign witness to the entire period, Bentley provides an authoritative account of the dramatic developments he observed in the Congo's geography, culture, religion and commerce. Volume 1 sets the discussion within a historical context, and moves on to recount the missionaries' objectives and their effect on the native tribes. Finishing by revealing the important discovery of a new route to the upper river, it presents a unique and insightful study that remains relevant to geographers, ethnologists and historians alike.