Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs
Encyclopedia
Friedrich Gerhard Rohlfs (April 14, 1831 - June 2, 1896) was a German
geographer
, explorer, author and adventurer.
He was born at Vegesack
, now part of Bremen
. There was much pressure on Rohlfs to be in the medicine field, and he eventually joined the French Foreign Legion
in a medical capacity. Serving for some time as a personal physician to a Moroccan nobleman, he eventually set off on his own, exploring the oases of Morocco
. It was on this trip that he was attacked and left for dead, his leg almost severed from his body. These injuries would keep him from returning to Europe for most of his life; the cold weather somehow aggravating them. After this trip, Rohlfs was the first Europe
an to cross Africa
north to south. His route took him from Tripoli
through the Sahara desert, over Lake Chad
, along the Niger River
to the Gulf of Guinea
from 1865-1867. He was the second European explorer to visit the region of the Draa River
in the south of Morocco.
In 1874 Rohlfs set out from Dakhla Oasis intending to reach Kufra
. In February he was c. 100 km north of Abu Ballas (Pottery Hill) in the Western Desert. Accompanied by Karl Zittel
and a surveyor called Jordans, Rohlfs and his colleagues experienced a downpouring of rain
- a rare occurrence in the desert, seemingly only happening every twenty years. Rohlf's team restocked and watered their camels and left a cairn
at the place he had named Regenfeld (Rainfield).
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
geographer
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
, explorer, author and adventurer.
He was born at Vegesack
Bremen-Vegesack
-Geography:Vegesack is located at the mouth of the river Lesum, beside the Weser River . Abutting the district of Vegesack to the northwest is the district of Blumenthal, in the southeast the district of Burglesum...
, now part of Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
. There was much pressure on Rohlfs to be in the medicine field, and he eventually joined the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
in a medical capacity. Serving for some time as a personal physician to a Moroccan nobleman, he eventually set off on his own, exploring the oases of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. It was on this trip that he was attacked and left for dead, his leg almost severed from his body. These injuries would keep him from returning to Europe for most of his life; the cold weather somehow aggravating them. After this trip, Rohlfs was the first Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an to cross Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
north to south. His route took him from Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
through the Sahara desert, over Lake Chad
Lake Chad
Lake Chad is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Africa, whose size has varied over the centuries. According to the Global Resource Information Database of the United Nations Environment Programme, it shrank as much as 95% from about 1963 to 1998; yet it also states that "the 2007 ...
, along the Niger River
Niger River
The Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea...
to the Gulf of Guinea
Gulf of Guinea
The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean between Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian is in the gulf....
from 1865-1867. He was the second European explorer to visit the region of the Draa River
Draa River
The Draa is Morocco's longest river . It is formed by the confluence of the Dadès River and Imini River. It flows from the High Atlas mountains south-ward to Tagounit and from Tagounit mostly westwards to the Atlantic Ocean somewhat north of Tan-Tan...
in the south of Morocco.
In 1874 Rohlfs set out from Dakhla Oasis intending to reach Kufra
Kufra
Kufra is a basin and oasis group in Al Kufrah District, southeastern Cyrenaica in Libya. Kufra is historically important above all because at the end of nineteenth century it became the center and holy place of the Senussi order...
. In February he was c. 100 km north of Abu Ballas (Pottery Hill) in the Western Desert. Accompanied by Karl Zittel
Karl Alfred von Zittel
Karl Alfred Ritter von Zittel was a German palaeontologist.-Biography:He was born at Bahlingen in Baden, and educated at Heidelberg, Paris and Vienna. For a short period he served on the Geological Survey of Austria, and as assistant in the mineralogical museum at Vienna...
and a surveyor called Jordans, Rohlfs and his colleagues experienced a downpouring of rain
Rain
Rain is liquid precipitation, as opposed to non-liquid kinds of precipitation such as snow, hail and sleet. Rain requires the presence of a thick layer of the atmosphere to have temperatures above the melting point of water near and above the Earth's surface...
- a rare occurrence in the desert, seemingly only happening every twenty years. Rohlf's team restocked and watered their camels and left a cairn
Cairn
Cairn is a term used mainly in the English-speaking world for a man-made pile of stones. It comes from the or . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas...
at the place he had named Regenfeld (Rainfield).
External links
- www.gerhard-rohlfs.de, more works by Rohlfs