Abel Chapman (1851–1929) was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
,
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
-born
hunter
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
-
naturalist. He contributed in saving the
Spanish Ibex
The Iberian ibex (''Capra pyrenaica''), also known as the Spanish ibex, Spanish wild goat, or Iberian wild goat, is a species of ibex endemic to the Iberian Peninsula. Four subspecies have been described; two are now extinct. The Portuguese subs ...
from extinction and helped in the establishment of South Africa's first
game reserve
A game reserve (also known as a wildlife preserve or a game park) is a large area of land where wild animals live safely or are hunted in a controlled way for sport. If hunting is prohibited, a game reserve may be considered a nature reserve; ...
.
Early life
Abel Chapman was born at 212 High Street,
Bishopwearmouth
Bishopwearmouth is a former village and parish which now constitutes the west side of Sunderland City Centre, merging with the settlement as it expanded outwards in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is home to the Sunderland Minster church, which ...
, on 4 October 1851. He was the eldest child of Edward and Jane Chapman and came from a long line of sportsmen who were both accomplished
hunter
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
s and acclaimed
naturalists.
His grandfather, Joseph Crawhall, was an accurate
grouse
Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tetraonidae), a classification supported by mitochondr ...
shot in
Hexhamshire
Hexhamshire is a civil parish in Northern England. It was incorporated into Northumberland in 1572.
History
Hexhamshire was originally a single parish based on the church of St Andrew, Hexham, and surveys from 1295, 1547 and 1608 all show that t ...
, as well as being a founder member of the National History Society of
Northumbria
la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria
, common_name = Northumbria
, status = State
, status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...
. His uncle, George Crawhall, was described by Chapman as "a typical
sportsman of the old school – the mentor to whom I owe the best grounding in field-craft."
Chapman's first experiences of hunting were in
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
, where he fell in love with nature at the same time as shooting. He often made drawings of the birds he saw and shot there. But it was a friend he made at
Rugby School
Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England.
Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. Up ...
, F C Selous, who inspired his lifelong love of travel and adventure – a world away from the moors of Northumberland. Years later, he co-authored a hunting book with Selous, called ''The Big Game of Africa and Europe''.
Adventures and expeditions
![Crocuta crocuta Lukenia Heights 1906](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Crocuta_crocuta_Lukenia_Heights_1906.png)
Chapman joined his father's firm, the
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
-based Lambton Brewery, after leaving
Rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby league: 13 players per side
*** Masters Rugby League
*** Mod league
*** Rugby league nines
*** Rugby league sevens
*** Touch (sport)
*** Wheelchair rugby league
** Rugby union: 1 ...
, travelling to
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, Spain and
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
as part of his work in the wine trade. The visits were not confined just to work, however, as they allowed him to broaden his knowledge of
wildlife
Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...
by fishing and shooting.
He also travelled the world as a young man, shooting
big game and wild birds for pleasure. Trophies from his hunting trips adorned the walls of his home at Silksworth Hall in the late 19th century. Today his stuffed animals can be seen on display at
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
Museum, the
National History Museum in London and the
Great North Museum
The Great North Museum: Hancock is a museum of natural history and ancient civilisations in Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
The museum was established in 1884 and was formerly known as the Hancock Museum. In 2006 it merged with Newcastle Unive ...
in
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
.
A trip to
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
in August 1881 proved of particular fascination to him. Indeed, he made a further 23 expeditions to
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
over the next 17 years. His brother, Alfred Chapman, often accompanied him, and detailed accounts of their adventures were compiled in a book, ''Wild Norway'', in 1897.
Chapman was also fascinated by the
wildlife
Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...
of Spain, striking up a friendship with fellow wildlife enthusiast Walter J Buck. The pair became joint managers of a stretch of coast at
Coto Donana, near the river
Guadalquivir
The Guadalquivir (, also , , ) is the fifth-longest river in the Iberian Peninsula and the second-longest river with its entire length in Spain. The Guadalquivir is the only major navigable river in Spain. Currently it is navigable from the Gulf ...
, in 1882, which they ran as a nature reserve. It was here Chapman discovered Europe's major breeding ground for
flamingo
Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of Wader, wading bird in the Family (biology), family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas ...
s, and helped save the
Spanish Ibex
The Iberian ibex (''Capra pyrenaica''), also known as the Spanish ibex, Spanish wild goat, or Iberian wild goat, is a species of ibex endemic to the Iberian Peninsula. Four subspecies have been described; two are now extinct. The Portuguese subs ...
– a wild goat – from
extinction
Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...
.
There are now 35,000
Ibex
An ibex (plural ibex, ibexes or ibices) is any of several species of wild goat (genus ''Capra''), distinguished by the male's large recurved horns, which are transversely ridged in front. Ibex are found in Eurasia, North Africa and East Africa. ...
, thanks to hunting restrictions initiated by Chapman. He also co-authored two books with Buck about hunting and fishing at the site, Wild Spain in 1893 and Unexplored Spain in 1910. The land was later acquired by the Spanish and 65 square kilometres are still managed as a nature reserve.
Retirement
Chapman retired from the family firm in 1897, following its takeover by J W Cameron, and moved to Houxty in
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
, where he created his own little nature reserve. His smart country home was surrounded by small plantations, moorland and gardens, all designed to attract birds, animals and other naturalists in profusion. Campers at the first
Baden-Powell
Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, ( ; (Commonly pronounced by others as ) 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941) was a British Army officer, writer, founder and first Chief Scout of the worl ...
holiday camp in 1908 visited Houxty while staying six miles away in
Humshaugh
Humshaugh () is a parish near Hexham in Northumberland, England. The village had a population of 622 in the 2011 census, and is just north of Chollerford, which is located near Chesters Fort (Cilurnum) on Hadrian's Wall and is about 21 miles we ...
.
Chapman and Buck visited South Africa for the first time in 1899, to take part in big-game hunting. The trip, cut short by the
Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...
, proved disappointing, as the
Kruger area was over-hunted. After returning to
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
, Chapman drew up plans to protect the Kruger site from further harm by creating a
nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
. His proposals were sent to the International Convention for the Preservation of Wild Animals in London in 1900 and, shortly after, the Sabi Game Reserve was established.
Over 2,500 square kilometres of land were set aside for the project, and former intelligence officer
James Stevenson-Hamilton
James Stevenson-Hamilton (2 October 1867 – 10 December 1957) served from 1902–1946 as the first warden of South Africa's Sabi Nature Reserve, which was expanded under his watch and became Kruger National Park in 1926. The Tsonga people n ...
was appointed as the first warden. By 1903 the park was such a success that it was extended, and a second reserve – the Shingwedzi – was opened nearby later that year. Today, the Sabi Reserve, a core part of the
Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
, is a tourist hot spot.
Chapman was a member of the
Society for the Preservation of the Wild Fauna of the Empire.
Chapman died at Houxty in January 1929.
Bibliography
* ''Wild Spain.'' Abel Chapman and Walter J. Buck. London, Gurney and Jackson, 1893.
* ''Unexplored Spain.'' Abel Chapman and Walter J. Buck. London, Edward Arnold, 1910.
* ''Savage Sudan. Its wild tribes, big game and bird-life.'' London, Gurney and Jackson, 1921. 17 x 24 cm, XX + 452 pages, 30 plates.
* ''The Borders and beyond. Arctic, Cheviot, Tropic.'' London, Gurney and Jackson, 1924. 15,5 x 23 cm, 490 pages, 19 plates.
*
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Abel
1851 births
1929 deaths
British conservationists
British hunters
People from Sunderland