Charles Chaillé-Long
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Charles Chaillé-Long (1842–1917) was an American soldier, lawyer, explorer, diplomat, and author from
Princess Anne, Maryland Princess Anne is a town in Somerset County, Maryland, Somerset County, Maryland, United States, that also serves as its county seat. Its population was 3,290 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is included in the Salisbury metropolita ...
. He was commissioned by the United States Army and the Egyptian Army. He explored Central Africa and Korea (Corea). He was the second westerner to visit
Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
and given credit for possibly being the first American to visit
Lake Kyoga Lake Kyoga (literally 'the place of bathing' in Runyoro language) is a large shallow lake in Uganda, about in area and at an elevation of 1,033 metres. The Victoria Nile flows through the lake on its way from Lake Victoria to Lake Albert. The mai ...
(aka Lake Ibrahim).


United States military service

He fought in the
Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
, taking part in the
Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...
. He enlisted as a private, and finished the war with the rank of captain.


Service in Africa

After the Civil War, about 50 veterans from both sides of the war were asked to serve in Egypt. He took a commission as
lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in the Egyptian Army in 1869, arriving in Egypt in 1870. In 1874, serving under Charles Gordon in the southern
Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
, he travelled south to present-day
Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
, signing a treaty with
Muteesa I of Buganda Muteesa I Mukaabya Walugembe Kayiira (1837–9 October 1884) was the 30th Kabaka of the Kingdom of Buganda, from 1856 until 1884. Biography He was born at the Batandabezaala Palace, at Mulago, in 1837. He was the son of Kabaka Ssuuna II Kalema ...
. In 1874 he was the second western explorer of
Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
, and possibly the first American to visit
Lake Kyoga Lake Kyoga (literally 'the place of bathing' in Runyoro language) is a large shallow lake in Uganda, about in area and at an elevation of 1,033 metres. The Victoria Nile flows through the lake on its way from Lake Victoria to Lake Albert. The mai ...
.Peter Duignan, Lewis H. Gann, ''The United States and Africa: A History'' (1984), p. 147. While on his return journey, he was attacked by the forces of
Bunyoro Bunyoro or Bunyoro-Kitara is a Bantu kingdom in Western Uganda. It was one of the most powerful kingdoms in Central and East Africa from the 13th century to the 19th century. It is ruled by the King (''Omukama'') of Bunyoro-Kitara. The current ...
. Further missions of exploration were to the Azande in 1875, and the
Jubba River The Jubba River or Juba River ( so, Wabiga Jubba) is a river in southern Somalia which flows through the autonomous region of Jubaland. It begins at the border with Ethiopia, where the Dawa and Ganale Dorya rivers meet, and flows directly south ...
in
Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
in 1876. In 1875, he commanded Egyptian forces in the McKillop expedition, to the Indian Ocean coast. He wrote a book on his adventures called ''Central Africa: Naked Truths of Naked People''.


Post-military service

He resigned his commission in 1877, returned to the United States, and attended
Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
. He graduated Columbia in 1880. He became a
lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
of
international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...
and taught in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. In 1881, at the beginning of the
Mahdist War The Mahdist War ( ar, الثورة المهدية, ath-Thawra al-Mahdiyya; 1881–1899) was a war between the Mahdist Sudanese of the religious leader Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah, who had proclaimed himself the "Mahdi" of Islam (the "Guided On ...
, he was placed in charge of the American consulate in
Alexandria, Egypt Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
. He opened the consulate to refugees of other nations, and was credited with saving numerous lives as a result. Chaillé-Long was also a writer. His 1884 book, ''The Three Prophets'', took a very negative line on Charles Gordon. His comments were later taken up by revisionist writers, notably
Lytton Strachey Giles Lytton Strachey (; 1 March 1880 – 21 January 1932) was an English writer and critic. A founding member of the Bloomsbury Group and author of ''Eminent Victorians'', he established a new form of biography in which psychological insight ...
in ''Eminent Victorians''. Critics have attacked Chaillé-Long for a lack of accuracy as an author. He also wrote, among other works, ''My Life in Four Continents''. In 1887,
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
appointed him
consul general A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...
and secretary for the delegation to
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
. Beginning in 1890, he spent about eight years in Egypt, writing and exploring. After returning to the United States, he served as secretary for the Universal Postal Congress prior to becoming the secretary for the United States commission at the Paris Exposition in 1900. Chaillé-Long died March 24, 1917, in
Virginia Beach Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...
,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, and was buried in
Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...
. His wife, Mary Amelia (née Hammond) Chaillé-Long, was the daughter of
New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
Congressman A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...
John Hammond.


Recognition

He was awarded the
Charles P. Daly Medal The Charles P. Daly Medal is awarded to individuals by the American Geographical Society (AGS) "for valuable or distinguished geographical services or labors." The medal was established in 1902. This medal was originally designed by Victor D. Bren ...
by the
American Geographical Society The American Geographical Society (AGS) is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows from around the ...
in 1909 with the inscription "Awarded in MCMIX to Charles Chaillé-Long in recognition of valuable additions to geographical knowledge made by him in Africa. In 1874 he explored the unknown Nile north of Urondogan, discovered Lake Ibrahim and supplied the final evidence needed to prove that the river issuing from Victoria Nyanza is the Nile." He was also awarded a Cross Medjidieh and a Cross Osmanieh from his service in Egypt, the Cross of Chevalier of The Légion d'honneur (France), a Gold Medal from the General Assembly of Maryland, and two yet to be identified medals from Egypt and Korea.


Works

*
Central Africa: Naked Truths of Naked People
' (1876) *
L'Afrique Centrale; expéditions an lae Victoria-Nyanza et an Makrakaniam niam
' (1877) *
The Three Prophets
' (1884) * ''Les Sources du Nil'' (1891) * ''L'Égypte et ses provinces perdues'' (1892) *
La Corée ou Tschösen La Terre du Calme Matinal
' (1894) * ''Les Combattants Francais de la Guerre'' *
My Life in Four Continents
' (1912)


References


External links



* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chaille-Long, Charles 1842 births 1917 deaths Union Army officers American people in the khedivial Egyptian Army American explorers People from Princess Anne, Maryland People of Maryland in the American Civil War Columbia Law School alumni Writers from Maryland American writers in French 19th-century American writers 20th-century American writers Burials at Arlington National Cemetery