Court Treatt expedition
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Stella Maud Court Treatt,
FRGS The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
(née Hinds; 1895 – 1976) was a South African filmmaker, author, and adventurer who with her first husband Chaplin Court Treatt undertook the Court Treatt Expedition 1924–1926, the first successful attempt to drive a motor car from
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
to
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
.


Early and personal life

Stella Maud Hinds was born in Blaauwbank, the
South African Republic The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when it ...
, on March 11, 1895. She was the daughter of Alice Maud Jennings and Thomas Charles Hinds, a
burgher Burgher may refer to: * Burgher (social class), a medieval, early modern European title of a citizen of a town, and a social class from which city officials could be drawn ** Burgess (title), a resident of a burgh in northern Britain ** Grand Bu ...
of the
Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek The South African Republic ( nl, Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek, abbreviated ZAR; af, Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek), also known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer Republic in Southern Africa which existed from 1852 to 1902, when it ...
with a farm near
Magaliesburg Magaliesburg is a small town situated below the Witwatersrand mountain range in Gauteng, South Africa. The Magaliesberg mountain range is north and visible from town, hence the name "Magaliesburg". The mountains themselves are named after Kgosi ...
. Stella's sister, (Hilda) Grace Hinds, was the mother of
John Cranko John Cyril Cranko (15 August 1927 – 26 June 1973) was a South African ballet dancer and choreographer with the Royal Ballet and the Stuttgart Ballet. Life and career Early life Cranko was born in Rustenburg in the former province of Transv ...
, the South African ballet dancer and choreographer. Grace's husband, Herbert Cranko, helped to raise money and secure permissions for Stella's subsequent expedition with Chaplin Court Treatt from the Cape to Cairo. In 1923, Stella married Major Chaplin Court Treatt, a Royal Flying Corps officer who had been tasked with surveying and constructing airfields for the southern portion of the Trans-African air route.The southern section of the
Imperial Airways Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long-range airline, operating from 1924 to 1939 and principally serving the British Empire routes to South Africa, India, Australia and the Far East, including Malaya and Hong Kong. Passengers ...
trans-African route ran 2,000 miles from Mbala, Zambia (which was then called Abercorn, after the chairman of the British South Africa Company, which ran the town in those days) through
Kabwe Kabwe is the capital of the Zambian Central Province and the Kabwe District, with a population estimated at 202,914 at the 2010 census. Named Broken Hill until 1966, it was founded when lead and zinc deposits were discovered in 1902. Kabwe also ...
(then called Broken Hill) and then along the
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
linking Kabwe to
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
.
Kabwe Kabwe is the capital of the Zambian Central Province and the Kabwe District, with a population estimated at 202,914 at the 2010 census. Named Broken Hill until 1966, it was founded when lead and zinc deposits were discovered in 1902. Kabwe also ...
is now located in
Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
, formerly named Northern Rhodesia after Cecil Rhodes, founder of the British South Africa Company.
In 1924, after an interval securing permissions in England, Stella and Chaplin Court Treatt, together with Stella's brother, Errol Hinds, and several others, undertook a seventeen-month car journey from Cape Town to Cairo. In 1926, the Treatts traveled to
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Anglo-Egyptian Sudan ( ar, السودان الإنجليزي المصري ') was a condominium of the United Kingdom and Egypt in the Sudans region of northern Africa between 1899 and 1956, corresponding mostly to the territory of present-day ...
, to film a wildlife documentary. Stella Maud Treatt and Chaplin Court Treatt divorced after several trips together, evidently having had enough of each other's company. In 1937, Stella married Robert "Bob" Mosley Yeo, a doctor who had been treating her in South Africa, and they moved to India. Stella eventually returned to South Africa with Robert Yeo. Stella Maud Mosley Yeo died in Johannesburg on 20 December 1976.


Cape to Cairo Expedition

The Court Treatt expedition was the first successful attempt to drive a motor car from Cape Town ("the Cape"), South Africa, to Cairo, Egypt.Admittedly the Treatts were beaten by the "Croisière noire" (Citroën central Africa expedition). The expedition was known as the ''croisière noire'' (fr. "black cruise") and initiated by
André Citroën André-Gustave Citroën (; 5 February 1878 – 3 July 1935) was a French industrialist and the founder of French automaker Citroën. He is remembered chiefly for the make of car named after him, but also for his application of double helical ...
. It was led by Georges-Marie Haardt and his deputy Louis Audouin-Dubreuil and included
Léon Poirier Léon Poirier (25 August 1884 – 27 June 1968) was a French film director, screenwriter and film producer best known for his silent films from 1913 onwards. He directed some 25 films between 1913 and 1949. His most famous film today is '' Verdu ...
, Georges Specht, Eugène Bergognier, Charles Brull, and Alexandre Iacovleff. They crossed the continent from north to south and arrived in Cape Town in 1925. The Citroën expedition was undertaken with specially adapted
Half-track A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cro ...
Citroën Type B2 lorries, which were more like tanks than motor cars. See
The party consisted of Stella Court Treatt, Chaplin Court Treat, Thomas A. Glover, a cinematographer, Fred C. Law, special correspondent for the London '' Daily Express'', Stella's brother Errol, Julius Mapata, the expedition's guide and translator, and Captain F.C. Blunt and Mr. McEleavey, representatives of the Crossley Motor company. On September 13, 1924, they set off from Cape Town in two Crossley 25/30 cars with light truck bodies. They reached Cairo sixteen months (and 12,732 miles) later on January 24, 1926. The expedition was explicitly modeled after the fashion of Cecil Rhodes' "red line" connecting the
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
to
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
, and they restricted their route to territories under British rule.The idea that came to be most associated with Cecil Rhodes was of an unbroken stretch of territory controlled by the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...
and running across the entire African continent. The name comes from the practice of coloring the territory of the British Empire red or pink on maps. See the All-Red Route.
Fred Law's account of the beginning of the trip, ''Woman Pioneer of Empire: Cape to Cairo venture Begun'' ('' Daily Express'', September 24, 1924), began with an invocation of Rhodes' vision of a network of roads and railroads linking up British colonial possessions to afford white settlement and the more effective domination of the continent and its people: "The second step towards the fulfilment of Cecil Rhodes' scheme to open up the routes through darkest Africa began this morning, when Major and Mrs. C. Court Treatt left Capetown in an attempt to reach Cairo by motorcar." Stella observed the difficulties that the imperial route presented; " ad we taken an alternative routeour problems would have been simplified . .we would have found roads . .and we could have avoided bridgeless rivers and swamps. But the desirability of blazing a trail through British Africa was superior to every other consideration." Their route took them from
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
through
Britstown Britstown is a small farming town situated in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, in the Pixley ka Seme District Municipality, Emthanjeni Local Municipality. The town is named after Hans Brits who settled here after he accompanied David Li ...
,
Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...
,
Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Province ...
(formerly, Pietersburg),
Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council ...
(in
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
, formerly, Rhodesia, where they visited Cecil Rhode's grave), Livingstone (in
Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
, formerly Northern Rhodesia),
Kabwe Kabwe is the capital of the Zambian Central Province and the Kabwe District, with a population estimated at 202,914 at the 2010 census. Named Broken Hill until 1966, it was founded when lead and zinc deposits were discovered in 1902. Kabwe also ...
(in
Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
, formerly called Broken Hill),See note 1. Mbala (in Zambia and formerly called Abercorn),
Karonga Karonga is a township in the Karonga District in Northern Region of Malawi. Located on the western shore of Lake Nyasa, it was established as a slaving centre sometime before 1877. As of 2018 estimates, Karonga has a population of 61,609. Hi ...
(
Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...
, formerly
Nyasaland Nyasaland () was a British protectorate located in Africa that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Between 1953 and 1963, Nyasaland was part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasala ...
),
Mwaya Mwaya is an administrative ward in the Kyela district of the Mbeya Region of Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African G ...
(
Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
, formerly
Tanganyika Tanganyika may refer to: Places * Tanganyika Territory (1916–1961), a former British territory which preceded the sovereign state * Tanganyika (1961–1964), a sovereign state, comprising the mainland part of present-day Tanzania * Tanzania Main ...
),
Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper h ...
(
Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...
), Mongalla (
South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the ...
, formerly the
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Anglo-Egyptian Sudan ( ar, السودان الإنجليزي المصري ') was a condominium of the United Kingdom and Egypt in the Sudans region of northern Africa between 1899 and 1956, corresponding mostly to the territory of present-day ...
),
Rumbek Rumbek ( ar, رمبك) is the capital of Lakes State, central South Sudan, and the former capital of the country. Location Rumbek is approximately by road northwest of Juba, the capital and largest city in the country. Its coordinates are an ...
, Wau,
Al-Ubayyid El-Obeid ( ar, الأبيض, ''al-ʾAbyaḍ'', lit."the White"), also romanized as Al-Ubayyid, is the capital of the state of North Kurdufan, in Sudan. History and overview El-Obeid was founded by the pashas of Ottoman Egypt in 1821. It was ...
( Sudan, formerly the
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan Anglo-Egyptian Sudan ( ar, السودان الإنجليزي المصري ') was a condominium of the United Kingdom and Egypt in the Sudans region of northern Africa between 1899 and 1956, corresponding mostly to the territory of present-day ...
; spelled, 'El Obeid,' by Treatt),
Ed Dueim Ed Dueim (Arabic الدويم, also Romanized as ''ad-Duwaym'', ''Ad Douiem'', ''Al Dewaym'', ''Dewaim'' etc.) is one of the largest cities along the White Nile in Sudan. Ed Dueim is on the west bank of the White Nile, between Khartoum and K ...
,
Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...
, Wadi Halfa, and finally
Aswan Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...
(
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
) to
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
in
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
.


Southern Sudan

The expedition left Nairobi on October 10, 1925, and reached Mongala eight days later, where they were received by Major Roy Brock, Deputy governor of
Mongalla Province Mongalla or Mangalla is a Payam in Juba County, Central Equatoria State in South Sudan, on the east side of the Bahr al Jebel or White Nile river. It lies about 75 km by road northeast of Juba. The towns of Terekeka and Bor lie downstream, ...
. After declining an offer to transport their cars by steamer to bypass the Sudd, South Sudan's great central wetlands, they set off again on October 25, 1925, with the aim of reaching
Terekeka Terekeka is a community in Central Equatoria, South Sudan. It is the headquarters of Terekeka County.Rumbek Rumbek ( ar, رمبك) is the capital of Lakes State, central South Sudan, and the former capital of the country. Location Rumbek is approximately by road northwest of Juba, the capital and largest city in the country. Its coordinates are an ...
,
Tonj Tonj is a city in South Sudan. Location The city is located in ''Tonj South County'', Warrap State, in northwest South Sudan. Its location lies approximately , by road, northwest of Juba, the capital and largest city in the country. It lies on ...
, Aweil, and across the
Lol River The Lol River, or Loll River, is a stream in northern South Sudan that feeds the Bahr al-Arab, known locally as the Kiir River. Course The Lol River forms at the convergence of the Chel or Kuru River and the Magadhik River just west of Nyamle ...
and then the
Kiir River Bahr al-Arab ( ar, بحر العرب; also called the Kiir River) is a river which flows approximately through the southwest of Sudan and marks part of its international border with South Sudan. It is part of the Nile river system, being a tri ...
and eventually to
Muglad Mujlad is a city in West Kurdufan State in the west of Sudan. It is the center town of the Misseriya tribe, sometimes also transliterated as "Messeria" tribe. In the late seventies, early eighties, Muglad was used as a staging area for oilfield ...
and
Al-Ubayyid El-Obeid ( ar, الأبيض, ''al-ʾAbyaḍ'', lit."the White"), also romanized as Al-Ubayyid, is the capital of the state of North Kurdufan, in Sudan. History and overview El-Obeid was founded by the pashas of Ottoman Egypt in 1821. It was ...
, which they reached on December 20, 1925. They rarely made more than eight miles per day, frequently needing to rely on people (often hundreds at a time) living along the route to drag and pull and raft or float their cars across rivers and haul them through swamps.


Return to England

When the Treatts returned to England, "their journey was celebrated as a triumph of the British spirit and the superiority of British engineering." In 1927, not long after their return, Stella published ''Cape to Cairo: The Record of a Historic Motor Journey'' and the film of the expedition, ''Cape to Cairo'', was screened in Britain and the United States, "accompanied by lectures and numerous interviews starring the glamorous Stella Court Treatt". Newspapers and advertisers transformed the Treatts into celebrities, with
Crossley Motors Crossley Motors was an English motor vehicle manufacturer based in Manchester, England. It produced approximately 19,000 cars from 1904 until 1938, 5,500 buses from 1926 until 1958, and 21,000 goods and military vehicles from 1914 to ...
and the North British Rubber Company running advertisements alongside interviews with Stella. The
General Strike of 1926 The 1926 general strike in the United Kingdom was a general strike that lasted nine days, from 4 to 12 May 1926. It was called by the General Council of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in an unsuccessful attempt to force the British governmen ...
, which began three months after their return to England, provided a backdrop for Stella's account of the Treatt expedition. Stella met
King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...
and Queen Mary at Buckingham Palace, and her portrait was taken by the London photography firm Bassano Ltd, Royal Photographers.


Sudan Expedition

In 1928, after spending two years in England, the Treatts set out again for Sudan to make a moving picture of Sudan's wildlife. Their trip began at Port Sudan and continued the length of the railway to El Obeid, taking the Treatts through places like Abu Gabra that they had visited during their earlier Cape-to-Cairo expedition. Two motion pictures were produced, ''Stampede'' (1930) and ''Stark Nature'' (1930). ''Stampede'' is a romance scripted by Stella that concerns a man named Boru and how he found love with Loweno and ended up a "Sheikh", after first being orphaned, when his mother was killed by a lion, and adopted by a Habbaniya sheikh, who subsequently loses his life along with his son during a drought, thus opening up the position of sheikh for Boru. The film is organized around a visual trope of 'primitive Africans' and their close linkages to wildlife. ''Stark Nature'' (1930) was also organized around a visual trope of 'primitive Africans' and 'modern Europeans.' The film opens with cabaret dancing in London to supply a contrast with African dance. In ''Sudan Sand: filming the baggara Arabs'' (1930) Stella describes building an artificial river to provide a suitable setting for a wildlife film: "there is more forest than we know what to do with. The real difficulty lies in finding a suitable forest with a natural water course running in the same place." Much like the narrative of ''Cape to Cairo'' (1927), the story of ''Sudan Sand'' (1930) revolves around the difficulties that the Treatts encountered in trying to compel colonial subjects to dig a river without compensation or adequate tools or any obvious purpose in the heat of Equatorial Africa.Stella's claim that African colonial subjects were "primitive" and "lazy" was a common justification for
colonial rule Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colony, colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose the ...
. See
''Stark Nature'' (1930) received mixed reviews. Some complained that all the cutting between "primitive and modern" dance sequences was overwrought; others wrote that the narrative was too artificial for a "Nature film."


Published works


Writing

* * * *


Filmography

* * * *


See also

*
Cape to Cairo Road The Cape to Cairo Road or Pan-African Highway, sometimes called the Great North Road in sub-Saharan Africa, was a proposed road that would stretch the length of Africa, from Cape Town to Cairo, through the Cape to Cairo Red Line of British Em ...
* Cecil Rhodes * All-Red Route *
Imperial Airways Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long-range airline, operating from 1924 to 1939 and principally serving the British Empire routes to South Africa, India, Australia and the Far East, including Malaya and Hong Kong. Passengers ...
* Court Treatt expedition *
Crossley Motors Crossley Motors was an English motor vehicle manufacturer based in Manchester, England. It produced approximately 19,000 cars from 1904 until 1938, 5,500 buses from 1926 until 1958, and 21,000 goods and military vehicles from 1914 to ...
* List of female explorers and travelers


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Treatt, Stella Court 1924 in Africa Female explorers South African travel writers South African documentary filmmakers South African women film directors Women travel writers Women documentary filmmakers