The Personal Life of David Livingstone: Chiefly from His Unpublished Journals and Correspondence in the Possession of His Family

Published in 1880, this biography was authored by William Garden Blaikie shortly after the death of the famous Scottish explorer and missionary, David Livingstone. Blaikie was commissioned by Livingstone’s family to compile a comprehensive narrative that drew heavily upon personal, unpublished journals, letters, and correspondence that had not been accessible to the public during Livingstone’s lifetime. The intent of the work was to offer a more intimate, humanizing portrait of the man behind the colonial icon, focusing as much on his personal faith and domestic character as on his well-documented African expeditions.

The book is notable for its deliberate attempt to steer away from the purely adventurous tone of Livingstone’s own published travelogues. By utilizing private papers, Blaikie sought to provide historical context for the explorer's motivations and the immense internal struggles he faced in the field. Upon its release, the volume was received as a definitive, if highly sympathetic, account of Livingstone’s life, becoming a cornerstone for later biographical studies of 19th-century exploration and the complex intersection of missionary work and Victorian imperialism.