Born: 19 March 1813 · Died: 1 May 1873 · Age at death: 60
How old was David Livingstone when he died?
David Livingstone died aged 60. He was born on 19 March 1813 and died on 1 May 1873.
Scottish explorer and missionary who searched for the Nile's source
Did you know?He was a committed abolitionist whose reports on the horrors of the slave trade helped to eventually end the practice in East Africa.
Quick facts
Date of birth19 March 1813
Date of death1 May 1873
Age at death60
Cause of deathMalaria
NationalityBritish
BirthplaceBlantyre, United Kingdom
Occupationexplorer, physician writer, geographer
Editor's Take:
David Livingstone left a cotton mill in Scotland to become Victorian Britain's most famous explorer. He mapped huge parts of central and southern Africa. He also campaigned fiercely against the East African slave trade. His reports helped turn British opinion against it. His work also encouraged later colonial expansion, which he did not foresee. His meeting with Stanley produced a famous greeting. His death in Africa made him a national hero.
Key Milestones
1841: Arrives in southern Africa as a missionary
1855: Reaches Victoria Falls
1856: Completes his crossing of Africa
1871: Meets Henry Morton Stanley at Ujiji
David Livingstone (19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish doctor, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livingstone, from the prominent 18th-century Moffat missionary family.
