Alexander Macomb Mason: a 19th-century odyssey from the Potomac to the Nile

Andrew Rhodes, FRGS, will present on the topic of Alexander Macomb Mason (1841-1897): a naval officer, a mercenary, an explorer, and a diplomat whose remarkable career put him on the scene of a many of the late 19th century’s most dramatic events.

He descended from two prominent American families and personally knew some of the century’s most colorful characters. His service as Chief of Staff to General Gordon and his mapping of Lake Albert and its tributaries were chronicled in his correspondence with the Society in the 1870s.

Mason’s adventures made him an eyewitness to the wars, technological changes, and geopolitical shifts of a rapidly globalizing world.