E W Bovill Books

Edward William Bovill (1892 - 1966) was a British historian and writer. He served in the First World War with the 18th Hussars, attached to Northern Nigeria Regiment, Royal West African Frontier Force.

The Niger Explored by E W Bovill (1962) examines the history of Niger River exploration beginning with Mungo Park in 1796 who first reached the upper Niger in 1796. His reports of the gold-laden river, as wide as the Thames at Westminster, flowing into the unexplored heart of the continent, excited both commercial and scientific interest. Various later expeditions by Park and Richard Lander were able to follow the river's meandering route to the sea.

Caravans of the Old Sahara: An Introduction To The History Of The Western Sudan by E W Bovill (1933) gives a historical picture of equatorial Africa from the Atlantic to the Nile over 2 millennia.

Missions To The Niger edited by E W Bovill (1964-1966) is a 4 volume collection about the early explorations of the Niger River by Friedrich Horneman, Major Alexander Gordon Laing, Major Denham, Captain Clapperton and Doctor Oudney in Bornu. It includes diaries, letters and previously unpublished documents about these expeditions.

The Golden Trade Of The Moors by E W Bovill (1958) shows how the great caravan routes linked the north and the south and how, through the centuries, Berbers, Arabs, Jews and Christians never ceased to draw on the wealth and industry of the Sudanese. A follow-up book to 'Caravans of the Old Sahara'.