In 1838, William Ellis of the LMS published a History of Madagascar―considered a key primary source for nineteenth-century Malagasy history. Four years later, David Griffiths, longest serving member of the Madagascar Mission, published Hanes Madagascar (“History of Madagascar”) in Welsh. Campbell’s study explores the intriguing relationship between these works and their authors. It analyses the role of Griffiths; presents evidence that much of Ellis’ History derived from Griffiths’ research; and presents the first ever translation of Hanes Madagascar (with extensive annotations). This study suggests that the tensions arising from the different cultural perceptions of Welsh and English missionaries moulded the destiny of the Madagascar mission. It will hopefully inspire re-evaluation of other missions and their relationship to British imperial policy.

This book reveals the hitherto hidden history of inter-missionary dispute that split the first LMS mission to Madagascar. Focussing on David Griffiths, whose pivotal role was concealed by the LMS, it suggests that Welsh-English rivalry moulded the mission’s destiny.

"The book also features cross-references throughout, a bibliography accompanying each entry, an elaborate appendix listing biographies according to particular categories of interest, and a comprehensive index."--BOOK JACKET.

This book examines how Westerners understood and processed Madagascar and its environment during the nineteenth century. Madagascar’s unique ecosystem crafted its reputation as a strange place full of unusual species. Westerners, however, often minimized Madagascar’s peculiar features to stress the commonality of its fauna and flora with the world. The attempt to understand the island through science led to a domestication of its environment that created the image of a tame and known world capable of being controlled and used by Western powers. At the heart of the exploration of Madagascar and its transformation in Western eyes from a strange world to a cash crop colony were missionaries and naturalists who relied upon global experiences to master the island by normalizing the peculiar qualities of Madagascar’s environment. This book reveals how the environment played a dominant role in understanding the island and its people, and how current environmental debates have evolved from earlier policies and discussions about the environment.