David Livingstone Birthplace

"Sympathy is no substitute for action." is a quote often attributed to Livingstone. Here, Douglas Hay, one of our Trustees, tells us how Livingstone inspired him and how we can use his story to navigate today's world.

This past month, we've been looking at Livingstone and how he was/is celebrated but also 'cancelled'. We realise his story is a complex one. Not everyone agrees on whether or not his influence was positive or negative. However, we believe that his story deserves to be reflected upon. A museum's role is to tell history through its interpretation. - Livingstone is well known, but why? - What did he do? - How did his life impact others? And perhaps, most importantly, what can we learn from his story today? So, what do YOU think? Should society... Celebrate Livingstone Cancel Livingstone Use him to learn/reflect Or, something else entirely? Let us know your thoughts below!

🥳🥳🥳HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US🥳🥳🥳 We opened one year ago today, after a four year reimagining! Our museum now delivers an interactive exhibition, showcasing Livingstone's life, from his birth in Blantyre to his death in Zambia. Visitors can travel with the Scottish missionary, explorer, and abolitionist from Scotland to Southern and Central Africa, discovering the communities and people who played a pivotal part in his life and expeditions, before reflecting on his legacy. Have you visited us yet? www.david-livingstone-birthplace.org

Despite the disaster that was the Zambezi Expedition, it was hugely beneficial for the scientific community back home. Local guides, farmers and fishermen helped Livingstone and his crew label all of the specimens they'd collected. This was an invaluable collection and Livingstone was celebrated for his contribution to science! Here, Dr Lawrence Dritas, historian at the University of Edinburgh, discusses the legacy of those scientific records.

In 1854, Livingstone completed his first expedition - making the journey from Central to Western Africa. He was praised by the London Missionary Society and the Royal Geographical Society. The London Times hailed his journey as ‘one of the greatest geographical explorations of the age’. This achievement meant Livingstone was able to secure funding and support for future expeditions, so instead of heading home, he turned back to the interior of the continent. His life as an explorer had begun!

Museum, play park, café, trails and walks - we're a great family day out!

Join us this weekend for sunshine (hopefully!), ice-cream, outdoor adventure, and pop inside our museum for some really interesting history! Tickets available: http://david-livingstone-birthplace.org

This month, we have been discussing the two passions of Livingstone's life - God and science - and how he managed these two seemingly conflicting beliefs. Here, Muthi Nhlema discusses how Livingstone inspired him in his own life and beliefs... Muthi Nhlema is a NGO leader and water advocate working to address the persistent challenges to sustainable groundwater supply for Malawi's rural poor. He is an award winning author of African speculative fiction and was a 2021 resident writer of the prestigious International Writing Programme from the University of Iowa. These Talking Head videos were created in collaboration with the Scotland Malawi Partnership. Our museum is open. Tickets available at www.david-livingstone-birthplace.org

Enjoy a family day out at David Livingstone Birthplace!

David Livingstone Birthplace The museum’s engaging and interactive exhibition follows Livingstone’s story from his birth in Blantyre, to his death in Zambia. The exhibition highlights the communities and people who played a pivotal part in Livingstone’s life, as well as allowing us to reflect on his legacy. Standing in the museum’s beautiful parkland is the Livingstone and the Lion statue, designed by Academy Award winning film producer Ray Harryhausen and cast by acclaimed sculptor Garth Knowles. Kids are encouraged to ‘set sail’ on our exciting play park, which was inspired by Livingstone’s steamship and his voyages up the Zambezi River. The café offers a range of meals and some seriously delicious cakes! And, don’t forget to check out the gift shop...

What did the arrival of missionaries like Livingstone mean for the people living in the African countries that he visited? Here, David Luhanga, Malawian musician, discusses the negative legacy of Livingstone and other missionaries, and how Christian practices took over traditional Malawi customs. These films were made in partnership with Scotland Malawi Partnership and many others are available to view in our museum's Legacy Space. Our Legacy Space invites our visitors to reflect on Livingstone's legacy and the lasting impacts, whether you believe them to be positive or negative. Tickets for our museum can be booked online or at the door! www.david-livingstone-birthplace.org

What did the arrival of missionaries like Livingstone mean for the people living in the African countries that he visited? Here, Norman Chipakupaku, who served on the World Mission Council of the Church of Scotland, discusses the positive legacy of Livingstone in Zambia and their churches... These films were made in partnership with Malawi Scotland Partnership and many others are available to view in our museum's Legacy Space. Our Legacy Space invites our visitors to reflect on Livingstone's legacy and the lasting impacts, whether you believe them to be positive or negative. Tickets for our museum can be purchased online or at the door: www.david-livingstone-birthplace.org

Livingstone's notes, diaries, journals, maps, and drawings were innumerous! They influenced other scientists to examine and study the region, and these records are still being used to this day. Dr Lawrence Dritas, historian at the University of Edinburgh, discusses the legacy of that influence...

In 1854, Livingstone completed his first expedition - making the journey from Central to Western Africa. He was praised by the London Missionary Society and the Royal Geographical Society. The London Times hailed his journey as ‘one of the greatest geographical explorations of the age’. This was just the beginning of Livingstone's explorations!

In 1854, Livingstone completed his first expedition - making the journey from Central to Western Africa. He was praised by the London Missionary Society and the Royal Geographical Society. The London Times hailed his journey as ‘one of the greatest geographical explorations of the age’. This was just the start of his exploring!

Make the most of your bank holiday weekend and travel with us from Scotland to Sub-Saharan Africa🌍 Bring the whole family and investigate the hippo trail, navigate the stars, or spot the roarsome lion 🦁 Then relax in our café, explore the grounds, or set sail on our exciting play park! TICKETS: www.david-livingstone-birthplace.org

QUESTION: What have Annie Lennox, David Attenborough, and Neil Armstrong all got in common? 🤔🤔🤔 The answer? They’ve all won the Livingstone medal! (They're in good company too! Check out the full list: https://rsgs.org/livingstone-medal) The Livingstone Medal is awarded by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society to those who "contribute an outstanding service of a humanitarian nature with a clear geographical dimension". Livingstone’s daughter, Agnes Livingstone Bruce co-founded the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. Her inherited love of geography, especially Sub-Saharan Africa, inspired her to do so. Mike Robinson, Chief Executive of RSGS, talks here about the legacy of Livingstone and the medal...

In the past, the African communities and crew members vital to Livingstone's accomplishments were often overlooked or dismissed. In recent years, there has been more discussion around their stories, bringing them to the attention of the public. We have certainly tried to do that in our exhibition. Writer, Petina Gappah used the stories as inspiration for her novel, Out of Darkness, Shining Light. Here, she discusses further...

After Livingstone's death, his crew carried his body 1000 miles to the coast, in order to return him to the UK. Jacob Wainwright, one of Livingstone's crew members travelled with the body and attended the funeral at Westminster Abbey. Perhaps inspired by Livingstone's own meticulous journals, Wainwright also kept diaries. Here, Adrian Wisnicki, Associate Professor of English at the University of Nebraska and Director of Livingstone Online, talks about Jacob Wainwright's diaries and why they're so important...

Livingstone - a lone explorer?

Livingstone’s best-selling book, Missionary Travels, portrayed him as a heroic lone explorer, with little mention of the continued support from his crew and the local communities. We know there's a fuller picture..! As a museum, we are committed to highlighting the marginalised voices from Livingstone's story. We are continuing to research and discover more about his wife, the members of his crew, and the communities he worked with, who all made his expeditions possible.

Livingstone joined his crew and local communities by their fires. Here, traditions, myths and memories were passed down between generations. Livingstone listened to the tales; they influenced his views and encouraged his love of the places he visited. Discover the ways in which African communities inspired Livingstone through our exhibition, open now.

Looking for the perfect spot to spend Easter weekend? We've got a stunning museum, acres and acres of parkland to explore, a play park, and a café which serves the BEST cakes!🍰 Join us on Easter Sunday/Monday for additional activities.

Just a reminder - we are open this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, 10am till 4pm. Can't make it this weekend? Don't worry - from 31st March, we are once again open 7 days a week! Tickets available: https://book.dltrust.uk/

As Black History Month draws to a close, we reflect on the overlooked narratives of Black History and what museums can do to counter this. We recognise that our museum is in a unique position to be central to discussions around Scotland’s role in slavery and colonisation and how that is represented both in our interpretation of David Livingstone’s story and the objects we hold within the museum. We embrace that position, and are committed to challenging unconscious bias, privilege, apathy and ignorance. We consider all of this in relation to understanding Scottish heritage, missionary work, colonial history, and specifically with regard to the untold and contested narratives relating to Black history. Our collection holds objects that allow us to learn about and celebrate the communities that Livingstone worked within. Many of these items are on display permanently. Our exhibition seeks to narrate Livingstone’s life in a balanced way, discussing his flaws as well as his achievements. We hope this fuller version of Livingstone’s history will encourage everyone to challenge existing idolised versions of his story. Our Legacy Space gives our visitors the opportunity to reflect on the long term impact of Livingstone’s legacy, including his role in the Scramble for Africa and the impact of the spread of Christianity across the continent.

The Tales of the Tableaux animates known and unknow figures in the Museum’s Pilkington Jackson tableaux series. In Vision Tswana, Evangelical preacher Paulo Molehane who was instrumental in the baptism of Sechele I of the BaKwena comes to life. The Women's Choir of Zomba Theological College’s Chichewa performance of Amazing Grace will feature in the animation. You can see the college campus and Malawi’s Zomba Mountains in the background. The singers are: Front row: Florence Kuntembwe, Chisomo Watchipa, Florence Mwalwanda Middle row: Hendrina Chilembwe, Anastanzia Phinifolo, Agnes Chigoma, Georgina Chimkango Back row: Gloria Bonzo, Mercy Thimbwidza, Getrude Smart

The Tales of the Tableaux animates known and unknow figures in the Museum’s Pilkington Jackson tableaux series. Petina Gappah, screenwriter of the Tales of the Tableaux, used the lives of Livingstone’s crew as the inspiration for her novel Out of Darkness, Shining Light. Here she explains why she thinks the roles of Livingstone’s crew have been ignored in the past. #BHM #BlackHistoryMonth

The Last Journey by Pilkington Jackson

The Last Journey by Pilkington Jackson depicts crewmembers Susi, Chuma, Amoda, Gardner and Mabruki who risked their lives to carry Livingstone’s body to the East African coast. Carved out of Scottish oak this sculpture was commissioned by the Bamangwato people of Botswana. While Susi, Chuma, Amoda, Gardner and Mabruki carried Livingstone’s body to the East African coast, another 60 people carried his possessions. David Livingstone’s story represents Scottish history, which is inextricably linked with Black History. This #BlackHistoryMonth, we will be highlighting several objects and stories from our exhibition, which allow us to learn more about and celebrate the cultures that Livingstone worked within. #BHM

Three months ago today, we opened the doors to the David Livingstone Birthplace Museum, after a four year renovation... The response has been amazing - we've welcomed thousands of visitors and event goers! We couldn't have done it without help from our supporters, including National Lottery Heritage Fund Scotland Historic Environment Scotland UK Government Scotland South Lanarkshire Council Here's a glimpse into our story...

Explore our stunning new museum this weekend 😍

This #BlackHistoryMonth, we will be highlighting several objects and stories from our exhibition, which allow us to learn more about and celebrate the cultures that Livingstone worked within. Livingstone travelled through at least 15 African countries during his lifetime and left a legacy which impacted millions. His story represents Scottish history, which is inextricably linked with Black History. Here, Sir Geoff Palmer, a member of the Museum’s expert advisory group, explains more...