BURNABY, FREDERICK GUSTAVUS (1842-1885), English traveller and soldier, was born on March 3, 1842, at Bed ford, the son of a clergyman. Educated at Harrow and in Ger many, he entered the Royal Horse Guards in 1859. In the summer of 1874 he accompanied the Carlist forces as correspond ent of The Times, but before the end of the war he was trans ferred to Africa to report on Gordon's expedition to the Sudan. This took Burnaby as far as Khartum. Returning to England in March 1875, he matured his plans for a journey on horseback to Khiva through Russian Asia, which had just been closed to trav ellers. His accomplishment of this task, in the winter of described in his book A Ride to Khiva, brought him immediate fame. His next leave of absence was spent in another adventur ous journey on horseback, through Asia Minor, from Scutari to Erzerum, with the object of observing the Russian frontier, an account of which he afterwards published. In the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, Burnaby (who soon afterwards became lieut. colonel) acted as travelling agent to the Stafford House (Red Cross) Committee, but had to return to England before the cam paign was over. In 1882 he crossed the Channel in a Having been disappointed in his hope of seeing active service in the Egyptian campaign of 1882, he participated in the Suakin campaign of 1884 without official leave, and was wounded at El Teb when acting as an intelligence officer under General Valen tine Baker. He was employed by Lord Wolseley in the Nile Expe dition, and met his death in the hand-to-hand fighting of the battle of Abu Klea (Jan. 17 i885).
See R. K. Mann, The Life of F. G. Burnaby (i882) ; T. Wright, The Life of Colonel Fred Burnaby (1908).