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Ludwig Leichardt was born in Prussia in 1813 and attended the University of Berlin. He explored much of Queensland.
He arrived in Sydney in February 1842 and in 1843 he travelled to Moreton Bay. In October 1843 he set out to travel some 5000 kilometers to Port Essington at the top of Australia in the Northern Territory as it is now known.
After considerable hardship with resignations, aboriginal conflicts, thick undergrowth hampering the bullocks movement, scarce water and rough country they reached Port Essington on 17 December 1845. On that trip the Mackenzie, Burdekin, Mitchell, Gilbert and Roper Rivers were discovered.
The Gilbert River was named after the man killed by aboriginals.
The returned by boat to Brisbane and had a number of other explorations for which he was awarded gold medals from the Geographical Society of London and The Geographical Society of Paris.
He was last seen by Europeans in 1848 when he set out to cross Australia from east to west. Neither he nor his partners were seen again.
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