Beryl Markham was an original - an unconventional woman for whom life really began in 1904 when, at age two, she moved to British East Africa with her family. It was a time of opportunity and adventure for those with pioneering spirit. As Beryl described it, Africa was a “world without walls.” Liberated from the constraints and expectations of young girls in Western European society, Beryl experienced unimaginable freedoms. Her father was consumed with establishing his flour and timber mills and her mother was completely absent, having chosen to return to England in 1906 with Beryl’s older brother.
Alone, Beryl had free reign. She was “adopted” by the native Maasai people and because of her white skin enjoyed privileges within the group that were denied Maasai girls. She learned to hunt and jump with the Murani. Her best friend, Kibii, taught her to move stealthily through the jungle terrain. The Maasai experience helped Beryl develop an acute sensitivity for animals and the earth. She had a special affinity for horses and found work as a trainer where she quickly secured a name for herself in racing circles. Wealthy owners from all over the area sought her expertise and, in spite of her youth and gender, considered her the best.
It was her life’s ambition until a chance encounter changed her path forever. A remarkable man and pilot, Tom Black introduced Beryl to the aeroplane. Tom became her flight instructor and lifelong mentor. In 1933, Beryl earned her pilot’s license; the first woman in Africa to do so. Accompanied only by her compass and maps,she carried supplies, passengers and mail all across the continent and flew countless rescue missions over dangerous, uncharted territory. The work was grueling, the
On September 9, 1936, Beryl became the first pilot to make a solo Trans-Atlantic flight, east to west, from England. Just short of her New York destination, ice blocked the air intake and choked fuel flow to the carburetor. She crash landed in Nova Scotia but later continued on to New York City where she was cheered by crowds and congratulated by Mayor LaGuardia.
Beryl died in Nairobi, Kenya on August 4, 1986. Her enigmatic personality served as both sentry and magnet. It protected her privacy, and still attracted extraordinary people from around the world. Beryl wrote a brilliant account of her life entitled West with the Night. The book is revealing as much for the stories she chose to omit as for those she conveyed. There is no mention of being abandoned by her mother; of her three marriages, or the child removed from her custody; and only glimpses of the many love affairs that colored her life. Instead, Beryl Markham chose to focus on her irrepressible spirit, restricted by a physical body and only one lifetime. In her words, “Flight is but a momentary escape from the eternal custody of the earth.”
