The Sahara Desert is, without exaggeration, one of the harshest regions on the planet,

but most people know that to some degree or another.

What's often underappreciated though is just how massive it is.

It is, by far, the largest hot desert on the planet.

And in fact, for comparison, it's about a million square kilometers larger than the entire contiguous United States.

Now imagine trying to cross it, let alone build something across it.

That is exactly what happened in the 1880s and the results would be horrifying, but not just

because of the harsh terrain.

As always, viewer discretion is strongly advised.

By the early 1880s, a race to invade and colonize Africa by European countries was intensifying.

During this period, which is known as the Scramble for Africa, European powers were slicing

up the continent at will with the belief that colonization was somehow their right.

For France, one of the boldest ideas to come out of this period, was the plan to build

a railway straight across the Sahara Desert, linking Algeria to French Sudan, which

is modern-day Mali, and then from there, eventually to the rich territories of West Africa. If this sounds impossible to you, you're not alone in thinking that, but if anyone was going to do it, a man named Paul Flatters wanted to be the man who made it happen. Now, Paul wasn't exactly the poster child for a grand desert adventure. By the time he was asked to lead

the expedition he was forty years old and graying with a fair complexion and an average build.

He apparently carried himself with intensity and had a reputation for being both straightforward

and stubborn, but years of hard living in Algeria had taken their toll. He suffered from chronic

sciatica and was known to rely heavily on morphine to manage

the pain. His moods could also apparently swing without warning, but underneath the physical

wear and tear was someone deeply devoted to the desert, fascinated by its people, obsessed with

its trade routes, and convinced it could be the key to expanding France's colonial reach.

...