Ledger, Charles (1818-1905)

This is a biography of Charles Ledger, a British farmer, adventurer, and entrepreneur who significantly influenced the global breeding of Andean alpacas and the cultivation of quinine-producing cinchona trees. After relocating to Peru, Ledger became deeply involved in the alpaca wool trade and undertook a perilous mission to smuggle alpacas out of Peru, successfully introducing them to Australia. Despite numerous hardships, Ledger established a breeding program that temporarily expanded alpaca farming in New South Wales. Following financial failure, he pioneered the smuggling of cinchona seeds from Bolivia, which enabled quinine production in Java and had lasting global medical impact.