As a geographer he was less of a traveller than a researcher; his studies led mainly in the direction of cartography and the history of geography.

He spent most of his adult life in England in a house at Lorn Road, Lambeth, but he died in Germany, his country of birth, on 13 March 1913.

He was the first to receive the Victoria gold medal of the Royal Geographical Society (1902) for "his efforts during 40 years to introduce scientific methods into the cartography of the United Kingdom".

Commenting on Ravenstein's paper on overpopulation presented at the British Association, the Times, stated that Ravenstein "estimates the population of the world for the present year at 1,468,000,000, and, after making careful allowance for various unfavourable circumstances, he comes to the comforting conclusion that the human race may increase to the number of 5,994,000,000 without outrunning the supply of food".

So far as we ourselves were concerned, he did not think we need make such a tremendous fuss about it, knowing we would not live to see the day when there was no more room on this earth.

It promoted gymnastics and held annual athletic competitions, at a purpose-built German Gymnasium in St Pancras,[7] and at The Crystal Palace.

[8] With William Penny Brookes and John Hulley, he was a founder member of the National Olympian Association in 1865, which promoted an annual series of sporting events across the country, inspired by the Olympic Games of Much Wenlock.