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Shackleton |
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The final moments of the Endurance |
War was just about to break out when Shackleton prepared to set sail for the Antarctic. He had failed to reach the South Pole on previous expeditions and now Amundson and Scott had beat him to it. So he had decided on a bold enterprise. Using two ships, the Endurance and the Aurora (which he had purchased from Mawson) he planned to undertake the first Trans-Antarctic crossing.
The intention was that the Aurora would set out from Australia and establish a base on the Ross Sea side of Antarctica. From there, they would send teams inland to lay down supply dumps for Shackleton's party who would land on the Weddell sea side of Antarctica in the Endurance and head for the South pole then on to meet up with the Aurora team.
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Caught in the ice |
But the threat of war overrode these considerations and whilst in London, Shackleton called the crew together and asked if they were willing to volunteer to fight. All agreed and the company offered their services to the War Office. Churchill, however, sent them a telegram insisting that they carry on with the expedition. So they sailed on to Plymouth, by which time war was declared, and from there headed to Antarctica.
The plan involved breaking through the ice to make a landfall but unfortunately the Endurance was caught in ice and they were eventually forced to abandon their ship when it was crushed. The party set acroos the ice floes dragging three of the lifeboats from the ship. They spent the Winter camped on these floes but the coming of Spring and Summer made this hazardous. They needed to find land but it was hazardaous to launch the boats.
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Hurley, Shackleton and the stove |
Eventually a gap in the ice gave them the chance and they sailed and rowed to Elephant Island. There, Shackleton left most of the company and set off with a small crew in one of the boats, the 'James Caird', to get help. After a spectacualrly dangerous journey they reached South Georgia but were on the wrong side of the island and had to hike over uncharted mountains to the whaling station.
From there he sailed to Chile and charted a boat to rescue his men. Three times he was forced back but on the fourth attempt he succeeded in rescuing all of them.
The party of the Aurora, who landed in the Ross Sea , were less fortunate. The ship snapped its anchor, leaving the shore party lacking in key supplies, with dogs who were ill acclimatised to the conditions. By the time they were rescued three men had been killed. Shackleton always blamed himself for this, even though it was no fault of his.
Learn more about Shackleton's men
