Centenary of Scott's Last Expedition

The centenary of Captain Scott's Terra Nova expedition (1910- 1913) is being celebrated with a series of worldwide events from 2010-2013. You can see details of these and a number of exhibitions underway at www.scott100.org

           Scott and him men at the Pole - January 17th 1912. Photo SPRI copyright

January 17th 2012

This year marks the centenary of Captain Scott and his men attaining the South Pole. On January 17th 1912 Captain Scott, Doctor Wilson, Captain Oates, Lieutenant Bowers and Petty Officer Evans arrived at the Pole, just 33 days after the Norwegian Amundsen and his men became the first men to reach the Pole. Disheartened Scott and his men built a cairn, planted the Union Jack and photographed themselves before starting the long march home. Their disappointment was obvious when Scott wrote: ‘The POLE. Yes, but under very different circumstances from those expected. Great God! This is an awful place and terrible enough for us to have laboured to it without the reward of priority.’

Conditions on the return journey were difficult and temperatures were obviously becoming colder. All the men were suffering from slow starvation, hypothermia and almost certainly scurvy. Just a few miles away from their supply depot a blizzard stopped them from continuing their journey and on March 29th Scott made his final journal entry including this message to the public: ‘...but for my own sake I do not regret this journey, which has shown that Englishmen can endure hardships, help one another, and meet death with as great a fortitude as ever in the past...Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions which would have stirred the heart of every Englishman. These rough notes and our dead bodies must tell the tale...’

 

The Trust is delighted to be in partnership with iconic
Quba & Co. A percentage of the proceeds of this irresistible clothing and paraphernalia will be donated to the Antarctic Heritage Trust.  Click here to see the range.

Port Lockroy - our living museum

The restored base of Port Lockroy continues as the flagship of the Trust.  The reconstructed Nissen hut now provides much needed accommodation for the staff.  Other historic sites Wordie House and Damoy refuge have had some final work with the major project to make the old Base 'W' at Detaille Island structurally sound and weathertight.  The Port Lockroy team is writing a weekly Diary. There are also diaries from the work teams at Damoy and Detaille.