Francis Edward Charles Davies was appointed leading shipwright on the British Antarctic Expedition, 1910-1913 (leader Robert Falcon Scott), with responsibility for fitting out the expedition ship Terra Nova and designing and building the expedition's prefabricated winter quarters. A member of the search party sent to look for Scott and those missing with him in 1912, Davies constructed the memorial cross which was erected over the cairn containing the bodies of Scott, Edward Adrian Wilson and Henry Robertson Bowers.
After returning from the Antarctic, he served with the Grand Fleet and on mine-laying operations during the First World War. In 1919, he travelled to Archangel in Russia where he was placed in charge of docking and repairs to all shipping operating in the White Sea and Dvina River.
Between 1919 and 1920, he served in HMS Sandhurst during operations in the Baltic, after which he took voluntary retirement. From 1927 to 1934, he served on the Discovery Investigations in the Royal Research Ships Discovery II and William Scoresby, which were engaged in scientific work in connection with the management of the Southern Ocean whaling industry. In Discovery II, Davies rose from the rank of fourth officer to navigator and, in 1931, served as master during a Hydrographic survey off Peru and Chile, before passing his master's certificate in 1932. During the Second World War, he served as lieutenant in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve.
From the guide to the Francis Davies collection, 1913, (Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge)
