Shackleton, Ernest Henry, sir, 1874-1922
Variant namesEpithet: Major
British Library Archives and Manuscripts Catalogue : Person : Description : ark:/81055/vdc_100000001512.0x0000a1
The Endurance was a barquentine in which Sir Ernest Shackleton sailed for the Antarctic during the ill-fated 1914 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (also known as the "Endurance Expedition"); she was crushed under heavy ice and sank November 21, 1915 in the Weddell Sea. Completed in Norway on December 17, 1912 and christened Polaris, she was built of oak and Norwegian fir planks, sheathed in greenheart. As well as sails, she also had a 350 hp coal-fired steam engine capable of 10.2 knots, useful for pushing through heavy ice and capable of manuervering through loose pack ice. Upon her launch, she may have been the strongest ship ever built.
Ernest Shackleton, leader of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition and part of two other Antarctic expeditions, acquired Polaris after her owner's financial trouble. Renamed Endurance after the Shackleton family motto Fortitudine vincimus (By Endurance we Conquer), she sailed intending to accomplish the first land crossing of the Antarctic continent. She departed for her final voyage on December 15, 1914 but progress was slow, averaging about 30 miles per day through pack ice. A month later, within 200 miles of their destination of Vahsel Bay, a gale developed with sightings of heavy pack ice. She took shelter for the next two days under a large grounded berg and made more progress on January 18 until encountering another ice pack, full of thick but soft ice floes, and was beset by the ice. By January 24, the Endurance was forced to float, waiting for the ice to open up, until crushed on October 27, 1915, and sinking a month later.
The crew attempted to call for help, but their location was too remote for the wireless. Although the ship had been capable of withstanding massive stresses caused by the heavy ice, on October 24, the starboard hull caught against a large ice floe and the hull bent and splintered until water poured in. Shackleton gave the order to abandon ship three days later. Shackleton's mission changed from a transcontinental journey to one of survival. Traveling by foot was nearly impossible, and Shackleton decided to await the break-up of the ice, attempting two marches which were abandoned because of difficulties. On April 8, 1916, the ice floe the crew had been living on split suddenly, and the crew and Shackleton readied the lifeboats for departure towards land. Moving slowly through ice packs, the lifeboats made it to Elephant Island in April. However, Elephant Island was uninhabited and rarely visited by other ships so Shackleton with five other men readied the lifeboat James Caird for the 800 mile journey to South Georgia for help. On May 10, the party reached South Georgia. On August 30, 1916, Shackelton's rescue mission reached the twenty-two members of his crew left behind; all survived after being at sea for nearly two years.
From the guide to the Letter from Ernest Shackleton to J. Cates, Esq. (MS 378), 6th August, 1914, (University of Colorado at Boulder Libraries. Special Collections Dept.)
Role | Title | Holding Repository | |
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referencedIn | Reginald Skelton collection, 1899 - 1950 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sir Raymond Priestley collection, 1907-1974 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Tannatt William Edgeworth David collection, 1907-1930 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir, 1874-1922. Letter. | Smithsonian Institution. Libraries | |
referencedIn | Norman Mooney collection, 1921 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | James Mann Wordie collection, 1914-1958 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Grosvenor, Edwin A. (Edwin Augustus), 1845-1936. Grosvenor family papers, 1827-1981 (bulk 1872-1964). | Library of Congress | |
creatorOf | Oswald-Sealy, L. R. Papers [manuscript]. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Eric Stewart Marshall collection, 1907-1953 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Bartholomew collection, 1904 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Gerald Doorly collection, 1901 - 1929 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | James Caird collection, 1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Shackleton, Ernest Henry Sir, 1874-1922. Signature [manuscript]. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | William Beardmore collection, 1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | James William Dell collection, 1908-1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Rupert Gould collection, 1921-1949 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Ernest Joyce collection, 1907-1930 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Frederick Pryce Evans collection, 1907-1909 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | George Mulock collection, 1902-1907 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Ships, Quest collection, 1921 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Orde Lees, Thomas, 1877-1958. Diary, 1915 March 24-1916 April 16. | Dartmouth College Library | |
referencedIn | Arthur Balfour polar correspondence collection, 1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Fridtjof Nansen collection, 1893-1925 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | George Murray collection, 1893-1905 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | James Paton collection, 1910-1916 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Perce Blackborow collection, 19-- | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Greely, A. W. (Adolphus Washington), 1844-1935. Papers, 1876-1973. | Dartmouth College Library | |
referencedIn | Bassett Jones (collector) records, 1818-1938. | Columbia University in the City of New York, Columbia University Libraries | |
referencedIn | J Austin Hussey collection, 1922-1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Verner Carse collection, 1936-1980 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Reginald William James collection, 1914 - 1957 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Henry Ernest Wild collection, 1914-1916 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Gray, Margaret. Scrapbooks, postcards, letter and photograph collected by Margaret Gray [manuscript], 1903-1911, (bulk 1910). | University of Virginia. Library | |
referencedIn | Leo Cotton collection, 1908 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Grosvenor Family Papers, 1827-1981, (bulk 1872-1964) | Library of Congress. Manuscript Division | |
referencedIn | Dame Janet Stancomb-Wills collection, 1914-1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | British National Antarctic Expedition collection, 1899-1964 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | C Howle collection, 1907 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Herbert Asquith collection, [1909]-1916 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Maud Dorman collection, 1907 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Enid Briggs collection, 1910-1927 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | George Curzon collection, 1911-1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | George Douglas collection, 1921-1946 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sidney Riches collection, 1907-1909 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Quiller Rowett collection, 1922-1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Charles Dorman collection, 1893-1901 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Emily Shackleton collection, 1885-1935 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Leonard Darwin collection, 1909-1931 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | James Marr collection, 1922-1940 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Lee Keedick collection, 1920 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Nicetas Petrides collection, 1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Christie, William Henry Mahoney Sir. Papers [microform]. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Antarctic Newspaper, The Blizzard, 1902 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Charles Jagger collection, 1931 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Charlotte and George Bernard Shaw collection, 1912-1924 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Henry William Massingham collection, 1919 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Douglas George Jeffrey collection, 1921-1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Walter How collection, 1905-1943 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | James Francis [Frank] Hurley collection, 1912-1917 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Charles Sarolea collection, 1905 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir, 1874-1922. Autograph letter signed : Marlborough Club, to Mr. Pierpont Morgan, 1911 July 25. | Pierpont Morgan Library. | |
referencedIn | Alexander Hepburne Macklin collection, 1914 - 1964 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Mather collection, 1911-1913 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Dell, James William. Papers. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Hugh Robert Mill collection, 1897-1943 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Alfred Reid collection, 1908 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Paul Hodder-Williams collection, 1957-1958 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | British Antarctic Expedition, 1907-1909, 1907-1909 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Rudyard Kipling collection, 1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Arthur Drummond Steel collection, 1912 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Henry Dunlop collection, 1907 - 1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Scott Keltie collection, 1907-1919 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Richards, Richard W. Letter, 1983 February 25, to William Laird McKinlay. | Dartmouth College Library | |
referencedIn | Rupert England collection, 1907-1924 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition [Ross Sea Party] 1914-1917, 1901-1917 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Great Britain, Admiralty, Hydrographic Department collection, 1840-1974 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Charles Mackellar collection, 1908-1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sir William Ellison-Macartney collection, 1900-1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John King Davis collection, 1905-1951 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | The Otago Harbour Board collection, 1916 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Charles Maynard collection, 1918-1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Edward Shackleton collection, 1932-1994 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Hope Guthrie collection, 1922-1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Bassett collection, 1921 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | George Marston collection, 1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Thomas Hans Orde-Lees collection, 1914-1917 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sir Harry Rawson collection, 1904-1907 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Alister Forbes Mackay collection, 1909 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Frank Worsley collection, 1889-1958 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | G S Lysaght collection, 1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton collection, 1874-1992 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Arthur Edward Harbord collection, 1907-1986 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | David, T. W. Edgeworth (Tannatt William Edgeworth) Sir, 1858-1934. With Shackleton : press cuttings. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Neville Chamberlain, polar correspondence, 1904-1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Robert Falcon Scott collection, 1889-1966 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | British Antarctic Expedition (1907-1909). [Signatures of members of the British Antarctic Expedition 1907-1909] [mansucript]. | Newberry Library | |
referencedIn | Ships, Endurance collection, 20th century | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir, 1874-1922. Diary [microform] : on board the "Discovery". | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Baron Desborough of Taplow collection, 1914 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Dr Leonard Hussey collection, 1914-1950 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Thomas Crean collection, 1905 - 1920 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Lionel Greenstreet collection, 1914-1964 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | George Wilkins collection, 1921-1935 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Philip Brocklehurst collection, 1907-1908 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Long, Robert L., Jr. Papers, 1956-1958 | New Hampshire Newsp Project | |
referencedIn | Reverend Arnold Patrick Spencer-Smith collection, 1915-1916 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | William Colbeck collection, 1902-1904 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Henry G. Bryant. Correspondence books, 1897-1913. | Dartmouth College Library | |
referencedIn | William Olliffe collection, 1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Alfred Hutchinson collection, 1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Harold Watts collection, 1921-1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sir George Goldie collection, 1901-1907 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Worsley, Frank Arthur, 1872-1943. Journals [microform]. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Stephen Gwynn collection, 1929 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Robert Francis Wild collection, 1873-1939 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Alfred Cheetham collection, 1907-1913 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Antarctic publication, Aurora Australis, 1908 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Michael Barne collection, 1901-1907 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Joseph Russell Stenhouse collection, 1914-1920 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Owen Burne collection, 1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | John Lachlan Cope collection, 1919-1926 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Lewis Beaumont collection, 1875-1922 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Sir William Huggins collection, 1901-1903 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
referencedIn | Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition [Weddell Sea Party], 1914-1916 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Koettlitz, Reginald, 1861-1916. Autograph album, 1824-1900. | New Hampshire Newsp Project | |
referencedIn | Shackleton-Rowett Antarctic Expedition, 1921-1922, 1919-1923 | Scott Polar Research Institute | |
creatorOf | Letter from Ernest Shackleton to J. Cates, Esq. (MS 378), 6th August, 1914 | University of Colorado at Boulder Libraries. Special Collections Dept. | |
creatorOf | Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir, 1874-1922. [Letters] [manuscript]. | Libraries Australia | |
referencedIn | Sims, Irene Sickel, 1887-1980. Irene Sickel Sims diary, 1916-1967, bulk 1916-1917. | Duke University Libraries, Duke University Library; Perkins Library | |
referencedIn | Robert Selbie Clark collection, 1911-1950 | Scott Polar Research Institute |
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Explorers--Correspondence |
Endurance (Ship) |
Imperial Trans--Antarctic Expedition (1914-1917) |
Scientific expeditions |
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Person
Birth 1874-02-15
Death 1922-01-05
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