The Wilson Art Gallery & Museum

Information Sheet

Ernest Henry Shackleton (1874–1922)

Shackleton was an Anglo-Irish explorer. He made four trips to the , including leading the Endurance expedition for which he is best known. He planned to cross the Antarctic but the ship was crushed and sunk by the ice, and after a series of life threatening adventures, including rowing nearly 800 miles in a small boat in huge oceans, he returned with all his men alive in 1916. A remarkable achievement

Ernest Shackleton and his wife, Emily Dorman Birth and upbringing

Ernest Shackleton was born in County Kildare, Ireland. His father was a doctor, and the family moved to London when Shackleton was a child. He joined the Merchant Navy when he was 16 and qualified as a master mariner in 1898. He travelled widely but was keen to explore the poles.

With Scott and Wilson on the

In 1901, Shackleton joined Falcon Scott’s to the Antarctic. Edward Wilson, from Cheltenham, was also a member of this trip. Shackleton and Wilson spent many hours doing scientific work together; but also joined Scott on a trek towards the . The conditions were terrible, but before they had to turn back, they got closer to the Pole than anyone had before. Shackleton became so seriously ill that he had to return to the UK.

The Expedition

Back in Britain, Shackleton spent some time as a journalist, but did not abandon his dream of returning to the Antarctic. In 1908, he led his own expedition, on the ship Nimrod. During the expedition, his team climbed , the world’s southern-most volcano, made many important scientific discoveries and set a record by getting even closer to the South Pole than before. He was knighted on his return to Britain. The Endurance Expedition

In 1914, Shackleton made his third trip to the Antarctic with the ship Endurance, aiming to cross via the South Pole. Early in 1915, Endurance became trapped in the ice, and ten months later sank. Shackleton achieved the extraordinary feat of rescuing all his men, despite having to move from ice camp to ice camp, and then row to Elephant Island in 3 small boats. There he left most of the crew to live as best they could in two of the boats, upturned to form huts. Meanwhile Shackleton A set of commemorative postage stamps celebrating the centenary of and 5 others rowed 800 miles to summon help the Endurance Expedition. through some of the strongest seas in the oceans to South Georgia. Even then they were not out of trouble, as Shackleton and two colleagues had to cross the mountains, and glaciers of the island to reach the whaling station, , a feat never before achieved. This epic trip led geologist JB Priestley to say, ‘For scientific discovery, give me Scott; for speed and efficiency of travel, give me Amundsen; but when you are in a hopeless situation, when you are seeing no way out, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton’. All Shackleton’s men were rescued alive.

First World War

Shackleton returned to Britain in 1917, before the end of the First World War, and immediately volunteered his services to help the war effort. He was sent to South America to encourage support, but diplomacy was not his forte, and he was subsequently sent to Russia to train the British Army for conditions.

The Expedition

Shackleton's fourth and final expedition, in which he aimed to circumnavigate the Antarctic continent, was on board the Quest. He set off in 1921 but on 5 January 1922 he died of a heart attack off South Georgia and was buried, at this wife’s request, on the island.

Quest sitting in harbour