Great Explorers Codexery

Ernest Shackleton

Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions and set a Farthest South record of 88°23′ S.

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Ernest Shackleton

via Wikipedia: Ernest Shackleton · see source

Ernest Shackleton was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer born on 15 February 1874 in County Kildare, Ireland.[1][2] He is best known for leading the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, during which his ship Endurance was crushed by ice and his crew escaped after a two-year ordeal.[3] Shackleton died of a heart attack on 5 January 1922 off South Georgia.[1]

Ernest Shackleton (1921 portrait-2)
Ernest Shackleton (1921 portrait-2). Image: Reginald Grenville Eves · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Life and work

Shackleton joined the merchant navy at age sixteen after attending Dulwich College.[2][4] In 1901 he was chosen for Robert Falcon Scott's Discovery Expedition, reaching a record farthest south latitude of 82°17′ S.[1][5] He was invalided home early from that journey but gained valuable polar experience.[2][1] Shackleton led his own Nimrod Expedition from 1907 to 1909, reaching a new farthest south of 88°23′ S.[6][2]

Ernest Henry Shackleton
Ernest Henry Shackleton. Image: Bain News Service, publisher · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

After Amundsen and Scott reached the South Pole, Shackleton planned to cross Antarctica from sea to sea.[2][7] The crew escaped by camping on ice and then sailing lifeboats to Elephant Island.[7][2] Shackleton then made an 800-mile open-boat journey to South Georgia with five companions to seek help.[2][8] He died during his fourth Antarctic expedition and was buried in Grytviken cemetery on South Georgia.[7]

Ernest Henry Shackleton (1921 portrait)
Ernest Henry Shackleton (1921 portrait). Image: Reginald Grenville Eves · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

What the cited sources add

The BBC History account states that Shackleton's family moved to London where he was educated.[1] A Guardian article reports that Shackleton joined the merchant navy at sixteen and thought of scientists as boring deadweights.[4] The BBC News article on the wreck discovery notes that Endurance was found on the 100th anniversary of Shackleton's funeral.[3] The same article states the wreck looks much the same as when photographed by Frank Hurley in 1915.[3]

Sir E. Shackleton Safe - The Times (London)
Sir E. Shackleton Safe - The Times (London). Image: Journalist working for The Times (London, 1916) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

According to ErnestShackleton.net, Shackleton's ancestor Abraham Shackleton was a Quaker from West Yorkshire who relocated to Ballitore, County Kildare and founded a school there in 1726.[2] The Guardian reports that Shackleton sent a cable to the Admiralty offering Endurance and her crew for service in the hostilities that had broken out.[4]

Ernest Shackleton, portrait photo by Frank Hurley, 1916
Ernest Shackleton, portrait photo by Frank Hurley, 1916. Image: Frank Hurley · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Ernest Henry Shackleton Nadar
Ernest Henry Shackleton Nadar. Image: Nadar · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

References

  1. "Historical figures: Ernest Shackleton (1874–1922)", BBC History. facts only, no text reused. bbc.co.uk
  2. "Sir Ernest Shackleton: His Early Life", ErnestShackleton.net. facts only, no text reused. ernestshackleton.net
  3. Amos, "Endurance: Shackleton's lost ship is found in Antarctic", BBC News, 9 March 2022. facts only, no text reused. bbc.com
  4. "Flawed hero who came in from the cold", The Guardian, 29 May 1999. facts only, no text reused. theguardian.com
  5. Wikipedia, "Ernest Shackleton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Fiennes 2003, p. 35; Crane 2005, p. 171–172 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Ernest Shackleton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Mills 1999, p. 72 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Ernest Shackleton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Amos, "Endurance: Shackleton's lost ship is found in Antarctic", BBC News, 9 March 2022; Fountain, "At the Bottom of an Icy Sea, One of History's Great Wrecks Is Found", The New York Times, 9 March 2022 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Ernest Shackleton" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Alexander 1998, p. 10; Barczewski 2007, p. 295 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Ernest Shackleton (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Named in this entry

Heroic Age of Antarctic ExplorationMount ErebusApsley Cherry-GarrardScurvyGuinnessDouglas MawsonFridtjof NansenRomania

More in Great Explorers

Christopher ColumbusFerdinand MagellanMarco PoloVasco da GamaJames CookRoald AmundsenRobert Falcon ScottThe Lewis and Clark ExpeditionZheng HeIbn BattutaLeif EriksonDavid Livingstone

Test yourself

Three questions drawn from this entry’s sources. Pick an answer to check it.

1. In what year did Ernest Shackleton die?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is 1922.

From the source: “Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic”

2. In which place was Ernest Shackleton born?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is Kilkea, County Kildare, Ireland.

From the source: “Born in Kilkea, County Kildare, Ireland, Shackleton and his Anglo-Irish family moved to Sydenham in suburban south London when he was ten.”

3. In what year was Ernest Shackleton born?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is 1874.

From the source: “Ernest Henry Shackleton was born on 15 February 1874 in Kilkea, County Kildare, Ireland.”

Answers checked against the source article

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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