Mar 3, 2010

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The South Pole: An Account of the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition in the Fram, 1910-1912

The South Pole: An Account of the Norwegian Antarctic Expedition in the Fram, 1910-1912Roald AmundsenLondon: Hurst & Company, 2001(First Published in 1912 by John Murray)Having reviewed Apsley Cherry-Garrard’s account of Robert Falcon Scott’s Terra Nova Expedition, and having over the Yuletide read Scott’s diaries from the latter, I deemed it opportune to read Roald...

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Dec 15, 2009

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King Alfred the Great

King Alfred [c.849-99], the ninth-century warrior-philosopher, is undoubtedly one of the greatest figures to have graced England’s shores. But whilst he is usually remembered for uniting the various regional strands of an often divided country against its persistent Viking adversaries, his many cultural triumphs remain either forgotten or overlooked. In this article I intend...

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Dec 13, 2009

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Shackleton’s Forgotten Men

Shackleton’s Forgotten Men: The Untold Tragedy of the Endurance EpicLennard BickelLondon: Pimlico, 2001The heroic age of Antarctic exploration ended with Ernest Shackleton’s Endurance expedition of 1914-1916. And this, no doubt because of the relatively recent film starring Kenneth Branagh, is nowadays probably the best known of the many incredible adventures experienced by...

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Sep 26, 2009

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The Worst Journey in the World

The Worst Journey in the WorldApsley Cherry-GarrardLondon: Pimlico, 2003I remember watching the 1948 film Scott of the Antarctic at some point in the early 1990s and marveling both at its grimness and the sheer Englishness of its sensibilities. The film dramatizes Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s successful but ultimately tragic South Polar Journey, undertaken in 1911 during his...

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