Shackleton in the news
On the 150th anniversary of his birth, Sir Ernest’s achievements were honoured in a very special celebration in Westminster Abbey.
Unveiling of the Shackleton Memorial by The Princess Royal, Princess Anne
Following the traditional Choral Evensong on 15 February a private dedication ceremony was held in the Abbey’s South Cloister, close to a memorial to other pioneering sailors – Captain James Cook, Sir Francis Chichester and Sir Francis Drake.
This iconic new Shackleton memorial was created by sculptor Will Davies and incorporates stones including Connemara marble and Kilkenny limestone to reflect Shackleton’s Irish heritage. The event was attended by representatives of the James Caird Society, The Scott Polar Research Institute and the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust, amongst others, and the memorial stone was dedicated by the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr David Hoyle. HRH The Princess Royal, Patron of the UKAHT, unveiled the memorial.
Picture by kind permission of Dean and Chapter of Westminster/Picture Partnership
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Please see Events for details of a 150th Anniversary Conference to be held at the RGS from Friday 17 to Sunday 19 May
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In other Shackleton-related news judging will soon be taking place to decide on this year’s recipient of the annual Shackleton Medal for the Protection of the Polar Regions. The medal, now in its third year, comes with ten thousand GBP of prize money for the winner. The panel of judges, which includes JCS President Alexandra Shackleton, is looking for an individual who has demonstrated courage, determination against the odds and leadership in their work to promote understanding of and protection of the poles. Marine biologists, campaigning filmmakers, scientists and explorers are among the professions encouraged to apply.
Nominations will be open until April 5. More information is available here in this short film about the award.
Long-serving members of the JCS will remember our 2013 Newsletter featuring the Epic Expedition which replicated the original trip of the James Caird across the Southern Ocean from Elephant Island to South Georgia using the same rudimentary equipment, period clothing and technology as Shackleton had nearly 100 years before. This 2013 expedition, led by Tim Jarvis, was the first authentic retracing of ‘the double’ (completion of the voyage as well as the crossing of mountains and glaciers).
A new publication is now available from St James Park Press which tells the fascinating story of Aurora Australis, the first book written, printed, illustrated and bound in Antarctica, during the Nimrod Expedition, 1907-9.
The Ice Tracks expedition to commemorate the centenary of Shackleton’s death aboard Quest in 1922 set sail from Ushuaia on 31 December 2022, having been unavoidably delayed by Covid. The expedition party, comprising some 80 adventurers aboard the Island Sky, included JCS members (notably Chairman Rear Admiral Nick Lambert) as well as Patrick Bergel, the Boss’s great-grandson, and Dr Joseph Spence, Master of Dulwich College.