Tag: Sir Ernest Shackleton

Shackleton’s original Quest crow’s nest comes home after world tour

HRH The Princess Royal welcomes home the iconic lookout barrel to the UK following its journey around the world from Athy in Ireland to South Georgia and back 

Sir Ernest Shackleton’s original Quest Crow’s Nest – a lookout barrel from his fourth and final voyage on expedition ship Quest – is back in the UK after touring the world. 

The Crow’s Nest (or Quest Barrel) is one of the last vestiges from the Shackleton-Rowett Antarctic Expedition, also known as The Quest Expedition. It arrived back at All Hallows by the Tower church in London, having been the centrepiece of the South Georgia Museum’s ‘Shackleton’s Last Quest’ exhibition in Grytviken for the past year and a half, its first return to South Georgia since the Quest Expedition in 1922.

It formed part of a special event on 7 September marking the achievements of the intrepid explorer and renowned leader Sir Ernest Shackleton, organised by charity the South Georgia Heritage Trust (SGHT) and attended by the Trust’s Patron HRH The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence. 

The Quest Expedition was Shackleton’s last journey. After arriving at the quiet waters of King Edward Cove in South Georgia on 4 January 1922, Shackleton unexpectedly died of a heart attack in the early hours the next morning.

His untimely death saw an outpouring of grief across the world and came to be seen as the end of the heroic era of polar exploration. Shackleton was buried on 5 March 1922 in the small cemetery at the whaling station at Grytviken, South Georgia.

The event at All Hallows provided not only an opportunity to celebrate the return of the Crow’s Nest, but also brought together modern-day polar explorers including Dr John Shears, the leader of the Endurance22 expedition funded by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, which discovered the resting place of Shackleton’s famous ship Endurance on the seafloor beneath the ice in the Antarctic’s Weddell Sea. 

Following the event at All Hallows, Dr Shears spoke at a special dinner attended by HRH The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence.

As part of his talk, Dr Shears showed a short film about the Stromness Villa narrated by TV presenter and historian Dan Snow, and also a fellow Endurance22 team member. The film shows never-before seen footage of the Stromness Villa as it is now and the degradation that the ravages of the South Georgia climate have caused over the years.

The dinner aims to raise vital funds to conserve Shackleton’s heritage on South Georgia. This includes the famous Manager’s Villa at Stromness where Shackleton, Captain Frank Worsley and Tom Crean sought help after their epic trek across the island after Endurance was crushed and sunk in the ice.

Alison Neil, CEO of the South Georgia Heritage Trust (SGHT) said: “The Trust has worked tirelessly to conserve the island’s iconic wildlife and now we are delighted to be able to help conserve some of South Georgia’s most iconic cultural heritage.

“Shackleton’s links with South Georgia make the island special for so many visitors, so it’s only right that we ensure key parts of his story, like the Stromness Villa, are preserved too.

“Alongside the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands and the Friends of South Georgia Island, we are exploring how this villa – which was the site of such an emblematic moment in the golden age of polar exploration – can be saved from further disrepair to be cherished by generations to come.”

Dr John Shears said: “Finding Endurance was a once in a lifetime moment for me and the Endurance22 expedition team.

“I am delighted that as part of this event celebrating the return of the Quest Crow’s Nest, we are also looking to preserve Shackleton’s historic legacy on South Georgia and how we might conserve the magical Manager’s Villa at Stromness, both physically and digitally, for the future.”

You can view the film here and see the atmospheric villa and its surroundings.

To find out more about the work of SGHT and the ongoing work it does to protect the wildlife, landscape and heritage of the island visit: www.sght.org

PICTURED L-R: The Rev’d Katherine Hedderly, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, HRH The Princess Royal and Nick Prentice (Chair of SGHT), with Sir Ernest Shackleton’s original Quest Crow’s Nest at All Hallows by the Tower church. Credit Art Lewry, Culture Communications Collective

Endurance22 Expedition Team follow successful discovery with visit to South Georgia

The Endurance22 team visit Shackleton’s grave to pay their respects and see a new exhibition celebrating his life at the South Georgia Museum 

The Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) and the South Georgia Heritage Trust (SGHT) were delighted to welcome the Endurance22 Expedition Team to South Georgia following their successful location of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s sunken ship the Endurance last week.

The small island of South Georgia, a beacon of hope in international conservation terms due to the recovery of its ecosystem, is also at the heart of another important story. It is synonymous with Shackleton, as the island played host to the beginning and the conclusion of the ill-fated Endurance Expedition (1914-1917) and is also Shackleton’s final resting place. 

The Endurance22 Expedition Team were keen to visit South Georgia to pay respects to Shackleton and toast the explorer at his grave. Whilst there they also visited the South Georgia Museum, operated by SGHT on behalf of GSGSSI, to see an exhibition celebrating Shackleton’s remarkable life and achievements.

Members of the expedition team including Expedition Leader Dr John Shears, and history broadcaster Dan Snow, were able to see artefacts from Endurance that are central to the story, including the almanac used to guide the voyage, a life size replica of the James Caird lifeboat used to reach South Georgia, splinters from the oars and the boat itself, and a scale model of Endurance.

The exhibition ‘Shackleton’s Last Quest’ focuses on Shackleton’s untimely death and his final resting place at Grytviken on the sub-Antarctic Island of South Georgia and showcases the significance this small British Overseas Territory played in his story. It also looks at his life and the personal qualities that made him so extraordinary, resulting in him still being revered around the world today, a century after his death. 

Dr John Shears, the Endurance22 Expedition Leader and veteran polar geographer, said: “After our incredible discovery of Shackleton’s ship Endurance in the Weddell Sea, the Endurance22 expedition onboard the S.A. Agulhas II was very fortunate to be able to stop off and visit the island of South Georgia today (11 March 2022).

“The team visited the whaler’s cemetery at Grytviken where the famous polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton is buried and held a short ceremony to commemorate his life and to pay our respects to the great man.

“Shackleton was buried at South Georgia on 5 March 1922, and we discovered his ship the Endurance deep on the seafloor of the Weddell Sea exactly 100 years later on 5 March 2022.

” While the team were at Grytviken we also took the opportunity to visit the South Georgia Museum and viewed their excellent Shackleton exhibition, including several historic artefacts used on the Endurance Expedition.

“Our visit to Grytviken today was a wonderful and fitting way for us to end our historic mission.’

Amanda Milling, FCDO’s Minister for the Polar Regions, said: “Many congratulations to the Endurance22 expedition on successfully locating the final resting place of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance.

“The story of this vessel continues to inspire us to understand and protect Antarctica.”

His Excellency The Commissioner for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Nigel Phillips CBE said: “I want to pay tribute to the remarkable efforts of the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust in finding the Endurance – it is truly a historic achievement. 

“I recognise also that this success is many years in the making. The story of Shackleton is intimately woven into the story of South Georgia and the Falkland Islands, and what makes this discovery even more remarkable is that it occurred in the centenary year of his passing. I extend my congratulations to everyone aboard Argulhas II, and the wider team across the world.”

Laura Sinclair Willis, Chief Executive of the GSGSSI said: “Everyone in the Government was delighted to hear the news of this historic discovery by the team from Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust.

“We are equally delighted that they were able to visit South Georgia and the Museum at Grytviken and pay their respects at Grytviken cemetery to this extraordinary man.

“It is truly humbling to witness such a momentous occasion in polar history, especially almost one hundred years to the day that Sir Ernest Shackleton was laid to rest on these shores. We enjoyed meeting the expedition team, and joining them in a toast to “The Boss”.’

Alison Neil, Chief Executive of SGHT, the UK charity which manages the Museum on behalf of GSGSSI said: ‘The South Georgia Museum is possibly one of the most remote museums in the world but tells a powerful and important story.

“As curators of the island’s fascinating heritage, we were delighted to be able to showcase the museum’s current Shackleton exhibition to the Endurance22 Expedition Team.

“There can surely be no more appropriate audience than this team of modern-day explorers who through their determination succeeded in finding Shackleton’s lost ship Endurance.

“One of the key locations for the Endurance story on South Georgia is the Manager’s Villa at Stromness, which Shackleton, Worsley and Crean reached after trekking for three days solid across South Georgia’s mountainous centre, having landed on the south side of the island hoping to find help. It was from here that they secured the assistance of the whalers and launched the rescue mission that saved the entire Endurance crew.

“We are in the very early stages of fundraising to undertake a survey of Stromness Whaling Station and the Manager’s Villa to explore how we can preserve the rich heritage of this small island, and further develop the Shackleton legacy.”

An online version of the Shackleton exhibition can be found at:

https://sgmuseum.gs/shackletonslastquest/