Ernest Shackleton

ERNEST SHACKLETON d1922. Irish Anglo Explorer and one of the heroes of the age of Antarctic Exploration along with Captain Scott and Roald Amundsen. The leader of three of his four Antarctic Expeditions. He was knighted after his Nimrod Expedition 1907-1909 in establishing a record for nearest The South Pole just 97 miles short. He was an unsuccesful Parliamentary Candidate and became involved in many business ventures to raise funds for his polar exploration. He will however be best remembered for his superhuman leadership efforts in 1914-1916 during The Imperial Trans Antarctic "Endurance" Expedition. The Expedition to cross The Antarctic continent on foot failed when his ship Endurance was destroyed whilst trapped in ice. He led his contemporaries in one of mans greatest ever feats to refuge on Elephant Island, before leaving them and travelling 800 miles in an open boat with five men, crossing The Southern Ocean to South Georgia. He then braved the island mountainous terrain to reach a whaling station, to initiate a rescue attempt of his men which was entirely succesful after 22 months in The Antarctic. Ernest Shackleton died aged 47 of a heart attack on January 4th 1922 whilst on The Quest Expedition to circum-navigate The Antarctic