Robert Scott, an English polar explorer and discoverer, devoted much of his life to the study of Antarctica and the South Pole. This material is dedicated to Robert Falcon Scott and his four companions, who returned from the South Pole in the spring of 1912 and died from hunger, incredible cold and physical exhaustion.
Origin and childhood
Robert Falcon Scott was born July 6, 1868 in the English port town of Davenport. His father, John Scott, unlike his brothers who served in the Navy, was in poor health, which may have prevented him from fulfilling his dreams. John owned a brewery and did not live in poverty, but he was hardly satisfied with his existence, for many years dreaming of a brighter and more saturated life.
As a child, Robert, who, like his father, could not boast of good health, having heard from his uncles all kinds of stories about the sea, and he himself ignited the romance of distant wanderings. In his children's games, he imagined himself a brave admiral, confidently leading his ship towards uncharted lands. He was stubborn, small, lazy, and even somewhat messy, but as he grew older he found the strength in himself to overcome these shortcomings.
Education
Initially, Robert Scott studied literacy with a governess, and at the age of eight he entered school. Interestingly, the little boy traveled to an educational institution located in a neighboring town, moving on ponies, which occupied a special place in his life.
Studying for young Robert was not too easy, however, his parents soon decided to send him to the naval school. Perhaps his father hoped that his son, keen on sea voyages, would thus show more interest in learning and be able to get a decent education. But he still did not become a diligent student, which, however, did not prevent him from being enrolled as a midshipman in the Royal Navy in 1881.
Young Scott sets foot on the sailor's path. Meet Clements Markham
For two years, Robert went sailing on the training ship Britannia, on which he earned the rank of midshipman. In subsequent years, he sailed on an armored corvette Boadicea, and at the age of 19 he got on the Rover, which was a ship of the training squadron of the Navy. Despite the fact that Robert Scott is a traveler from birth, he spent a lot of time at sea, the service did not particularly attract him, and he still dreamed of sailing to distant lands. But among his comrades, he enjoyed a certain authority and respect, as he was considered a person with exceptionally good qualities.
And then once on the ship of the squadron appeared Clements Markham, to a large extent influenced the future life of Robert Scott. This man was the secretary of the Royal Geographical Society, he was interested in young and talented people. In the meantime, races were organized on boats, the winner of which was Scott, after which he met Markem, who paid attention to him.
In the future, Robert Scott took up his studies, which helped him successfully pass the exams and get the rank of lieutenant. Further, he studied navigation and mathematics, pilotage and mine business, and even took artillery fire control courses.
In 1899, Scott's father died, so the young lieutenant had a lot of new worries that almost left him no free time. During this difficult period for him, he meets Markem and learns from him about the upcoming expedition to Antarctica. With his assistance, Robert soon submits a report in which he expresses his desire to lead this enterprise.
First Expedition to Antarctica
With the support of Markem in 1901, Robert Falcon Scott, who by that time had already reached the rank of captain of the 2nd rank, was appointed head of the First British National Antarctic Expedition on board the Discovery vessel. In 1902, travelers managed to overcome the pack ice belt and make their way to the coast of Victoria Land. Thus was discovered the Land of King Edward VII. The expedition, which lasted until 1904, conducted numerous studies.
Since the results of this campaign are very satisfactory, the name of Scott gains some fame in certain circles. Researchers managed to collect a lot of interesting material and even find fossils of plants belonging to the so-called Tertiary period (65–1.8 million years ago), which became a real scientific sensation. In short, Robert Scott provided scientists with a lot of new work.
New life period
Since then, the name of Robert Scott has increasingly become associated with the Antarctic, while he, having gained experience, began to develop modern means designed to facilitate travel in polar conditions. In between work, Robert attended dinner parties, to which he was very eagerly invited. At one of the social events, he met Kathleen Bruce (sculptor), who in 1908 became his wife. The following year they had a first-born, named Peter Markem.
Preparing a new expedition
Almost at the same time as the birth of his son, preparations were announced for the new expedition of Scott, who intended to conquer the South Pole. Robert Scott suggested that minerals could be discovered in the bowels of Antarctica, while at the same time preparations were underway for a similar enterprise in America, but it was not so easy to raise the funds needed to organize this trip.
The fundraising campaign for Scott's expedition revived after the famous Robert Peary, who in 1909 announced the conquest of the North Pole, spoke out about his intention to reach the South. In addition, it became known that the Germans also intend to move in this direction. The preparation of the English expedition was in full swing, and Robert Scott worked tirelessly, whose biography, however, talks about him as a hardworking and purposeful man. They say that in the first place he thought more about scientific prospects than about conquering the South Pole.
Beginning of the expedition Terra Nova
By the fall of 1910, Robert Scott was finally able to thoroughly prepare for the upcoming trip, and already on September 2, the ship Terra Nova went sailing. The expedition vessel sailed to Australia, then arrived in New Zealand. On January 3, 1911, Terra Nova reached McMurdo Bay, located near Victoria Land. Soon, travelers discovered the camp of Royal Amundsen (the Norwegian record holder polar explorer), who subsequently first reached the South Pole.
November 2 began the most difficult advance to the pole. The motor sled, on which the travelers had high hopes, had to be abandoned, since they were unsuitable for moving along hummocks. Ponies also did not live up to their hopes, so they had to be euthanized, and people were forced to carry the heavy load necessary to make the campaign. Robert Scott, who felt responsible for his comrades, decided to send seven of them back. Five went further: Robert himself, officers Henry Bowers, Lawrence Ots and Edgar Evans, as well as physician Edward Wilson.
Achieving a goal or losing?
Travelers reached their goal on January 17, 1912, but what was their disappointment when they saw that the Amundsen expedition visited here shortly before them, namely, December 14, 1911. The Norwegians left a note to Scott asking him to inform the King of Norway of their achievement if they died. It is not known what feelings prevailed in the hearts of the British, but it is easy to guess that they were exhausted not only physically, but also morally, as Robert Scott wrote about in his diary. The photo below was taken on January 18, the day the travelers set off on their return trip. This shot was the last.
But it was still necessary to overcome the return journey, so the Terra Nova expedition, having completed all necessary actions and hoisting the English flag next to the Norwegian one, headed north. Ahead of them were almost one and a half thousand kilometers of hard way, during which ten warehouses with supplies were organized.
Death of travelers
Travelers moved from warehouse to warehouse, gradually freezing limbs and losing strength. On February 17, Edgar Evans died, who had previously fallen into a crack and hit his head hard. The next to die was Lawrence Ots, whose legs were badly frostbitten, because of which he simply could not continue to move on. On March 16, he told his comrades that he wanted to walk, after which he went into darkness forever, not wanting to delay the rest and be a burden for them. His body was never found.
Scott, Wilson and Bowers continued on their way, but only 18 km from the main point they were overtaken by a strong hurricane. The food supplies were running out, and people were so exhausted that they could no longer move on. The blizzard did not abate, and the travelers were forced to stay and wait. March 29, having been at this point for about nine days, all three died of hunger and cold. Unfortunately, the expedition of Robert Scott to the South Pole ended in a very tragic way.
Detection of a dead expedition
A rescue expedition, set off in search of the missing polar explorers, found them only after eight months. The tent, which sheltered them from the cold, wind and snow, eventually became their grave. What the rescuers saw shocked them to the core: exhausted travelers all this time carried with them the most valuable geological collection, whose weight was approximately 15 kg. They did not dare to leave the exhibits burdening them. According to the rescuers, Robert Scott was the last to die.
In his last diary entries, Scott called not to leave their loved ones. He also requested that the diary be given to his wife. In the last minutes of his life, he realized that he would never see her again and wrote a letter for her in which he asked Kathleen to warn their little son from laziness. After all, he himself was once forced to struggle with this disastrous state. Subsequently, Robert's son Peter Scott achieved great results, becoming a famous biologist.
Conclusion
The British, learning about the tragedy that occurred, showed sympathy for their heroically dead compatriots. Through the collection of donations, an amount was collected that was sufficient to ensure a comfortable life for families of polar explorers.
Robert Scott's expeditions are described in several books. The first of them - “Swimming on Discovery” - he wrote with his own hand. Others have also been published, based on Scott's diary and describing his expedition to the South Pole, for example, “The Last Expedition of R. Scott” by Huxley and “The Most Terrible Journey” by E. Cherry-Howard.
It remains only to add that the polar explorers, led by Robert Scott, performed a truly heroic feat, so their names will always remain in the memory of people.