100 years ago today

Sir Ernest Shackleton and a small crew reached the shores of South Georgia after a 14 day, 800 mile crossing of the most dangerous seas on the planet in a 23ft rowing boat. It’s a great story of endurance and leadership though that’s only a small part of it.

I will pick up the tale a few years earlier. In the great days of exploration Shackleton wanted to be the first to cross the Antarctic. In order to do this he had to raise funding, recruit a crew and buy a ship to get them down there.

This was his advert in the Times:

Men Wanted

For hazardous journey
Small wages
Bitter cold
Long months of complete darkness
Constant danger
Safe return doubtful
Honour and recognition in case of success

Sometimes when I am working with students and young professionals I ask them “how many people do you think responded?” The answer I usually get is “nobody”. Over 5000 actually responded and not by e mail, they turned up and formed a long queue to be interviewed personally by the man.

Anyway, after many trials and tribulations around funding and Government permission, Shackleton and crew set sail in August 1914 at the dawn of World War 1 and made way to Buenos Aires, to South Georgia Island and eventually to the Antarctic Circle where they ploughed into ice-encrusted waters and got stuck. For well over a year!

Not long out of port the ships cat got washed aboard so they turned round to rescue it. Ah, the English and their pets!

After over a year stuck in the ice Shackleton changed his strategy and abandoned the expedition and his ship, Endurance, and turned all his thoughts towards survival and the safe return of all his men. The cat and husky dogs had long since been eaten. In two small life boats he and crew of twenty three headed Northwards through treacherous waters in an attempt to reach land.

Several days and nights later they landed on the small beach of a rock called Elephant Island and lived there in the freezing cold for several months surviving mainly on seal blubber. No Gortex!

With nowhere else to go and no hope of rescue Shackleton took the decision to embark on an 800 mile journey across the most dangerous seas in an attempt to reach South Georgia and to get help. With a crew of five he miraculously hit land 14 days later, exhausted, sleep deprived and emaciated with hunger.

Unfortunately they landed on the wrong side of the Island and were faced with the choice of crossing unchartered mountains or traversing round in a, by now, unseaworthy vessel. Shackleton and two others set out to cross the island on foot, something that had never been done before, leaving the remainder of the small crew to survive until he returned with rescue.

After various near death experiences he got to South Georgia whaling station, had a meal and a few hours’ sleep and then with help departed and rescued the crew on the other side of the Island.

He then set about raising funds to commission a ship to rescue the remainder of his crew stranded on Elephant Island which he succeeded in doing on the third attempt, having been beaten back previously by impossible weather and seas.

All of the crew were returned safely to England over two years after the start of the expedition. Several immediately joined the War effort while Shackleton set about creating a new expedition during which he met his ultimate end in South Georgia, 5th January 1922.

In their book “Shackleton’s Way” Margot Morrell and Stephanie Capparell tell the story much better and more accurately than I and also draw out leadership lessons from the great Antarctic explorer.