Sir John Franklin: Expeditions to Destiny

by Anthony Dalton

Overview

After Royal Navy captain Sir John Franklin disappeared in the Arctic in 1846 while seeking the Northwest Passage, the search for his two ships, Erebus and Terror, and survivors of his expedition became one of the most exhaustive quests of the 19th century. Despite tantalizing clues, the ships were never found, and the fate of Franklin’s expedition passed into legend as one of the North’s great and enduring mysteries.

Anthony Dalton explores the eventful and fascinating life of this complex and intelligent man, beginning with his early sea voyages and arduous overland explorations in the Arctic. After years in Malta and Tasmania, Franklin realized his dream of returning to the Far North; it would be his last expedition. Drawing from evidence found by 19th-century Arctic explorers following in Franklin’s footsteps and investigations by 20th-century historians and archaeologists, Dalton retraces the route of the lost ships and recounts the sad tale of Franklin, his officers and men in their final agonizing months.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781927051825
Publisher:	Heritage House
Publication date:	09/04/2012
Series:	Amazing Stories
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	144
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Anthony Dalton is a writer, adventurer and photographer. His expeditions have taken him across the Sahara, through the deserts of the Middle East, through the jungles of Bangladesh and into the Arctic. His adventure and boating-related articles have been published in magazines and newspapers in 20 countries and in nine languages. Anthony is past president of the Canadian Authors Association. He now spends much of his time travelling the world by sea as a guest speaker for two cruise lines.

Table of Contents

Prologue 9

Introduction 12

Chapter 1 The Boy Sailor 16

Chapter 2 To the Arctic 26

Chapter 3 Rivers, Muskeg and Waterfalls 34

Chapter 4 The Spectre of Cannibalism 49

Chapter 5 Overland to the Polar Sea, Again 59

Chapter 6 A Rainbow in the Mediterranean 70

Chapter 7 Governor of Van Diemen's Land 76

Chapter 8 To the Northwest Passage 85

Chapter 9 Somewhere in the Arctic 94

Chapter 10 An Expedition Disappears 101

Chapter 11 Where is Franklin? 108

Chapter 12 The Answers Begin to Emerge 118

Epilogue 128

Selected Bibliography 136

Index 138

Acknowledgements 140