On December 5, 1914, Earnest Shackleton set out with 14 men aboard the Endurance in an arctic t
On December 5, 1914, Earnest Shackleton set out with 14 men aboard the Endurance in an arctic transcontinental journey to cross the polar antarctic. Shackleton recruited sailors for his trip by posting an advertisement in the London paper. In the ad, he stated, “Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honor and recognition in the event of success." Shackleton got nearly 5,000 applications for the expedition, including three women who claimed they would be willing to "don masculine attire." It quickly became apparent to both Shackleton and his crew that the journey would be a long frustrating one. By December 22, the Endurance had hardly made any progress because of the pack ice. A year later, the grand expedition was abandoned, and the crew was forced to hunker down into the ship to prepare for a long, hard winter. The ice pack slowly crushed the ship, causing it to sink.The crew gathered supplies and attempted to cross the ice, but noticed it was breaking up. Boarding lifeboats, they eventually encountered land after 500 days. When Shackleton and the crew returned home without having had any contact with civilization in several years, they were shocked to find World War I had broken out, and much of their Arctic journey was brushed over as the world focused on the war. (x) -- source link
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