Shackleton: the inspiration for Mawson's Antarctic Expedition

by Anna Lucas

Sir Ernest Shackleton (1874–1922) was a key player in the Heroic Era of Antarctic exploration. An Irish-born merchant seaman, entrepreneur, lover of poetry and a born leader, he inspired the men who travelled with him on British expeditions to Antarctica. Douglas Mawson, then a young lecturer in geology from South Australia, was so inspired that he organised his own expedition to the southernmost continent, but with a greater scientific focus.

This carefully-researched essay explores Shackleton’s role in launching Mawson’s first expedition to an unknown and treacherous region of Antarctica.

Shackleton continues to inspire a broad spectrum of humanity: from those who live every moment of his exploration through his published books or through the interpretations of film-makers and historians, to those Antarctic adventurers who push all the boundaries to the extreme limits of physical, mental and emotional endurance – as he did.

29 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014