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Erebus: The Story of a Ship

Michael Palin

4.31 · Rating details · 3,844 ratings · 496 reviews

In his major new work, Michael Palin – former Monty Python stalwart and much-loved television globe-trotter – brings to life the world and voyages of HMS Erebus, from its construction in the naval dockyards of Pembroke, to the part it played in Ross’s Antarctic expedition of 1839–43, to its abandonment during Franklin’s ill-fated Arctic expedition, and to its final redisco ...more

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Hardcover, 16 pages of plates; illustrations, 334 pages

Published September 20th 2018 by Hutchinson/Random House Books

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Jan 03, 2019 Bill Lynas rated it it was amazing

When epic traveller & comedian Michael Palin completed his final lice performances with the Monty Python team he naturally felt deflated. By chance he became fascinated with HMS Erebus & her fatal Arctic voyage with HMS Terror in 1845, & this excellent book is the result.
Palin provides a wonderful story of the ship's history & early voyages before her ill fated journey to look for the North West Passage with HMS Terror. I first became interested in these two ship's Arctic adventure after watchin ...more

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Feb 10, 2019 Krista rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction, 2019, polar-exploration

Cheered on by a crowd of engineers, carpenters, blacksmiths, clerks and their families, the stout, broad-hulled warship they had been building for the past two years slides, stern first, down the slipway at Pembroke Dockyard. The cheers rise to a roar as she strikes the waters of Milford Haven. She bounces, bobs and shakes herself like a newborn waterfowl. Her name is Erebus.

It might be a Canadian thing to be fascinated by the doomed Franklin Expedition that ended on our northern limits – I watc

Cheered on by a crowd of engineers, carpenters, blacksmiths, clerks and their families, the stout, broad-hulled warship they had been building for the past two years slides, stern first, down the slipway at Pembroke Dockyard. The cheers rise to a roar as she strikes the waters of Milford Haven. She bounces, bobs and shakes herself like a newborn waterfowl. Her name is Erebus.

It might be a Canadian thing to be fascinated by the doomed Franklin Expedition that ended on our northern limits – I watched several documentaries with my Dad that came out on the subject as I was growing up – and from the (maybe) tainted tinned goods they consumed to the (unmistakable) signs of cannibalism that eventual recovery missions discovered, this is a tragic tale that has long piqued my interest. Although a longtime Monty Python fan, I had never read one of Michael Palin's travel books before, so I looked forward to starting with his Erebus; a biography of sorts on the ship that Sir John Franklin captained off to its final, frigid resting place. This book is an amazing accumulation of research – from the shipbuilders' blueprints to extensive quotes from her sailors' journals and letters – and Palin paints a vivid and exhaustive story of HMS Erebus' twenty-some years of service. As a noted traveller himself, Palin retraced the routes of the Erebus during his research for this book, and his thoughts and experience from pole to pole breathe modern life into a Victorian tale. I enjoyed this very much and would read Palin again.

When I made a journey to the Antarctic Peninsula in 2014 the sight of a single whale was enough to bring everyone out on deck, reaching for cameras and binoculars. Sometimes, if you were very lucky, two or three would surface. Watching them was both compulsive and strangely soothing. Of all God's creatures, they seem the least prone to hurrying. Their lives seem to be the human equivalent of taking very long baths. When they did move, it was a performance of beauty and grace, of great weight moved with minimum effort. And there can surely be no better final bow than the languid, quietly powerful rise, flick and fall of the fluke. I like to think that those aboard Erebus drew similar comfort from the whales' company on the long and increasingly hazardous journey south.

I had read before that Erebus, alongside her sister ship HMS Terror, had been captained by James Clark Ross to the Antarctic in search of the Magnetic South Pole, but this part of her story was more vividly evoked here than elsewhere; in particular I marvelled at the mental image of the ice-covered active volcano that Ross fittingly named Mount Erebus. And as for the later Arctic expedition, there wasn't much here that I hadn't already read. Even so, I found value in having the whole story of this ship's lifespan laid out in this way, encapsulating as it does a particular slice of time during the Age of Discovery; a rare time of peace during which the British Navy refitted warships to explore the globe and name, measure, and collect all that they found out there. The one complaint that I would have about this book is the way that Palin brings modern sensibilities to bear on the efforts of these intrepid explorers: I don't need to be told that imperialism, the extermination of native peoples, and the over-extraction of natural resources – and in particular, animals – isn't justified by “the spirit of Enlightenment”. In one stirring chapter, Erebus and Terror got tangled together as they tried to steer through a narrow passageway in an otherwise unbroken series of icebergs, and employing a last ditch effort to put his ship into reverse (under sail power), Ross was able to disentangle the ships and narrowly avoid the crushing wall of ice. Palin quotes from several of the sailors' journals and letters as they later thank God for their safe passage, and then he unnecessarily lectures the reader:

The sternboard manoeuvre that Ross and his crew executed in the most dire and dangerous situation would have been a great gamble at any time. It was this almighty risk, rather than the Almighty himself, that saved the lives of his men.

Palin uncovered much fascinating information – trapped in pack ice off Antarctica on New Year's Day of 1842, the crews of both ships carved a ballroom into the snow and Captain Crozier of the Terror and Captian Ross (in drag) led the dancing; DNA testing of bones from the Franklin Expedition reveal that four of the skeletons had no Y chromosomes (as they were definitely European, either the Y chromosomes had deteriorated, or these seamen were seawomen in disguise) – and I can't fault the comprehensive scholarship behind this effort. And as the insertion of Palin's own thoughts and experience did elevate this book beyond dull textbook-level material for me, I can't ultimately fault him for stretching the limits of what I wanted to hear from him. Overall, a fine read; one that made me glad to be indoors as the snow falls and the wind howls outside my walls. ...more

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Oct 16, 2018 Ericka Seidemann rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs, arctic-antarctic

Palin’s Erebus is a comprehensive account of one of the most famous Arctic and Antarctic exploration vessels. Palin provides a detailed yet compelling overview of the life of Erebus, recently rediscovered in only 36 feet of water in the Arctic, where she has remained since her last voyage with Sir John Franklin in 1845.

Palin’s Erebus reviews the life of the ship, from her first uneventful days as a warship to her watery demise in the mid-1800s in the infamous and mysterious Franklin North West P Palin’s Erebus is a comprehensive account of one of the most famous Arctic and Antarctic exploration vessels. Palin provides a detailed yet compelling overview of the life of Erebus, recently rediscovered in only 36 feet of water in the Arctic, where she has remained since her last voyage with Sir John Franklin in 1845.

Palin’s Erebus reviews the life of the ship, from her first uneventful days as a warship to her watery demise in the mid-1800s in the infamous and mysterious Franklin North West Passage expedition. He offers information and direct quotations from numerous primary sources with engaging narrative, often breaking the tension with some levity. The scholarship is commendable and thorough. I found myself taking copious notes while reading, as I didn’t want to forget a thing.

Although there's not a lot of new information presented here, Palin’s historical account of Erebus is sprinkled with descriptions of his own travels — to Hobart, where Erebus and Terror visited while Franklin was governor of Van Diemen’s Land, to Antarctica in 2014, to various places where Erebus docked during her service, like the Falklands. Palin includes historical accounts of Erebus’s time in these places, as well as his impressions of the landscape as it looks currently, and Erebus’s long-standing legacies.

Palin left no stone unturned, often literally, while tracking Erebus’s journey. He even reviews the plans by the master shipwright who outfitted her for her expedition to the Arctic. He reviews Erebus’s time in Antarctica under James Clark Ross, as well her time under John Franklin, where she ended her tenure. The last chapter of Erebus covers the recent resurgence in the Franklin mystery, and ends with Palin’s visit to Antarctica in 2017, to see the final places along the parties’ sojourn across the ice. I wish he had actually gotten to Erebus, and I look forward to future books containing new information from the recently discovered ships.

Some reviewers have complained that not enough time was spent discussing the Franklin expedition, but honestly, that's not what I was reading this for. The book is called Erebus for a reason, and there's more to this ship than just the Franklin expedition. If you're looking for Franklin information, I recommend Russell Potter's Finding Franklin; Palin's Erebus is a thorough account of Erebus, and I was excited to read this to learn of her lesser-known voyage with James Clark Ross.

Erebus will appeal to Arctic scholars as well as armchair sailors like me. No sentence was superfluous and every chapter offered something engaging.

Highly recommended.

Many thanks to LibraryThing First Reviewers and Greystone Books for this advance copy in exchange for my review. ...more

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Nov 08, 2019 Yigal Zur rated it really liked it

great travel book. one of the best i read for years. Palin really have the touch for it. it is a story of boat, of exploration but above all of daring people. the two major parts are the exploration of antarctica which was led by Ross. amazing story. and the last part the tragic story of Franklin and his crew to try and find the north-west passage. great tale and read. should give it 4.5

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Mar 13, 2019 Will Ansbacher rated it it was amazing

Shelves: travel, polar

This is a really interesting story of polar exploration from a slightly different angle. Michael Palin has focussed on the ships – the Erebus mainly, but also her sister ship the Terror – that were the common elements of two great Antarctic and Arctic expeditions in the 1840’s, as England obsessively attempted to be the first to discover the extreme ends of the earth.

The first, magnificently successful voyage was a four-year, three-winter discovery of the Antarctic, led by James Clark Ross, not ...more

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Oct 15, 2018 Erik rated it it was ok

I really wanted to love Michael Palin’s new book “Erebus”. I really did. I am a fan not just of his comedy, but also of his travel shows. Additionally, the lost Franklin expedition that sank the Erebus and the Terror is something I have been interested in for years. I thought this would be a perfect storm (pun intended) for a reviewer’s book. Unfortunately, I didn’t love this book. Palin does an excellent job provided the facts and using period documents to tell the story of Erebus from birth to ...more

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Jan 17, 2019 Chris Steeden rated it really liked it

I was lucky enough to get this copy of Erebus at a book signing with Palin. Nice chap he is too I must say. Erebus? What’s all this about then? Well, on 09-Sep-2014 the Prime Minister of Canada announced that a Canadian underwater archaeology team had discovered what they believed to be the HMS Erebus that had been lost for almost 170 years on the seabed somewhere in the Arctic.

Erebus

Palin transports us back in time to 1826 when the bomb vessel, Erebus, was launched from Pembroke Dockyard in Wales. Sh I was lucky enough to get this copy of Erebus at a book signing with Palin. Nice chap he is too I must say. Erebus? What’s all this about then? Well, on 09-Sep-2014 the Prime Minister of Canada announced that a Canadian underwater archaeology team had discovered what they believed to be the HMS Erebus that had been lost for almost 170 years on the seabed somewhere in the Arctic.

Erebus

Palin transports us back in time to 1826 when the bomb vessel, Erebus, was launched from Pembroke Dockyard in Wales. She wasn’t actually needed for war as it turned out. Victorian times were fast approaching and there was a new gig in town. Exploration. Travel and scientific. He provides a historical overview of Erebus’s voyages and she had an exceptional one to the Antarctic in the late 1830’s early 1840s. What a journey it is. They journey there was with Erebus’s sister ship, Terror. Erebus and Terror. There are plenty of quotes from those on-board at the time providing a very real sense of the journey and what they got up to. Parties, science and close disasters are the order of the day it seems.

Erebus

James Clark Ross was the captain of Erebus. ‘It might be said it was James Cook who defined the Antarctic Region, and James Ross who discovered it’ wrote Captain Scott.

Erebus

Palin travels as well to the some of the places that Erebus got to like Tasmania, Falkland Islands and Ascension Island.

With the first half of the book, well just over half, covering the Antarctic expedition the second part looks at Erebus’ final expedition to the Arctic and trying to find a way through the Northwest Passage. I had not realised the extent to which interest lay in this particular voyage and its mysterious aftermath. It is quite enthralling.

I don’t know if you are the same but when you meet the author and have the physical book signed it does make it very special and I seem to enjoy the book even more. Maybe just me? That being the case I did enjoy the book even though I had read some average reviews. Definitely recommended for you history buffs out there. The two journeys, south and north, by Erebus are amazing. I feel embarrassed that I did not know more about it before reading this. Palin has put me right. ...more

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Jun 19, 2019 Stephen rated it liked it

Interesting and detailed book about the journeys of this ship and its discovery

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Oct 26, 2018 Sophie Crane rated it it was amazing

Shelves: history, travel

This was Radio 4's book of the week, and I caught a couple of episodes. I had already decided I'd probably get the book, although I was pretty familiar with the Franklin story and the repeated attempts on the North West Passage, have several books on the topic and a forebear who commanded an early Arctic Naval expedition in which Franklin commanded the smaller vessel (shamefully not mentioned by M. Palin!)
It was never less than riveting, the research was excellent, and even reading it in Kindle ...more

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Oct 15, 2018 Timothy rated it it was amazing

Utterly enthralling, compulsive stuff. I was already quite familiar with the doomed Franklin Expedition but this adds a whole new layer to it, plus new stuff i was not aware of, which has been meticulously and lovingly researched by Palin.
Add to that - the amazing narration by Palin himself, it has to be only way to devour this book.
I could listen to him narrate the phone book.

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Jan 30, 2019 Peter rated it really liked it

As a Canadian, the story and the tragedy of the Franklin exploration is one that is never far from the surface of our collective mythology. When then Prime Minister Stephen Harper made his announcement of the finding of the first ship, it made the headlines in both print and electronic media. With the finding of the Erebus, our country was once again fascinated. And here I am today, it’s -32C with the wind chill in Toronto, and I’ve just finished Michael Palin’s book. For the last five years I l As a Canadian, the story and the tragedy of the Franklin exploration is one that is never far from the surface of our collective mythology. When then Prime Minister Stephen Harper made his announcement of the finding of the first ship, it made the headlines in both print and electronic media. With the finding of the Erebus, our country was once again fascinated. And here I am today, it’s -32C with the wind chill in Toronto, and I’ve just finished Michael Palin’s book. For the last five years I lived in Victoria, British Columbia. At the bottom of my street was the Coast Guard dock where the Sir Wilfred Laurier moored. This ship was instrumental in the search for and discovery of the Franklin ships. I don’t recount this to brag, but to reflect on how history is much more meaningful when you can be surrounded by it, involved in it, immersed in it, in any way.

This book gives a detailed and informative look at both the life of Sir John Franklin and, more importantly, of HMS “Terror” And HMS “Erebus.” Palin takes us back to the ships’ beginnings. We see their plans, we then sail with the crews and suffer with them as the ships explore and move through the Antarctic.

Next, we see the ships as they languish in dock in England. We experience Lady Jane Franklin’s energy to get the ships for her husband. We work beside Sir John Franklin as the ships are rebuild and provisioned for their exploration to the Arctic. Finally, we read Palin as he documents, speculates and draws on the resources of earlier writers to piece together the enormous struggle the crews faced in the Arctic.

There is much to be amazed at with these men. For me, it was the sense of time. They did not face a few cold days on a ship. Rather, they were ice-bound for years in weather and conditions which are inconceivable to me.

Palin is a fine writer and the book was engrossing to read. If I could I would give it 4 1/2 stars. My only quibble, and this is one I have with many history books and biographies, is that while a complete bibliography is given, within the letterpress there is often no indication of where the source of a letter, an historical reference, or other material of research was initially resourced. Such footnoting seems to be fading in most recent biographies and other material. I, for one, enjoy plowing through footnotes.

Nevertheless, this is a must read for anyone interested in British Naval history, The Franklin Expedition, Artic exploration, or Canadian history.

...more

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Nov 23, 2018 Rob Thompson rated it really liked it

A biography of a ship and of Victorian heroism

Erebus: The Story of a Ship is a biography of the voyage that was mentioned in Conrad's book, Heart of Darkness. Launched in 1826, it vanished with her sister ship, The Terror, in 1846. They were trying to find a way through the Northwest Passage.129 men were on board. The book covers not only its loss in the Arctic, but its Antarctic exploration, and its construction in Milford Haven.

In September 2014, marine archaeologists discovered HMS Erebus, i ...more

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Apr 07, 2020 Bon rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arctic-expeditions, audio-at-least-partly, seafaring, nonfiction, british, history

I really enjoyed this! It offered a refreshing take on the Franklin Expedition mystery, offering historical context and insight beyond just the doomed voyage. It was fascinating to hear about the construction of the ships and their first expedition together, to the Antarctic. My biggest takeaway, afforded by this being such a recent book, is the theory that several of the sailors on the expedition could have been female, judging by absences of Y chromosomes in some remains. It’s a thin theory, o ...more

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Mar 07, 2019 Noa rated it really liked it

Shelves: owned

Such a fun and interesting read! Especially in tandem with watching the show The Terror, which is a fictional, supernatural account of the second great voyage of the Erebus and her sister ship Terror. It reads like a British documentary, in a good way.

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Aug 13, 2020 Boadicea rated it really liked it

Shelves: biography, 21st-century, adventure, travel, history

Erebus is, apparently in Greek mythology, the personification of darkness. It therefore seems appropriate to be the name of an Antarctic volcano, that further lived up to its name when, on 28th November 1979, Air New Zealand Flight 901 flew into its slopes, killing all on board. It remains to this day, the single greatest loss of life to affect this small nation and eventually was proven to be due to human error on the part of the logistics staff, not the pilot, who was initially scapegoated.
In Erebus is, apparently in Greek mythology, the personification of darkness. It therefore seems appropriate to be the name of an Antarctic volcano, that further lived up to its name when, on 28th November 1979, Air New Zealand Flight 901 flew into its slopes, killing all on board. It remains to this day, the single greatest loss of life to affect this small nation and eventually was proven to be due to human error on the part of the logistics staff, not the pilot, who was initially scapegoated.
In some ways, there are parallels with this book which follows the adventures of HMS Erebus, built in a Pembroke dockyard as a 'bomb' vessel but kitted out pretty quickly for Polar exploration.
Initially, she explored the North Pole and allowed James Clark Ross to claim British discovery of the North Magnetic Pole to the disgust of his uncle, her captain.
Then, the sights of the naval top brass looked South to Antarctica and I am amazed that an expedition South lasted 3 whole winters in these climes before returning home after some hair-raising adventures and some great good luck. So that is why there is the Ross ice shelf, McMurdo Sound, and many other contributions to geographic features were contributed to, by this revolutionary exploration. She then returns home the long way via Rio de Janeiro but there is a clear sense of cabin fever at this point as relationships amongst her occupants deteriorate!
Then, she returns to the North Pole under the captaincy of erstwhile disgraced Tasmanian governor, Sir John Franklin and her luck runs out with a combination of misfortune, severely adverse weather, human error and possibly chemical poisoning. This ensures that the expedition does not return.
Michael Palin clearly has done extensive research on this historical narrative as befits a past President of the British Geographical Society. The book reads as he likes to present in film with a very personable approach; he has visited many of the ports of call and his fact-finding missions give a local flavour to her voyages that clearly enhances the story.
However, why not 5 stars? The maps are good and self-explanatory, the index appears inclusive, the photographs and renditions of the engravings colourful and enhance the story, his comments on colonial expansionism and imperialism are appropriate if mild and my favourite book of last year, The Heart of Darkness provides an appropriate prologue...
Perhaps, it is the inability to provide footnotes when they were clearly appropriate? Instead, there is an anthology of references utilised at the end of the book to address the sources of gleaned information but it is not always easy to ascertain where he has sourced particular facts.
Also, I was perhaps left slightly flattened by the ending. He had been well-focussed up to this point although the journalist was clearly in ascendance rather than the novelist and his skills appeared to lessen in this absence of knowledge where the latter's skills would have prevailed. I felt that he lost his way slightly perhaps failing to grasp the Inuit indigenous story which marred his tale somewhat. Maybe, I have spent too much time recently lapping up the tales of a certain Joseph Conrad and paying obeisance to his legendary powers to feel at the behest of a lesser writer?
So, an entertaining easy read which educated but I doubt that I will read it again. ...more

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Nov 20, 2019 Miriam Smith rated it liked it

Shelves: signed, kept-book

Husband read this book and said he enjoyed, learned a lot and was pleased he read.

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Sep 24, 2019 Brad Bell rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is the second book I’ve read about the Franklin Expedition and still I find this story endlessly fascinating. When I heard about this book, written by Michael Palin of all people, I was excited. Not only do I love Michael Palin but a story of the expedition focusing a bit more on Erebus, Terror’s sister ship on the expedition, I was here for it. While the story does get in the weeds a bit on the info dump about people and places it’s still an enjoyable book that is worth the recommendation. ...more

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Jan 23, 2019 Elizabeth Lloyd rated it it was amazing

This is a book of heroes, the daring, handsome James Clark Ross, who mapped much of the Antarctic coastline, the unlucky John Franklin, whose ambitious adventurous spirit ended in a disastrous expedition and the gallant ship which linked their lives, the Erebus. It was the rediscovery of the wreck of HMS Erebus on the seabed in Queen Maud Gulf in 2014 that prompted this book.

Written by Michael Palin, whom we know so well as an adventurous traveller on our TV screens, this amazing story is an eas ...more

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Mar 16, 2019 Andrew Hall rated it really liked it

Palin covers the life of the HMS Erebus, and its crews, from its launch in 1826 until it vanished with its sister ship, the HMS Terror, in a search for the Northwest Passage in 1846. Palin is a witty but thorough story-teller. The story starts off a bit slow, but the relating of the 1839-1843 Ross Expedition to Antartica was fascinating, using a variety of diaries, letters, and other sources. The story of doomed 1845 Franklin expedition was gripping and chilling. With (almost) no remaining writt ...more

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Oct 13, 2018 Laura rated it really liked it

Recommended to Laura by: Bettie

Shelves: adventure, non-fiction, travel, read-2018, history, british-literature, antarctica

From BBC Radio 4 - Book of the Week:
Michael Palin reads from his new book, abridged by Penny Leicester, about the mysterious and tragic voyage of HMS Erebus in 1845:

A 19th century botanist, Joseph Hooker, and a press conference in Canada in 2014 sharpen the author's interest in the story. Erebus made a successful journey to the Antarctic and was being rigged and loaded for a second expedition to the Northwest Passage. Hopes were high when she finally set off with HMS Terror from Greenhithe on th ...more

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Aug 09, 2020 Adarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

While I kept getting interrupted during my reading of this book, the fascination never died for Erebus and her sister ship, Terror. There are so many different areas of intrigue that I'll be further researching, like the ships' journeys, appearances of lands they discovered and the illustrations drawn by those aboard, where the ships were discovered and where their remains lay, and so many other things. I can't wait to read more.

Palin truly did a magnificent job with this non fiction read.

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Aug 25, 2020 Ryan rated it really liked it

In Erebus, Michael Palin documents the Antarctic and Arctic explorations carried out by the ships Erebus and Terror. Given how dull and boring life aboard a ship must have been, why are these histories so appealing?

If had to guess, it's likely the irresistible image of a ship at sea, sails full as it dashes between icebergs. Here is Palin, attempting to capture the spirit of adventure: "By now, everyone aboard must have realised this was why they had set out. This was exploration. Every nautical In Erebus, Michael Palin documents the Antarctic and Arctic explorations carried out by the ships Erebus and Terror. Given how dull and boring life aboard a ship must have been, why are these histories so appealing?

If had to guess, it's likely the irresistible image of a ship at sea, sails full as it dashes between icebergs. Here is Palin, attempting to capture the spirit of adventure: "By now, everyone aboard must have realised this was why they had set out. This was exploration. Every nautical mile, every break in the clouds brought with it something no one on earth had ever seen before." However, Erebus's best passage representing this grandeur of exploration is actually quoted from Roald Amundsen's The South Pole:

With two ponderous craft—regular ‘tubs’ according to our ideas—these men sailed right into the heart of the pack, which all previous explorers had regarded as certain death. It is not merely difficult to grasp this; it is simply impossible—to us, who with a motion of the hand can set the screw going and wriggle out of the first difficulty we encounter. These men were heroes—heroes in the highest sense of the word.

The men carried out a Herculean task. These journeys into the frozen poles went on for years with little more than a seamen's library and booze to pass the time.

And yet, there is also something not especially heroic about these sailors. At first glance, these sailors were carried into adventure for a love of exploration, nothing more. Well... The Arctic exploration could be tied to financial gain if a northwest passage could be established. The officers of these ships did make money selling their stories when they returned home, not to mention that they earned knighthoods. The naturalists shoot and kill a lot of creatures in the name of science, which is a gain, at some margin, but they also hope to establish their careers through their discoveries. It might also be worth noting that most sailors at this time were unemployed because the Napoleonic Wars had ended. Finally, does it matter that these explorations were tied to colonialism? At times, the colonial ethos is a bit grating to my post-colonial ears:

The debate as to whether the place they had landed in should be called Van Diemen’s Land or Tasmania was officially settled in Tasmania’s favour fifteen years later, in 1855. But there had been an earlier name: Lutruwita, which was the name by which the Aboriginal inhabitants knew the island, and had done for a thousand years or more. It was now redundant. As the convicts were brought in, the indigenous population was booted out. By the time the Ross expedition arrived, the brutal process of clearing the original inhabitants from their land was almost complete. Those who were left alive were confined to an Aboriginal mission on Flinders Island, off the north coast, where they were taught English ways.

At other times, it's not easy for me to escape the sense that there's a sort of egotistical megalomania at work, such as when Ross names an island after his future wife's father in order to get the old man to agree to the marriage.

Still, the image of a ship sailing between icebergs is powerful, and Palin depicts it with charming enthusiasm.

***

Two final notes. First, one is left with the sense that the greatest explorer of the Polar regions, Roald Amundsen, was not British, even if the Brits remain the most romanticized in English speaking cultures. It seems like Amundsen succeeded in part by learning from local inhabitants rather than looking down at them with colonial condescension. Second, the most daring sailors today seem to be Russians, who are working diligently to lay claim to the Arctic, its waters, and its oil fields. In this, they're of course standing on the shoulders of the British giants who went before them.

Notes.(view spoiler) ...more

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Jan 13, 2019 Laura rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: canadian-history, world-history

This is an excellent, gripping book about 2 incredible voyages at the height of Britain's golden age of naval exploration. Palin successfully brings the major characters in both journeys to life and his narrative is both informative and highly readable. The book is amazingly engrossing and moving - reading it takes you from the suspenseful, ultimately triumphant Antarctic Ross voyage, crashing down into the doomed, brutal Franklin voyage that killed everyone on board. Each of those voyages can f ...more

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Mar 25, 2019 Richard rated it it was amazing

This is a gripping and fascinating story of the “Erebus” and its companion ship, “Terror”. Both were built as slow but strongly constructed and very stable bomb ships outfitted to fire shells against land-based armies. The older and slightly smaller “Terror” was actually used during the Napoleonic Wars but the war was over before the “Erebus” was ready for use. They were both then strengthened and adapted for polar exploration which remained their function and the two were always used together.

T ...more

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Dec 22, 2018 Katia M. Davis rated it it was amazing

I wanted to read this book as soon as I saw it was available. I wanted to buy a hardback copy to put on my shelf along with my other 'disaster' books. Unfortunately every time I went to buy a copy from my local store, it was sold out (which I took as a good sign). I had to resort to the ebook version. I'll get a hardback too at some point.

This is an excellent discussion of the failed Franklin Expedition. It has been thoroughly researched, includes plenty of documentation and goes through the imp ...more

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Jan 30, 2019 Wendy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Always enjoy Michael Palin's books. Even better if one listens to the audiobook. Read an article about the Erebus and then discovered that Michael Palin has a book on the subject. It's written and researched well. Then we get the well-traveled author's perspective on the places that the ships, Erebus and Terror, have been to. One can see how it must have been during those times of discoveries. Sure, the motive is mainly colonialism, to spread British culture to the "uncivilized". But there is al ...more

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May 09, 2019 Evan rated it really liked it

If you're looking for much of Michael Palin's personality or humor you're reading the wrong book. What you will get is a solid narrative from a passionate (and, yes, witty) amateur historian about two amazing adventures. I don't know if this is a book I will think back on and ponder, but it is a fascinating window to a time when The Unknown was a prominent character and those who set out to meet her did so at their own peril.

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Jul 23, 2019 Paul Cuthbert rated it it was amazing

This book is all about a ship, but the writing brings the people who served on the ship alive.

One of the main characters James Clark Ross has a blue plaque near where I live in Blackheath and before this I didn't know about him. Having a small part of the book set near where I live in south east London (Blackheath and Woolwich Dockyard) took me back in time.

A great story with a dreadful ending for some of the protagonists.

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Dec 30, 2019 Joshi rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019

I read The Terror earlier this year and was completely obsessed with the Franklin Expedition afterwards. Then, after watching the TV show and being even more obsessed I had just managed to shake it off when I run across this book. And it reignited that fascination, perhaps made it even stronger.

It's non fiction, which is a very welcome contrast to The Terror, but nonetheless entertaining, intriguing and first and foremost informative. Plus, it's about the Erebus, so I got a good look at the othe ...more

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Jan 14, 2020 Victor Brand rated it really liked it

Not only the disappearance when searching for the north west passage but the whole story from the laying of the keel to the Antarctic exploration and finally the end in the arctic and then the discovery of the hulls. A fascinating insight into life aboard ship, the hardships and depreciation. Palin makes a good fist of the historic tale.

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About Michael Palin

Michael Palin

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Sir Michael Edward Palin, KCMG, CBE, FRGS is an English comedian, actor, writer and television presenter best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python and for his travel documentaries.

Palin wrote most of his material with Terry Jones. Before Monty Python, they had worked on other shows such as The Ken Dodd Show, The Frost Report and Do Not Adjust Your Set. Palin appeared ...more