Taissumani: May 13, 1854 – Abandoning ship: The failure of Sir Edward Belcher

KENN HARPER

Edward Belcher was a rarity among explorers in the search for the missing Sir John Franklin expedition. He was born in what would eventually become Canada, whereas almost all of the others involved in the futile quest were British or American. Belcher was born in Halifax in 1799, but moved to England with his family twelve years later. A year after that, just into his teens, he joined the Royal Navy. By the time he was 19, he had made the rank of lieutenant and traveled widely.

Belcher’s first major voyage was also his first trip to the Arctic. He served as assistant surveyor on the Blossom, commanded by Frederick William Beechey, on a voyage around Cape Horn and northward through the Pacific Ocean, through Bering Strait and as far into the Arctic Ocean as Point Barrow, Alaska. After the Blossom returned to England, Belcher was promoted to the rank of commander.

His subsequent career was marred by controversy. On a number of occasions his crew members laid charges against him for abusive treatment, and Belcher eventually fell from favour with the Admiralty.

He fell from favour with his wife, too. After only three years of marriage, she separated from him, claiming that he had infected her with venereal disease. But 10 years later, when Belcher was knighted, she was proud to adopt the title of Lady Belcher. His knighthood was a reward for heroic service he had performed in a maritime battle in Asia, which resulted in Great Britain acquiring Hong Kong.

In 1852 Belcher was given command of an expedition of five ships bound for the Arctic to search for the Franklin expedition, which had left England in 1845 and never returned. Belcher was ordered to search for Franklin in Wellington Channel and to take supplies to Melville Island for the relief of other search expeditions. Belcher himself commanded the HMS Assistance which, with another ship, Pioneer, sailed up Wellington Channel and wintered in Northumberland Sound, off northern Devon Island. The Resolute and Intrepid sailed to Melville Island, while the North Star remained at Beechey Island, off the southern coast of Devon Island, to be used as an expedition base.

The following spring, the Assistance and the Pioneer attempted to return to Beechey Island, but heavy ice blocked their passage and they wintered again off the Devon Island coast. This was probably Belcher’s own fault. The Pioneer was under the command of a seasoned Arctic navigator, Sherard Osborn, but Belcher refused to take his advice and ended up amongst the heaviest ice.

Resolute and Intrepid also encountered impassable ice conditions attempting to return from Melville Island, and were forced to winter off the coast of Bathurst Island. With the arrival of spring, there was communication between the ships by sled, so Beechey was aware of the situation of the other crews.

On May 13, 1854, he ordered the abandonment of the Resolute, commanded by Henry Kellett, and the Intrepid, commanded by Francis Leopold McClintock. Kellett vigourously protested the order, thinking it premature. It was still early in the spring and there was a good chance, he reasoned, that the ships would be released from their icy prison come summer. But Belcher was obstinate and the officers under his command had no alternative but to follow his orders. The vessels were abandoned and their crews set off to join the North Star at Beechey Island.

In August, Belcher’s ship and its companion were finally released from the ice but once again could not reach Lancaster Sound. Belcher abandoned them as well, and made for the safety of the North Star.

Back in England in the fall of 1854, Belcher was court-martialled for the abandonment of his ships. However he argued that his orders granted him complete discretion over the expedition and he was acquitted. His incompetence continued to be rewarded. In his retirement he was successively given the rank of rear-admiral, vice-admiral and finally admiral.

Edward Belcher was brave, energetic, and competent in the technical aspects of his career. But these positive qualities were overshadowed by other characteristics which made it impossible for him to get along with most of his colleagues, be they his superiors or his crew members. He was, in the words of a biographer, “irritable, quarrelsome, and hypercritical.” Edward Belcher died in 1877, one of the most controversial characters ever to rise through the ranks of the Royal Navy.

Taissumani: A Day in Arctic History recounts a specific event of historic interest, whose anniversary is in the coming week. Kenn Harper is a historian, writer and linguist who lives in Iqaluit. Feedback? Send your comments and questions to kennharper@hotmail.com.