The Frozen Fate of Sir John Franklin

A new biography of the distinguished naval officer Sir John Franklin, who famously disappeared with his ship, The Erebus

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British naval officer Sir John Franklin enjoyed a distinguished naval career in the Napoleonic wars, before being appointed governor and commander-in-chief of Tasmania. He established an education system copied throughout the colonies, but his sympathetic approach to the native aborigines and transported convicts made him unpopular with the colonists. Returning to Arctic exploration to investigate the unknown, he mapped over 3,000 miles of the coast of Northern Canada but his fourth and final voyage in 1845, immortalised in The Terror, failed to return. Some 50 expeditions were sent over 20 years to find him or his remains, until in 2014, his ship The Erebus was discovered. Now, through modern technology, the true fate of Sir John, and the secrets of that fateful voyage, are being rediscovered. This new biography by Jill Armitage, who is distantly related to Sir John Franklin, explores the man and his life, and his fateful final journey.