Bøker i Cambridge Library Collection - Polar Exploration-serien

Alexander Fisher (d.1838), ship's surgeon on the Arctic exploration ship H.M.S. Hecla, was the probable author of the anonymous 1819 Journal of a Voyage of Discovery to the Arctic Regions, also reissued in this series. The voyage of the Hecla and Griper began in 1819, and Fisher's account was published in 1821, going rapidly into further editions (of which this reissue is the third). The intention of the expedition, under William Edward Parry, was to find the North-West Passage. It was unsuccessful in this respect (an account by Captain G. F. Lyon of Parry's expedition of 1821-3 is also available in this series), but Fisher's detailed and lively account claims that the existence of the passage has been so far proved that it cannot be doubted. He describes the people and wildlife seen during the voyage, as well as providing technical details of latitude, weather and currents.

The historian William Coxe (1748-1828) was also an Anglican priest, and had travelled widely in Europe as tutor to various young noblemen on the Grand Tour. (His Anecdotes of George Frederick Handel, and John Christopher Smith is also reissued in the Cambridge Library Collection.) This work originated on a visit to St Petersburg, where Coxe had obtained sight of journals by Russian explorers, and also found an anonymous German work on Russian Arctic voyages between 1745 and 1770. Having checked its authenticity with the Russian authorities, he translated it to form part of this book, first published in 1780 and reissued here in its revised third edition of 1787. He also provides various journals and accounts of exploration in Siberia, Kamchatka and the American Arctic, together with information on trade between Russia and China. Readers will gain insights into a rarely considered aspect of Arctic exploration and economic exploitation.

Following distinguished naval service during the Napoleonic Wars, Edward Chappell (1792-1861) took part in two voyages patrolling British fisheries in North America. The second of these, in 1814, is recounted in this journal, first published in 1817. Illustrated with several engravings, Chappell's narrative dwells in particular upon the Inuit, who were little understood by Europeans at the time. Knowing only a few Inuit words, Chappell traded with them and was admitted to their homes. Though somewhat superficial and patronising, his descriptions revised previous accounts and brought new information to English readers. The rest of the journal brims with evocative anecdotes from the journey - a polar bear sighting, a thunderstorm on an ice-ridden sea, a meeting with a renowned Native American chieftain. The appendices provide such additional information as navigational data, details of Inuit dress, and a short vocabulary of the Cree language.

In 1881, Adolphus Greely led a US Arctic expedition to gather meteorological, astronomical and magnetic data. It was poorly supported by the US Army, neither Greely nor his men had experience of Arctic conditions, and their ship, the Proteus, sailed home once they had landed in Greenland. An inadequately planned relief mission failed to reach them in 1882, and a second expedition in 1883, including the Proteus (which was crushed by ice), also failed to locate the men or to land sufficient supplies. This official report was published in 1884, and proposes a further rescue mission, much more carefully planned and equipped. It includes, as an appendix, detailed information about Arctic conditions and means of survival from the British naval explorers George Nares and Albert H. Markham. When eventually found, only seven of Greely's original team of twenty-five were still alive. Other accounts of the expeditions are also reissued in this series.

This biography of polar explorer Sir Leopold McClintock (his name is also spelled M'Clintock) was published in 1909 by his 'old messmate' Sir Clements Markham (1830-1916), later more famous as a historian. (Several works by both men have been reissued in the Cambridge Library Collection.) McClintock (1819-1907) gained experience of Arctic voyages on the expeditions of James Clark Ross and Edward Belcher, during which he undertook several arduous sledge journeys over the ice. In 1854, he took leave from the navy to command the Fox, a ship paid for by Lady Franklin to investigate the fate of her husband's expedition. He found the memorandum, written by his second-in-command, which confirmed Franklin's death in June 1847. McClintock was knighted for his services on his return, and he stayed in the navy, serving on different stations around the world, until his retirement with the rank of admiral in 1884.

In 1828 a Danish expedition was sent out from Copenhagen under the command of the naval officer and explorer Wilhelm August Graah (1793-1863). Its goal was to locate lost Norse settlements on the coast of Greenland, which had existed in certain places from around the turn of the millennium until their collapse some centuries later. The Danes did not find any settlement where they searched on the eastern coast, and the men endured harrowing conditions and near starvation during three winters. First published in Danish in 1832 and reissued here in its 1837 English translation, Graah's work opens with a brief history of the exploration and colonisation of Greenland before recounting his own expedition. Observations on the Greenlandic Inuit are incorporated as well. Addressing what was known about the Norse settlements at that time, the appendix also contains the expedition's scientific observations.

Son of an Arctic whaler, William Scoresby (1789-1857) made the first of many voyages to northern latitudes when he was just ten years old. Later a scientist and clergyman, he wrote on a wide range of topics, and his observations on the Arctic prompted further exploration of the region. The two works reissued here together draw on his experience of seafaring in difficult conditions. First published in 1835, Memorials of the Sea is coloured by Scoresby's belief in divine providence. He discusses the observance of the Sabbath at sea, and considers the Mary Russell murders of 1828, where a ship's captain killed his crew. Scoresby interviewed the perpetrator himself and draws his own conclusions as to the meaning of the incident. The second work included in this reissue is The Franklin Expedition (1850), drawing together considerations relating to the fate and whereabouts of the missing explorers.

John Dundas Cochrane (1780-1825) was destined for the sea from an early age, but is best remembered as 'the Pedestrian Traveller'. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, he set out on a six-year tour of France, Spain and Portugal on foot. When in 1820 the Admiralty turned down his offer to explore the river Niger, he decided instead to walk round the world via Russia, Siberia and North America. On his arrival in St Petersburg, the Russian government gave him money to continue his journey using sledges and canoes where necessary, but he abandoned it in Kamchatka, marrying a local woman and returning with her to England. This account of his travels was published in 1824 and was immediately popular, going into several editions. By no means a scientific survey, it is full of interesting anecdotes and observations about a then unknown and mysterious area of the world.

Published in 1792, this is the first of three volumes describing the author's experiences as a trader and explorer along the Labrador coast. He vividly describes the land and the culture of the indigenous peoples. This volume covers his first two expeditions (1770-73) and starts with a brief autobiography.

Led by Robert Falcon Scott (1868-1912), the British National Antarctic Expedition carried out important scientific research and ambitious sledging journeys during the years 1901-4. Published in 1905, this acclaimed two-volume work recounts the expedition's trials, errors and achievements. Photographs, paintings and sketches greatly enhance the work.

Finding a way through the North-West Passage had defeated Arctic explorers during the nineteenth century. First published in Norwegian in 1907, and reissued here in its 1908 English translation, this copiously illustrated two-volume work by Roald Amundsen (1872-1928) recounts the first successful navigation of this challenging sea route.

Originally published in 1884 and illustrated with his maps and drawings, this two-volume work by the doctor and naturalist Robert McCormick (1800-90) describes polar voyages with William Parry and James Clark Ross. McCormick also discusses his part in the search for Sir John Franklin, and presents a very detailed autobiography.

Anglican missionary Henry Lansdell (1841-1919) travelled energetically across Europe and beyond, making many visits to Russia and central Asia to distribute bibles and tracts. This two-volume 1882 account proved very popular, but was criticised for its lenient view of the harsh treatment of Russian prisoners.

Led by Charles Wyville Thomson (1830-82), the Challenger Expedition (1872-6) sailed nearly 70,000 nautical miles across the globe, collected oceanographic data and marine specimens, and discovered the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. This acclaimed two-volume work, published in 1877, summarises the major discoveries for the Atlantic legs of this pioneering voyage.

Reissued in its English translation of 1911, this two-volume work traces Arctic exploration up to the sixteenth century. The celebrated Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen (1861-1930) quotes from many early and little-known sources. Illustrated throughout with woodcuts and maps, the work also includes a useful bibliography.

This well-illustrated 1904 account describes the four years spent by Otto Sverdrup and his crew in charting the seas and coastlines of the Arctic. Volume 1 describes the life and work of the first two years, including extensive trips away from their base, both on land and on the ice.

Physician and geologist Peter Cormack Sutherland (1822-1900) served as surgeon on the 1850-1 expedition led by William Penny in search of Sir John Franklin. Published in 1852, this two-volume account includes the poignant discovery of Franklin's winter quarters at Beechey Island and the graves of several men.

On 14 December 1911, Roald Amundsen (1872-1928) and his Norwegian team became the first humans to reach the South Pole, a month before their ill-fated British rivals. Reissued here is the 1912 English translation of Amundsen's two-volume illustrated account of how this extraordinary and perilous feat was achieved.

Prince Luigi Amedeo of Savoy, a grandson of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy, was well known as a mountaineer and traveller when, in 1899, he organised an expedition to the Arctic. His account was published in Italian in 1902 and this two-volume English translation appeared in 1903.

David Crantz (or Cranz) was a Moravian missionary who published his observations on Greenland in German in 1765. This edited English translation appeared in two volumes in 1820. Crantz (1723-77) discusses Greenland's native people and their way of life, providing also an account of the Moravian missionary activity there.

John Bell (1691-1780) entered the service of Tsar Peter the Great of Russia, and had already taken part in a government mission to Persia in 1715-18 when he was asked to join an embassy to China. This two-volume work, published in 1763, describes both these journeys.

An Irish-born adventurer in Russian service, Peter Dobell (1772-1852) embarked in 1812 on a long journey from Kamchatka to Tomsk, across Siberia. He also lived for several years in China. Published in 1830, this lively two-volume account of his travels includes observations on the peoples and cultures he encountered.

In 1845, Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin set out on an expedition to traverse the North-West Passage, from which he would never return. Originally published in 1851, this two-volume work charts the voyage of Sir John Richardson (1787-1865) in search of his former commander and friend.

Described as 'a record of solid achievement ... in the face of hardship and difficulty', Jackson's 1899 account of his Arctic expedition describes a forbidding terrain of ice and snow. Illustrated with maps and images, Volume 1 recounts the voyage out, dramatic bear-hunts, and arduous journeys by sledge.

Written by expedition commander George Nares, this 1878 two-volume journal recounts the 1875-6 British Arctic expedition's attempt to reach the North Pole. Volume 1 describes the discovery of the route later called Nares Strait, and the dog-sled journey that set a new record for the farthest distance north achieved.

Originally published in 1876, this two-volume work documents the Austro-Hungarian Arctic expedition of 1872-4, in which von Payer and Karl Weyprecht discovered Franz-Josef Land. Volume 1 describes the region's climate and terrain, the crew's navigational strategies, and the perilous conditions that led them to abandon ship.

William Parker Snow (1817-95), mariner and author, volunteered in 1854 to command the schooner Allen Gardiner on a Christian mission for the South American Missionary Society. Originally published in 1857, this two-volume work is a first-hand account of an eventful and wide-ranging service.

These two volumes, published in 1883, document the doomed Polar expedition of George W. De Long (1844-81). Compiled by his wife from his journals and the testimony of the mission's survivors, Volume 1 records the crew's experiences in the Arctic, and their attempts to save their vessel, the Jeannette.

French explorer, botanist and ethnographer J. Dumont d'Urville (1790-1842) discovered new Antarctic territory and shed light on customs in Pacific islands during a three-year expedition begun in 1837. In Volume 1, published in 1841, d'Urville recounts the perils of the journey from France to the Strait of Magellan.

In this work of 1881, the Finnish Arctic explorer and geologist A. E. Nordenskioeld describes his most famous expedition, the first crossing of the North-East Passage. Volume 1 covers the journey from Tromso to the Bering Strait, and includes a review of earlier explorations of the region.