Robert Falcon Scott’s 1901–4 expedition to the Antarctic was a landmark event in the history of Antarctic exploration and created a sensation comparable to the Arctic efforts of the American Robert E. Peary. Scott’s initial expedition was also the first step toward the dramatic race to the South Pole in 1912 that resulted in the tragic deaths of Scott and his companions. Since then Scott’s reputation has vacillated between two extremes: Was he a martyred hero, the beau ideal of a brave and selfless explorer, or a bumbling fool whose mistakes killed him and his entire party? In this work, Antarctic historian T. H. Baughman goes beyond the personality of Scott to remove the first expedition from the shadow of the second, to study objectively its purpose, its composition, and its real accomplishments.

T. H. Baughman is chair of the History Department at Benedictine College. He is the author of Before the Heroes Came: Antarctica in the 1890s (Nebraska 1993).

“A major contribution to the history of Antarctic exploration and discovery.” —Colin Bull, coeditor of Silas: The Antarctic Diaries and Memoir of Charles S. Wright

“By far the most authoritative analysis of Scott’s Discovery expedition ever written. Baughman’s scholarship is brilliant. . . . The book is a landmark.”—Michael Rosove, author of Let Heroes Speak: Antarctic Explorers, 1772–1922

“An important contribution to a significant aspect of Antarctic exploration . . . Baughman’s treatment includes numerous new and previously unpublished aspects of [these] personalities.”—John Splettstoesser, International Organization of Antarctic Tour Operators

“[A] long-needed, detailed assessment of Scott's first Antarctic venture. The author has given excellent attention to all members of the expedition, down to the RN 'bluejackets,' as well as to the often-rancorous politics involving the Royal Geographical Society, the Royal Society, and the British government. This is essential reading: vivid, exciting--even well-read Antarctic aficionados will hasten to turn the pages to learn how Scott manages to free his ship from the ice and take it home in one piece.”—Choice