Proteus

As late as in 1884, the whaling ship Thetis found remains of their camp and several wild, half-mad men in it. One had amputated legs and unburied dead bodies with chunks of meat cut out lay around. The whole picture of the tragedy was gradually uncovered – food pilferage, mutiny, executions, murders and shocking cannibalism. Only 6 men survived. But Greely lived long and died as a general.

Fort Conger (1987)

• Greely, A.W. Three Years of Arctic Service. The Lady Franklin

•  Bay Expedition. New York, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1886.

• Lanman Charles: Farthest North; or, the Life and Explorations of Lieutenant James Booth Lockwood, of the Greely Arctic Expedition (New York, 1885)

• Mowat Farley, Polar Passion (1967)

• Schley, Winfield S.:Report of Winfield S. Schley commanding Greely Relief Expedition of 1884 (Washington 1887)

• Werstein Irving: Man against the elements : Adolphus W. Greely (New York 1960)

• Arlington National Cemetery, Washington (hrob)

In programme Lieutenant Greely’s Tragic Expedition, we relive a terrible story of mutiny, murder and cannibalism. In 1879, the American lieutenant Greely was commissioned to set up one of the first permanent scientific observation stations in the Arctic. The crew of this noble expedition triumphantly reached the farthest ever point north - beating the British record – and the crew began their task in high spirits. They expected to return home a year later, but the relief ship never came. After two long winters the crew became hostile and mutinous, and eventually abandoned camp and headed south. Months later, rescuers found only seven half mad men, surrounded by amputated limbs and exposed bodies. Greely survived, and on his return denied the rescuer’s reports of cannibalism. We retrace Greely’s steps, to uncover the long abandoned research and the truth behind this controversy.

In1879, the International Polar Conference decided to establish the first permanent scientific observation stations in the Arctic. A man named Lieutenant Greely was commissioned to set up one of these, and in 1881 he set out to the North with 25 sailors. Three years later, there were only seven men left alive – Greely among them. According to the rescuers that found the men, they’d resorted to mutiny, murder, and a diet of shoe leather and human flesh. What could have led to this tragic ending?

The truth it seems is that the US Congress paid little attention to the expedition, thinking it was of little significance or interest. It was poorly funded, inadequately equipped and the sailors had little or no polar experience. However, even with these setbacks, they succeeded in breaking the British record for reaching the farthest point north towards the North Pole. This was a glorious triumph for America, but the sequence of disastrous events that followed over-shadowed the expeditions success...

When the expedition reached Lady Franklin Bay, the intended site for the scientific base, the crew built wooden barracks and began their tasks of exploring, hunting and carrying out scientific investigations. The ship Proteus set sail home, and was supposed to return the following year with a replacement crew and provisions. But the ship never came.

As the second freezing arctic winter descended, the men had to struggle through with dwindling supplies, and the atmosphere became extremely unpleasant. The leaders of the group were barely on speaking terms, and all sense of order and responsibility was lost. In desperation, the crew abandoned their research and headed south in five boats with only 40 days rations. Greely’s indecision and the crew’s mutinous plots hastened their inevitable fate. They eventually became trapped on Cape Sabine, unable to travel any further south, and waited there for eight months. One by one, men began to die and the rescuers that eventually arrived found only seven remaining. They were half mad, and surrounded by amputated legs and exposed, cannibalised bodies.

The survivors returned to a hero’s welcome, and gave sworn affidavits that they had not practised cannibalism. Whether the truth was distorted due to sensational publicity, or whether these men really did resort to such depravity is still in debate today. In a new polar expedition to retrace Greely’s steps, from the abandoned scientific base where two years’ research is still waiting to be uncovered to the final site where many lives ended, researchers hope to bring this little known story to life.

The narrative of this new expedition, along with interviews with relatives of the survivors, readings from the crew’s preserved diaries, and discussions with experts such as author Leonard Guttridge, will undoubtedly provide a gripping insight into one of the most terrifying expeditions in Arctic history.

Vladimir Vojir