William Speirs Bruce and the Polar Medal: myth and reality

The paper assesses the candidacy of members of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition for the Polar Medal, instituted in 1904, and, more particularly, the widely held assertion that it was Sir Clements Markham who effectively prevented its award. Contemporary documentation indicates such royal d...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPolar journal Vol. 4; no. 1; pp. 170 - 182
Main Authors Dudeney, J.R., Sheail, J.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Routledge 02.01.2014
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Candidates
Polar Medal
Scottish National Antarctic Expedition
Self sufficiency
Sir Clements Markham
William Speirs Bruce
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Summary:The paper assesses the candidacy of members of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition for the Polar Medal, instituted in 1904, and, more particularly, the widely held assertion that it was Sir Clements Markham who effectively prevented its award. Contemporary documentation indicates such royal denial of the medal to Bruce's expedition arose not from doubts as to its scientific achievements, or from the malign influence of individuals, but paradoxically from its self-sufficiency in requiring neither government monies nor Admiralty rescue. King George V was not prepared, in 1910, eight years after the expedition, to overturn the decision of his father King Edward VII by honouring Bruce and thereby setting a precedent by widening the scope of the medal.
ISSN:2154-896X
2154-8978
DOI:10.1080/2154896X.2014.913915