Description

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.