Prospective Members

Scott was a member of:

• Drury Lane Lodge (2127)

• Navy Lodge (2612), England

• St. Alban’s Lodge, Christchurch, New Zealand (2597)

• Contribution to the “Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration”

• Discovered the Antarctic Plateau (location of South Pole)

  • Discovery Expedition (1901-1904)

  • First British official attempt to explore the Antarctic regions (after a long period)

  • Organised by the Royal Society and Royal Society of Geography

  • Scott volunteered to lead and was chosen on merit

• Terra Nova expedition - South Pole race against Roald Amundsen

  • Reached the South Pole (a few weeks after Amundsen)

  • Died on his way back to the base camp

Integrity

• Successful early naval career despite difficulties in his family

  • Graduated with high grades

  • He had to support his mother and two sisters after the deaths of his father and his brother

• Admitted his faults in the expedition’s journey

• “We took risks, we knew we took them; things have come out against us, and therefore we have no cause for complaint, [...] determined still to do our best to the last”

Friendship

• Scott often praised his crew and acknowledged their contribution, in both expeditions

• “Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions”

• Throughout the last days of his life, Scott wrote letters to the mothers of the other people in his group, who all died before him

Respect

• Described by his companions: "a cheerful and easy man … short-tempered and not to be trifled with when angry, but if he had judged someone unfairly and discovered his mistake, he was quick to make amends."

• Despite having his orders not followed by the team at the base, Scott wrote: "[..] No-one is to blame and I hope no attempt will be made to suggest that we had lacked support."

  • (The dog team was supposed to meet with Scott on their way back from the Pole; the instructions he gave were not followed and this lead to the deadly fate)

Charity

• Scott saw the journey as a scientific exploration rather than a race ambition

• In the last letter to his wife, he wrote (about their son): “make the boy interested in natural history if you can; it is better than games.”

  • Sir Peter Scott (Robert’s son), a British conservationist, was one of the founders of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)