HMS Erebus: From Dockyard to Discovery

People's Collection Wales, Creative Archive License

The Pembroke Dockyard was once one of the chief ship-building yards in the British Isles; founded in 1814, it eventually built and launched more than 260 ships. Of course, it's just one of those that stands out to all of us who've been captivated by the history of the Franklin expedition, and that's HMS Erebus. Laid down in 1826, she was originally equipped with two mortars -- one 13-inch and one 10-inch -- and saw brief service in the Mediterranean before being re-outfitted as an exploration vessel for the Antarctic. As with her older companion HMS Terror, her origin as a "bomb" vessel made her well-suited for such service -- the broad beam and heavy construction, combined with a relatively shallow draught, seemed ideal for navigating through ice-infested waters. She served well under the command of James Clark Ross, and when, late in 1844, a new search for the elusive northwest passage was to be undertaken, she and her consort seemed the ideal choices once more.

Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre

But for a moment, let's turn back to her launching in 1826 -- for it's this occasion whose bicentenary will be celebrated in the upcoming exhibit HMS Erebus: From Dockyard to Discovery, at the Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre. Located in what was originally the chapel of the dockyard, the Heritage Centre will be host to a selection of artifacts recovered by Parks Canada's underwater archaeology team between 2014 and 2017 -- artifacts which were, as part of the agreement with the UK that transferred ownership of the ships to Canada -- sent to the National Museum of the Royal Navy, from which they are now being loaned. It will be a striking re-union, the first time any materials associated with Erebus have returned to her port of origin in these two centuries.

And I'm very happy to say that I'm going to be part of the opening weekend for this extraordinary exhibit! On Sunday, June 7th, I'll be delivering a talk, "From Land’s End to the Ends of the Earth:  The Eventful Career of HMS Erebus." The first phrase of my title is quite deliberate -- the name of Pembroke comes from the Welsh Penfro meaning 'land's end' or 'headland -- and of course will encompass both her Antarctic and Arctic voyages, as well as the archaelogical work that's been done on the wreck site, and all that we've learned from it so far. I hope that some of my readers here at Visions of the North, who've been kind enough to give it more than 2.4 million views over the seventeen years I've been writing it, might join me -- and there will be some special guests as well. I hope we'll all have an opportunity, wherever we are, to raise a glass to this extraordinary vessel.