John Robert Frances Wild (1873-1939)
Nationality and occupation
English-born Antarctic explorer and Naval Officer
Achievements
- 1901-04 – A seaman on the Discovery, Robert Scott's first Antarctic expedition and attempt at the Pole.
- 1907-09 – A member of Shackleton's Nimrod expedition, reaching a new highest southern latitude, 180 km from the Pole.
- 1911 – A member of Douglas Mawson's Aurora expedition.
- 1914-17 – Second-in-command of Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic expedition, where he and his men survived after their ship the Endurance broke up.
A veteran of five major Antarctic expeditions, Frank Wild served a hard apprenticeship in all aspects of maritime and expeditionary life, rising as a leader under tough circumstances. Wild was a seaman at the age of 16 and at 26 joined the Navy. Soon after this he volunteered for Scott's first Antarctic expedition of 1901–04, during which he became a close friend of Shackleton.
Following Scott's failure to reach the South Pole, Shackleton invited Wild to join his Nimrod expedition of 1907–09. They too failed to realise their goal, but Wild was party to one of the longest sledge journeys ever, naming the Beardmore Glacier and walking to within 180 km of the Pole, the farthest south anyone had reached at that time.
Wild led the Western Party of Mawson's Australasian Antarctic Expedition, stationed in Queen Mary Land, and explored 500 km of unknown coastline. He shortly thereafter resumed his career with Shackleton on the famous 1914–17 expedition in which their ship Endurance was crushed in pack ice. Camping on sea ice until it broke up, Shackleton's team man-hauled their whaleboats to the open sea and struck out for Elephant Island. There Wild was made leader of the main group while Shackleton and a small crew sailed a whaleboat to South Georgia, and crossed its alpine backbone to raise help at the whaling station at the far side of the island. After sheltering beneath upturned whaleboats on a narrow spit of rock for 105 days, and living on penguin, seal and seaweed, Wild and all his men were eventually rescued in what is regarded as one of the classic stories of polar survival.
In 1921 Shackleton persuaded Wild to join him on a new voyage south in the Quest. When Shackleton died suddenly of heart failure, Wild assumed command from his old friend and completed the expedition.
