Catastrophe and Cannibalism; the fate of the John Franklin Expedition.

PASSAGE’, relates the history, horror and extreme challenges to human fortitude faced by the crews of the two ships that embarked on what was to become Britain’s worst Polar disaster.

Debut author Angus Wardlaw dramatically unveils the spine-tingling true story of this ambitious but ultimately fated expedition; a search for the fabled Northwest Passage that ended in death and cannibalism.

‘It is an extraordinary and shocking account of the tragic journey of the John Franklin Expedition.’

‘A disaster of this measure looks for an explanation of equal magnitude’. Sir Michael Palin

Wardlaw, a descendant of Captain Francis Crozier who commanded the HMS Terror, sister ship to the HMS Erebus on the expedition, has meticulously researched all that is known about the fate of this ambitious but doomed enterprise.

‘I am directly related to Francis Crozier, captain of HMS Terror, and have long been fascinated by what happened to him and the other 129 men who perished on the expedition. ‘PASSAGE’ tells their story’

There remains a high level interest in the fate of the John Franklin Expedition, prompted by the continuing hunt for information on the fate of the luckless crews. There is an ongoing exploration of the two wrecks which were finally located in the Arctic waters of Canada in 2014 and 2016. https://bit.ly/45DjLCe

Fourteen rare daguerreotypes of the crew which had been sitting in storage for 178 years were sold at public auction by Sotheby’s in September for £444,500. https://bit.ly/3tAzRPM