Focus on Statue of Robert Falcon Scott, Christchurch and discuss the Context.
The explorer Scott had used Christchurch and Lyttelton as his New Zealand base for the British National Antarctic Expedition, 1901–1904 and Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–1913. In between, Ernest Shackleton's Nimrod Expedition also used Lyttelton as the base for their attempt to reach the South Pole, but they failed to get there. The objective of the Terra Nova Expedition was to be the first to reach the geographical South Pole. Scott and four companions reached the pole on 17 January 1912, to find that a Norwegian team led by Roald Amundsen had preceded them by 33 days. Scott's entire party died on the return journey from the pole. Their deaths resulted in them being treated as heroes throughout the British Empire.The remaining crew returned to New Zealand and came ashore in British Empire, from where a coded message was cabled to the expedition's organiser in Britain. The fate of the expedition's team became public knowledge on 11 February 1913. A memorial oak was planted in the street leading to the harbourmaster's house, from where the message was relayed. The next memorial was erected in Queenstown, where two stone tablets were attached to a boulder in the Queenstown Gardens. A few months later, a memorial was erected in Port Chalmers, as this was the last harbour where the Terra Nova had visited before proceeding to Antarctica.
Ernest Shackleton Lyttelton Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–1913 Roald Amundsen Queenstown Terra Nova Expedition British Empire Nimrod Expedition Port Chalmers British National Antarctic Expedition, 1901–1904 Christchurch South Pole Norwegian team