Arctic Medal (1876)
The second British polar meal, the 1876 Arctic Medal, was awarded to the crews of the HMS Alert and HMS Discovery, which participated in the British Arctic Expedition led by Sir Vice-Admiral George Strong Nares between July 17, 1875 and November 2, 1876. Both ships were in search of the open Arctic Sea and a route to the North Pole via Smith Sound.
The 1876 Arctic Medal was also awarded to the officers and crew of the private yacht, Pandora, which made two voyages to the Arctic, under the command of Sir Allen Young, R.N.R., between June 25 and October 19, 1875 and June 3 and November 3, 1876, searching for records of the missing Franklin Expedition. Unable to penetrate the ice at Peel Sound, which Franklin had done, the expedition returned empty handed.
On April 3, 1876, the second-in-command of Alert, Commander Albert Hastings Markham led a sledge party north in an attempt the reach the Pole. By May 11, 1876, having made slow progress, they reached their greatest latitude at 83° 20' 26"N. Suffering from snow blindness, scurvy, and exhaustion, they turned back. Overall, the Nares Expedition was a near disaster. The crews were poorly outfitted and suffered from scurvy. This led Nares to sail southward during the summer of 1876. On a positive note, Naval topographers succeeded in documenting the indigenous people of the region and what would initially become the Canadian Northwest Territories.
The first voyage of the Pandora hoped to trace the movement of the magnetic pole and perhaps find the Northwest Passage. While at King William Island they searched for further records, including the journals of Captain Sir John Franklin's ships Erebus and Terror, all in one season to avoid the expense, aggravation, and hardship of wintering over in the Arctic. The second voyage in 1876 concerned itself with the welfare or fate of the 1875-76 Nares Expedition, which in fact had faced significant problems.
The obverse of the 36mm, silver medal with milled edges features the crowned and veiled bust of Queen Victoria. It is inscribed, VICTORIA REGINA on either side of her bust and 1876 below. The reverse depicts the starboard, broadside of a three-masted ship bound in the pack ice. The obverse was designed by George Gammon Adams and the reverse by Leonard Charles Wyon.
1876 British Arctic Medal
A total of 155 the 1876 medals were awarded: 62 to the offices and crew of Alert; 60 to the officers and crew of Discovery and 33 to members of the Pandora Expeditions. There would be no further recognition until the adoption of the Polar Medal.
The second British polar meal, the 1876 Arctic Medal, was awarded to the crews of the HMS Alert and HMS Discovery, which participated in the British Arctic Expedition led by Sir Vice-Admiral George Strong Nares between July 17, 1875 and November 2, 1876. Both ships were in search of the open Arctic Sea and a route to the North Pole via Smith Sound.
The 1876 Arctic Medal was also awarded to the officers and crew of the private yacht, Pandora, which made two voyages to the Arctic, under the command of Sir Allen Young, R.N.R., between June 25 and October 19, 1875 and June 3 and November 3, 1876, searching for records of the missing Franklin Expedition. Unable to penetrate the ice at Peel Sound, which Franklin had done, the expedition returned empty handed.
On April 3, 1876, the second-in-command of Alert, Commander Albert Hastings Markham led a sledge party north in an attempt the reach the Pole. By May 11, 1876, having made slow progress, they reached their greatest latitude at 83° 20' 26"N. Suffering from snow blindness, scurvy, and exhaustion, they turned back. Overall, the Nares Expedition was a near disaster. The crews were poorly outfitted and suffered from scurvy. This led Nares to sail southward during the summer of 1876. On a positive note, Naval topographers succeeded in documenting the indigenous people of the region and what would initially become the Canadian Northwest Territories.
The first voyage of the Pandora hoped to trace the movement of the magnetic pole and perhaps find the Northwest Passage. While at King William Island they searched for further records, including the journals of Captain Sir John Franklin's ships Erebus and Terror, all in one season to avoid the expense, aggravation, and hardship of wintering over in the Arctic. The second voyage in 1876 concerned itself with the welfare or fate of the 1875-76 Nares Expedition, which in fact had faced significant problems.
The obverse of the 36mm, silver medal with milled edges features the crowned and veiled bust of Queen Victoria. It is inscribed, VICTORIA REGINA on either side of her bust and 1876 below. The reverse depicts the starboard, broadside of a three-masted ship bound in the pack ice. The obverse was designed by George Gammon Adams and the reverse by Leonard Charles Wyon.
1876 British Arctic Medal
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