"A very interesting point in geography": The 1773 Phipps Expedition towards the North Pole

... Phipps' voyage of 1773 ... lasted only for one season, and did not attain the North Pole. It was, nevertheless, of considerable historical and scientific interest and deserves greater recognition than merely being known as the expedition on which young Nelson tried to shoot the polar bear. The voyage has sometimes been called a failure, but when one considers the matter, it was bound to fail. It was not until two centuries later, in our own time, that a ship navigated the ice of the central polar basin to reach the North Pole. ..

The British Government, Ernest Shackleton, and the rescue of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition

The remarkable rescue of Shackleton's men from Elephant Island, after the sinking of Endurance, and from Ross Island, has been recounted many times by both participants and historians. There has been little critical examination of the part played by governments, nor assessment of some of Shackleton's own actions. In this paper we explore more fully from official British archival sources the extent to which the British Government was prepared to underwrite the rescue efforts; the importance of the plea made by Emily Shackleton directly to the Prime Minister; the role and actions of the Relief Advisory Committee (especially in respect of limiting Shackleton's actions); the significance of the media rights to the debt-laden expedition, and how such preoccupation could have influenced Shackleton's endeavour to rescue his marooned parties

By so far refusing to negotiate meaningfully on reorganizing Westminster constituencies, the government is threatening its own AV referendum

Last night the House of Lords continued its consideration of the coalition bill to prune constituencies to 600 and to hold a referendum on AV, following last week’s unbroken 21 hour sitting. Dale Campbell-Savours explains why Labour Peers are holding out for significant concessions, and how the government could lose its AV referendum date on 5 May if ministers do not make more concessions

The House of Lords amendment requiring that 40 per cent of people take part in the AV referendum is just the latest blow to the government's strategy of enacting constitutional change with no consensus and no evidence-base

The latest fruit of the stiff resistance to the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill by Labour Peers, is a successful amendment that makes the introduction of the Alternative Vote non-binding if fewer than two fifths of UK voters take part in the referendum. Dale Campbell-Savours explains why government intransigence has brought about a real prospect of wrecking the hopes for even the smallest voting system change