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Knighted Explorer: Sir Ernest Shackleton

Sir Ernest Shackleton (1874 - 1922)

Shackleton spent time in Lyttelton and Christchurch on five separate occasions between 1901 and 1917. His first expedition was as 3rd Officer on Scott's Discovery expedition, but he was invalided out.

Shackleton then went on to lead three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was knighted for the notable feat of coming within 97 nautical miles of the South Pole after his first Nimrod expedition 1907-1909.

He was called a hero during the Endurance expedition 1914-1917 after he led his men to safety following the loss of his ship and after being marooned for two years on the polar ice.

He died in 1922 during his fourth Antarctic expedition and was buried in the whaler's cemetery on South Georgia Island in the South Atlantic.

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