In the Kingdom of Ice: The Epic and Tragic Polar Expedition of the USS Jeannette

Mr Leslie Irwin: Having just read the excellent ‘ Madness at the End of the Earth’ by Julian Sancton I thought I would give this a go. The true account of the Voyage of the USS Jeannette is another great read of man against the elements this time swapping the Antartic for the search to find the North Pole. This is a tale of incredible hardship, determination, courage and endurance very well written about men and their heroic and, it could be argued, foolish exploits which have been largely forgotten by time. It is apparent that this group of men were exceptional in many ways and thanks to the author and his sensitive treatment and extensive research their story has been told and they can get the recognition they undoubtedly deserve. First class read!

United Kingdom on May 05, 2023

A South pole Inn patron: What a fantastic account of another tragic effort to triumph in the polar regions..Well written by Hampton Sides..The engineer Melville was indeed a shining example of selflessness that shone through in the story of the USS Jeannette.....What a read..

United Kingdom on Feb 11, 2023

Tripower53: 5 stars

James Gordon Bennett is newspaper owner who specializes in the outrageous and not altogether true stories.

Captain George Washington DeLong made his name for a daring attempt made to reach survivors of a ship that was destroyed by ice in the Arctic when he was still a Lieutenant in the US Navy. The Arctic got into his blood, something that surprised him, and he spent several years studying and plotting to get back there – but as the captain of his own expedition this time.

Bennett becomes very interested in the Arctic and agrees to fund DeLong’s expedition to the North Pole. They consult the latest maps and scientific data. They meet with the eminent scientists of the day and gather data that is suspect by today’s standards. (From our point of view we can see that some of the ideas put forth at the time were outrageous at best and some of them were downright dangerous. )

Before they set sail on July 8, 1879, DeLong is ordered by his superiors at the US Navy to check on a fellow explorer at Bennett’s behest. DeLong is furious for he knows the other explorer is not yet overdue and most likely is fine. But he must follow orders, so he takes...

United States on Dec 29, 2018

R Helen: WOW! That book was a real thriller. I seriously had to keep stopping myself from turning to the end to see what happened to everyone. I couldn't stop reading it. Hampton Sides has really perfected his craft. The book was really well written, the characters had depth, and the story just flowed. It's hard not to have tears in your eyes at some parts. If you like adventure stories, than this one will not disappoint. This book proves the cliche that "Life is stranger than fiction."

On that note, anyone who reads this has to wonder if the voyage of the USS Jeanette was worth the sacrifice and hardship. Certainly, there was a lot of noble thought, but in the end, how much was gained? It's hard to tell.

There is a lot to thin about here. I would highly recommend.

United Kingdom on Jun 12, 2018

LastRanger: On July 8, 1879 the USS Jeanñette, under the command of George W. De Long, sailed from San Francisco Harbor bound for the Bering Strait and the Polar Ocean north of the Arctic Circle. Her mission was to explore and chart the little known waters north the Siberian Coast in order to verify, or invalidate, the "Open Polar Sea" theory and to determine if the newly discovered Wrangle Island was, in fact, part of much larger land mass, an unknown continent, stretching all the way to the North Pole. I really enjoyed this amazing book, it was by turn; engrossing, terrifying and impossible to put down! "In The Kingdom Of Ice" is my first book by historian Hampton Sides and he does not disappoint. Not a History Text Book but an "Historical Narrative" that is both well written and well researched. Using newspaper accounts, personal logs, official documents and family letters, Sides gives the reader an intimate look into the lives and adventures of these intrepid explorers. The first part of the book is mostly background material on the principle characters and the society that they lived in. Besides De Long and his team you will meet the famous scientist and newspaper men of the mid 19th...

United States on May 30, 2016

Marc Ranger: I must tell you beforehand that I just love exploration stories, especially those whose object was to reach the North or South Pole.
The Jeanette's voyage was based on deeply flawed theories, such as an Open Polar Sea and a hypothetical Thermographic Gateway warming the Arctic Sea over the Bering Strairt and other such nonsenses. The voyage was thus doomed to fail.

Althought the expedition is in itself well worth reading about, what I found most interesting was the cast of characters involved in such enterprise.
People such as James Gordon Bennet, owner of the NY Herald, Petermann the German cartographer and theorician, George Washington De Long, leader of the expedition and his wife Emma, All were exceptionnals characters in their own right.

Hampton Sides does an excellent job bringing those people to life and in the process, makes the reading of the expedition an enjoyable and thrilling experience. Any lover of adventure should read the tale.

Canada on May 21, 2015

Robert P. Brown: In the late nineteenth century there was a growing belief that a Pacific current called the Kuro Siwo flowed up the west coast of North America, through the Bering Straight, burrowed under the Artic ice, until it finally met up with the Atlantic Gulfstream flowing in from the east, to form, at the top of the world, the Open Polar Sea, thereby enabling a ship to sail to the North Pole!

With this in mind, JamesGordon Bennett Jr., owner andpublisher of the New York Herald, who in 1870 had sent Stanely to find Livingstone,(although Livingstone wasn`t lost), in order to sell papers, decided to underwrite an expedition to the North Pole.

(Bennett was a notable eccentric who liked to drive his horses through Central Park, at night, naked, and who once, at a fashionable New Year`s Day party, given by his fiancee, relieved himself into the grand piano, feeling, as one observer put it; it was time to "pump out the bilge". Needless to say, that was the end of the engagement and probably the piano.

He outfitted a ship, rechristened the Jeannette, after his sister, hired a 33 man crew and in July 1879 it set off. In September, after having passed through the Bering...

Canada on Mar 13, 2015