British Graham Land Expedition
Encyclopedia
A British expedition to Graham Land led by John Lachlan Cope took place between 1920 and 1922.

The British Graham Land Expedition (or BGLE) was a geophysical and exploration expedition to Graham Land
Graham Land
Graham Land is that portion of the Antarctic Peninsula which lies north of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This description of Graham Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between the British Antarctic Place-names Committee and the US Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names, in...

 in Antarctica between 1934 to 1937. Under the leadership of John Riddoch Rymill
John Riddoch Rymill
John Riddoch Rymill was an Australian polar explorer, who had the rare second clasp added to his Polar Medal.- Early life :Rymill was born the son of a farmer on 13 March 1905 at Penola, South Australia...

, the expedition spent two years in the Antarctic. The expedition determined that Graham Land
Graham Land
Graham Land is that portion of the Antarctic Peninsula which lies north of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This description of Graham Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between the British Antarctic Place-names Committee and the US Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names, in...

 was a peninsula. The expedition used a combination of traditional
Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration
The Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration defines an era which extended from the end of the 19th century to the early 1920s. During this 25-year period the Antarctic continent became the focus of an international effort which resulted in intensive scientific and geographical exploration, sixteen...

 and modern practices in Antarctic exploration, using both dog teams and motor sledges as well as a single-engine de Havilland Fox Moth
De Havilland Fox Moth
|-References:NotesBibliography* Hotson, Fred W. The de Havilland Canada Story. Toronto: CANAV Books, 1983. ISBN 0-07-549483-3.* Jackson, A. J. British Civil Aircraft 1919-1972: Volume II. London: Putnam , 1988. ISBN 0-85177-813-5....

 aircraft for exploration. Transportation to the Antarctic was in an elderly three-masted sailing ship christened the Penola, which had an unreliable auxiliary engine. Additional supplies were brought on the ship Discovery II.

The expedition was one of the last privately-sponsored Antarctic missions, with only part of the cost covered by the UK government. Although the expedition had a very small budget, it was successful in its scientific objectives. Air survey photography and mapping was carried out for 1000 miles (1600 km) of the Graham Land coast.

All sixteen members of the landing party received the Polar Medal
Polar Medal
The Polar Medal is a medal awarded by the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It was instituted in 1857 as the Arctic Medal and renamed the Polar Medal in 1904.-History:...

. One of the participants of the BGLE was Dr. Brian Birley Roberts, who later contributed to the drafting of the Antarctic Treaty.

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