Victor Campbell
Encyclopedia
Victor Lindsay Arbuthnot Campbell DSO & Bar
, OBE
(20 August 1875 – 19 November 1956), was a British sailor and renowned explorer.
's Terra Nova expedition
. After arriving in Antarctica in January 1911, his role was to lead an Eastern party of 6 men to explore and carry out scientific work in King Edward VII Land, to the east of the Barrier. On 26 January 1911, Campbell's party left in the Terra Nova and headed east. After failing to find a suitable landing site on the King Edward VII Land shore, Campbell decided to sail to Victoria Land
. On its return westward, Terra Nova encountered Roald Amundsen
's expedition camped in the Bay of Whales
, an inlet in the Barrier.
and informing Scott of Amundsen's location, Campbell's party were renamed the Northern party and set off again, sailing northwards and put ashore at Robertson's Bay, near Cape Adare
. They built a hut and wintered at Cape Adare but due to the sea ice conditions were unable to fulfil much of their intended summer 1912 explorations. In January 1912, Terra Nova returned from New Zealand, and transferred the party of Campbell, Raymond Priestley
, G.M. Levick
, G.P. Abbott, H. Dickason, and F.V. Browning to Evans Coves, a location 250 miles (402.3 km) south of Cape Adare and 200 miles (321.9 km) northwest of Cape Evans. However, they only had sledging provisions for six weeks with the intention of completing the geological work in a couple of weeks. After the work was done they were left with rations for about four weeks. It was not anticipated the ship would have trouble picking them up as arranged in February but the Terra Nova could not reach them due to heavy pack ice. Unable to connect with their ship, the Northern Party was forced to winter in Antarctica again. The party built an ice cave on Inexpressible Island
where they spent the winter in miserable conditions, supplementing their rations by killing scarce seal and penguins. On 30 September 1912, they set off for Cape Evans
, finally arriving on 7 November after crossing more than 200 miles (321.9 km) of sea ice. After learning of the death of Scott and the entire Polar party, as the senior remaining Naval officer, Campbell assumed command of the Terra Nova expedition for its final weeks.
and in the Dardanelles
, where he received the Distinguished Service Order
(DSO), in the Battle of Jutland
and took part in the Zeebrugge raid
on board of HMS Warwick
in 1918. Campbell served in the Dover Patrol
and sank a U-boat by ramming it, for which he was awarded the bar to his DSO. In his further service with the Royal Navy
, he reached the rank of Captain
. Having carried out a special service in Arkhangelsk
(Archangel), he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
(OBE).
Campbell emigrated to Newfoundland
in 1922 and died in Corner Brook, Newfoundland in 1956.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(20 August 1875 – 19 November 1956), was a British sailor and renowned explorer.
Terra Nova expedition
In 1910, he was First Officer on Robert Falcon ScottRobert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
's Terra Nova expedition
Terra Nova Expedition
The Terra Nova Expedition , officially the British Antarctic Expedition 1910, was led by Robert Falcon Scott with the objective of being the first to reach the geographical South Pole. Scott and four companions attained the pole on 17 January 1912, to find that a Norwegian team led by Roald...
. After arriving in Antarctica in January 1911, his role was to lead an Eastern party of 6 men to explore and carry out scientific work in King Edward VII Land, to the east of the Barrier. On 26 January 1911, Campbell's party left in the Terra Nova and headed east. After failing to find a suitable landing site on the King Edward VII Land shore, Campbell decided to sail to Victoria Land
Victoria Land
Victoria Land is a region of Antarctica bounded on the east by the Ross Ice Shelf and the Ross Sea and on the west by Oates Land and Wilkes Land. It was discovered by Captain James Clark Ross in January 1841 and named after the UK's Queen Victoria...
. On its return westward, Terra Nova encountered Roald Amundsen
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He led the first Antarctic expedition to reach the South Pole between 1910 and 1912 and he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles. He is also known as the first to traverse the Northwest Passage....
's expedition camped in the Bay of Whales
Bay of Whales
The Bay of Whales is a natural ice harbor, or iceport, indenting the front of Ross Ice Shelf just north of Roosevelt Island. It is the southernmost point of open ocean not only of the Ross Sea, but worldwide...
, an inlet in the Barrier.
Marooned in Victoria Land
After returning to Cape EvansCape Evans
Cape Evans is a rocky cape on the west side of Ross Island, forming the north side of the entrance to Erebus Bay.The cape was discovered by the Discovery expedition under Robert Falcon Scott, who named it the Skuary. Scott's second expedition, the British Antarctic Expedition , built its...
and informing Scott of Amundsen's location, Campbell's party were renamed the Northern party and set off again, sailing northwards and put ashore at Robertson's Bay, near Cape Adare
Cape Adare
Cape Adare is the northeastern most peninsula in Victoria Land, East Antarctica. The cape separates the Ross Sea to the east from the Southern Ocean to the west, and is backed by the high Admiralty Mountains...
. They built a hut and wintered at Cape Adare but due to the sea ice conditions were unable to fulfil much of their intended summer 1912 explorations. In January 1912, Terra Nova returned from New Zealand, and transferred the party of Campbell, Raymond Priestley
Raymond Priestley
Sir Raymond Edward Priestley was a British geologist and early Antarctic explorer.-Biography:Raymond Priestley was born in Bredon's Norton,Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, in 1886, the second son and second of eight children of Joseph Edward Priestley, headmaster of Tewkesbury grammar school, and his...
, G.M. Levick
George Murray Levick
George Murray Levick was a British Antarctic explorer, and founder of the British Schools Exploring Society.He was born in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, the son of George Levick and Jeannie Sowerby. After a short medical career, he joined the Royal Navy in 1910 but was quickly given leave of absence to...
, G.P. Abbott, H. Dickason, and F.V. Browning to Evans Coves, a location 250 miles (402.3 km) south of Cape Adare and 200 miles (321.9 km) northwest of Cape Evans. However, they only had sledging provisions for six weeks with the intention of completing the geological work in a couple of weeks. After the work was done they were left with rations for about four weeks. It was not anticipated the ship would have trouble picking them up as arranged in February but the Terra Nova could not reach them due to heavy pack ice. Unable to connect with their ship, the Northern Party was forced to winter in Antarctica again. The party built an ice cave on Inexpressible Island
Inexpressible Island
-History:Robert Falcon Scott's Terra Nova Expedition comprised several groups. One of these, the Northern Party, led by Victor Campbell, did not accompany Scott into the interior but wintered at Cape Adare. In 1912, that group , began the long journey homewards and began making their way to Cape...
where they spent the winter in miserable conditions, supplementing their rations by killing scarce seal and penguins. On 30 September 1912, they set off for Cape Evans
Cape Evans
Cape Evans is a rocky cape on the west side of Ross Island, forming the north side of the entrance to Erebus Bay.The cape was discovered by the Discovery expedition under Robert Falcon Scott, who named it the Skuary. Scott's second expedition, the British Antarctic Expedition , built its...
, finally arriving on 7 November after crossing more than 200 miles (321.9 km) of sea ice. After learning of the death of Scott and the entire Polar party, as the senior remaining Naval officer, Campbell assumed command of the Terra Nova expedition for its final weeks.
Later years and honours
During the First World War, Campbell fought as Commander of the Drake Battalion in GallipoliGallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
and in the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
, where he received the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(DSO), in the Battle of Jutland
Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland was a naval battle between the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet during the First World War. The battle was fought on 31 May and 1 June 1916 in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. It was the largest naval battle and the only...
and took part in the Zeebrugge raid
Zeebrugge Raid
The Zeebrugge Raid, which took place on 23 April 1918, was an attempt by the British Royal Navy to neutralize the key Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge...
on board of HMS Warwick
HMS Warwick (D25)
HMS Warwick was a Admiralty 'W' class destroyer built in 1917.She saw service in both the First and Second World Wars, before being torpedoed and sunk in January 1944.-Construction:...
in 1918. Campbell served in the Dover Patrol
Dover Patrol
The Dover Patrol was a Royal Navy command of the First World War, notable for its involvement in the Zeebrugge Raid on 22 April 1918. The Dover Patrol formed a discrete unit of the Royal Navy based at Dover and Dunkirk for the duration of the First World War...
and sank a U-boat by ramming it, for which he was awarded the bar to his DSO. In his further service with the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, he reached the rank of Captain
Captain (Royal Navy)
Captain is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy. It ranks above Commander and below Commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a Colonel in the British Army or Royal Marines and to a Group Captain in the Royal Air Force. The rank of Group Captain is based on the...
. Having carried out a special service in Arkhangelsk
Arkhangelsk
Arkhangelsk , formerly known as Archangel in English, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina River near its exit into the White Sea in the north of European Russia. The city spreads for over along the banks of the river...
(Archangel), he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(OBE).
Campbell emigrated to Newfoundland
Dominion of Newfoundland
The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...
in 1922 and died in Corner Brook, Newfoundland in 1956.