Funeral of Hans Christian Petersen, British Arctic

The funeral of Hans Christian Petersen, the Danish interpreter, during the British Arctic Expedition of 1875-1876. Petersen had gone out with a sledging party and suffered severe frostbite, requiring amputation of both feet. He subsequently died from blood-poisoning and was buried close to the winter berth of HMS Alert'. In the summer of 1875 the British Admiralty sent Captain George Nares with two ships, HMS Alert and HMS Discovery, to make an attempt to reach the North Pole via Smith Sound. Although the attempt was unsuccessful, a new furthest North record was set, the coasts of Greenland and Ellesmere Island were charted and much scientific data gathered

Admiralty Alert Amputation Berth Buried Charted Coasts Data Ellesmere Frostbite Furthest Greenland Interpreter Nares Petersen Poisoning Reach Requiring Severe Sledging Subsequently Suffered Unsuccessful

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