MADHOUSE AT THE END OF THE EARTH Book Club Kit

THE BELGICA’S JOURNEY INTO THE DARK ANTARCTIC NIGHT

MADHOUSE END EARTH AT THE

OF THE

JULIAN SANCTON

READING GROUP GUIDE

“Deserves a place beside Alfred Lansing’s immortal classic Endurance."

—NATHANIEL PHILBRICK “A riveting tale, splendidly told.”

—STACY SCHIFF “Julian Sancton has deftly rescued this forgotten saga from the deep freeze.”

—HAMPTON SIDES

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. The author opens part one of Madhouse at the End of the Earth with an epigraph: “Sometimes science is the excuse for exploration. I think it is very rarely the reason,” a quote from George Leigh Mallory. Do you agree? Why or why not? Do you believe it applies to the voyage of the Belgica?

2. Why do you think the South Pole in particular was so fascinating to de Gerlache and his crew?

3. In order to plan and execute his own polar excursions before joining the Belgica, Frederick Cook relies heavily on the knowledge and skills of indigenous people, including two young Inuit siblings who he brought to live with him in New York and ultimately used in a “traveling Arctic showcase” in the city. Discuss the way that Cook and his contemporaries depended on the labor and knowledge of indigenous people in explorations of this nature. Do you find these arrangements fair?

4. After making landfall in the Antarctic, Amundsen is thrilled to ski across the snow in what he supposes is the very first ski trip on the continent; Sancton writes, “It was a minor exploit, to be sure, but it was his first first.” What do you make of the explorers’ preoccupation with being the first, even in a minor arena like skiing? Do you feel that same “urge to reach the top of things”? Why or why not?

5. De Gerlache fears meeting his death in the Antarctic ice pack, but more acutely, he fears unfavorable treatment in the Belgian press—whether for hiring a crew with non-Belgian members, not achieving the voyage’s stated mission, or falling short of his goals, among others. Why might he feel this way about the press? Do you believe his fears negatively impacted his decision-making? Do you see evidence that modern public figures have similar trepidation about the press today?

6. Shortly after being trapped in the ice pack, the sailors on the Belgica describe the ways in which light from the sun plays off the snow and ice, creating mirages and prisms and other otherworldly sights. Lecointe writes that the sight makes the observer feel “there is something else on earth . . . This sort of religiosity makes you sense a God, not a specific God, but a vastly superior being.” Why might the sailors have used religious metaphor to describe this natural phenomenon?

7. The “Herculean effort” required to cut a canal through the ice to attempt to free the Belgica “didn’t sap the men’s energy but, on the contrary, replenished it.” Alongside the positive physical effects of invigorating labor, the hope of escape was also instrumental in bringing many of the sailors back from the brink. Discuss why hope might have this effect on the men.

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 8. Cook points out that, aside from a copy of the Bible, there were no religious texts on board. What role did religion play in this expedition?

9. Upon returning to Belgium, de Gerlache and the remaining crew were welcomed with hearty festivities and prestigious awards. According to Sancton, however, “a journalist observing the festivities noted that the men looked ‘disoriented’ and ‘unsettled’ by the attention.” Discuss this major change in mindset among the sailors, most notably de Gerlache. Would you feel the same disorientation amid pomp and circumstance after having survived a similar ordeal? Why or why not?

10. Discuss the lives of Amundsen and Cook following the Belgica’s return. The two men, so close during their Antarctic expedition, went on to carry out similar feats over the years with (incredibly) varied results. Why do you think Amundsen succeeded where Cook could not?

11. As discussed in the Notes and Sources, Sancton draws primarily on firsthand accounts and diaries of the sailors aboard the Belgica to write for Madhouse at the End of the Earth.

Are they trustworthy, in your opinion? Why or why not?

12. Having finished the book, discuss the expedition and its legacy. Did the fate of any of the men surprise you? Do you think the Belgica was successful in its voyage?

THE CREW • Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery, the steadfast commander who spent more than three years planning, staffing, and raising funds for the journey. “ . . . what reality has ever equaled the sweet splendor of dreams!”

—from page 72 • Roald Amundsen, the first mate from Norway, who looked like a modern-day Viking—and who considered polar exploration as an almost a chivalric calling.

• Frederick A. Cook, ship’s doctor and designated photographer, a restless soul from Brooklyn, NY, with an insatiable thirst for adventure and glory “. . . we are as hopelessly isolated as if we were on the surface of Mars,” wrote Cook, “and we are plunging still deeper and deeper into the white Antarctic silence.”

—from page 133 • Georges Lecointe, second in command, a captain with a pugnacious leadership style and expertise in celestial navigation and munitions; a Belgian journalist once described him as “all nerves, with the vivacity of the squirrel.”

—from page 26 • Emile Danco, a trusted lieutenant and de Gerlache’s close friend, now responsible for conducting a geophysical survey of Arctic region. But his solid physique belied a frail constitution: a weak heart.

• Henryk Arctowski, a brilliant chemist and geologist from Poland, who, when trapped in the ice, described the turmoil beneath his placid exterior: “in my head there is always uncertainty and unrest. . . . we are in a mad-house.”

—from page 202, 203 • Antoni Dobrowolski, a scientist, an assistant to Arctowski, and an outspoken Marxist who harbored misgivings about the voyage, writing in his diary: “I trust neither the Belgica, a tiny thing with flaws in its construction, nor its captain.”

—from page 70 • Louis Michotte, de Gerlache’s well-meaning cabin boy who assumed kitchen duties despite having next to no culinary experience. “His soups are full of ‘mystery,’” wrote Cook, “and the ‘embalmed meats’ are on every tongue for condemnation.”

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THE CREW • Carl August Wiencke, hired as a cabin boy, then promoted to sailor. He was a hard worker, beloved by all. He came alive during storms, likening the sound of the winds to Beethoven: “. . . they screeched at the rigging with the highest treble right down to the deepest bass.”

—from page 90 • Adam Tollefsen, one of the most experienced and dependable seamen on the ship—until he started “exhibiting strange, paranoid behavior, avoiding the company of his shipmates and quaking in fear at the slightest creak of the Belgica’s timbers.”

—from page 241 • Emil Racovitza, a Romanian zoologist who would become the first naturalist to set foot in Antarctic land beyond the Shetland islands. Nicknamed “Raco,” he was also a frequently funny writer who would draw scathing caricatures of his shipmates.

• Jan Van Mirlo, an impulsive Antwerp native who joined the expedition in order to dodge military service and lied about his sailing experience.

• Henri Somers, chief engineer and mechanic, the only family man aboard and a born raconteur.

• Max Van Rysselberghe, second engineer and machinist, and Somers’s assistant . . . and nemesis.

• Engelbret Knudsen, a cherubic deckhand and an exemplary sailor, who would later become one of the sickest members of the expedition.

• Ludwig Johansen, Norwegian sailor, who would also play his accordion to lift the spirits of his shipmates.

• Johan Koren, a young Norwegian sailor, a gifted draftsman, and Raco’s assistant • Jules Melaerts, the churlish third officer who ran afoul of Amundsen.

• Gustave Dufour, Belgian sailor, Danco’s assistant.

• Sverdrup and Nansen, two cats aboard the ship, and “the only speck of sentimental life within reach.” (Cook) —from page 202

GROG

LIBATIONS

“ Hot grog was served, music was played, patriotic toasts were offered, and a fraternal atmosphere reigned as never before.”

—from page 84 Ingredients • 2 ounces dark rum • ½ ounce lemon or lime juice • 1 teaspoon brown sugar or honey • 4 ounces hot water • Slice of orange and a cinnamon stick

Instructions 1. Mix the rum, lime (or lemon) juice, brown sugar (or honey), and hot water in a mug.

2. Garnish with an orange slice and a cinnamon stick.

“ On Sundays and holidays, crewmembers were each given a grog and fifteen centiliters of Bordeaux wine, as well as a morning glass of port if de Gerlache was satisfied with the cleanliness of their quarters.”

—from page 175

COOK COCKTAIL “ Cook’s coup was a global sensation, but Americans especially rejoiced. Within twentyfour hours, several Midtown establishments started serving the ‘Cook cocktail’—gin, lemon juice, egg white, maraschino, plenty of ice.”

—from page 287 Ingredients • 2 ounces gin • ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice • ¾ ounce maraschino liqueur • 1 egg white

Instructions 1. Combine ingredients in an empty shaker and shake vigorously.

2. Fill shaker with ice and shake again. Strain into a lowball glass filled with ice.

Other drink options: 1. A glass of Bordeaux wine 2. A snifter of a nice port 3. A mugs of hot mulled cider or hot chocolate Grog recipe adapted from Chowhound

POLAR EXPEDITIONS

—major milestones and tragedies— 1772–1775 Captain James Cook and his crew are the first people to cross the Antarctic Circle.

1820 The first sighting of Antarctica, by Russian explorer Fabian Bellinghausen.

1839–1843 Commanding the HMS Erebus, Captain James Clark Ross discovers the Ross Sea, the Ross Ice Shelf, and the Victoria Land region of Antarctica.

1845 Captain John Franklin leads two ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, on an expedition that leads to tragedy after the two ships become ice-locked in Victoria Strait near King William Island. All 129 men perished.

1897 The young Belgian commandant Adrien de Gerlache sets sail for a three-year expedition to uncharted regions of Antarctica. But the good ship Belgica would transform into a Madhouse at the End of the Earth. . . .

1901–1904 Captain Robert Falcon Scott leads an expedition aboard the Discovery and sets a new southern record, discovering the Arctic Plateau, also known as the Polar Plateau.

1907–1909 Sir Ernest Shackleton leads the British Antarctic Expedition on the Nimrod expedition to reach the South Pole, only to fall just 97 nautical miles short and turn back after supplies were exhausted.

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POLAR EXPEDITIONS

—major milestones and tragedies— 1909 Frederick Cook claims that he reached the North Pole in 1908. Robert Peary declares that he discovered the pole in 1909, and cast doubt on Cook’s accomplishment. Both men’s accounts have been disputed.

For more information, read this article from Smithsonian Magazine: smithsonianmag.com/history/who-discovered-the-north-pole-116633746/

1910 –1912 Norwegian Roald Amundsen and four fellow Norwegians are the first to reach the South Pole on December 1911, five weeks ahead of a British party led by Robert Falcon Scott, who would die on his ill-fated Terra Nova expedition.

1914 –1917 Shackleton leads the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, with Lieutenant J. Stenhouse commanding the Aurora and Captain F. Worsley the Endurance.

But deep in the Weddell Sea, Endurance becomes trapped in the ice, then later crushed by it, sending the once-majestic ship to the watery depths.

FURTHER READING “ The Belgian Antarctic Expedition was sold as a scientific mission, but at its core it was a romantic endeavor. De Gerlache conceived the journey because the blank space at the bottom of the map drew him in like a vacuum. Up until then, that void, which the Belgica’s scientists hoped to fill with cold, hard data, had been filled with fiction. . . . Throughout the nineteenth century, the barren poles became fertile ground for the imaginations of popular novelists.”

—from page 65 • An Antarctic Mystery by Jules Verne • The Adventures of Captain Hatteras by Jules Verne • Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne • The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket by Edgar Allan Poe

A Tale of Adventure and Fear in the Freezing Sea “‘ We are bloated and yellow,’ wrote de Gerlache, ‘mutually we find one another to have aged; our features are tired, drawn, and our faces have retained, from the suffering of winter, a sad and worried expression.’ Several of the men had gone gray in just three months, as if the winter night had distended time itself, like the terrible vortex in Poe’s A Descent into the Maelstrom. ‘We have aged ten years in thirty days,’ wrote Cook.”

—“A Descent into the Maelstrom” by Edgar Allan Poe

A Tale of Swashbuckling Adventure that Named Antarctic Mountain Ranges Two mountain ranges in the Antarctic are named after characters in The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas—the Aramis Range and the Porthos Range— as this novel was the most popular read on the Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions (ANARE) that charted the chilly region in the 1950s.