British Antarctic Monument Trust

• 1: Home
• 2: About us
  • 2.1: Ambassadors
  • 2.2: Trustees
• 3: News
• 4: Those who died
  • 4.1: List by date
  • 4.2: A - Z list
• 5: Memories
  • 5.1: Dulcie Bailey remembers
  • 5.2: Ian Boyd remembers
  • 5.3: David McDowell remembers
  • 5.4: Russell Thompson remembers
  • 5.5: Jim Turton remembers
  • 5.6: AB Eddie Large remembers
  • 5.7: Steven Smith remembers
• 6: Memorial
• 7: Monument
  • 7.1: The sculptor
• 8: Links
• 9: Register
• 10: Giving
• 11: Contact
• 17: Julian Paren

About us

The British Antarctic Monument Trust has been set up to celebrate the achievements of the men and women whose scientific exploration in the British Antarctic Territory has led to a new understanding of our planet, and to honour those who did not return.

Our aim is to inspire a broader interest in the Antarctic and a deeper understanding of the fragility of our environment and the interdependence of our world.

The Antarctic is the highest, coldest, and windiest continent: remote, hostile and uninhabited. Yet it is a key part of the fabric of the Earth. Processes taking place in the Antarctic affect the world’s climate and its oceans, linking the continent inextricably to ourselves.

Research by British scientists and explorers contributes to our understanding of many vital phenomena including the way continents drift apart; communications are affected by solar flares; polar ozone holes are formed; weather systems are linked globally; climate change is reflected in ice cores; and marine ecosystems are affected by fishing.

Since the British Government established its first permanent research base in Antarctica in 1944 at Port Lockroy, over 2000 men and women of the British Antarctic Survey and its predecessor the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey have worked in the world’s most treacherous conditions to help us understand the world in which we live. Thirty men and one woman have died in the pursuit of this scientific knowledge. 

The Trust is:
– seeking to place a memorial tablet in the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral
– ensuring that all those who have lost their lives have an appropriate place in the Antarctic named after them
– creating a monumental sculpture, part of which will be in the United Kingdom and part of which will be sited in the South.

Memorial in the Crypt of St Paul's Cathedral, London
We approached St Paul's Cathedral in 2007 with a view to exploring the possibility of placing a plaque in the crypt to commemorate "those that did not return".

The Chapter considered our proposal and "gave it their provisional support." With the support of the government of the British Antarctic Territory we have been in discussions about the design and positioning of the tablet with Surveyor to the Fabric and others at the Cathedral. It is important that our memorial will meet the exacting aesthetic standards of the Cathedral and stand the test of time in this centre of national religious life.

You can see more about our progress in the News reports and in the section entitled Memorial.

British Antarctic Monument
Oliver Barratt, the British sculptor who created the Everest Memorial, has designed a sculpture in two parts, the one in the UK of British Oak, representing the mould from which the other part, astainless steel needle, is cast. The sculpture represents the emotional and physical distance between the two places on the surface of the Earth.

The aesthetic quality and emotional appeal of the monument will focus attention on the valuable research and activities of British scientists and explorers and the need to support their continued work.

Appropriate care is being taken about the choice of sites both in the UK and South. The Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge has invited the Trust to site the northern part of the sculpture in the garden of the Institute.

We are discussing siting the Southern part of the sculpture in Stanley, Falkland Islands or at Rothera, on grey (developed) land where it will have the least environmental impact. The sculpture is designed so it can be removed at a later date - a requirement of the Environmental Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty.

British Antarctic Place Names
Many, but not all, of “those who did not return” who died before 1966 have geographic features in the Antarctic named after them. Most, but not all, who died after after 1966 have not. You can see the list of places linked to the names that have died in Memorial. We are talking to the Administrator of the British Antarctic Territory who represents the FCO on the UK Antarctic Place-names Committee about locating suitable geographic features for those that have not been honoured in this way.

Supporting our work
If you would like to support our work by making a donation please visit the our Charity Choice page. If you would like to help in any way please contact the Chairman Roderick Rhys Jones.

Trustees
There are four trustees, three with experience of working in the Antarctic, Rod Rhys Jones, Chairman, Dick Harbour, Treasurer, and Julian Paren. Brian Dorsett-Bailey lost his brother Jeremy at Halley Bay in 1965.