Apsley Cherry-Garrard was the only son of Major General Cherry-Garrard, and inherited Lamer Park and the large estates at an early age. Cherry's role as a benefactor and land owner did not sit well with Cherry. When a family friend Dr. E.A. Wilson met with Captain R.F. Scott, Cherry decided to join Scott's Antarctic expedition, in 1907. Scott initially declined Cherry's application, but a donation of £1000 and a good word from Dr. E.A. Wilson saw him signed on as Assistant Biologist.
At the age of 24, Cherry was one of the youngest expedition members. Once at Cape Evans base on Antarctica, Cherry was one of three who man hauled a sledge to Cape Crozier in the Antarctic winter, to collect penguin eggs. He later described this as the 'Worst Journey in the World', the title of his acclaimed book. They lost their tent in a severe blizzard, only to find it again in a lull in the incessant blizzards. On their return to base, they were unrecognisable and mentally scarred for life. All three went on to accompany Scott in his attempt on the South Pole, but only Cherry was to return to England.
Scott chose four out of the seven others on the Beardmore Glacier, to man haul a sledge to the South Pole. Cherry along with Tom Crean (
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Months later those at the base realised Scott's team had died, and Cherry was among those who went out to find Scott using sled dogs, almost a year later. Such are the difficulties of Polar travel. Among the dead were Wilson and Bowers, whom Cherry had suffered with to Cape Crozier. This affected Cherry deeply. For the rest of his life Cherry was troubled by the thought that he had been 11 miles away from Scott. And if Scott's orders had allowed him, he would have searched for Scott's team on their return from the pole. This dilemma is discussed fully in 'Cherry: A Life of Apsley Cherry-Garrard' by Sara Wheeler.
On his return to England, Cherry resumed his responsibilities but remained undiagnosed with clinical depression. Eventually selling off all his ties to the land, due to the socialist changes making life difficult for landed gentry. It was his neighbour George Bernard Shaw who suggested he write about his experiences 'down south'. These became his book 'The Worst Journey in the World'. Still in print nowadays.
Cherry met 20 year old Angela Turner on a Norwegian cruise in 1937. One day, the boat docked and Angela and Cherry slipped off for a walk on their own. They sat on a bench where Cherry picked up a small stone and offered it to Angela. Years later, when she had become an Antarctic expert, Angela discovered that the courtship ritual of the penguin centres around stone giving, stones being a vital commodity for the construction of the nest. They married in 1939. They had no children. In later life they took to cruising on liners, where life was simple. Angela nursed Cherry through his bouts of illness. She later married Dr Matthias. Apsley was the last of a long line of Garrards.
Visit
There are two memorials to visit, one outside and one inside.
Cherry's outside memorial is the family Celtic Cross, beside the red brick wall, on the north western edge of St Helen's churchyard. A heavily used tarmac path leads straight to the Cherry-Garrard plot. His father and mother and wife are buried in the same plot.
St Helen's church is a cruciform shape and usually open. The northern transept, with a clear glass window, is the Lamer chapel with many memorials to the Garrard family. Tucked in the NE corner of the Lamer chapel is a small bronze statuette of Apsley dressed in his inadequate polar garb. There is a booklet for sale in the church about St Helen's. For reference only, a booklet listing all the memorials and graves in St Helen's churchyard is also available.
Links
BBC TV (
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The Worst Journey in the World by Apsley Cherry-Garrard ISBN: 760757593 ISBN-13: 9780760757598 Paperback, 632pp August 2004
IMDB (
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Telegraph newspaper UK (
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