The English at the time counted suffering as an essential requisite of expeditions. They considered Amundsen as cheating in using dogs and Eskimo gear.
It seems significant that Shackleton's ship was so carefully constructed to endure, yet busted anyway. Amundsen used Nansen's old ship, also custom built for Arctic conditions and veteran of several expeditions, without incident. Norwegian ship builders were maybe more aware of what was needed. As I recall, an important feature was sloped sides, so that squeezing ice would lift instead of crushing it.
> The English at the time counted suffering as an essential requisite of expeditions. They considered Amundsen as cheating in using dogs and Eskimo gear.
Yes, this is also true. "Real men man-haul their sleds". Also they frowned at Amundsen because his project did not have a significant scientific purpose.
Fram - Nansen's ship which Amundsen half-stole/half-borrowed - was constructed by a scotsman by the way. But yes, it was purposefully built for handling the pack ice. It is on display in a museum in Oslo.
It seems significant that Shackleton's ship was so carefully constructed to endure, yet busted anyway. Amundsen used Nansen's old ship, also custom built for Arctic conditions and veteran of several expeditions, without incident. Norwegian ship builders were maybe more aware of what was needed. As I recall, an important feature was sloped sides, so that squeezing ice would lift instead of crushing it.