📍 CanadaFranklin's Lost Expedition
The Story
Sir John Franklin's 1845 expedition aboard HMS Erebus and HMS Terror entered the Canadian Arctic and disappeared. Over 40 search missions followed. In 2014 and 2016, the wrecks were found remarkably preserved. Human remains show lead poisoning, scurvy, starvation, and evidence that survivors resorted to cannibalism.
Images
Timeline
Erebus and Terror depart Greenhithe, England, for the Arctic.
A note left in a cairn reports Franklin's death and the crew abandoning the ships.
Arctic Research Foundation locates HMS Terror in Terror Bay.
Known Evidence
How well-documented and physically verified the case evidence is.
- Wreck of HMS Erebus (2014) and HMS Terror (2016) found in shallow Arctic waters.
- Cut marks on skeletal remains consistent with post-mortem cannibalism.
- High lead levels in recovered bones from tinned food solder.
- Inuit oral histories accurately describing ship locations decades before discovery.
Unresolved
What We Still Don't Know
- Why Franklin's men abandoned the ships when they still appeared habitable.
- The exact sequence of deaths and the final camp locations on King William Island.
- Whether tuberculosis, botulism from tins, or other factors accelerated the collapse.
Hypotheses
Theories
Ranked by plausibility — highest first.
Lead Poisoning and Tinned Food Failure
Faulty canned provisions caused neurological damage and scurvy, forcing a fatal overland march.
Ship Entrapment in Multi-Year Ice
Both vessels became ice-bound for years; crew exhaustion and isolation doomed escape attempts.
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