Captain Scott's Invaluable Assistant: Edgar Evans [Paperback]

This is a very interesting and very valuable book. It is a biography of Edward Wilson, doctor, scientist, explorer and artist. It is, however, a biography with a special focus, as indicated in the book's primary title With Scott in the Antarctic, for Wilson was with Scott on his first journey south in 1901 and he died with Scott on the return journey from the Pole in 1912. Drawing on intensive original research, Williams tells the story of the most complex and least well understood of Scott s heroic companions. Quiet, reflective and religious, Wilson was loved by all who worked with him. His influence over Scott himself was considerable. It seems to me that even without his close and crucial involvement with Scott, Wilson would have led a remarkable life. His combination of creativity as a Ruskinian artist of nature, of medical and scientific curiosity and skill, and of adventurous determination to explore the unknown regions of our world was very unusual. When these remarkable talents were put at the service of a man as special as Scott, the effect was bound to be uniquely powerful. Williams interest in Edward Wilson was stimulated by his medical illustrations and Antarctic landscapes displayed at St George s hospital, where Williams was a student. My interest in Wilson, Scott, Bowers, Oates and their companions was initiated when I was even younger by that wonderful film Scott of the Antarctic . I remember vividly now, decades later, how I wept in a cinema full of weeping young people as we watched the team struggle in adversity towards an unattainable goal and die with rare courage and dignity. Since that time, our public understanding of Scott s glorious expedition has been muddled and mis-led by cynical anti-British sentiment. Without intending it, Williams careful, balanced scholarship restores these remarkable men to their proper status. They were British heroes and heroes of mankind in its progress from ignorance to understanding of the world and its awesome mysteries. This is a book to enjoy and to treasure. --Professor David Marsland

This book is very factual, but it is a treat for anyone interested in polar exploration. Ms Williams is thorough and uses details from journals and other reports, ranging from those that dealt with drunkeness and fighting among the crew, their rations and their health problems. On the second voyage, on the Terra Nova, Evans was one of the most experienced men aboard. He was involved with an important scientific exploration before the assault on the Pole, on which he died - indeed from which no one returned. Evans had cut his hand, and his strength declined rapidly. Captain Oates's heroic sacrifice is well remembered, but this book adds the contribution of a less well-known member of the team, whose death led to unfounded suggestions that he had hampered the party - even that because he was not an officer, he lacked the intelligence to endure. This assertion has been laid to rest in Ms Williams's book, published 100 years after Mr Evan's's death on 17th February 1912. --The Lady magazine

Now, a new book by a doctor sets out to end an enduring myth about the legendary voyage and one of its central figures - petty officer Edgar 'Taff' Evans. Retired physician Isobel Williams said Evans' perception as a weak-minded drunkard whose own demise caused the deaths of hes colleagues Scott, Lawrence Oates, Edgar Wilson and Henry Bowers is wide of the mark.Her book claims he was actually a key player in the expedition, who was instrumental in getting the team to the South Pole, and whose death played no part in the fate of his comrades. I think he should be remembered for the remarkable things he did, she said. --Welwyn & Hatfield Times

The 'giant worker' from the Gower Peninsula os oft forgotten in stories of the 1912 expedition. The reason? The mistaken belief that evans' lack of education was to blame for the group's untimely death, according to Williams......interesting and engaging. --Wanderlust

Petty Officer Edgar Evans was Captain's Scott's 'giant worker' and his 'invaluable assistant'. He went with Scott on both the British Antarctic Expeditions of the early 1900s - the 'Discovery' expedition of 1901 and the 'Terra Nova' expedition in 1910 - distinguishing himself on both. In 1903, with Scott, Edgar made the first long and arduous sortie onto the Plateau of Victoria Land. The journey highlighted Edgar's common sense, strength, courage, wit and unflappability. Thus it came as no surprise when, in 1911, Edgar was chosen by Scott to be one of the five men to go on the final attempt at the South Pole. Tragically the 'Welsh Giant' was the first to die on the ill-fated return, and posthumously Edgar was blamed in some quarters for causing the deaths of the whole party. It was suggested that his failure was due to his relative lack of education, which made him less able to endure the conditions than his well-educated companions. Isobel Williams repudiates this shameful suggestion and redresses the balance of attention paid to the upper and lower-deck members of Scott's famous expeditions.