TWO YEARS BELOW THE HORN: A Personal Memoir of Operation Tabarin by ANDREW TAYLOR (with an introduction & notes by Stephen Haddelsey)
Andrew Taylor, the field commander of Operation Tabarin
was one of the forgotten heroes of Antarctic exploration. Early in 1944 nine
men landed on a tiny, barren island off the west coast of the Graham Land
Peninsula in Antarctica. Armed with only a small assortment of rifles and
pistols and with an obsolete 12-pounder mounted on the bows of their decrepit
supply vessel, their official purpose was to prevent German U-boats and surface
raiders from using Antarctic and sub-Antarctic harbours for refuelling and
resupply. Unofficially, they were tasked with reasserting British territorial
rights in the face of increasingly confident incursions by neutral Argentina.
This two-year expedition, code-named Operation Tabarin, was the precursor to
the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey and the present-day British Antarctic
Survey, and the arrival of the nine British and Commonwealth soldiers, sailors
and scientists marked both the beginning of Britain’s permanent presence on the
Antarctic continent and the commencement of a complex programme of scientific
research and exploration which continues to this day. Written in 1947 by the
man who ultimately became Operation Tabarin’s commander-in-the-field, this is
the only contemporary account to cover the expedition’s entire two-year
history. Never before published, it provides a unique perspective on events
that are vital to our understanding of both the history of Antarctic
exploration and the complex geopolitics of the region.
Hardback, jacketed, 376pp, approx.; lavishly illustrated with 4pp colour and 12pp b&w plates. Over 80 pictures in total, plus drawings and maps. Price: £37.50
Hardback, jacketed, 376pp, approx.; lavishly illustrated with 4pp colour and 12pp b&w plates. Over 80 pictures in total, plus drawings and maps. Price: £37.50
“Haddelsey approaches Taylor's narrative from an historical perspective, and draws on his broad and deep understanding of Operation Tabarin to provide a rounded overall assessment, and to add lots of helpful footnotes which reflect later knowledge.”BAS Club Magazine, December 2017
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