Today, when mentioning the name of Sedov, at best, the majority will recall a Russian sailing vessel, someone that this name is somehow connected with the sea, but many will not be able to say anything definite. People's memory is selective, especially when it comes to events of the distant past. March 5, 2014 marks exactly 100 years since the death of Georgy Sedov, who was a Russian naval officer, hydrograph, and polar explorer. He died while trying to fulfill his dream of reaching the North Pole.
Georgy Yakovlevich Sedov (1877-1914) came from an ordinary fishing family. Low origin did not prevent him from writing his own destiny. He managed to become an officer of the Navy (senior lieutenant), was an honorary member of the Russian Astronomical Society and a full member of the Russian Geographical Society. Member of a large number of expeditions, including expeditions to explore Novaya Zemlya, Vaigach Island, the mouth of the Kara River, the Kara Sea, the mouth of the Kolyma River and sea approaches to this river, Krestovaya Bay, and the Caspian Sea. During the Soviet era, the activities and research of Georgy Sedov received increased attention. The suitable origin of the navigator played a role in this - he came from the lower strata of society.
Georgy Sedov was born on May 5, 1877 in the small village of Krivaya Kosa (now it is the village of Sedovo, in the Donetsk region). The village is located on the picturesque coast of the Azov Sea. The boy's father was a fisherman, from the age of 8 he began to take his son to fish in the sea. The family lived quite poorly, the father often drank and could not appear at home for a long time. For this reason, George could only dream of getting an education. At one point, he was even forced to become a farm laborer for a wealthy Cossack, working at his home for food.
Only in 1891, at the age of 14, did Georgy Sedov enter a parish school, where, however, he demonstrated that he had the ability to learn. He managed to complete a three-year course of study in 2 years. Even then, he had a dream formed - to become a captain. At the same time, the young man had already heard about the existence of special nautical schools in Taganrog and Rostov. Therefore, without thinking twice in 1894, he left home, taking documents and certificates of merit for his studies. And he studied, although little, but well. Sedov was the first student of the school, an unofficial assistant to the teacher and received a certificate of commendation after training.
In Rostov-on-Don, the head of the school, after interviewing a young man and making sure he was literate, promised to enroll Sedov, but only on the condition that the young man would provide him with a certificate of a three-month voyage on merchant ships. To fulfill this condition, Sedov had to get a job on a steamer as a sailor. After that, with all the necessary recommendations and documents, he again arrived at the school and was enrolled in it. In 1898 he graduated with honors from the nautical school, having received the education of a navigator.
Almost immediately, the young sailor was able to get a job as an assistant captain on the ship "Sultan". With this merchant ship Georgy Sedov was associated with many different tests. Once, the captain of the ship fell seriously ill during the cruise, the young navigator had to take command of the Sultan. All this was accompanied by stormy weather, but despite a strong storm, Sedov managed to bring the ship to the port of destination. Taking the post of captain for a while, he managed to get an unforgettable experience. After walking for some time on different seas, he decided to continue his studies. In 1901, Sedov managed to pass exams for the full course of the Petersburg Naval Corps as an external student. Just a year later, he received the rank of lieutenant in the reserve and was assigned to the Main Hydrographic Directorate. This is how he began his life as a researcher.
In April 1903, Sedov went to Arkhangelsk, on this trip he managed to take a direct part in an expedition to explore the shores of the Kara Sea and the Novaya Zemlya archipelago. After spending about 6 months in these harsh lands, Georgy Sedov simply falls in love with the Arctic for his entire life. For some time, his research was interrupted by the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War. The officer was sent to serve in the Far East, where he was appointed commander of a mineship (a special mine vessel with a displacement of 20 to 100 tons). However, both during and after the war, Sedov dreamed of returning back to the north of our country. He managed to return back to St. Petersburg to his former place of service only in 1908.
At the same time, initially the Main Hydrographic Department sent him to work in the Caspian, where he conducted research for a year. After that, Sedov became interested in the problem of the NSR - the Northern Sea Route. This interest was noted, and Georgy Sedov was appointed as the head of the expedition, the main purpose of which was to study the mouth of the Kolyma River and search in this region of the country for a convenient fairway for numerous merchant ships that followed here from Arkhangelsk. During the year, while the expedition continued, Sedov was not only able to describe and map the mouth of the Kolyma River, but also to conduct studies of the adjacent sea coast and its depth near the coast.
Returning back to the capital, Sedov read out a report on the expedition to the Geographical Society, where he expressed his opinion that the lower reaches of the Kolyma River are suitable for navigation. In addition, Sedov came up with a proposal for a new method for determining geographic coordinates. After this speech, they started talking seriously about Georgy Sedov in St. Petersburg. He was able to become a member of the Russian Geographical Society. All this time, the thought of organizing an expedition to the North Pole could not leave him.
Georgy Sedov in a polar suit in Arkhangelsk in 1912
At the same time, at that time, both poles of the planet had already been conquered by researchers. Attempts to conquer the North Pole have been made since the middle of the 19th century, but they managed to do this only on April 6, 1909. The Americans distinguished themselves, Robert Peary, after numerous unsuccessful attempts, managed to reach the North Pole by planting an American flag on it. At the same time, another American explorer Frederick Cook also reported that he managed to reach the North Pole with his expedition. Currently, the debate about which of the two Americans was the first, as well as whether their expeditions visited the North Pole, still do not subside. In such a situation, the Russian Empire, a country that claimed the most leading positions in the world, did not want to remain on the sidelines. It was only necessary to find a daredevil who would implement this project.
Such a daredevil was found; Senior Lieutenant Georgy Sedov became him. Sedov was always surprised by the fact that none of the inhabitants of Russia had ever even tried to conquer the North Pole. And this is with such a geographical location of our country. The State Duma of the Russian Empire approved the proposed plan for the expedition, but the government refused to allocate funds for it. In the end, the money was still collected, but in the course of an organized private campaign to collect it. Including with the help of the New World newspaper and its owner M. A. Suvorin. Among the major private investors in the expedition was the Russian Emperor Nicholas II, who personally allocated 10 thousand rubles for the needs of the expedition. In total, we managed to collect more than 40 thousand rubles.
The expedition also helped with the ship. The tradesman Dikin agreed to give the expedition a sailing-steam vessel, which bore the name "Saint Martyr Fock", for charter. It was a two-masted ship, built in Norway, the ship was distinguished by advanced sailing equipment and had additional side skin. The ship had everything necessary for navigation in the northern latitudes. The start of the expedition, albeit with significant difficulties, was given on August 27, 1912.
Barque "Sedov"
The expedition reached the Novaya Zemlya archipelago quite safely. Further, her path went to the land of Franz Joseph. At the same time, the members of the expedition had to stay for the winter on Novaya Zemlya. For almost a year the schooner "Holy Martyr Phocas" stood frozen in ice. During this time, the ship's crew completed the necessary repairs and in August 1913 continued its further journey. For the second winter, the ship stopped on Hooker Island in Tikhaya Bay. These were very long and cold days. By this time, many of the expedition team had already opposed her. The supplies of coal were running out, in order to keep warm and prepare food, the members of the expedition burned everything that came to their hand. Some of the members of the expedition suffered from scurvy, Georgy Sedov himself fell ill, but he did not want to deviate from his plans.
This was partly due to the fact that part of the funds for the expedition was received by him as loans, Sedov had to pay for them from royalties for the research materials provided. Therefore, on February 15, 1914, Georgy Sedov with several volunteers on dog sleds went to Rudolf Island. The researcher planned to walk to the northernmost point of the Earth, hoisting the Russian flag there, and, at the behest of the ice, return either to Novaya Zemlya or go to Greenland.
Every day the expedition covered no more than 15 kilometers. The researchers were hampered by the strongest wind, piercing to the bones, cracks and wormwood in the ice. At the same time, the forces gradually left the Russian researcher, but Sedov did not give up. After 3 weeks of travel, his body could not stand exhaustion and illness, and his heart simply stopped, it happened on March 5, 1914. Sedov was buried on Rudolf Island - the northernmost island of Franz Josef Land. After that, a few days later, at the cost of incredible efforts, the sailors were able to get to their ship "Holy Martyr Fock", which returned from this expedition to Arkhangelsk in August 1914. The medical research carried out showed that not a single healthy person was left on board the ship. Despite the tragic ending, Georgy Sedov was able to forever inscribe his name in the development of the Arctic.
The name of Georgy Sedov was forever immortalized on geographical maps. An archipelago, a cape, a bay, a peak, as well as a separate village were named after him. At one time a hydrographic icebreaker and a river passenger steamer went under his name. At the same time, the four-masted barque "Sedov" continues its history, on which future sailors are trained. Today this bark is the largest training sailing vessel in the world.
