Editing Quest (ship)

{{Short description|Steam-powered schooner on which Shackleton died}}
{{for|the ship attacked by Somali pirates|SY Quest incident}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2018}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2018}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=HRM EHS p272.jpg
|Ship image size=250
|Ship caption=''Quest''
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=
|Ship flag=
|Ship name=*''Foca I'' (1917–21)
* ''Quest'' RYS (1921–23)
* ''Quest'' (1923–40)
* HMS ''Quest'' (1940–46)
* ''Quest'' (1946–62)
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=Erik Lindstøls Båtbyggeri, [[Risør]]
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=1917
|Ship acquired=
|Ship completed=
|Ship original cost=
|Ship owner=*A Ingebrigtsen (1917–21)
* E Shackleton (1921–23)
* W G Oliffe (1923–24)
* Schjelderups Sælfangstrederi AS (1924–39)
* Skips-AS Quest (1939–62)
| Ship operator=*A Ingebrigtsen (1917–21)
* E Shackleton (1921–23)
* W G Oliffe (1923–24)
* T Schjelderup (1924–39)
* I Austad (1939–40)
* Nortraship (1940)
* Royal Navy (1940–46)
* Nortraship (1946)
|Ship identification=*Fishery registration K-13-K (1917–21)
* Fishery registration N-94-BN (1924–39)<ref name="WarSailors" />
* Fishery registration T-24-T (1939–40)
* British [[Official number]] 135395 (1921–23)
* Code Letters KJHV (1921–23)
* {{ICS|Kilo}}{{ICS|Juliet}}{{ICS|Hotel}}{{ICS|Victor}}
* Code Letters LJBT (1924–34)
* {{ICS|Lima}}{{ICS|Juliet}}{{ICS|Bravo}}{{ICS|Tango}}
* Code Letters LCVR (1934–62)
* {{ICS|Lima}}{{ICS|Charlie}}{{ICS|Victor}}{{ICS|Romeo}}
|Ship registry=*{{flagicon|Norway}} [[Høvik]] (1917–21)
* {{flagicon|UKGBI|naval}} [[Cowes]] (1921–23)
* {{flagicon|United Kingdom|civil}} Cowes (1923–24)
* {{flagicon|Norway}} [[Bodø]] (1924–39)
* {{flagicon|Norway}} [[Tromsø]] (1939–40)
* {{flagicon|United Kingdom|naval}} Royal Navy (1940–46)
* {{flagicon|Norway}} Tromsø (1946–62)
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship honours=
|Ship captured=
|Ship fate=Foundered 5 May 1962 in the [[Labrador Sea]]
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship type=*Sealer (1917–21)
* Research Vessel (1921–24)
* Sealer (1924–40)
* Minesweeper (1940–46)
* Sealer (1946–62)
|Ship tonnage=*{{GRT|209}}
* {{NRT|94}}
|Ship length= {{convert|110|ft|7|in|m|2|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|24|ft|9|in|m|2|abbr=on}}
|Ship hold depth={{convert|11|ft|8|in|m|2|abbr=on}}
|Ship sail plan=Schooner<ref name="WarSailors">{{cite web |url=http://www.warsailors.com/singleships/quest.html |title=M/S Quest |work=warsailors.com |access-date=2010-10-01 }}</ref>
|Ship propulsion=*Sails, aided by compound steam engine (1917–39)
* Diesel engine (1939–62)
|Ship complement=
|Ship armament=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

'''''Quest''''' was a low-powered, [[schooner]]-rigged [[steamship]] that sailed from 1917 until sinking in 1962, best known as the polar exploration vessel of the [[Shackleton–Rowett Expedition]] of 1921–1922. It was aboard this vessel that [[Ernest Shackleton|Sir Ernest Shackleton]] died on 5&nbsp;January 1922 while in harbour in [[South Georgia]].<ref name="RCGS"/> Prior to and after the Shackleton–Rowett Expedition, ''Quest'' operated in commercial service as a [[seal hunting|seal-hunting]] vessel or "sealer". ''Quest'' was also the primary expedition vessel of the [[British Arctic Air Route Expedition]] to the east coast of the island of [[Greenland]] in 1930–1931.

''Quest'' was {{convert|111|ft}} in length, had a beam of {{convert|24|ft}}, and {{convert|12|ft}} depth of hold.<ref name="Ships">{{cite web |url=http://www.antarctic-circle.org/ships.htm |title=Antarctic Ships |work=antarctic-circle.org |access-date=2010-03-03 |archive-date=19 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419074913/http://www.antarctic-circle.org/ships.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The vessel has been variously rated at 209 and 214 [[gross register tons]],<ref name="WarSailors"/> possibly due to the 1924 refit described below.

==Shackleton–Rowett Expedition==
[[File:Shackleton's Ship Quest 1921.JPG|thumb|left|''Quest'' under [[Tower Bridge]], 1921]]
''Quest'' was built in 1917 in [[Risør]], Norway, originally as the wooden-hulled sealer ''Foca I''.<ref name="WarSailors"/><ref>{{cite web |title=D/S Foca I |url=https://www.sjohistorie.no/no/skip/317205/ |website=Sjøhistorie.no |access-date=13 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240613114414/https://www.sjohistorie.no/no/skip/317205/ |archive-date=13 June 2024 |location=Lillesand |language=no |url-status=live}}</ref> She was the polar expedition vessel of the [[Shackleton–Rowett Expedition]] of 1921–1922 and was renamed ''Quest'' by Lady Emily Shackleton, the wife of expedition commander Ernest Shackleton.<ref name="Huntford">{{cite book |title=Shackleton |last=Huntford |first=Roland |year=1986 |publisher=[[Atheneum Books|Atheneum]] |location=New York |isbn=978-0-689-11429-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/shackleton00hunt/page/683 683–694]}}</ref> At the expense of expedition financier [[John Quiller Rowett]], the small ship was refitted for the expedition with modifications overseen by sailing master [[Frank Worsley]], including re-rigging and the addition of a [[deckhouse]].<ref name="Thomson">{{cite book |title=Shackleton's Captain: A Biography of Frank Worsley |last=Thomson |first=John |year=1999 |publisher=Mosaic Press |location=Oakville, Ontario |isbn=0-88962678-2 |pages=133–141 }}</ref> As Shackleton was a member of the [[Royal Yacht Squadron]], ''Quest'' bore the RYS suffix for this voyage and flew the [[White Ensign]].<ref name="Huntford"/>

Sailing from London for the [[Southern Ocean]] on 17&nbsp;September 1921, ''Quest'' reached South Georgia on 4&nbsp;January 1922 while preparing to enter Antarctic waters. The following night, Shackleton died aboard the vessel while she was at anchor in [[Grytviken]], ending all prospects of the expedition's carrying out its original program of exploring the Antarctic coastline of [[Enderby Land]].<ref name="Huntford"/> Led by [[Frank Wild]], ''Quest'' carried out a desultory survey of the [[Weddell Sea]] area before returning to the South Atlantic. She touched the [[Tristan da Cunha]] archipelago in early May,<ref name="Thomson"/> and at [[Inaccessible Island]], ornithologist [[Hubert Wilkins]] took type specimens of the [[grosbeak bunting]].

The expedition returned to England in July 1922, having posted disappointing results that were attributed by author [[Roland Huntford]] both to replacement commander Wild's alcoholism<ref name="Huntford"/> and deficiencies in ''Quest's'' performance in polar sea ice. The ship's [[steam engine|engine]] was weakly powered and caused continuous difficulties, and the vessel's straight [[Stem (ship)|stem]] made her unsuitable for use in icy seas.<ref name="Thomson"/>

==East Greenland expeditions==
''Quest'' was again refitted in Norway in 1924; during the refit, the Shackleton–Rowett deckhouse was salvaged for shore use.<ref name="MercoPress">{{cite web |url=http://en.mercopress.com/2010/02/16/shackleton-quest-cabin-new-show-piece-for-south-georgia-museum |title=Shackleton 'Quest' cabin, new show piece for South Georgia Museum |work=MercoPress |date=16 February 2010 |access-date=3 March 2010 }}</ref> In 1928, the refitted vessel participated in the effort to rescue the survivors of the [[Airship Italia|''Italia'']] Arctic airship crash. Described as a "broad-beamed, tubby little ship, decks stacked with gear", the ageing sealer served in 1930 as the primary expedition vessel and transport from London to [[eastern Greenland]] for the explorers of the [[British Arctic Air Route Expedition]] led by [[Gino Watkins]].<ref name="Scott">{{cite book |title=Dancing on Ice: A Stirring Tale of Adventure, Risk and Reckless Folly |last=Scott |first=Jeremy |year=2008 |publisher=Old Street Publishing Ltd. |location=London |isbn=978-0-689-11429-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/shackleton00hunt }}</ref> Between 1932 and 1936, she was the expedition ship for the East Greenland ventures of Count {{ill|Gaston Micard|fr}}.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/polar-record/article/abs/count-micards-winter-on-board-the-quest-193637/B6F171D143B8D22DBD548C67874DF503|title=Count Micard's Winter on Board the Quest, 1936–37|date=12 January 1938|journal=Polar Record|volume=2|issue=15|pages=20–21|via=Cambridge University Press|doi=10.1017/S0032247400036299|bibcode=1938PoRec...2...20. |s2cid=251062992 }}</ref>

==Return to service, sinking and discovery==
[[File:All Hallows-by-the-Tower, crow's nest from Shackleton's ship Quest.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.75|The crow's nest from the 1921–1922 voyage]]
''Quest'' returned to service as a sealing vessel after 1930. In 1935 she was used by the British East Greenland Expedition. During [[World War II]] the wooden-hulled vessel was pressed into service as a [[Minesweeper (ship)|minesweeper]] and light cargo vessel with [[Nortraship]] and the British navy.<ref name="WarSailors" /><ref name="RCGS"/>  The small ship returned to her owners' sealing trade in 1946.<ref name="WarSailors" /> On 5 May 1962, while on a seal-hunting expedition, ''Quest'' was holed by crushing ice and sank off the north coast of [[Labrador]].  The crew was saved.<ref name="WarSailors"/><ref name="RCGS"/> 

Parts of the former deckhouse, including Shackleton's cabin in 1921–1922, survive and, as of 2021 are in the [[Athy]] Heritage Center – Museum in Ireland.<ref>{{cite web |title=Shackleton's cabin lands in Connemara for restoration |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/shackleton-s-cabin-lands-in-connemara-for-restoration-1.2377975 |website=Irish Times |access-date=25 September 2021 |archive-date=7 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207222842/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/shackleton-s-cabin-lands-in-connemara-for-restoration-1.2377975 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[crow's nest]], made from a barrel, is in the crypt of [[All Hallows-by-the-Tower]], London.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Crypt Museum |url=https://www.ahbtt.org.uk/visit/crypt/ |website=All Hallows-by-the-Tower  |access-date=13 January 2023}}</ref>

An archival collection of 476 photographs from the ''Quest''/Shackleton-Rowett Expedition is maintained by the [[State Library of New South Wales]] in [[Sydney, Australia]].<ref name="NSW">{{cite web |url=http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=413838 |title=The Shackleton-Rowett Antarctic expedition aboard the 'Quest', 1921–1922 |work=Hubert Wilkins and [[Alexander Macklin]] |access-date=2010-03-11 |archive-date=19 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110319050039/http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=413838 |url-status=live }}</ref>

''Quest'' was located on 9 June 2024 at the bottom of the [[Labrador Sea]], about 85 kilometres off Labrador's east coast and about 2.5 kilometres from her last reported position, by a wreck hunting team led by [[John Geiger (author)|John Geiger]] of the [[Royal Canadian Geographical Society]] on the search vessel LeeWay Odyssey (Levi Nippard, captain).<ref>{{Cite web |title=RCGS honours Shackleton Quest Expedition team with special medal |url=https://rcgs.org/about/news-releases/royal-canadian-geographical-society-honours-shackleton-quest-expedition-team-with-special-medal/ |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=rcgs.org |language=en-CA}}</ref><ref name="RCGS">{{cite web |last1=Pope |first1=Alexandra |title=Wreck of Quest, famed Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton's last ship, found in Labrador Sea |url=https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/wreck-of-quest-famed-antarctic-explorer-sir-ernest-shackletons-last-ship-found-in-labrador-sea/ |website=Canadian Geographic |publisher=Royal Canadian Geographical Society |access-date=12 June 2024 |date=12 June 2024}}</ref><ref name="bbc_2024-06-12">{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpvv2w2e69go |title = Explorer Shackleton's last ship found on ocean floor |website = BBC News |last=Amos |first=Jonathan |date=12 June 2024 |access-date=12 June 2024 |archive-date=12 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240612141822/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpvv2w2e69go |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url= https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-found-at-sea-wreck-of-shackletons-last-ship-discovered-off-the-coast/ | website=[[The Globe and Mail]] | access-date=2024-06-12 | date=2024-06-12 | first=Marie | last=Woolf | title=Found at sea: Wreck of Shackleton's last ship discovered off the coast of Labrador }}</ref> She was found in 390m of water, sitting almost upright, and appearing to be broadly intact save for a broken main mast.<ref name="bbc_2024-06-12"/><ref name="cbc2024">{{cite news |last1=Moore |first1=Mike |last2=Whitten |first2=Elizabeth |title=Explorer Ernest Shackleton's last ship found off Labrador's south coast, says expedition |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/shackleton-ship-quest-discovery-1.7232265 |access-date=12 June 2024 |publisher=CBC News |date=12 June 2024}}</ref> The team included shipwreck hunter [[David Mearns]] and lead researcher geographer Antoine Normandin; the explorer's granddaughter Hon. Alexandra Shackleton was co-patron of the expedition along with Chief Mi'sel Joe of [[Miawpukek First Nation]].<ref name="RCGS"/>

==See also==
* [[List of Antarctic exploration ships from the Heroic Age, 1897–1922]]

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Polar exploration|state=collapsed}}
{{1962 shipwrecks}}
{{coord|53|10|N|54|27|W|source:kolossus-nowiki|display=title}}

==External links==
{{commons category-inline|Quest (ship, 1917)}}   

[[Category:Exploration ships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Sealing ships]]
[[Category:Schooners]]
[[Category:Steamships of Norway]]
[[Category:Steamships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:World War II minesweepers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Merchant ships of Norway]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1962]]
[[Category:1917 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Norway]]
[[Category:Ships of Nortraship]]
[[Category:Ernest Shackleton]]