The Terror: The Show, The History, And The New Findings

 

On March 25th, 2018, AMC premiered the show "The Terror" to captivated audiences. The first season of the show follows the crew of The HMS Erebus and HMS Terror: two exploring ships hoping to find the Northwest Passage. Following the plot of Dan Simmon's 2007 novel of the same name, the crew falls victim to supernatural happenings, as well as the naturally occurring ones happening both inside and outside of the ship. Yet, who were the men of the Franklin Expedition, and what do we know now? 

The Franklin Expedition was a Victorian exploration party, named for one of the captains, Sir John Franklin. Setting out from England, they stopped by Greenland and then headed north past Baffin Island, looking for King William Land. Other than Franklin, the two other captains were Francis Crozier of Terror and James Fitzjames of Erebus. These two men were put in charge upon the death of Sir John in 1848. However, such was for naught, as the expedition party disappeared without a trace, along with their ships. 

The three Captains of the Erebus and Terror

For years, all that remained of the Franklin Expedition were papers, tin cans, three mummified corpses (none of which were the captains), and the testimony of the Inuit. Terrifying stories were recounted of a party finding a massive corpse with teeth like a rat's (although the testimony has been questioned by historians and buffs alike). 

Interest in the ill fated ship failed to waiver: search parties were turning up, looking for survivors. Stories of a lone survivor, named Aglooka, were passed down. Yet, it wouldn't be for another hundred some-odd years that further evidence would be found, and the pieces would come into place. 

In 1981, the FEFAP project was launched by Owen Beattie, who was at the time a professor of anthropology at the University of Alberta. They planned to walk the western coast of King William Land in hopes of finding evidence of what happened. Artifacts were located, as well as desiccated human remains that not only showed signs of scurvy, but of cannibalism. Cut marks were found on bone fragments on the site, as well as suggestive signs of decapitation. 

Testing discovered something else that was shocking: many of the bones found had very high levels of lead in them, suggesting that a number of the men had suffered from acute lead poisoning. In 1982, Beattie returned with a number of students to walk the path again, and this time found the "Boat Place," along with the remains of 6-14 men, and a boot sole with cleats. Due to the concerns of lead poisoning, the remains of the three men buried at Beechy island were exhumed and tested, all of which showed high levels of lead. Beattie believed this was due to the canned goods brought on the ship, which were improperly soldered shut, and allowed for lead to leech into the food, as well as spoilage. 

In 1992, ten years after the second expedition, Barry Ranford, a Franklin scholar, discovered human remains near the boat place. 400 bones and fragments, clay pipes, buttons, etc. were found. Like the remains found before, these bones also showed signs of cannibalism, except these had suffered a phenomena called "pot polishing," where the ends of the bones rub against the pot while cooking. There were also signs of end-stage cannibalism: that the survivors were breaking open bones in hopes of finding the marrow within. 

For the next twenty years, minor artifacts would be found, but no leads. It wouldn't be until 2014 that Erebus would be found, at the bottom of Queen Maud Gulf. Sonar showed the condition of the ship, which was quite good, yet quickly deteriorated. The UK claimed the first 65 artifacts brought up from the ship, while the ship itself is joint owned by the country of Canada and the Inuit. 

The wreck of HMS Erebus

Two years after the wreck of Erebus was found, Terror would be found as well. Found in the aptly named "Terror Bay" in 2016, it was declared to be in "pristine" condition, and videos were taken of it from a ROV. 

The wreck of HMS Terror in her final resting place, Terror Bay

In 2021, the body of John Gregory was identified, after nearly 200 years of mystery. Although found in 1859, the body wasn't identifiable due to the wear and tear it had been through. With the help of DNA from his great-great-great grandson and namesake, Johnathon Gregory, the bones were identified. 

Yet, the most recent discovery was a mere few days ago: James Fitzjames, the third in command and captain of Erebus, was identified. First found in 1861, the remains were found near a boat, where the Inuit had described cannibalism having taken place. All that was left of him was a mandible, which was DNA tested in 2024 and confirmed to be him. It was also confirmed that Fitzjames corpse had been consumed by survivors. 

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR AMC'S THE TERROR SEASON 1

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In the show, the crew's demise is caused by a combination of the elements, lead poisoning, and attacks from the demon polar bear Tuunbaq, a creature based off of the Inuit mythological creature Tupilaq, which is a creature of divine vengeance. The Tuunbaq hunts the crew during their time on the ice, tundra, and even in the wasteland, eating their souls and corpses. It is Doctor Goodsir, the favorite of many show watchers, who takes it down: by poisoning himself while in the cannibal encampment, which poisons the cannibals, who are eaten by the Tuunbaq, who dies. It is Crozier in this version who is the lone survivor, and who is named as Aglooka. 

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End of Terror Spoilers

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In real life, the crews only dealt with the harsh environment that they were traversing, alongside starvation. There is contention about the lead poisoning hypothesis, and although I believe it, other historians do not. We do not know who the last man standing was, and we do not know the timeline that accompanies the deaths. All we know was that there was starvation, and mass demise.

I loved Terror Season 1: the sets and designs were historically accurate, and the show handled portraying the Inuit better than the book did. Jared Harris is becoming one of my favorite actors, because of how many period dramas he's in, and how amazing an actor he is. He nailed the character of Crozier, portraying him sympathetically. Ciaran Hinds was spectacular as always (he never has a bad role), and it was wonderful to see Tobias Menzies outside of Game of Thrones (I haven't watched much Outlander, but it's on the list). I would definitely recommend this show, definitely for Halloween, and definitely for the period buff itching to watch something scary and mid-Victorian.