Georgy Yakovlevich Sedov (russian: Гео́ргий Я́ковлевич Седо́в; – ) was a Russian

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

. Born in the village of Krivaya Kosa of

Taganrog Taganrog ( rus, Таганрог, p=təɡɐnˈrok) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of the Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population: History of Taganrog Th ...

district (now Novoazovskyi Raion,

Donetsk Oblast The Donetsk Oblast ( ukr, Донецька область, Donetska oblast, ), also referred to as Donechchyna ( ukr, Донеччина, links=no), is an oblast of eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 mill ...

) in a fisherman's family. In 1898, Sedov finished navigation courses in

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the Eas ...

and acquired the rank of long voyage

navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's prima ...

. In 1901, he took an external degree at Naval College, passed all the exams and was promoted to the rank of

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

. In 1902–1903, Sedov participated in a hydrographic expedition in the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...

. During the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

he was in charge of a

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...

(1905). In 1909, he led the expedition that would later describe the mouth of the

Kolyma Kolyma (russian: Колыма́, ) is a region located in the Russian Far East. It is bounded to the north by the East Siberian Sea and the Arctic Ocean, and by the Sea of Okhotsk to the south. The region gets its name from the Kolyma River ...

river. A year later Sedov explored the Krestovaya Bay on

Novaya Zemlya Novaya Zemlya (, also , ; rus, Но́вая Земля́, p=ˈnovəjə zʲɪmˈlʲa, ) is an archipelago in northern Russia. It is situated in the Arctic Ocean, in the extreme northeast of Europe, with Cape Flissingsky, on the northern island, ...

. In 1912, he suggested a

sleigh A sled, skid, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle that slides across a surface, usually of ice or snow. It is built with either a smooth underside or a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners s ...

expedition for reaching the

North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distinguish from the Ma ...

. The

Tsarist Tsarist autocracy (russian: царское самодержавие, transcr. ''tsarskoye samoderzhaviye''), also called Tsarism, was a form of autocracy (later absolute monarchy) specific to the Grand Duchy of Moscow and its successor states ...

government refused to finance this project, and the expedition was organized with the help from independent sources. On August 14(27), 1912, Sedov's ship ''Svyatoy Muchenik Foka ( Saint Phocas the Martyr)'' left

Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ; rus, Арха́нгельск, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near ...

and had to stay for the winter near Novaya Zemlya because of impassable ice. The expedition reached

Franz Josef Land , native_name = , image_name = Map of Franz Josef Land-en.svg , image_caption = Map of Franz Josef Land , image_size = , map_image = Franz Josef Land location-en.svg , map_caption = Location of Franz Josef ...

only in August 1913; however, it had to stay for the second winter in the Tikhaya Bay due to lack of coal. On February 2(15), 1914, Sedov (already sick with

scurvy Scurvy is a deficiency disease, disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, anemia, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, ch ...

) and his accompanying seamen G.Linnik and A.Pustotniy set off for the North Pole with their draft dogs. Before reaching

Rudolf Island Prince Rudolf Land, Crown Prince Rudolf Land, Prince Rudolf Island or Rudolf Island (russian: Остров Рудольфа) is the northernmost island of the Franz Josef Archipelago, Russia and is home to the northernmost point in Russia. Owing t ...

, Sedov died at sea and was buried at Cape Auk on this island. On the way back, at Franz Josef Land, the ''Svyatoy Foka'' rescued two survivors of the Brusilov expedition, including

Valerian Albanov Valerian Ivanovich Albanov (russian: Валериа́н Ива́нович Альбанов; 26 May 1881 – 1919) was a Russian navigator, best known for being one of two survivors of the Brusilov expedition of 1912, which killed 22. Ea ...

. As part of the search for the Sedov expedition

Jan Nagórski Alfons Jan Nagórski (1888–1976), also known as ''Ivan Iosifovich Nagurski'', was a Polish engineer and pioneer of aviation, the first person to fly an airplane in the Arctic and the first aviator to perform a loop with a flying boat. Bio ...

made the first airplane flights over the Arctic, gaining valuable experience for later aeronautical expeditions to the region. Two

gulfs A gulf is a large inlet from the ocean into the landmass, typically with a narrower opening than a bay, but that is not observable in all geographic areas so named. The term gulf was traditionally used for large highly-indented navigable bodies ...

and a peak on Novaya Zemlya, a

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such a ...

and a cape on Franz Josef Land, an island in the

Barents Sea The Barents Sea ( , also ; no, Barentshavet, ; russian: Баренцево море, Barentsevo More) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian terr ...

, and a cape in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...

bear Sedov's name. There was also a steam

icebreaker An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...

''Georgy Sedov''. Today, the sail training

barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts having the fore- and mainmasts rigged square and only the mizzen (the aftmost mast) rigged fore and aft. Sometimes, the mizzen is only partly fore-and-aft rigged, b ...

STS Sedov STS ''Sedov'' (russian: Седов), formerly ''Magdalene Vinnen II'' (1921–1936) and ''Kommodore Johnsen'' (–1948), is a four-masted steel barque that for almost 80 years was the largest traditional sailing ship in operation. Originally buil ...

bears his name.

Gallery

Image:Georgi Sedov (timbre soviétique).jpg, A 1952 U.S.S.R.

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

issued in honor of the 75th anniversary of Sedov's birth Image:1977. Георгий Седов.jpg, A 1977 U.S.S.R.

issued in honor of the centennial of Sedov's birth Image:Georgiy Sedov Bust 14Aug10.JPG, Bust of Georgy Sedov in

Sources

Artykuł w ''Bolshoy Sovetskoy Enciklopedii''
(in Russian)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sedov, Georgy 1877 births 1914 deaths People from Donetsk Oblast Explorers of the Arctic Russian and Soviet polar explorers Explorers from the Russian Empire Ukrainian polar explorers Russian military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War Deaths from scurvy

Gallery

See also

Sources

References