FRANKLIN, SIR JOHN (1786-1847), English rear-ad miral and explorer, was born at Spilsby, Lincolnshire, on April 16, 1786. He was educated at St. Ives and Louth grammar school, and entered as a midshipman on board the "Polyphemus," in which he served at the battle of Copenhagen (April 2, 18o1). Two months later he joined the "Investigator," and took part, under his cousin Capt. Flinders, in the exploration of the Aus tralian coast. He was on board the "Porpoise" when she and the "Cato" were wrecked there in 1803, returned to England, and joined the "Bellerophon" in time to take part in the battle of Trafalgar. For the rest of the war he was on the "Bedford." In 1818 he was in command of the "Trent" in Capt. Buchan's Arctic expedition, which was cut short by Buchan's ship being damaged by pack-ice. He had done enough, however, to establish his fitness for such work, and in 1819 he was put in command of an expedition that was to proceed overland from Hudson bay to the shores of the Arctic ocean, and explore the coast eastwards from the mouth of the Coppermine. This, and the mouth of the Mackenzie, far to the West, were then the only points known on the north coast of America. Franklin and his party arrived at the Hudson's Bay Co.'s depot at the end of August 1819, and after a journey of 700m. wintered on the Saskatchewan. Failure of the promised supplies held them up the next summer, but in 1821 they descended the Coppermine to its mouth, and surveyed part of the coast to the eastward. They returned over the Barren Ground, and after severe suffering, and the death of Hood, they reached York Factory in June 1822, and returned to England the same year. Franklin was promoted post-captain on his return. The narrative of the expedition was published in 1823, and soon of ter he married Eleanor, daughter of William Porden, an architect. Early in 1825 he was given command of a second overland expedition, his wife, who was dying, herself urging him to sail without delay. In 1826 he traced the North American coast from the Mackenzie to 149° 37' W. long., while Richardson with another party connected the mouths of the Mackenzie and the Coppermine. The two expeditions together had added 1,2oom. of coastline to the American continent. He returned in 1827 and in 1828 married Jane, daughter of John Griffin. In 1829 he was knighted. In 1836 he was appointed lieutenant-governor of Van Diemen's land, Tasmania, a post he held until 1843. During this time convicts from all over the empire were sent to Tasmania. He founded a college there, and established a scientific society at Hobart Town. Years later the colony voted £1,700 to Lady Franklin's efforts for the search for and relief of her husband.
At the time of his return to England there was a renewal of interest in Polar exploration, and he took command of a new expedition for the discovery of the North-West passage. Under him were Capt. Crozier, who had been with Parry and Ross, and Capt. Fitzjames, in command of the "Erebus." Victualled for three years, and equipped with every appliance then known, the expedition, consisting of the "Erebus" and "Terror" (129 officers and men) , sailed from Greenhithe on May 19, 1845. The ships were last seen at the entrance to Lancaster sound, on July 26, and it was 14 years bef ore the mystery of their subsequent move ments was finally solved. Franklin's instructions were to push through Lancaster sound and Barrow strait as far as Cape Walker (c. long. 98° W.), and thence southwards, with the alter native of Wellington channel, if navigable. No news arrived of their doings, and from 1848 onwards a series of expeditions was sent to search for them, which between them explored thousands of miles in the Arctic regions. The first traces were found by Capt. Ommanney in Aug. 1851, at Franklin's winter quarters at Beechey island. In 18J4, Dr. Rae, on a sledging expedition from Repulse bay, learned from Eskimos that some white men had been seen dragging a boat southward along the west shore of King William's island. He also obtained from them various articles which were identified as belonging to members of the expedition. In 1855 a party went down the Mackenzie in canoes, and established that an attempt had been made to reach the Hudson's Bay Co.'s settlement by the Fish river route from the "Erebus" and "Terror." With this the Government was content, but Lady Franklin organized another attempt. Capt. M'Clin tock in the "Fox" left Aberdeen in July 1857, and in the spring of 1859 the fate of Franklin's expedition was revealed. In addi tion to skeletons and other remains in King William's island, and reports from the Eskimo in Boothia, a record was found in a cairn at Point Victory telling the history of the expedition up to April 25, 1848. In 1845-1846 the "Erebus" and "Terror" had wintered at Beechey island, on the south-west coast of North Devon, after having ascended Wellington channel to lat. 77°, and returned by the west side of Cornwallis island. In 1846 he fol lowed the route specially assigned to him. He had navigated Peel and Franklin straits southward, but had been stopped by ice coming down M'Clintock channel (then unknown). On the margin of this was an addendum dated April 25, 1848, signed by Fitzjames and Crozier telling that the "Erebus'' and "Terror" were deserted on April 22, 1848, having been ice-beset since Sept. 12, 1846. Franklin had died on June 1847, and the total loss to date had been nine officers and 15 men. It was added that they would start the next day for Back's Fish river. Strength must have failed; an Eskimo woman said that they fell down and died as they walked. Franklin is certainly entitled to the honour of being the discoverer of the North-West passage. The point the ships reached was within a few miles of the known waters of America. Lady Franklin died in 1875, aged 83, and a monument in Westminster Abbey commemorates both her hus band's fame and her own connection with it.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.--Sir J. Franklin, Narrative of a Journey to the Bibliography.--Sir J. Franklin, Narrative of a Journey to the Shores of the Polar Sea (1823) ; Dr. A. Petermann, Sir J. Franklin etc. (1852) ; A. H. Markham, Life of Sir John Franklin (World's Great Explorers' Series, 1891) ; G. B. Smith, Sir J. Franklin and the romance of the North-West Passage (1895) ; H. D. Traill, Life of Sir J. Franklin (1896) ; Life Diary and Correspondence of Jane Lady Franklin (ed. W. F. Rawnsley, 1923) .