Readers of Polar Record might ask straightaway why a book purporting to relate to Gordon of Khartoum is being reviewed in this journal. But the subject of this very interesting biography was one of those remarkable Victorian individuals who was involved in all sorts of noteworthy events in a variety of places stretching throughout the world, and although he never travelled to the Antarctic himself, he did play a role in one of the most important expeditions of the ‘Heroic Age’ of Antarctic exploration.

Born in Macclesfield in 1852 to parents whose alliance joined one of the area's leading silk millers with a powerful family in the cotton trade, John Fielden Brocklehurst was educated at Rugby and Trinity College, Cambridge, before gaining a commission in the Royal Regiment of Horse Guards (or Blues). Early in his career, he met Gordon and travelled with him to Abyssinia, a trip bonding the two men as fast friends. Gordon subsequently requested that Brocklehurst be allowed to accompany him on various assignments in Africa – including his last, to the Sudan — but each time Brocklehurst's military superiors refused.

Brocklehurst's career was one of continued upward mobility, and included service in some of the most significant actions of the Victorian era. In 1882, as a captain, he served under Sir Garnet Wolseley in the Egyptian campaign putting down the anti-European revolt under Colonel Arabi. Two years later, he joined the Gordon Relief Expedition at the special request of Wolseley, its commander. This was in part because Wolseley and Brocklehurst were Gordon's two greatest friends, the only two, he wrote, for whom he prayed every night. In 1895, as a colonel, Brocklehurst took command of the Blues, and four years later he was appointed Equerry to Queen Victoria. He had hardly settled into that position, however, before he was promoted major-general and given command of a cavalry regiment in Natal, making him the youngest general officer at the front as the Boer War began. Trapped in Ladysmith with the rest of Sir George White's troops, Brocklehurst distinguished himself in sorties outside the town, until the extended investment forced the besieged men to eat their horses rather than ride them.

Following the relief of Ladysmith, Brocklehurst returned to Queen Victoria's service, and when she died, Queen Alexandra kept him as her own Equerry. It was as such that he made his contribution to Ernest Shackleton's British Antarctic Expedition. One of Shackleton's shore party was 20-year-old Sir Philip Brocklehurst, the cousin of Johnny Brocklehurst. Hoping that royal patronage might increase donations to the expedition, Shackleton and Sir Philip approached the older Brocklehurst, whose high standing at court had been shown by his recently being named Lord Lieutenant of Rutland. Although Brocklehurst failed to gain the BAE official patronage, he did arrange for King Edward VII, Queen Alexandra, the Prince and Princess of Wales, and Prince Edward (later King Edward VIII) to visit the expedition ship Nimrod at Cowes before she sailed.

As the royal visit ended, the King suddenly conferred upon Shackleton the Royal Victorian Order. And the Queen presented him a flag, with a note that read, ‘May this Union Jack, which I entrust to your keeping, lead you safely to the South Pole.’ It was the first such gesture made to a British explorer by a monarch, and it clearly had been orchestrated by Johnny Brocklehurst. As hoped, the visit gave Shackleton a much-increased cachet with potential backers.

In 1914 Brocklehurst was created a Baron, styling himself Lord Ranksborough. The following year he was named Lord in Waiting to King George V. But there was much more to Brocklehurst than military and royal honours, and by investigating his own interests as well as his friendships with Gordon, Cecil Rhodes, Admiral Sir John Fisher, the famed newspaper editor W.T. Stead, and other key figures, this book gives insights into the imperial era and the mentalities that helped drive expansion and exploration. As such, although tangential to exploration, it is a valuable addition for those who wish to understand its background.

This book can be ordered directly from Reardon Publishing, PO Box 919, Cheltenham GL50 0AN; email: [email protected].