{"id":381,"date":"2013-09-19T10:35:24","date_gmt":"2013-09-19T14:35:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=381"},"modified":"2024-06-13T16:06:59","modified_gmt":"2024-06-13T20:06:59","slug":"letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/","title":{"rendered":"Letter from beyond mentions flag"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Scott<\/a>
Scott writes in his diary<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By James Breig<\/a><\/p>\n

If you had to write a letter to your spouse and child that wouldn\u2019t be read until after you died, what would you say?<\/p>\n

In January 1912, that question was faced by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, a British explorer, when his expedition to the South Pole failed in two ways:<\/p>\n

\"Scott<\/a>
Scott in the Antarctic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

*He was not, as he had hoped, the first explorer to find that spot. Norwegians had been there a month earlier, marking their spot with a silken flag. \u201cAll day-dreams must go,\u201d Scott jotted in his diary.<\/p>\n

*Second, he and his companions realized they were doomed to die from exposure and starvation in the Antarctic.<\/p>\n

As he and his men grew weaker, Scott began writing a long letter to his wife, Kathleen, and their two-year-old son, Peter. Instead of beginning with \u201cDear Kathleen,\u201d he started with \u201cTo: My widow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The beginning of Scott’s letter<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Speaking across thousands of miles to his \u201cdearest darling,\u201d Scott was blunt: \u201cWe are in a very tight corner and I have doubts of pulling through\u2026.I shall like you to know how much you have meant to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He advised her to find comfort in their son, whom he referred to as \u201cthe boy,\u201d and hoped she would teach him to \u201cbelieve in a God; it is comforting.\u201d Perhaps he was sharing his own spiritual feelings as his life ebbed.<\/p>\n

Then the explorer turned to a flag, the British Union Jack<\/a>, one of the few objects he had with him that he could leave to her and Peter.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a piece of the Union flag I put up at the South Pole in my private kit bag,\u201d he wrote. \u201cGive a small piece\u2026to the King [George V] and a small piece to Queen Alexandra [the queen mother] and keep the rest [as] a poor trophy for you!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Scott,<\/a>
Scott, standing center, with members of his exploration<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Scott\u2019s final words included, \u201cWhat lots and lots I could tell you of this journey. What tales you would have for the boy, but oh what a price to pay \u2013 to forfeit the sight of your dear dear face.\u201d<\/p>\n

When a memorial service was held in London to mark his passing, the flags outside British schools were lowered to half-staff.<\/p>\n

(To read Scott\u2019s entire letter, go to www.lettersofnote.com<\/a> and search for \u201cflag.\u201d)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By James Breig If you had to write a letter to your spouse and child that wouldn\u2019t be read until after you died, what would you say? In January 1912, that question was faced by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, a British explorer, when his expedition to the South Pole failed in two ways: *He was… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[123,121,122,120],"class_list":["post-381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-british-union-jack","tag-captain-robert-falcon-scott","tag-south-pole","tag-union-flag"],"yoast_head":"\nLetter from beyond mentions flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Letter from beyond mentions flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By James Breig If you had to write a letter to your spouse and child that wouldn\u2019t be read until after you died, what would you say? In January 1912, that question was faced by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, a British explorer, when his expedition to the South Pole failed in two ways: *He was... continue\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-09-19T14:35:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-06-13T20:06:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary-300x209.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"James Breig\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"James Breig\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/\",\"name\":\"Letter from beyond mentions flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary-300x209.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2013-09-19T14:35:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-13T20:06:59+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/048662cff3dee1c17360c4683b5fe03a\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary.jpg\",\"width\":\"640\",\"height\":\"447\",\"caption\":\"Scott writes in his diary\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Letter from beyond mentions flag\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/048662cff3dee1c17360c4683b5fe03a\",\"name\":\"James Breig\",\"description\":\"James Breig is a veteran author who specializes in history. His most recent book is \u201cStar-Spangled Baseball: True Tales of Flags and Fields\u201d about the links between the sport and flags. He is also the author of a nonfiction book about WWII, \\\"Searching for Sgt. Bailey: Saluting an Ordinary Soldier of World War II\\\" and co-author of \\\"The Mystery of the Multiple Mothers,\\\" a novel. All three are available at www.amazon.com. His articles have appeared in newspapers and national magazines, including the Colonial Williamsburg Journal (search for them at www.history.org\/journal) and History Magazine. He has won many national awards for his opinion writing, media columns and feature articles.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/author\/james\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Letter from beyond mentions flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Letter from beyond mentions flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog","og_description":"By James Breig If you had to write a letter to your spouse and child that wouldn\u2019t be read until after you died, what would you say? In January 1912, that question was faced by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, a British explorer, when his expedition to the South Pole failed in two ways: *He was... continue","og_url":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/","og_site_name":"Gettysburg Flag Works Blog","article_published_time":"2013-09-19T14:35:24+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-06-13T20:06:59+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary-300x209.jpg"}],"author":"James Breig","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"James Breig","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/","url":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/","name":"Letter from beyond mentions flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary-300x209.jpg","datePublished":"2013-09-19T14:35:24+00:00","dateModified":"2024-06-13T20:06:59+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/048662cff3dee1c17360c4683b5fe03a"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/Scott-writes-in-his-diary.jpg","width":"640","height":"447","caption":"Scott writes in his diary"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/letter-from-beyond-mentions-flag\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Letter from beyond mentions flag"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/","name":"Gettysburg Flag Works Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/048662cff3dee1c17360c4683b5fe03a","name":"James Breig","description":"James Breig is a veteran author who specializes in history. His most recent book is \u201cStar-Spangled Baseball: True Tales of Flags and Fields\u201d about the links between the sport and flags. He is also the author of a nonfiction book about WWII, \"Searching for Sgt. Bailey: Saluting an Ordinary Soldier of World War II\" and co-author of \"The Mystery of the Multiple Mothers,\" a novel. All three are available at www.amazon.com. His articles have appeared in newspapers and national magazines, including the Colonial Williamsburg Journal (search for them at www.history.org\/journal) and History Magazine. He has won many national awards for his opinion writing, media columns and feature articles.","url":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/author\/james\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5157,"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381\/revisions\/5157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}