Abstract:
Commonwealth countries were invited to take part and New Zealand, Australia and South Africa responded not only with personnel but also vital cash injections that helped to fund the enterprise. A young Meteorologist from South Africa called Hannes la Grange volunteered to take part and he was one of only five men to spend the full three years that it took to carry out the project. The first year was probably the hardest when just eight men were left on the Filchner Ice Shelf to build the base hut and begin the process of establishing a foot hold for the second phase of the expedition that would commence in 1956. That year on their own came as a great shock to them all but survive they did and the plan got off to a successful start thanks to their ingenuity and damned hard work.The final outcome of the project was an undoubted national success and credit must be given to all those involved in the planning, administration and most importantly to the men on the ground who carried out the onerous task of overcoming the multitude of obstacles that kept assailing them.
