Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Robert Dawes Aldrich, born 19 October 1808, joined the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

in 1824 (22 January), age 15, was promoted to mate in 1830 and lieutenant in 1842 (7 March). He served as lieutenant in HMS ''Resolute'' under the command of

Horatio Thomas Austin Sir Horatio Thomas Austin (10 March 1800 – 16 November 1865) was a British Royal Navy officer and explorer. Biography Austin was born in England on 18 March 1800, the son of an official in the Chatham Dockyard. In 1828, was dispatched on ...

on the 1850-1851 Admiralty search for Sir

John Franklin Sir John Franklin (16 April 1786 – 11 June 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer and colonial administrator. After serving in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812, he led two expeditions into the Northern Canada, Canadia ...

's missing

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea lane between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, near the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Arctic Archipelago of Canada. The eastern route along the Arctic ...

expedition. His correspondence with Sophia Cracroft regarding the search for

Franklin's lost expedition Franklin's lost expedition was a failed British voyage of Arctic exploration led by Captain Sir John Franklin that departed England in 1845 aboard two ships, and , and was assigned to traverse the last unnavigated sections of the Northwest ...

, 1857-1859 commanded by

Leopold McClintock Sir Francis Leopold McClintock (8 July 1819 – 17 November 1907) was an Irish explorer in the British Royal Navy, known for his discoveries in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. He confirmed explorer John Rae (explorer), John Rae's controv ...

is held by the

Scott Polar Research Institute The Scott Polar Research Institute (SPRI) is a centre for research into the polar regions and glaciology worldwide. It is a sub-department of the Department of Geography in the University of Cambridge, located on Lensfield Road in the south ...

in Cambridge, England. In October 1850, Aldrich participated in a sledging programme to lay depots on Somerville Island, to the southwest of Cornwallis Island, in preparation for a search by sledge the following year. In the spring of the following year (starting 15 April 1851) he was away for 62 days, travelling by sledge to Bathurst Island. He went over , at an average rate of a day, examining part of the island's west coast before proceeding north to explore the western coasts of the small islands as far as Cape Aldrich. Cape Aldrich on the western shore of

Île Vanier Île Vanier is one of the Queen Elizabeth Islands of the Canadian arctic islands in Nunavut, Canada. Located at 76° 10′ N 103° 15′ W, it has an area of . It has length of and width of . To the north, across the Arnott ...

should be distinguished from Cape Aldrich on

Ellesmere Island Ellesmere Island (; ) is Canada's northernmost and List of Canadian islands by area, third largest island, and the List of islands by area, tenth largest in the world. It comprises an area of , slightly smaller than Great Britain, and the total ...

, both in

Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...

, Canada. He retired with the rank of captain in 1860, and was reserved on half pay; he was subsequently promoted to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

(31 December 1876),

vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

(23 November 1881) and

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

(24 May 1887); he died in 1891 (2 June). He was the son of Robert Aldrich and Anne Davey. He married Elizabeth Strutt Jeakes (daughter of William Jeakes) on 31 March 1852, and had two daughters, Alice M and Fanny K Aldrich. He was an uncle of Admiral Pelham Aldrich CVO (

British Arctic Expedition The British Arctic Expedition of 1875–1876, led by Sir George Nares, was sent by the Admiralty (United Kingdom), British Admiralty to attempt to reach the North Pole via Smith Sound on the west coast of Greenland. Although the expedition fail ...

1875–1876) and the pioneering woman surgeon Dame

Louisa Aldrich-Blake Dame Louisa Brandreth Aldrich-Blake (15 August 1865 – 28 December 1925) was a pioneering surgeon and one of the first British women to enter the world of modern medicine. Born in Chingford, Essex, she was the eldest daughter of a curate. L ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aldrich, Robert Dawes 19th-century Royal Navy personnel 1808 births Royal Navy admirals English polar explorers 1891 deaths