Den norske barken Patria ble i 1896 kjøpt av løytnant Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery fra Belgia, og med sponsing fra Geographical Royal Society i Brussel ble det satt igang en ekspedisjon for å utforske polarområdene rundt Atarctis. En av de 19 besetningsmedlemmene var Roald Amundsen. Ekspedisjonen endte nesten i en katastrofe da de frøs fast i isen 10. Mars 1898. Etter en lang og hard vinter klarte de å frigjøre skipet etter å ha jobbet med en kanal gjennom isen ut til det åpne havet, og satte deretter kursen hjemover. Vitenskapelig sett var dette en suksessfull ekspedisjon, og man fikk kartlagt mye av kystlinjen i Antarktis. Hva som skjedde med Belgica etter at hun kom tilbake til Norge er dessverre uklart, men i April 1940 er det litt opplysninger tilgjengelig. Da tyskerne invaderte Norge i April 1940, ble Belgica rekvirert av Britiske styrker , og ble lagt for anker i Brurvika utenfor Harstad og brukt som ammunisjonslekter. Mens hun lå for anker der lastet med ammunisjon, ble Harstad angrepet av tyske fly. Belgica ble skadet av bombene som ble sluppet over området, og selv om hun ikke ble truffet direkte, begynte hun å ta inn vann og sank noe senere. Belgica er idag dårlig forfatning, men vrakrestene er verdt et besøk. Vraket står på kjølen med slagside mot babord på en dybde tolv til tyve meter. Vraket er vanligvis merket med en bøye, og Brurvika kan lett nås fra land...

The Norwegian barque Patria was in 1896 bought by the lieutenant Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery from Belgium, and with sponsoring by Geographical Royal Society in Brussel an expedition was launched to explore the polar areas around Antarctic. One of the 19 crew members was Roald Amundsen. The expedition almost ended in a catastrophe when they were stuck after the ice locked them up 10. March 1898. After a long and hard winter they managed to liberate the ship after working on a channel through the ice to the open water, and then set course back home. Scientifically this was a success expedition, and they manage to map a lot of the coastline in Antarctic. What became of Belgica after the return to Norway is unfortunately unclear, but in April 1940 some information is available. When the Germans invaded Norway in April 1940, Belgica was requisitioned by the British forces, and was laid down at anchor in Brurvika outside the city of Harstad and used as an ammunition barge. While she laid at anchor there, loaded with ammunition, Harstad city were attacked by German airplanes. Belgica was damaged by the bombs that were dropped over the area, and even through she was not hit directly, she started to take in water and sank a while later. Belgica is today in a poor condition, but the remains are worth a visit. The wreck stands on her keel with a listing towards port side on a depth of twelve to twenty meters. The wreck is usually marked with a buoy, and Brurvika can be easily accessed from land...

 

Name:
Former names:
 Material:
Dimensions:
Belgica
 Patria
Wood
32,0x 6,5x ? m.
       
Tons: Built: Homeport: Cargo:
336 grt ( ? ) 18?? ( N ) Ammunition

 

 

Information from the Belgium embasy in Oslo, Norway;

Adrien de Gerlache, a lieutenant in the Belgian navy, wanted to organize his own expedition of scientific exploration in the South Pole. He contacted the Geographic Society of Brussels in order to collect the necessary funds and acquired in Norway a three-masted ship that was equipped for seal hunting. This ship called PATRIC was deeply renovated and was renamed BELGICA. On 29 July 1896, de Gerlache received a letter from a young Norwegian of 25 years old, Roald Amundsen who wanted to be part of the expedition, something that was accepted. He was to become the second-lieutenant. The Belgica left Antwerp on 16 August 1897 and reached the Antarctic waters on the following 20 January. Among the 19 members of the crew, six were Norwegians. Adrien de Gerlache and his crew were the first to spend a winter in the Antarctic and to bring back essential data for the knowledge of these regions. After having spent a forced wintering in the ice of the ice floe, the ship found finally, on 28 February 1898, a passage to the free waters. Repurchased by a Norwegian firm in the beginning of the century, the Belgica sank during the second world war off Harstad. Its anchor is today exhibited in the polar museum of Tromsø, For Amundsen it was the beginning of a long career of explorer. In 1911, he became together with three companions the first man to reach the South Pole.

 

Edited 24.06.2007