Rae Expedition Exposed Franklin Cannibalism

During an 1854 journey through the Gulf of Boothia in Canada, Scottish surgeon and Arctic explorer John Rae met Inuit families who revealed the fate of Sir John Franklin's lost Arctic expedition. They reported that ice had crushed the ships, the surviving sailors had starved while walking south, and around 30 bodies showed signs of cannibalism. When the British Admiralty released Rae's report, the Victorian public refused to believe Royal Navy sailors had resorted to cannibalism, and British writer Charles Dickens ridiculed Rae for trusting Inuit testimony. The backlash likely cost Rae a knighthood, but archaeological investigations in the 20th century later confirmed the reports of cannibalism.

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