"I am just going outside and may be some time."
With this one understated, unassuming sentence a British legend of courage and sacrifice was born.
This sentence was, of course, uttered by Captain Lawrence Oates to Captain Scott as he walked out of the shelter of a small tent into a freezing blizzard and to certain doom.
Frostbitten and suffering from gangrene, Oates paid the ultimate sacrifice on the return leg of Captain Scott's ill-fated expedition to the South Pole, from 1910 to 1912.
Oates undertook his final act of bravery in a futile effort to help his companions reach a vital supply depot before the cold wiped out the whole party.
Captain Oates claimed the north Essex village of Gestingthorpe as his home. His life story is given new depth in a newly-published biography of Captain Oates entitled I am just going outside, Captain Oates - Antarctic Tragedy.
The author Michael Smith said: "I think most people would recognise those famous words but most people wouldn't know who said them and that was the purpose of the book.
"Captain Oates is a fascinating character and it's a very interesting story and for those who like adventure the life of Captain Oates is something worth reading."
Published Wednesday, January 29, 2003
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