The Gates of Hell

''Andrew Lambert has written another brilliant piece of research combined with old-fashioned detective work. Franklin is a heart-breaking journey through unwarranted hope and avoidable despair and yet utterly compelling.''—Amanda Foreman, author of The Duchess

~Amanda Foreman

". . .an insightful, provocative, and very stimulating work."—Gary Weir, Chief Historian, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency

~Gary Weir

"Historian Lambert . . . presents a rigorously researched examination of Franklin's life and work as a scientist, naval officer, explorer, and British colonial governor of Tasmania. . . . Lambert successfully uses extensive historical evidence to reveal Franklin's admirable leadership abilities and makes a compelling case for his view that the main purpose for the Franklin expedition was to further long-running British scientific research on the earth's magnetic field, and not just to attempt to locate the Northwest Passage."—Ingrid Levin, Library Journal

~Ingrid Levin, Library Journal

"Well-reasoned and amply documented...engagingly energetic...Lambert gives us a new way of looking at Franklin, his life, and his death."--Anne Morton, International Journal of Maritime History

~Anne Morton, International Journal of Maritime History

"The extensively researched Gates of Hell is nonetheless valuable for its many provocative connections between Franklin, his circle, the scientific quest for data on magnetism, British imperial aspirations, and Artic voyages. . . . [A] vivid picture of the intertwined personal, political, and scientific ambitions of the men involved."—Jen Hill, Victorian Studies

~Jen Hill, Victorian Studies