Harald Horntvedt

Who is Harald Horntvedt?

Harald Horntvedt was a Norwegian sea captain who commanded the Norvegia, a former sealing ship refitted for scientific and mapping voyages, on the First Norvegia Expedition of 1927. The expedition was financed by the Norwegian shipowner and Antarctic philanthropist Lars Christensen, who wished to secure Norwegian scientific and commercial interests in the far South Atlantic and Southern Ocean whaling grounds. Under authority granted by Norway's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Horntvedt was instructed to formally annex any unclaimed land his expedition encountered. On 1 December 1927 he led his party ashore on the small volcanic island first sighted by Bouvet de Lozier in 1739, becoming the first documented landing party to set foot on it and to venture onto its central ice plateau, roughly 2,500 feet above sea level. Horntvedt raised the Norwegian flag, took possession of the island in the name of King Haakon VII, renamed it Bouvetøya, produced a rough map, and left a small cache of provisions ashore for the benefit of any future shipwrecked mariners. Norway formalized its claim by royal decree in January 1928. A glacier on the island, Horntvedt Glacier, was later named in his honor.

Sources: Wikipedia, "Bouvet Island" · Norwegian Polar Institute, "Bouvetøya" · History Is Now Magazine, "The History of South Atlantic's Remote Bouvet Island"