Speaking of Greenland, many people will remember that in 2019, former US President Trump publicly expressed his intention to buy Greenland in Denmark, and even this unfinished business has become the reason why President Trump canceled the State visit to Denmark.
While the idea sounds crazy, this isn't the first time a U.S. president has "acquired" Greenland. As early as 1860, during the administration of U.S. President Andrew Johnson, he considered buying Greenland.
Recently, the film "Journey Against the Ice" directed by Danish director Peter Fritsch was released, once again reminding people of a past that occurred in the early 20th century, a real event triggered by the "Greenland Dispute" between the United States and Dan.
Poster for the movie Journey Against the Ice
Is Greenland made up of two islands?
The movie "Journey Against the Ice" tells that in 1909, in order to dispel the "covetousness" of the United States for the territory of Greenland, the Kingdom of Denmark sent a scientific expedition to Greenland to collect evidence that Greenland was a complete island, but unfortunately all the members were accidentally killed. So, the hero of the film, Captain Einar Mixon, and the volunteer mechanic Iverson formed a search team and decided to go again to find the footprints of the expedition and bring back valuable maps and materials of Greenland.
While much of the film depicts the hardships and twists of the search and rescue team, the most curious question is why the Danes want to prove that Greenland is a complete island.
In the film, the male protagonist, Einar Mixon, and the mechanic Ivor Iverson form a search team to find valuable information left by the Danish expedition. Video screenshots
This has to mention the background in which the story takes place. As we all know, Greenland is located at the junction of North America and Europe, about three-quarters of the island is in the Arctic Circle, the average annual temperature is below 0 °C, the coldest central inland area can reach -70 °C, and the surrounding sea is frozen for a long time.
Although the geographical profile of Greenland has been mapped piece by piece since the 18th century, the harsh climate of the Far North-East and the harsh ice conditions off the coast have hampered cartographic work, and this vast area remains geographically unknown.
A search party of two people. Video screenshots
As a result, the United States at the time claimed that Greenland was actually made up of two islands, a Peary Channel that extended from east to west, separating Greenland's northernmost island, Peary Land, from the southern mainland. Moreover, the ownership of the island of Piridi should belong to the United States.
Historically, this assertion was based on a map drawn by Robert Peary, a famous American explorer and naval officer. In 1892, Robert Piri claimed that during his observations of the Navy Cliff north of the Antarctic Society Glacier, he found a separate fjord and named it, mapping out specific geographical features.
In 1903, Robert Piri drew a map of North Greenland showing the location of the Peary Channel. Wikipedia Figures
Therefore, in response to this controversy, Denmark, the country of greenland, immediately formed an expedition and decided to conduct a field investigation, and if it was confirmed that there was no Pyridine Island, then the entire ownership of Greenland should belong to the Kingdom of Denmark.
But what no one expected was that this fjord and map, which would later prove to be "imaginary", caused the Danish expedition to suffer heavy losses between 1906 and 1908.
A dead Danish expedition
The experience of the first Denmark expedition to Greenland is only mentioned in the male protagonist's memories in the film, perhaps because the real situation is too tragic.
The historical Danish expedition, also known as the Denmark Expedition to Greenland's Northeast Coast, explored northeastern Greenland between 1906 and 1908, consisting mainly of Captain Ludvig Mylius-Erichsen, cartographer Nils Peter Heger. Niels Peter H eg Hagen and J rgen Br nlund.
Portrait of Danish expedition leader Ludwig Milius Eriksen on Wikipedia
The main goal of the three was to map the last blank part of Greenland's northeastern coastline over two years, gathering scientific information on untapped areas, including information on the remaining Inuit people in northeastern Greenland.
Captain Milius had thought that the exploration could be completed within a year, but what he did not expect was that the expedition did not go well. It took them a lot of time to reach the Society Glacier on June 1, 1907, and in the course of a roundabout exploration, they found that the Piri Strait did not actually exist.
The Navy Cliff of the Society Glacier, where Robert Piri draws the Piri Strait, is just a guess. Wikipedia Figures
On the way back, the expedition also made the way to explore the Br nlunds Fjord and Hagens Fjord. But on June 12, when they reached the west side of the Danmarks Fjord, they found that the road was blocked by open water, and the suddenly warming weather prevented them from moving forward. They tried to rely on hunting to replenish their food, but the harvest was poor. Team member Jorgen Brende wrote in his diary: "There is no food, no foot gear, and there are still hundreds of miles from the ship." Our outlook is indeed terrible. ”
The three continued their journey south along the coastline, but at this point they had only four dogs and a sled, and when they reached the cliffs of Mallemuk Mountain, they encountered open waters. As a result, the exhausted players had to go inland on October 19, 1907. At this time, the polar night has begun, and the desperate situation has arrived.
Three members of the Danish expedition who were killed. Video screenshots
Heger Hagen was the first to die of fatigue, followed by Captain Milius, brund headed some distance further south, and the body was finally found at Lambert Land in 1908. Today, it is known as Brund's Tomb.
The news of the deaths of all the main members of the Danish expedition shocked the whole country, but in fact, their mission did not fail, and later search and rescue teams found that Milius and his team had achieved their main cartographic goals and successfully explored a vast area of northeastern Greenland, drawing accurate maps of undeveloped coastlines and fjords, and naming numerous geographical features. These precious scientific data are all bought with the lives of the team members.
The Danish expedition explored the northern region of Greenland. Wikipedia Figures
Belated discovery
Since the main members of the Danish expedition failed to return on time, the Kingdom of Denmark formed a search team, and the film "Journey Against the Ice" tells the story of this search team.
The male protagonist, Ejnar Mikkelsen, was born in 1880 and is a Danish polar explorer and writer. The most famous experience of his life was his expedition to Greenland.
The real-life Einar Mexon Wikipedia figure
The other team member, Iver Iversen, is an adventure "little white", and there is not much information about him. Only he was born in Denmark on August 24, 1884. Before joining the search team, he was a mechanic.
Einard Mickson and Ivor Iverson (right) Screenshots from the movie
In 1909, after the first failed search, Mixon decided to pursue the search again, and the mechanic Iverson was the only one who agreed to go on an expedition with him.
During the trip, the two experienced a snowstorm, the loss of a sled dog, food shortages and polar bear attacks. Finally, in a stone pile at the top of the Danish fjord, the records left by the Danish expedition were found.
Encountered polar bear attack video screenshot
Valuable information was finally found in the stone pile left by the expedition. Video screenshots
However, the matter is not over. When Mixon and Iverson returned to their garrison a few months later, they found that the wooden ship Alabama, which was supposed to be waiting at sea, was missing and that they had been "abandoned" on the island. So the two had to spend two winters in the self-built hut left by the crew, until in the summer of 1912, when they were rescued by a special rescue team.
The wooden ship "Alabama", which was supposed to wait at sea. Wikipedia Figures
After Returning home, Iverson lived a peaceful life with his family and never set foot on the Arctic again. Mixon devoted his life to exploration, and in the 1920s and 1930s, he continued to explore and excavate East Greenland many times. In 1970, on Mexon's 90th birthday, Denmark paid tribute to him. A few months later, he died in Copenhagen.
Real Alabama Lodge Wikipedia Figure
It is worth mentioning that the "Alabama cottage" that allowed Mickson and Iverson to spend hundreds of lonely days survived. In September 2010, the Danish Navy patrol ship named "Einar Mixon" took another photograph of Greenland while inspecting it.
The important last words left by the Danish expedition: "The Strait of Piri does not exist".
At the end of the film, the United States announces its recognition of the evidence that Mixon and Iverson brought back. It took the Danes a full 20 years since 1892 to finally confirm on a map that "the Strait of Piri does not exist."