HMS Terror: The Design, Fitting, and Voyages of the Polar Discovery Ship

By Matthew Betts

The Arctic and Antarctic, as some might say, are some of last frontiers to be explored on this planet. The history of polar survey expeditions is extensive with a multitude of famous vessels that have ventured into the treacherous environment. When discussing these histories, HMS Terror must be included among the ships that took part in those voyages. Canadian archaeologist Matt Betts has brought together a comprehensive assembly of resources to give a chronological history of HMS Terror that shed insight on its life as a British bomb ship, its success as a polar exploration vessel, and the disaster that befell the ship in 1848. Detailed plans have been organized that show the ship in its various configurations throughout its life, as well the first set of lines plans that show the ship as it was in 1845. These plans are used as a reference in this book as Betts offers an extensive guide to modeling Terror in this later design.

The book is organized into three sections with the first that includes four chapters dedicated to the history of HMS Terror from 1812 to 1848. The second section details the construction of Terror from 1835 to 1845. It includes both plans and historical accounts that allow for an easy understanding of the material. In the third section, Betts outlines his step-by-step methodology for creating a 1:48 scale model of the vessel in its 1845 configuration. In the eighth chapter he discusses his role in the AMC television series ‘The Terror,’ and the 1:1 model of the ship that were based off his plans. The book concludes with discussing the rediscovery of Terror in 2017 and summary of the Canadian Underwater Archaeology Team’s report on the site.

Scholars of history, maritime archaeology, nautical archaeology, avid ship modelers, and enthusiasts of the subject will want to add this book to their libraries. As mentioned previously the book is laid out in a chronological fashion. The scanned images of the original plans, and digitized plans are of high quality and easy to read. Betts has designed a scantling table that goes into minute detail that should prove useful to modelers of this vessel. He is transparent with the challenges he faced in modeling the ship and offers several workarounds for those that might face similar issues. The bibliography is separated into primary and secondary sources, making it easy for the reader to locate documents of interest to them. Coupling the history of Terror and the construction of a scaled model allows the reader to become closer to the vessel, to truly understand the purpose of the vessel. 

• Barnsley, Seaforth Publishing, 2022
• Anapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2022
• 7-3/4” x 10”, hardcover, 240 pages
• Illustrations, drawings, maps, appendix, notes, bibliography, index. $31.95
• ISBN: 9781526783135

Reviewed by: Raymond Phipps, East Carolina University