Sir William Edward Parry

Arctic navigator, born in Bath, SW England, UK. He served in the navy, and was sent in 1810 to the Arctic regions to protect the whale fisheries. He took command in five expeditions to the Arctic regions (1818–27) which reached further N than anyone had done before. In 1829 he was knighted, and in 1837 was made controller of a department of the navy. He was subsequently superintendent of Haslar (1846), rear-admiral (1852), and Governor of Greenwich Hospital (1853).

Sir William Edward Parry (December 19, 1790 – 8 or 9 July 1855) was an English rear-admiral and Arctic explorer.

Parry was born in Bath, the son of a doctor.

In 1818 he received command of the brig Alexander in the Arctic expedition under Captain (afterwards Sir) John Ross. This expedition returned to England without having made any new discoveries but Parry, confident, as he expressed it, "that attempts at Polar discovery had been hitherto relinquished just at a time when there was the greatest chance of succeeding", in the following year obtained the chief command of a new Arctic expedition;

This expedition returned to England in November, 1820 after a voyage of almost unprecedented Arctic success, having accomplished more than half the journey from Greenland to Bering Strait, the completion of which solved the ancient problem of a Northwest Passage.

Upon his return Lieutenant Parry received promotion to the rank of commander. In May, 1821 he set sail with the HMS Fury and HMS Hecla on a second expedition to discover a Northwest Passage, but had to return to England in October, 1823 without achieving his purpose.

With the same ships Parry undertook a third expedition on the same quest in 1824, but again unsuccessfully, and following the wreck of the Fury, he returned home in October, 1825 with a double ship's company.

Parry also pioneered the use of canning techniques for food preservation on his Arctic voyages.

In the following year Parry obtained the sanction of the Admiralty for an attempt on the North Pole from the northern shores of Spitzbergen, and his extreme point of 82° 45’ N.

Parry served as Commissioner of the Australian Agricultural Company based in at Tahlee on the northern shore of Port Stephens New South Wales, Australia from 1829 to 1834.

Parry was subsequently selected for the post of comptroller of the newly-created department of steam machinery of the Navy, and held this office until his retirement from active service in 1846, when he was appointed captain-superintendent of Haslar Hospital.

Sir Edward Parry’s character was influenced by his unwavering belief in Jesus Christ, and besides the journals of his different voyages he also wrote a Lecture to Seamen, and Thoughts on the Parental Character of God.

See Memoirs of Rear-Admiral Sir W.

Parry crater on the Moon was named after him.