The late Sir Gerald Elliot was an important figure in Antarctic whaling. His mother’s grandfather, Christian Salvesen, founded the company in his name, in 1872. The company expanded into the Antarctic whaling in the early twentieth century.
After a short career in the Indian Army, and further education at Oxford, Elliot was recruited by his uncle for the family business of whaling. His first trip down was only two months after he began working for the firm. This trip was about learning the whaling industry inside and out, and soon he was managing some of the factory fleet. Organising those who would be staying behind for a winter season to help with repairs and readying the fleet again for summer.
He became a partner of the business in 1955 and often spoke with the International Whaling Commission about how to conserve whale stocks. He worked with Soviet authorities in the 1960s to arrange whaling quotas. Later, in his book, he noted that the cessation of whaling was due to countries not being within their quotas. In our interview he noted that they were not surprised by the end of whaling, given the falling catch numbers year on year.
Elliot’s interest in whaling was not only in the business side, but he was also fascinated by the history of the industry. His uncle, Harold Salvesen, had written extensively on the topic, but had never produced any writing about it. Elliot used some of this history and wrote his own take on the company’s business in Whaling Enterprise: Salvesen in the Antarctic.
Following the whaling years, Elliot went on to become Managing Director of the company and then Chairman until his retirement in 1988. His involvement with station life was appreciated by the whalers, both on shore and on factory ships. He was fondly spoken about by the whalers, who respected him and the company, even decades after the demise of the whaling industry.