Robert Falcon Scott Markham's first choice as leader but, having decided on him, the older man's support remained constant. There were committee battles over the scope of Scott's responsibilities, with the Royal Society pressing to put a scientist in charge of the expedition's programme while Scott merely commanded the ship. Eventually, however, Markham's view prevailed; Scott was given overall command, and was promoted to the rank of commander before "Discovery" sailed for the Antarctic on 6 August 1901. King Edward VII, who showed a keen interest in the expedition, visited the Discovery the day before the ship left British shores in August 1901,
Coat of arms of the British Antarctic Territory ice. The crest is a representation of the RRS "Discovery", the research ship used by Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton on their first journey to the Antarctic. The motto is “Research and Discovery”, reflecting the aims of the British Antarctic Survey. The coat of arms appears in the fly of the flag of the British Antarctic Territory. Coat of arms of the British Antarctic Territory The coat of arms of the British Antarctic Territory was first granted in 1952, when the territory was still a dependency of the Falkland Islands (along with South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands).