Which explorer reached the South Pole first, arriving there on 14 December 1911?

Roald Amundsen was the explorer who reached the South Pole first, arriving there on 14 December 1911.

Amundsen led a Norwegian expedition that traveled south from its base at the Bay of Whales. His team used dogs and sledges, equipment well suited to Antarctic travel, and established supply depots along the route. Four companions reached the pole with him: Olav Bjaaland, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel, and Oscar Wisting.

The Norwegian party found that Robert Falcon Scott’s British expedition arrived later, on 17 January 1912. Scott and the other members of his polar party died during the return journey. Amundsen had originally planned an Arctic expedition, but he redirected his effort after learning that the North Pole had already been claimed. His achievement made him one of the defining figures of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.