James Fitzjames

James Fitzjames

Background

James Fitzjames is a captain on the HMS Erebus in the Discovery Service for the British Royal Navy.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 1 Go for Broke played by Tobias Menzies

John Franklin walks up to Fitzjames who notices the compass is becoming less reliable. Henry Collins tells Franklin that Francis Crozier is requesting an ice report and Franklin tells him to relay to Crozier that he and Fitzjames will be joining him for dinner. At the officer's dinner, Fitzjames tells the diners consisting of Franklin, Crozier, Lt. Edward Little, Dr. MacDonald, Lt. John Irving, and Lt. George Hodgson about the time he was shot in China. Crozier sarcastically asks Fitzjames to recount the time he was assigned to guard bird guano. Franklin mentions that Reid noticed a patch of ice that doesn't appear to be summer break-up ice, but isn't concerned. Crozier has a meeting with Franklin and Fitzjames about David Young when he starts vomiting blood, and Dr. MacDonald tells them Young has dark blood in his stool and he may have tuberculosis. Franklin suggests Dr. Stanley have a look at young and decides to have Young brought to his ship. Fitzjames complains to Franklin about Crozier and his negative attitude.

A large piece of ice hits the Erebus. Franklin calls a meeting of the officers, including Lt. H.T.D. Le Vesconte, and John Gregory tells them about the damage to the Erebus and Crozier warns Franklin that they will be dealing with pack ice ahead. He asks Lt. Graham Gore how many sun dogs he has seen and suggests they explore King William Land to see if it is an island and Thomas Blanky agrees. Franklin decides against his advice and Fitzjames considers Crozier's warning, melodrama. Crozier then angrily points out that only four people at the table are veterans of the arctic, but Franklin again decides to continue on. Six days later, both ships are stuck in the ice and Franklin finds a lead ball in his meat. The next morning they wake up to be surrounded by continuous ice.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 2 Gore played by Tobias Menzies

Spring, 1847, Gregory shows Franklin and Fitzjames the engines on the Erebus and they talk about which survey crew will be successful. Franklin speaks with Fitzjames about his meeting to make amends with Crozier and Fitzjames tells him Crozier is a depressive.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 3 The Ladder played by Tobias Menzies

June, 1847, while Franklin is out in the hunting blind, the men in the blind start shooting and Franklin starts to stumble away in shock. Crozier uses a spyglass to check on the situation and orders his men to send out the marines. Franklin starts calling out for the Erebus and as Fitzjames and Charles Des Voeux go out to save him, Franklin is grabbed by the Tuunbaq, chewed in half, and dropped into the fire pit with the Shaman. Franklin's remaining leg is brought back to the ship and put inside a coffin by Henry Goodsir. Crozier goes to the Erebus and tells Blanky to start a search party with Lieutenant Fairholme in charge. Fitzjames asks him not to send out the party as Franklin forbade it and Fitzjames asks for one day for the men to grieve. Crozier gives the speech written by Franklin for Gore's eulogy. Crozier finishes the speech and Tozer initiates the 21 gun salute.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 4 Punishment, as a Boy played by Tobias Menzies

November, 1847, William Strong and Thomas Evans are also killed by the Tuunbaq. Crozier tells Fitzjames, the Tuunbaq laid a trap and Fitzjames notices how much Crozier is drinking. Crozier then admits he only joined the mission in order to use it as leverage when asking Sophia Cracroft to marry him once more. After a body is found on deck, Dr. MacDonald tells Crozier that the body Cornelius Hickey found actually consisted of the top half of Strong and the lower half of Evans. Fitzjames thinks a man did it, but Dr. MacDonald tells him it was an animal claw. Little tells them the only tracks they found belonged to the Tuunbaq. After she is forcibly brought on ship, Lady Silence is transferred to the Erebus while the three perpetrators, Hickey, Thomas Hartnell and Magnus Manson, are questioned by Crozier and Fitzjames. Crozier orders that they each receive 12 lashes by Johnson. Hickey continues to argue that what he did saved the others and Crozier angrily has him punished as a boy. Fitzjames tells Dr. Stanley that Lady Silence will be staying on the Erebus and Dr. Stanley has Goodsir take over care of Lady Silence.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 5 First Shot a Winner, Lads played by Tobias Menzies

Edmund Hoar tells Fitzjames that Little is there to see him. Fitzjames notices Crozier has again not showed up for the commander's meeting. Fitzjames then tells Little that Lady Silence will be returning to the Terror and she is Crozier's problem now. While inspecting the men, Fitzjames tells William Wentzell that his fingernails are dirty. He then chastises the crew for their lack of hygiene. Collins tells Fitzjames that when Little came on board he took 16 bottles of alcohol with him from the Erebus' stores. Fitzjames walks into Crozier's cabin and tells Crozier he needs to step up to his responsibility and Crozier punches at Fitzjames, who pushes him away. Crozier orders everyone out but Fitzjames and the two begin to argue about Crozier's sobriety. After Blanky is injured, Crozier has Fitzjames, Little, Dr. MacDonald and Thomas Jopson come into his cabin and asks them for help getting him sober and puts Fitzjames in charge for the time being.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 6 A Mercy played by Tobias Menzies

January, 1848, Irving gives a briefing to Fitzjames, Hodgson, Dr. MacDonald, Dr. Stanley, Blanky and Le Vesconte on the status of the ships' supplies. He then mentions that Dr. MacDonald thinks any of the anti-scurvy properties the lemons may have had have worn out due to age. He ends by telling Fitzjames if they reduce their rations by 3/4 then they will run out by midwinter next year. Fitzjames tells Irving to have John Diggle and Richard Wall focus on serving salted meats to save the portable food stuffs. Fitzjames releases everyone else, except for Blanky, who he questions about what happened to Sir John Ross at Fury Beach. Blanky tells Fitzjames of how Sir Ross was willing to leave behind the sick before leaving any equipment behind, of how they built Somerset House. He continues that even in camp, the officers lived a life of relative plenty while the others slept in ditches, and of how he wanted to kill Sir Ross.

Fitzjames comes up with an idea for a carnival and opens one of Franklin's trunks and finds theater costumes and masks. The men build the carnival structure and Fitzjames tells Little that his plan is to hike to find help. While looking for a costume to wear, Fitzjames notices he is suddenly bleeding from his scalp. Carnival starts and Crozier and Jopson arrive later and find the crew drunk. Crozier holds a speech and tells the crew that they need to return to their homes. He tells them that they will be walking to safety. Crozier continues that they should find help from the Netsilik people on their way and should eventually meet up with Lt. Fairholme and his group. Lady Silence stumbles into the crowd and shortly after, Dr. Stanley starts himself and the carnival camp on fire. The fire spreads through carnival and some of the crew are burned to death. Hickey uses a knife to cut open the canvas and kills Dr. MacDonald in the process. The remaining crew stumble out of the area and the dead are lined up.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 7 Horrible from Supper played by Tobias Menzies

April 22, 1848, Fitzjames complains to Crozier that some of the things the men are bringing are impractical. Irving gives the word, and the group starts their march through the Arctic. Tozer and John Morfin are scouting ahead when they find something. They take Crozier and Fitzjames to see what they found, the remains of Fairholme's sledge party, killed by the Tuunbaq. The crew meet up with Little's group, who have already set up camp. During the night, Morfin collapses and asks Goodsir to kill him. The rest of the camp wakes up and Morfin takes the rifle from Pvt. William Pilkington and points it at Crozier. Fitzjames orders Morfin to lower his weapon and Morfin shoots towards him before being shot dead by Tozer.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 8 Terror Camp Clear played by Tobias Menzies

April, 1848, Crozier and Fitzjames are walking back to the cairn of Sir James Ross with a new message. Fitzjames asks Crozier why he didn't mention the Tuunbaq in the message and Crozier tells him, he didn't want to start a mass of foolish captains coming to the Arctic to try and hunt it, which would lead to brave crews dying. Fitzjames reads Gore's message and adds an addendum to it. Fitzjames tells Crozier about how the lead poisoning is affecting his body and breaking it down. He continues that he sees himself as a fool and he was given the mission, because he saved Sir John Barrow's son from scandal. He goes on that he was a bastard at birth and Crozier reassures him that he isn't a fake and deserves all his records of valor and calls him a brother in arms. They arrive back at camp and see a mass of activity in camp.

Little tells Crozier that a group of Netsilik murdered Irving and Thomas Farr as witnessed by Hickey and a group was sent out with Hodgson which then murdered the Netsilik. Hodgson tells Fitzjames that he shot two and Thomas Armitage killed another two, another one was killed by Pocock, while one escaped. Blanky tells Crozier that the reason the marines are running about camp is in preparation for a counterattack. Crozier asks Hodgson what evidence he saw backing up Hickey's claim, but he offers no evidence. Lady Silence is brought to examine the bodies of Irving and Farr, which are mutilated with their genitals removed, and she tells Crozier, her people don't do that sort of thing. Jopson, Hickey, Crozier, Lady Silence, Goodsir, Blanky, and Hartnell prepare to leave to go where the Netsilik were killed. Fitzjames takes off his shirt and he is covered in sores, like Peglar.

Crozier's group returns and is initially shot at. Fitzjames tells Crozier that Little gave the order to release weapons and Lady Silence is in danger. Crozier tells Lady Silence to leave and Goodsir apologizes to Lady Silence. Crozier questions Little on why he ignored his orders and Crozier has Goodsir do an autopsy on Irving's stomach. Goodsir finds meat in Irving's stomach, explaining why the Netsilik would have Irving's looking glass and proving that he was fed by them. Hodgson admits that Hickey must have lied and Crozier orders Hickey arrested. Little argues against using marines as Tozer is on Hickey's side. Hickey and Tozer are arrested and are brought to a makeshift gallows. The trial is given before the surviving sailors. Crozier admits there is no help coming, but tells them that Hickey is a user and has John Diggle open the bag the Netsilik had. Diggle tells the others that the bag has fresh meat and Goodsir reveals that Irving had recently eaten fresh meat. Hickey is given a chance to speak and he tells the others that Crozier had planned to abandon the crew. A laugh rings out in the fog and Collins walks into camp, followed by the Tuunbaq. The Tuunbaq then slaughters many members of the camp.

During the events of The Terror: Season 1 Episode 9 The C, the C, the Open C played by Tobias Menzies

The next day after the Tuunbaq attack on the camp, Fitzjames tells Crozier that they can't bury all of the bodies. Crozier asks if anyone has seen Goodsir and John Bridgens tells him, Goodsir would never have left willingly with the traitors. Bridgens is working on a patient, who appears to be comatose, and tells Crozier and Fitzjames that the patient is like a diary with all the entries removed. Crozier gives a speech to the men telling them they must continue and Little orders the march to continue. Crozier tells Jopson to burn the dead and then tells Fitzjames to leave the supplies they can't carry in case some from Hickey's group are in need of them. As Crozier's group makes their way, Fitzjames collapses. He opens his jacket and blood is visible under his shirt. He is put in a supply boat and tells Crozier that the wounds are from a scar that healed six years ago. Later, Fitzjames offers his body as food to Crozier and the men and asks Crozier to end his pain. Bridgens tells Crozier which pain killer to use and Crozier euthanizes Fitzjames.