Ernest Shackleton was part of a big family.

One of the interesting facts about Ernest Shackleton is that Ernest Shackleton is part of a large family. The third-highest fertility rate in Europe today, Ireland has always been recognized for its huge family. The Anglo-Irish family of Shackleton is hardly an exception. Eight daughters and two sons were among the ten children his parents had. First, of two boys, Ernest was the second of their 10 children; the second, Frank, gained notoriety as a suspect in the theft of the ill-fated "Irish Crown Jewels" in 1907 before being cleared of all charges.

Henry Shackleton, his father, attempted to enlist in the British Army but was unsuccessful due to poor health. Instead, he settled in Kilkea and started farming. While his mother, Henrietta Letitia Sophia Gavan, is a Fitzmaurice, the family has roots in Kerry dating back to the 13th century during the Norman invasion. Abraham Shackleton, a west Yorkshire Quaker, founded the family that Shackleton's mother belonged to. In 1726, he founded the school in County Kildare's Ballitore. Cardinals Paul Cullen, Edmund Burke, a well-known author and political orator, and Irishman James Napper Tandy were all notable former pupils of the institution.