The Father of Mountaineering

by Graeme Wallace

150 years ago, an unassuming Englishman hurriedly set out with two other Englishmen, a Scotsman, a Frenchman and two Swiss in a race to beat a group of Italians to the summit of the 'unclimable' mountain. It was not the highest mountain in the Alps and it was far from being the most technical to climb, but it was the most intimidating, causing most mountaineers and guides of the day to avoid it out of fear of its towering faces and formidable precipices.

One man in particular was undaunted and set himself apart from others by making it his primary goal to reach its summit. The mountain was the Matterhorn 4,478m (14,692 ft) and the man - Edward Whymper. Today, one may ask what all the fuss was about; hundreds, sometimes thousands now climb it each year. Dozens of routes have been made up its various ridges and faces and some have climbed it in under 3 hours. But this is to make light of one of the most challenging aspects of mountaineering - to brave the unknown and to climb, not knowing what danger lay ahead.

Since first visiting the Alps five years earlier, and aged just 20, Whymper quickly proved himself to be a competent mountaineer, quickly learning the necessary skills and demonstrating a drive and commitment beyond the typical English Alpinist. He was the first to summit many peaks, particularly in and around Chamonix yet, despite winning the respect of the guides he climbed with, these guides remained fearful and convinced the Matterhorn was impossible.

There was one guide, however, who did believe the Matterhorn could be climbed and he was also on a personal mission to reach its summit. This was Jean-Antoine Carrel, an Italian who lived on the south side of the mountain. He was the first to make a recorded attempt to climb it and was frequently called upon to support Whymper and others in their attempts. Needless to say, an unusual relationship built up between Carrel and Whymper, one of competition but also of mutual respect.

By 1865, having circumnavigated the mountain and having made seven previous attempts to climb it, Whymper became sure that the best route was the East Face and North East (Hörnli) ridge. Meanwhile, Carrel, who had been on the circumnavigation with Whymper, continued to believe that his South West (Lion) ridge was still the easiest. Frustratingly, Whymper could not climb alone, yet was surrounded by people unconvinced of his route up the more daunting face.

Having made the first ascent of numerous peaks including Aiguille Verte 4,122m (13,523 ft) in the preceding weeks, Whymper was once again at the foot of the south face of the Matterhorn, negotiating with Carrel to try his alternative route. Carrel finally agreed, but only on the basis that it be attempted in the coming days as he then had other commitments. Based on the positive response, Whymper let go the two very competent guides that had accompanied him up to that point, and waited for the weather to improve. Unsurprisingly, it did not and, as Carrel took up his other engagement, Whymper found himself without a guide. However, a whole series of circumstances then came in to play that resulted in a race to the summit from opposite sides of the mountain.

Whymper quickly learnt that Carrel had actually been employed by the newly formed Italian Alpine Club, intending to make the first ascent on the Matterhorn to inaugurate the club. No expense was spared and every conceivable piece of equipment to aid their attempt had been brought up. How could Whymper compete with that? Not only was he without a guide but he could not even source a porter to help carry his own supplies over the Theadul Pass to Zermatt on the other side. Ever positive, his only hope lay in the facts that the weather was still poor and that Carrel?s Italian team would make slow progress with the huge amount of supplies they were taking. Enter Lord Francis Douglas, a young 18 year old Scotsman who had just made the second recorded ascent of Ober Gabelhorn 4,063m (13,300 ft). He marched down from the Theodul Pass at a pace equal to Whymper's own, and in a manner that immediately caught Whymper's attention. Wasting no time, Whymper convinced Lord Douglas to immediately return and for his guide to help transport the supplies.

Once in Zermatt, they sought out and employed local guide Peter Taugwalder and left him to try and find another guide, while they headed for the Monte Rosa Hotel. To Whymper's surprise, his favourite guide and good friend Michel Croz was sitting outside, currently in the employment of English Rev. Charles Hudson, a situation in itself that resulted from a series of unforeseeable circumstances. Whymper undoubtedly did everything in his power to recruit Croz and, when he learnt that Hudson was also planning an ascent on the Matterhorn, proposed that they join up. An astute move or a rash judgment?

Hudson was there with is protègè Douglas Hadow, a young man who had no experience on Alpine rock and was possibly not intending to climb the Matterhorn. Rather, Hudson had planned to climb with Rev. Joseph M'Cormick and was supposed to be waiting for him. It is not clear why he abandoned M'Cormick, but quite possibly changed his plans upon hearing of Whymper's, convincing him that Hadow was up to the task despite his lack of experience.

The four British set off for the Hörnli Ridge the next day with Michal Croz, Peter Taugwalder and his son. In Whymper's book Scrambles Amongst the Alps he describes their two day climb as presenting very little challenge for all except Hadow, almost nonchalantly making their way up the east face and north west ridge; and this despite knowing that Carrel and his team had over a day's head start on them. However, the Matterhorn is no walk in the park and would have presented some challenges to the entire team. Nevertheless, Whymper and Croz ran along the final crest to the summit and at 1.40pm were the first men to stand upon the Matterhorn.

While a surprising number of British mountaineers are unfamiliar with Edward Whymper and his achievements, most are familiar with what happened on the descent. About an hour after leaving the summit, tragedy struck the party and, while the details are not 100% certain, it is believed that Hadow slipped, knocking over Croz and pulling Hudson and Lord Douglas before the rope broke. Whymper and the two Taugwalders watched helplessly as their colleagues fell over 1,000m down the near vertical north face. With true British spirit, Whymper showed little emotion and had to rally the two, now deeply shocked, Swiss guides in order for them to continue. Despite being ever hopeful of survivors, Whymper found all but one of the victims' mangled bodies on the glacier below; the body of Lord Douglas was not found and has still not been discovered.

A devastating tragedy for the fallen climbers and their families, but also for the survivors who suffered lifelong as a result. Despite his bravado, Whymper never got over the disaster, decades later revealing:
"Every night, do you understand, I see my comrades of the Matterhorn slipping on their backs, their arms outstretched, one after the other, in perfect order at equal distances - Croz the guide, first, then Hadow, then Hudson, and lastly Douglas. Yes, I shall always see them."

To have shown immense determination, facing up to and, eventually, first summiting the unclimbable Matterhorn, Whymper proved himself worthy of a place among the great pioneers and explorers. Sadly, as a consequence of the tragedy, of the psychological impact of seeing his companions and one of his closest friends fall to their death and the never ending criticism and questioning of some, the young, fearless and talented Edward Whymper failed to cement his position as one of the great men of history, but surely now, 150 years later, he deserves a lasting memorial as the father mountaineering.

The Matterhorn from Riffelsee Lake
Photo by Graeme Wallace

In order to commemorate Whymper's achievements, the large format book Matterhorn - The Quintessential Mountain has just been published, incorporating narrated extracts from Whymper's own book, together with stunning photographs of Whymper's mountains by Graeme Wallace. A book every mountaineer and hill walker should own.
ISBN 978-0957084490

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