Location

Mt Everest is set on the border between Nepal and Tibet at Latitude 27o 59?N, Longitude 86o 56?E

It was formed 60 million years ago as result of the northward thrust of the Indian subcontinent into Asia proper. At 29,035ft (8850m) it is the highest mountain in the world and still growing.

Set between two countries it has two local names. In Nepal it is Sagamartha (Goddess of the sky) and in Tibet, Chomolungma (Mother goddess of the universe).

	Sir George Everest

Discovery

Although already known to those who lived in its shadow, it took many years for the mountain to reach the consciousness of the western world. Mount Everest was first surveyed as part of the ?Great Trigonometrical Survey of India?. This was undertaken in conjunction with studies in other parts of the world to accurately determine the shape of the Earth. It would also form the basis of good quality maps for the ?Jewel in the Crown? of the British Empire.

The Great Arc that formed the backbone of the survey had started in Southern India and took many years to work its way North towards the border with Nepal. Here it spread East and West along the border, Nepal itself being closed to the outside world. Reliable sightings of the far distant peaks were made possible by the discipline of accuracy that had characterised the survey throughout. It was under the leadership of Andrew Scott Waugh that a series of sightings were made of a group of peaks that straddled the Nepal/Tibet border and it was Radkanath Sickdhar, Waugh?s ?chief calculator? who determined the height of Peak XV to be 29,002ft, far higher than anything seen so far. After much checking this discovery was announced in 1856 by letter to the Asiatic Society of Bengal with the statement that it was ?most probably the highest mountain in the world?. Waugh determined that Peak XV should be known as Mont Everest after his predecessor as Surveyor General of India, George Everest. This evolved into ?Mount Everest? and even though some were not happy with the choice, the name was adopted. Ironically Everest the man never saw Everest the mountain.

The shear physical remoteness of the mountain and political isolation of Nepal and Tibet would mean it was many years before any assessments could be made with a view to possibly climbing the mountain.

	George Mallory

Early Forays

It was Tibet that first welcomed formal reconnaissance expeditions and the British carried out a series in the 1920s. Prominent amongst these was one, George Mallory. The first foray in 1921 and subsequent expeditions led up to the famous 1924 attempt in which Mallory and Sandy Irvine disappeared from sight on the North Ridge, high on the mountain going for the summit. The discovery of Mallory?s body in 1999 still did not clear up the mystery of whether or not they made it to the summit.

The 1930s saw a further of series of four British led expeditions with new characters coming to the fore including Eric Shipton, the only participant in them all. It was in 1933 that they discovered Irvine?s ice axe. Keen to join the 1935 expedition and employed in a most junior role was Tensing Norgay, the start of a long apprenticeship that would pay dividends. Further attempts in 1938 and 1938 pushed the boundaries but were thwarted, the weather playing a strong part in the decisions to retreat from the mountain.

	Eric Shipton

The 1950s

The Second World War put paid to climbing activity in the region for quite a while and the new political landscape saw the now communist regime in China cut off access to Tibet. Luckily at the same time attitudes in Nepal were mellowing and the glimpses of the southern side seen from high on the North Ridge could be investigated. A new generation of climbers were keen to take on the high peaks of the Himalayas and Everest became the subject of serious attention. It was the experienced Shipton who led the 1951 reconnaissance of what would become one of the most established routes on the mountain. The following year the Swiss followed up this work and nearly made it to the summit. Amongst their number, with a drive to go high was Tenzing Norgay.

1953 saw the full weight of the British establishment put behind a summit attempt. The leader was not the somewhat maverick Shipton but the army officer John Hunt; but this was not a small group of friends following their passion, it was a large complex undertaking and the need for a more formal structure can be understood. Included in the team were other strong climbers from the Commonwealth and experienced Sherpas with their local knowledge.

	Hillary and Tenzing

Of course we all know now that it was the New Zealander, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay who reached the summit at 11:30am on May 29th. The world now knew that Everest could be climbed ? this is not to say that the floodgates opened but the psychological challenge would never be the same as it was for Hillary, Tenzing and those who went before.

Selected Everest Firsts

First climbed:	Hillary and Tenzing, May 29th 1953
First Female:	Junko Tabei, Japan, May 16th 1975
First British:	Doug Scott & Dougal Haston Sept 24th, 1975]
First British Female:	Rebecca Stevens 17th May 1993
First traverse:	Dr Tom Hornbein (USA) & Willi Unsoeld (USA) May 22nd 1963
First Ascent without supplementary oxygen:	Reinhold Messner (It) and Peter Habeler (Aut), May 8th, 1978
	Peter Habeler
First Solo Ascent:	Reinhold Messner, Aug 20, 1980
	Reinhold Messner
First Solo Ascent without supplementary oxygen:	Reinhold Messner, Aug 20, 1980
First female without supplementary oxygen:	Lydia Brady (NZ) 1988
First female solo without supplementary oxygen:	Alison Hargreaves (GB), 13th May 1995