Editing Mountaineering (section)

==History==
===Early mountaineering===
Humans have been present in mountains since prehistory. The remains of [[Ötzi]], who lived in the [[4th millennium BC]], were found in a [[glacier]] in the [[Ötztal Alps]].<ref>[http://www.iceman.it/en/node/233 Description of the Discovery] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111213024011/http://www.iceman.it/en/node/233 |date=13 December 2011 }} of Ötzi at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology web site</ref> However, the highest mountains were rarely visited early on, and were often associated with [[supernatural]] or religious concepts.<ref name="SeifertWolf2016">{{Cite book |last1=Ludovic Seifert |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k-BRDQAAQBAJ |title=The Science of Climbing and Mountaineering |last2=Peter Wolf |last3=Andreas Schweizer |date=19 September 2016 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-317-40315-9}}</ref> Nonetheless, there are many documented examples of people climbing mountains prior to the formal development of the sport in the 19th century, although many of these stories are sometimes considered fictional or legendary.<ref name="tour crit"/> A rare medieval example of mountaineering is the 1100 AD ascent of the [[Untersberg]].

The famous poet [[Petrarch]] describes [[Ascent of Mont Ventoux|his 26 April 1336 ascent]] of [[Mount Ventoux]] ({{convert|1912|m|abbr=on}}) in one of his ''[[epistolae familiares]]'', claiming to be inspired by [[Philip V of Macedon]]'s ascent of [[Beklemeto Pass|Mount Haemo]].<ref name="Internet History Sourcebooks Project 1996">{{Cite web |url=https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/petrarch-ventoux.asp |title=Medieval Sourcebook: Petrarch: The Ascent of Mount Ventoux |date=26 January 1996 |website=Internet History Sourcebooks Project |access-date=9 September 2019}}</ref><ref name="Hansen2013">{{Cite book |last=Peter H. Hansen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mZU3CUZJN9sC&pg=PA26 |title=The Summits of Modern Man |date=14 May 2013 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-07452-1}}</ref>

For most of antiquity, climbing mountains was a practical or symbolic activity, usually undertaken for economic, political, or religious purposes. A commonly cited example is the 1492 ascent of [[Mont Aiguille]] ({{convert|2085|m|abbr=on}}) by Antoine de Ville, a French military officer and lord of [[Domjulien]] and Beaupré.<ref name="Hansen2013" /> Because ropes, ladders and iron hooks were used, and because it was the first climb of any technical difficulty to be officially verified, this ascent is widely recognized as being the birth of mountaineering.<ref name="Doran 2023">{{Cite book |last=Doran |first=Jeffrey J. |title=Ramble On: How Hiking Became One of the Most Popular Outdoor Activities in the World |year=2023 |publisher=Amazon Digital Services LLC - Kdp |isbn=979-8373963923}}</ref>

In the [[Andes]], around the late 1400s and early 1500s many ascents were made of extremely high peaks by the [[Incas]] and their subjects. The highest they are known for certain to have climbed is 6739 m at the summit of [[Volcan Llullaillaco]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The Ice Maiden |date=2006 |publisher=National Geographic | isbn=9780792259121}}</ref>

[[Conrad Gessner]], A mid-16th Century physician, botanist and naturalist from Switzerland, is widely recognized as being the first person to hike and climb for sheer pleasure.<ref name="Doran 2023"/>

===The Enlightenment and the Golden Age of Alpinism===
[[File:Edward_Whymper Calkin.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Edward Whymper]] (1840–1911), painting by [[Lance Calkin]]]]
The [[Age of Enlightenment]] and the [[Romanticism|Romantic era]] marked a change of attitudes towards high mountains. In 1757 Swiss scientist [[Horace-Bénédict de Saussure]] made the first of several unsuccessful attempts on [[Mont Blanc]] in France. He then offered a reward to anyone who could climb the mountain, which was claimed in 1786 by [[Jacques Balmat]] and [[Michel-Gabriel Paccard]]. The climb is usually considered an epochal event in the history of mountaineering, a symbolic mark of the birth of the sport.<ref name="SeifertWolf2016" /><ref name="Hansen2013" />

By the early 19th century, many of the [[Alps|alpine peaks]] were reached, including the [[Grossglockner]] in 1800, the [[Ortler]] in 1804, the [[Jungfrau]] in 1811, the [[Finsteraarhorn]] in 1812, and the [[Breithorn]] in 1813.<ref name="SeifertWolf2016" /> In 1808, [[Marie Paradis]] became the first woman to climb Mont Blanc, followed in 1838 by [[Henriette d'Angeville]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brown |first=Rebecca A. |url=https://archive.org/details/womenonhighpione00brow |title=Women on High: Pioneers of Mountaineering |publisher=Appalachian Mountain Club Books |year=2002 |isbn=1-929173-13-X |url-access=registration}}</ref>

The beginning of mountaineering as a sport in the UK is generally dated to the ascent of the [[Wetterhorn]] in 1854 by English mountaineer Sir [[Alfred Wills]], who made mountaineering fashionable in Britain. This inaugurated what became known as the [[Golden Age of Alpinism]], with the first mountaineering club – the [[Alpine Club (UK)|Alpine Club]] – being founded in 1857.<ref>{{cite web |author=Kara Rogers |date=July 14, 2010 |title=The Matterhorn: Edward Whymper and the Golden Age of Mountaineering |website=Encyclopædia Britannica BLOG |url=https://www.britannica.com/blogs/2010/7/the-matterhorn-edward-whymper-and-the-golden-age-of-mountaineering |access-date=2 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140718173805/http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2010/7/the-matterhorn-edward-whymper-and-the-golden-age-of-mountaineering/ |archive-date=18 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.v-publishing.co.uk/books/climbing/1865-the-golden-age-of-mountaineering/|title=1865: the Golden Age of Mountaineering|website=Vertebrate Publishing|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref>

One of the most dramatic events was the spectacular [[first ascent of the Matterhorn]] in 1865 by a party led by English illustrator [[Edward Whymper]], in which four of the party members fell to their deaths. By this point the sport of mountaineering had largely reached its modern form, with a large body of professional guides, equipment, and methodologies.<ref name="Hansen2013" />
[[File:Leontopodium alpinum 1.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Edelweiss]], a plant associated with mountain sports]]
In the early years of the "[[golden age]]", scientific pursuits were intermixed with the sport, such as by the physicist [[John Tyndall]]. In the later years, it shifted to a more competitive orientation as pure sportsmen came to dominate the London-based Alpine Club and alpine mountaineering overall.<ref>Claire Eliane Engel (1950), ''A History of Mountaineering in the Alps'', chapter VII.</ref> The first president of the Alpine Club, [[John Ball (naturalist)|John Ball]], is considered to be the discoverer of the [[Dolomites]], which for decades were the focus of climbers like [[Paul Grohmann]] and [[Angelo Dibona]].<ref>[https://www.dolomythos.com/de/lexikon/besteigung-berge.asp Die Besteigung der Berge – Die Dolomitgipfel werden erobert (German: The ascent of the mountains – the dolomite peaks are conquered)]</ref> At that time, the [[edelweiss]] also established itself as a symbol of alpinists and mountaineers.<ref>[https://www.oegg.or.at/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/BLBL_JUNI-2016.pdf Edelweiß, die Symbolpflanze der Alpen (German: Edelweiss, the symbolic plant of the Alps)] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416041611/https://www.oegg.or.at/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/BLBL_JUNI-2016.pdf |date=16 April 2021 }}</ref><ref>Hermann Hinterstoisser: Das Edelweiß – Alpenblume mit Symbolkraft. In: Truppendienst, 2012, Nr. 5/329. [https://www.bundesheer.at/truppendienst/ausgaben/artikel.php?id=1438 Das Edelweiß]</ref>

===Expansion around the world===
[[File:WilliamCecilSlingsby Storen.jpg|thumb|British mountaineer [[William Cecil Slingsby]] became known as the father of [[Norway|Norwegian]] mountaineering and contributed greatly to its popularization with his classic book ''[[Norway, the Northern Playground]]'']]
In the 19th century, the focus of mountaineering turned towards mountains beyond the Alps. One of the earliest mountain areas to be explored beyond the Alps in the 19th century were the mountains of [[Norway]]—particularly [[Jotunheimen]]—where British mountaineers such as [[William Cecil Slingsby]], [[Harold Raeburn]] and [[Howard Priestman]] were early pioneers. Slingsby's book ''[[Norway, the Northern Playground]]'' contributed greatly to the popularization of mountaineering in Norway among the international mountaineering community.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schage |first1=Pål V. |title=Norsk fjellsport gjennom 200 år |date=2008 |publisher=Andresen & Butenschøn |isbn=978-82-7981-052-0}}</ref> Around the turn of the century, a young generation of Norwegian mountaineers such as [[George Wegner Paus|George Paus]], Eilert Sundt and [[Kristian Tandberg]] appeared, and later founded [[Norsk Tindeklub]], the third oldest mountaineering association in the world.<ref>{{cite book|first=Jan|last=Aasgaard|year=2016|title=Jotunheimen: gjennom historien|language=no|trans-title=Jotunheimen: through history|publisher=Dreyer|pages=156–157|isbn=9788282651417}}</ref> By the turn of the 20th century, mountaineering had acquired a more international flavour.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Mountaineering |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |date=21 November 2023 |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/394976/mountaineering/5045/History}}</ref>

In 1897 [[Mount Saint Elias]] ({{convert|18008|ft|abbr=on}}) on the [[Alaska]]-[[Yukon]] border was submitted by the [[Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi|Duke of the Abruzzi]] and party.<ref name=aaj_1939>
  {{cite journal | journal = American Alpine Journal | publisher=American Alpine Club
  | title = K2-1938 | author = House, William P.
  | year = 1939 | department = Feature Article
  | url = http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12193922900/K2-1938 | access-date = 9 December 2016}}</ref> In 1879–1880 the exploration of the highest [[Andes]] in South America began when English mountaineer Edward Whymper climbed [[Chimborazo]] ({{convert|20549|ft|abbr=on}}) and explored the mountains of Ecuador.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Ascent of Chimborazo |date=15 April 1880 |work=The Cornishman |issue=92 |page=3}}</ref> It took until the late 19th century for European explorers to penetrate Africa. [[Mount Kilimanjaro]] in Africa was climbed in 1889 by Austrian mountaineer [[Ludwig Purtscheller]] and German geologist [[Hans Meyer (geologist)|Hans Meyer]], [[Mount Kenya]] in 1899 by [[Halford Mackinder]].<ref name="mackinder">{{Cite journal |last=Mackinder |first=Halford John |author-link=Halford John Mackinder |date=May 1900 |title=A Journey to the Summit of Mount Kenya, British East Africa |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1449198 |journal=The Geographical Journal |volume=15 |issue=5 |pages=453–476 |doi=10.2307/1774261 |jstor=1774261|bibcode=1900GeogJ..15..453M }}</ref>
[[File:Owen Glynne Jones 12 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Mountaineers, {{Circa|1900}}]]

===The last frontier: The Himalayas===

The greatest mountain range to be conquered was the [[Himalayas]] in South Asia. They had initially been surveyed by the [[British Empire]] for military and strategic reasons. In 1892 Sir [[William Martin Conway]] explored the [[Karakoram]] Himalayas, and climbed a peak of {{convert|23000|ft|m|abbr=on}}. In 1895 [[Albert F. Mummery]] died while attempting [[Nanga Parbat]], while in 1899 [[Douglas Freshfield]] took an expedition to the snowy regions of [[Sikkim]].<ref name="IssermanWeaver2010">{{Cite book |last1=Maurice Isserman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JgEKGGYEpZIC&pg=PA49 |title=Fallen Giants: A History of Himalayan Mountaineering from the Age of Empire to the Age of Extremes |last2=Stewart Angas Weaver |last3=Dee Molenaar |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-300-16420-6}}</ref>

In 1899, 1903, 1906, and 1908 American mountaineer [[Fanny Bullock Workman]] (one of the first professional female mountaineers) made ascents in the Himalayas, including one of the [[Nun Kun]] peaks ({{convert|23300|ft|abbr=on}}). A number of [[Gurkha]] sepoys were trained as expert mountaineers by [[Charles Granville Bruce]], and a good deal of exploration was accomplished by them.<ref name="IssermanWeaver2010" />

In 1902 the Eckenstein–Crowley Expedition, led by English mountaineer [[Oscar Eckenstein]] and English occultist [[Aleister Crowley]] was the first to attempt to scale [[K2]]. They reached {{convert|22000|ft|m}} before turning back due to weather and other mishaps. Undaunted, in 1905 Crowley led the [[1905 Kanchenjunga expedition|first expedition to Kangchenjunga]], the third highest mountain in the world, in an attempt which Isserman, Angas Weaver and Molenaar describe as "misguided" and "lamentable" due to Crowley's many failings as an expedition leader.<ref name="IssermanWeaver2010" />

Eckenstein was also a pioneer in developing new equipment and climbing methods. He started using shorter ice axes that could be used single-handedly, designed the modern [[crampons]], and improved on the nail patterns used for the climbing boots.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rowell |first=Galen |url=https://archive.org/details/inthroneroomofmo0000rowe |title=In The Throne Room of the Mountain Gods |publisher=Sierra Club Books |year=1977 |isbn=978-0-87156-184-8 |location=San Francisco |pages=[https://archive.org/details/inthroneroomofmo0000rowe/page/36 36–40] |url-access=registration}}</ref>

[[File:Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|[[Edmund Hillary]] (left) and [[Tenzing Norgay]] after successfully completing the first ascent of Mount Everest, 29 May 1953|alt=Image of Hillary and Norgay after ascending Mt Everest]]
By the 1950s, all the [[eight-thousander]]s but two had been climbed starting with [[Annapurna]] in 1950 by [[Maurice Herzog]] and [[Louis Lachenal]] on the [[1950 French Annapurna expedition]]. The highest of these peaks [[Mount Everest]] was climbed in 1953 after the British had made several attempts in the 1920s; the [[1922 British Mount Everest Expedition|1922 expedition]] reached {{convert|8320|m|ft|-1}} before being aborted on the third summit attempt after an avalanche killed seven porters. The [[1924 British Mount Everest Expedition|1924 expedition]] saw another height record achieved but still failed to reach the summit with confirmation when [[George Mallory]] and [[Andrew Irvine (mountaineer)|Andrew Irvine]] disappeared on the final attempt. The summit was finally reached on 29 May 1953 by [[Edmund Hillary|Sir Edmund Hillary]] and [[Tenzing Norgay]] from the south side in [[Nepal]].<ref name="IssermanWeaver2010" />

Just a few months later, [[Hermann Buhl]] made the first ascent of [[Nanga Parbat]] (8,125&nbsp;m), on the [[1953 German–Austrian Nanga Parbat expedition]], completing the last 1,300 meters walking alone, self-medicating with [[pervitin]] (based on the stimulant [[methamphetamine]] used by soldiers during World War II), the [[vasodilator]] [[padutin]], and a stimulant tea made from [[Erythroxylum coca|coca]] leaves. [[K2]] (8,611m), the second-highest peak in the world, was [[1954 Italian Karakoram expedition to K2|first scaled in 1954]] by [[Lino Lacedelli]] and [[Achille Compagnoni]]. In 1964, the final eight-thousander to be climbed was [[Shishapangma]] (8,013m), the lowest of all the 8,000-metre peaks.<ref name="IssermanWeaver2010" />
[[Reinhold Messner]] from the Dolomites mountain range (Italy) was then the first to climb all eight-thousanders up to 1986, in addition to being the first without supplemental oxygen. In 1978 he climbed Mount Everest with Peter Habeler without supplemental oxygen, the first men to do so.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wilkes |first=Rob |date=2015-08-05 |title=Reinhold Messner museum project ends on a high, with breathtaking Zaha Hadid venue... |url=https://www.we-heart.com/2015/08/05/messner-mountain-museum-corones-south-tyrol-italy/ |access-date=2022-09-12 |website=We Heart |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>Messner, Reinhold (2002). Überlebt – Alle 14 Achttausender mit Chronik (in German).</ref>

===Today===
Long the domain of the wealthy elite and their agents, the emergence of the middle-class in the 19th and 20th centuries resulted in mass interest in mountaineering. It became a popular pastime and hobby of many people.<ref name="SeifertWolf2016" /> Some have come to criticize the sport as becoming too much of a [[tourist]] activity.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/05/31/how-mount-everest-became-tourist-destination/|title=How Mount Everest became a tourist destination|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref> The field has, however, also opened up to Indigenous climbers, such as [[Cecilia Llusco Alaña]], a member of the Bolivian [[Cholita Climbers|cholita climbers]], who, like the Himalayan [[Sherpa people|sherpas]]  previously worked as porters, high altitude cooks or guides but who now climb peaks in their own right.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Reuters |date=2016-04-21 |title=Bolivia's cholita climbers scale highest mountain yet: 'I cried with emotion' |url=https://www-theguardian-com.translate.goog/world/2016/apr/21/bolivia-mountain-climbers-women-cholita-aymara-illimani-peak-summits?_x_tr_sl=fr&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc |access-date=2024-12-29 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> 

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