Disclosure : This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

When the Alps Cast Their Spell

The sport of mountaineering was pioneered 150 years ago by a diverse cross-section of Victorians, following in the footsteps of earlier local explorers who ventured into the upper regions of ice and snow in search of game and minerals. By the early years of the 19th century, a growing interest in the study of geological and glaciological phenomena attracted scientific interest in the origins of the Alps. It was only in the latter half of that century when, by the 1850s, interest in the largly unexplored Alpine peaks began to capture the public imagination, and a sharp increase developed in the numbers of those who tried to scale them. So intense was the level of exploration and achievement that the next decade was labelled the Alpine Golden Age. By the turn of the century the new sport had not only expanded vastly, but had begun to acquire a degree of respectability. The development of new skills and techniques resulted in greater accomplishments, whilst retaining the spirit and traditions of the pioneers.In this book the mountaineer and writer Trevor Braham illustrates aspects of the character and achievements of some of the early Victorian climbers, and their response to the unique attractions of mountaineering. These include Leslie Stephen (the father of Virginia Woolf), Alfred Wills, John Tyndall, Adolphus Warburton Moore, Edward Whymper (the first to conquer the Matterhorn), Albert Frederick Mummery and many more. Trevor Braham`s comprehensive history on this period of Alpine mountaineering is essential to any mountaineer`s bookshelf.

Related Products:

Mountaineering in the Swiss Alps: High Peaks and Classic Climbs in Switzerland Alpine Ski Mountaineering: Volume 1 – Western Alps Alpine Ski Mountaineering: Volume 2 – Central and Eastern Alps All But One – One woman’™s quest to climb the 52 highest mountains in the Alps A Century of Bristol. Events,People & Places over the 20th Century Conquistadors of the Useless: From the Alps to Annapurna The Day The Rope Broke Victorian London Through Time Underground to Everywhere The Alps – A Birds-Eye View Alpine Mountaineering – Essential Knowledge for Budding Alpinists French Alps – Via Ferratas – 66 Routes Between Geneva and Brianรงon Victorian Bloomsbury Default ThumbnailWalking Easy in the Italian Alps The Waiting Land – A Spell in Nepal A Brief History of Life in Victorian Britain Julian Alps – Steiner Alps – Kamnik Alps Kompass 2801 The Runes Have Been Cast Underground to Everywhere: London`s Underground Railway in the Life of the Capital The Scots Kitchen: Its Traditions and Recipes Alps Trekking Alps Mountain Biking: From Aosta to Zermatt: the Best Singletrack, Enduro and Downhill Trails in the Alps Mountaineering Handbook Mountaineering in the Pyrenees: 25 Classic Mountain Routes The Cairngorms – 100 years of Mountaineering Distant Snows: A Mountaineer`s Odyssey A Cast of Falcons: Birder Murder Mystery 3 How to be a Victorian A Spell of Winter Babar`s Mystery 1865: the Golden Age of Mountaineering: An Illustrated History of Alpine Climbing`s Greatest Era Trekking in the Silvretta and Ratikon Alps – Short treks and Hut-to-Hut Day Routes Mountain Views Old Trolleybuses The Alps Walking Guide 4000m: Climbing the Highest Mountains of the Alps Spell it Out: The Singular Story of English Spelling Beowulf: A Translation and Commentary, Together with Sellic Spell Lechtal Alps – Allgau Alps F&B WK351 National Geographic 125 Years – Legendary Photographs, Adventures and Discoveries