Shipton was born in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1907 where his father, a tea planter, died before he was three years old. When he was eight, his mother brought him to London for his education. When he failed the entrance exam to Harrow School, his mother sent him to Pyt House School in Wiltshire. His first encounter with mountains was at 15 when he visited the Pyrenees with his family.[1] The next summer he spent travelling in Norway with a school friend[2] and within a year he had begun climbing seriously.
Africa and the HimalayaEdit
In 1928 he went to Kenya as a coffee grower and first climbed Nelion, a peak of Mount Kenya, in 1929. It was also in Kenya's community of Europeans where he met his future climbing partners Bill Tilman and Percy Wyn-Harris. Together with Wyn-Harris, he climbed the twin peaks of Mount Kenya. With Frank Smythe, Shipton was amongst the first climbers to stand on the summit of Kamet, 7756 metres, in 1931, the highest peak climbed at that time. Shipton was involved with most of the Mount Everest expeditions during the 1930s and later, including Hugh Ruttledge's 1933 Mount Everest expedition and the follow-up in 1936, the 1935 Mount Everest expedition which was Shipton's first as leader and the first for Tenzing Norgay, and the pioneering 1951 Mount Everest expedition which chalked out the now famous route over the Khumbu Glacier. Shipton and Tilman also discovered the access route to the Nanda Devi sanctuary through the Rishi Ganga gorge in 1934. Their shoe-string budget expedition operated in the Kumaon-Garhwal mountains continuously from pre-monsoon to post-monsoon, and set a record for single-expedition achievement that has never been equalled.
Second World WarEdit
During the Second World War, Shipton was appointed as HM Consul at Kashgar in western China, where he remained from 1940 to 1942, then after a brief spell in England was assigned to work in Persia as a "Cereal Liaison Officer" for 20 months during 1943–44. Next he was posted as an attache to the British Military Mission in Hungary as an "agricultural adviser" which position saw him through until the end of the War.[3]
Post-War yearsEdit
In 1946 Shipton returned to Kashgar as Consul General, and during a visit from Bill Tilman they tried to climb Muztagh Ata, 7546 metres, reaching the broad summit dome. In 1947 Shipton explored and named Shipton's Arch. He took the opportunity of his Kashgar posting to explore other Central Asian mountains.[4] The first western exploration of the Rolwaling Himal was made by Shipton in 1951 during the reconnaissance of Mount Everest. While exploring the Barun gorge he named Island Peak. In the 1951 Everest expedition, Shipton and Dr Michael Ward also took photographs of the footprints of what may have been the Yeti (Abominable Snowman), an ice axe being included in the photographs to show scale. Because of his belief in the efficacy of small expeditions as compared to military-style 'sieges', Shipton was stepped down from the leadership of the 1953 Everest expedition, along with Andrew Croft, in favour of Major John Hunt: "I leave London absolutely shattered", he wrote. Between the years 1953 and 1957 he worked at a variety of jobs. Shipton worked as Warden of the Outward Bound Mountain school at Eskdale until the failure of his marriage with his wife, Diana. He worked on farms, was awarded his CBE, and in 1957 led a group of students from the Imperial College of Science to the Karakoram.
Final yearsEdit
For the last decade of his life, Shipton continued to travel, supporting himself by lecturing and acting as a celebrity guide. He completed the second volume of his autobiography, That Untravelled World, in 1969. He visited the Galapagos Islands, Alaska, Australia, New Zealand, Rhodesia, Kenya, Chile, Bhutan and Nepal. Whilst staying in Bhutan in 1976, he fell ill; on his return to England, he was diagnosed with cancer to which he succumbed in March 1977. He was cremated in Salisbury and his ashes were scattered on Fonthill Lake in Wiltshire.[5]
1933: Joined Hugh Ruttledge's unsuccessful Mount Everest expedition after which several nearby peaks were climbed
1933 July: Attempted crossing the Lasher Plain to Sikkim, climbed Lhonak Peak.
1934: With Tilman were the first to gain access to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary, the party then explored the Badrinath range, then returned to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary where they made the first ascent of Maiktoli before leaving via the Sunderdhunga Col.
1935: Led the Everest Reconnaissance Expedition which included Bill Tilman who was unable to acclimatise although the party made the first ascent of twenty 20,000 ft. peaks in the Everest region. Shipton gave a 19-year-old Tenzing his first opportunity as a 'porter' when he was taken on in Darjeeling.
1936: Joined a second Ruttledge-led attempt on Everest then returned to survey the Nanda Devi Sanctuary then climbed in the region of the Rhamini Glacier crossing the Bagini Pass
1937: Joined Tilman on the Shaksgam Expedition, exploring and mapping the northern approaches to K2
Shipton, Eric. Nanda Devi. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1936.
Shipton, Eric. Blank on the map. Hodder & Stoughton, London, 1938.
Shipton, Eric. Upon That Mountain. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1943.
Shipton, Eric. The Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition 1951. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1952.
Shipton, Eric. Mountains of Tartary. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1953.
Shipton, Eric. Land of Tempest. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1963.
Shipton, Eric. That Untravelled World. Charles Scribner and Sons, 1969. ISBN0-340-04330-X (Hodder & Stoughton (1969))
Shipton, Eric. Tierra del Fuego: the Fatal Lodestone. Charles Knight & Co., London, 1973 ISBN0-85314-194-0
Shipton, Eric. The Six Mountain-Travel Books. Mountaineers' Books, 1997. ISBN0-89886-539-5 (A collection of the first six books listed – That Untravelled World duplicated much of the previous content.)
ReferencesEdit
^Steele, Peter, Eric Shipton: Everest and Beyond (Mountaineers' Books, ISBN0-89886-603-0)
^Shipton, Eric. Upon That Mountain. Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1943. (Re-published by Vertebrate Publishing (2019), ISBN9781912560080)
^Steele, Peter, Eric Shipton: Everest and Beyond (Mountaineers' Books, ISBN0-89886-603-0)
^Shipton, Eric. That Untravelled World Hodder & Stoughton, 1969. ISBN0-340-04330-X
^Steele, Peter, Eric Shipton: Everest and Beyond (Mountaineers' Books, ISBN0-89886-603-0)
^The Life Scientific -Zoe Shipton on fracking- 3'24" 8 July 2014 www.bbc.co.uk
^Shipton, Eric: The Six Mountain-Travel Books Diadem Books 1985 ISBN9780898860757 pp. 796–800
Further readingEdit
Astill, Tony Mount Everest: The Reconnaissance 1935. Published by the Author, 2005. ISBN0-9549201-0-4
Peter Lloyd, Shipton, Eric Earle (1907–1977), rev. Anita McConnell, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004
Tilman, H.W.Two Mountains and a River. Cambridge University Press, 1949.
Unsworth, Walt. Everest. Allen Lane, 1981.
Steele, Peter. Everest and Beyond. Mountaineers' Books, 1998.
John, Earle, The springs of enchantment. (Hodder and Stoughton, ISBN0-340-24304-X )
External linksEdit
Wikiquote has quotations related to Eric Shipton.
Shipton's Mount Everest Reconnaissance 1935
Shipton's Photographs of Yeti Footprints
Shipton at Imaging Everest
MountEverest.net's tribute to Shipton
Royal Geographical Society's Image Library
October 17, 2023
eric, shipton, eric, earle, shipton, august, 1907, march, 1977, english, himalayan, mountaineer, born1, august, 1907ceylon, lanka, died28, march, 1977, aged, salisbury, englandoccupation, mountaineer, explorer, contents, early, years, africa, himalaya, second,. Eric Earle Shipton CBE 1 August 1907 28 March 1977 was an English Himalayan mountaineer Eric ShiptonEric ShiptonBorn1 August 1907Ceylon now Sri Lanka Died28 March 1977 aged 69 Salisbury EnglandOccupation s Mountaineer Explorer Contents 1 Early years 2 Africa and the Himalaya 3 Second World War 4 Post War years 5 Final years 6 Honours 7 Family 8 Mountaineering highlights 1922 1973 9 Bibliography 10 References 11 Further reading 12 External linksEarly years EditShipton was born in Ceylon now Sri Lanka in 1907 where his father a tea planter died before he was three years old When he was eight his mother brought him to London for his education When he failed the entrance exam to Harrow School his mother sent him to Pyt House School in Wiltshire His first encounter with mountains was at 15 when he visited the Pyrenees with his family 1 The next summer he spent travelling in Norway with a school friend 2 and within a year he had begun climbing seriously Africa and the Himalaya EditIn 1928 he went to Kenya as a coffee grower and first climbed Nelion a peak of Mount Kenya in 1929 It was also in Kenya s community of Europeans where he met his future climbing partners Bill Tilman and Percy Wyn Harris Together with Wyn Harris he climbed the twin peaks of Mount Kenya With Frank Smythe Shipton was amongst the first climbers to stand on the summit of Kamet 7756 metres in 1931 the highest peak climbed at that time Shipton was involved with most of the Mount Everest expeditions during the 1930s and later including Hugh Ruttledge s 1933 Mount Everest expedition and the follow up in 1936 the 1935 Mount Everest expedition which was Shipton s first as leader and the first for Tenzing Norgay and the pioneering 1951 Mount Everest expedition which chalked out the now famous route over the Khumbu Glacier Shipton and Tilman also discovered the access route to the Nanda Devi sanctuary through the Rishi Ganga gorge in 1934 Their shoe string budget expedition operated in the Kumaon Garhwal mountains continuously from pre monsoon to post monsoon and set a record for single expedition achievement that has never been equalled Second World War EditDuring the Second World War Shipton was appointed as HM Consul at Kashgar in western China where he remained from 1940 to 1942 then after a brief spell in England was assigned to work in Persia as a Cereal Liaison Officer for 20 months during 1943 44 Next he was posted as an attache to the British Military Mission in Hungary as an agricultural adviser which position saw him through until the end of the War 3 Post War years EditIn 1946 Shipton returned to Kashgar as Consul General and during a visit from Bill Tilman they tried to climb Muztagh Ata 7546 metres reaching the broad summit dome In 1947 Shipton explored and named Shipton s Arch He took the opportunity of his Kashgar posting to explore other Central Asian mountains 4 The first western exploration of the Rolwaling Himal was made by Shipton in 1951 during the reconnaissance of Mount Everest While exploring the Barun gorge he named Island Peak In the 1951 Everest expedition Shipton and Dr Michael Ward also took photographs of the footprints of what may have been the Yeti Abominable Snowman an ice axe being included in the photographs to show scale Because of his belief in the efficacy of small expeditions as compared to military style sieges Shipton was stepped down from the leadership of the 1953 Everest expedition along with Andrew Croft in favour of Major John Hunt I leave London absolutely shattered he wrote Between the years 1953 and 1957 he worked at a variety of jobs Shipton worked as Warden of the Outward Bound Mountain school at Eskdale until the failure of his marriage with his wife Diana He worked on farms was awarded his CBE and in 1957 led a group of students from the Imperial College of Science to the Karakoram Final years EditFor the last decade of his life Shipton continued to travel supporting himself by lecturing and acting as a celebrity guide He completed the second volume of his autobiography That Untravelled World in 1969 He visited the Galapagos Islands Alaska Australia New Zealand Rhodesia Kenya Chile Bhutan and Nepal Whilst staying in Bhutan in 1976 he fell ill on his return to England he was diagnosed with cancer to which he succumbed in March 1977 He was cremated in Salisbury and his ashes were scattered on Fonthill Lake in Wiltshire 5 Honours EditPatron s Medal of the Royal Geographical Society 1938 RSGS Livingstone Medal 1951 CBE for contribution to the conquest of Everest 1957 President of the Alpine Club 1964 1967 Tallest peak in Tierra del Fuego Monte Shipton 2 469 Meters commemorates his work in PatagoniaFamily EditShipton s granddaughter Zoe Shipton is an eminent geologist 6 Mountaineering highlights 1922 1973 Edit1922 Visited Cirque de Gavarnie in the Pyrenees with his family 1924 Mountain walking in the Jotunheimen Norway with Gustav Sommerfelt 1924 December Guided ascent of the Gross Lohner and the Tschingelochtighorn above Adelboden 1925 Guided up Monte Disgrazia amp first Alpine season in the Dauphine guided by Elie Richard 1926 Second season with Elie Richard 1927 Climbed in French ranges then completed several major climbs including Zmutt Ridge 1928 Traversed Matterhorn climbed major peaks in Alps 1929 Explored Mount Kenya then made first ascent of Nelion by east face and several other climbs 1930 Climbed on Kilimanjaro with Bill Tilman 1930 Climbed again making first ascents on Mount Kenya during which Tilman fell and had to be lowered unconscious from the face 1931 First ascent with Frank Smythe of Kamet then Shipton took part in 8 more first ascents in the Arwa Valley region 1932 Climbed Mount Speke Mount Baker and Mount Stanley with Bill Tilman 1933 Joined Hugh Ruttledge s unsuccessful Mount Everest expedition after which several nearby peaks were climbed 1933 July Attempted crossing the Lasher Plain to Sikkim climbed Lhonak Peak 1934 With Tilman were the first to gain access to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary the party then explored the Badrinath range then returned to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary where they made the first ascent of Maiktoli before leaving via the Sunderdhunga Col 1935 Led the Everest Reconnaissance Expedition which included Bill Tilman who was unable to acclimatise although the party made the first ascent of twenty 20 000 ft peaks in the Everest region Shipton gave a 19 year old Tenzing his first opportunity as a porter when he was taken on in Darjeeling 1936 Joined a second Ruttledge led attempt on Everest then returned to survey the Nanda Devi Sanctuary then climbed in the region of the Rhamini Glacier crossing the Bagini Pass 1937 Joined Tilman on the Shaksgam Expedition exploring and mapping the northern approaches to K2 1938 Another abortive attempt on Everest with Tilman as leader 1939 Led The Karakoram Survey Expedition 1941 Climbed in the Kashgar Range 1942 Climbed and explored Bogdo Ola Group 1947 Explored Tushuk Tash and discovered Shipton s Arch attempted Muztagh Ata 1948 Explored Bogdo Ola Group attempted Chakar Aghil 1951 Led the Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition of that year making a first attempt from Nepal in the party for the first time was the young Ed Hillary 1952 Led the unsuccessful Cho Oyu Expedition after which eleven Mountains were climbed to the west of Nangpa La 1957 Led the Imperial College Karakoram Expedition surveying five glaciers in the process 1958 Explored at the heads of Lago Viedma amp Lake Argentino climbed peak above Onelli Glacier in Argentine Patagonia 1959 Expedition up the O Higgins Glacier to the foot of Cerro Lautaro 1960 Crossed the Southern Patagonia Ice Field in 52 days 1962 Crossed the Cordillera Darwin making the first ascents of Cerro Yagan and Mount Darwin s three peaks Unsuccessful attempt on Monte Burney 1963 Second abortive attempt on Monte Burney then ascended Monte Bove and Pico Frances 1964 5 Starting from the San Rafael Glacier crossed the Northern Patagonia Ice Field to the Cochrane River making the first ascent of Cerro Arco in the process 1966 Unsuccessful attempt on the East Ridge of Mount Russell in Alaska 1973 Made first ascent of Monte Burney Via West Spur 7 Bibliography EditShipton Eric Nanda Devi Hodder and Stoughton London 1936 Shipton Eric Blank on the map Hodder amp Stoughton London 1938 Shipton Eric Upon That Mountain Hodder and Stoughton London 1943 Shipton Eric The Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition 1951 Hodder and Stoughton London 1952 Shipton Eric Mountains of Tartary Hodder and Stoughton London 1953 Shipton Eric Land of Tempest Hodder and Stoughton London 1963 Shipton Eric That Untravelled World Charles Scribner and Sons 1969 ISBN 0 340 04330 X Hodder amp Stoughton 1969 Shipton Eric Tierra del Fuego the Fatal Lodestone Charles Knight amp Co London 1973 ISBN 0 85314 194 0 Shipton Eric The Six Mountain Travel Books Mountaineers Books 1997 ISBN 0 89886 539 5 A collection of the first six books listed That Untravelled World duplicated much of the previous content References Edit Steele Peter Eric Shipton Everest and Beyond Mountaineers Books ISBN 0 89886 603 0 Shipton Eric Upon That Mountain Hodder and Stoughton London 1943 Re published by Vertebrate Publishing 2019 ISBN 9781912560080 Steele Peter Eric Shipton Everest and Beyond Mountaineers Books ISBN 0 89886 603 0 Shipton Eric That Untravelled World Hodder amp Stoughton 1969 ISBN 0 340 04330 X Steele Peter Eric Shipton Everest and Beyond Mountaineers Books ISBN 0 89886 603 0 The Life Scientific Zoe Shipton on fracking 3 24 8 July 2014 www bbc co uk Shipton Eric The Six Mountain Travel Books Diadem Books 1985 ISBN 9780898860757 pp 796 800Further reading EditAstill Tony Mount Everest The Reconnaissance 1935 Published by the Author 2005 ISBN 0 9549201 0 4 Peter Lloyd Shipton Eric Earle 1907 1977 rev Anita McConnell Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press 2004 Tilman H W Two Mountains and a River Cambridge University Press 1949 Unsworth Walt Everest Allen Lane 1981 Steele Peter Everest and Beyond Mountaineers Books 1998 John Earle The springs of enchantment Hodder and Stoughton ISBN 0 340 24304 X External links Edit nbsp Wikiquote has quotations related to Eric Shipton Shipton s Mount Everest Reconnaissance 1935 Everest 2006 The Eric Shipton Memorial Expedition Shipton s Photographs of Yeti Footprints Shipton at Imaging Everest MountEverest net s tribute to Shipton Royal Geographical Society s Image Library Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Eric Shipton amp oldid 1158192698, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
