Killing Dragons : The Conquest of the Alps - Softcover

Fleming, Fergus

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1862074534 ISBN 13: 9781862074538

Publisher: Granta Books, 2001

Synopsis

Full of eccentric characters, Killing Dragons is the story of the first British mountaineers to tackle the Alpine summits of Switzerland during the late eighteenth century. Originally the explorers of this area were poorly equipped, wearing ordinary shoes and no protective clothing. The British arrived intent on reaching every Alpine summit, and 'mountaineering' was born. The title refers to the mythical creatures said to inhabit these peaks: 'Here be dragons,' said the old maps ...

About this title

Review

In antiquity, travelers did not enter the Alps gladly. One Roman noted that "everything in the mountains is frozen solid," while St. Ambrose, after seeing his first glacier, feared that the world would end by being suffocated in ice; heeding them, voyagers took the long way around whenever they could.

All that changed in the 1800s, writes Fergus Fleming in this highly entertaining chronicle, when travelers under the spell of Enlightenment philosophers and Romantic poets came to the Alps looking for a hint of heaven on earth. Those who, for many reasons, wanted to get a little closer to the deity attempted the first recreational climbs of the mountains. They were an odd lot, indeed. One was Albert Smith, who burdened his porters with wheels of cheese and casks of wine, made his way up Mont Blanc, had a feast, and turned his adventures into a stage play that wowed London audiences throughout the 1850s. Another was the natural scientist John Tyndall, who regarded the Alps as the devil's work but nonetheless raced against his compatriot Edward Whymper to climb the Matterhorn. Still another was William Coolidge, an American-born Oxford don who made Whymper's already unhappy life just a little less pleasant.

Fleming writes winningly of their "conquest" of the mountains--which, of course, has not kept succeeding generations from attempting new routes up the Alps with every climbing season. Mountaineering buffs and armchair travelers alike will enjoy his account. --Gregory McNamee

About the Author

Fergus Fleming is a freelance writer living in London W8 and Gloucestershire. Educated at Oxford University and City University, London, he trained as an accountant and barrister and has worked as a furniture maker. Fergus is also the author of Amaryllis, a portrait of his aunt, and of several children's books. His recent non-fiction book Barrow's Boys, is published by Granta Books.

Edition details

• Publisher: Granta Books
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 1862074534
• ISBN 13: 9781862074538
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 400