- Geoffrey Winthrop Young
Geoffrey Winthrop Young
D.Litt. (1876 – 1958) was a Britishclimber andauthor of several notable books onmountaineering . He was also apoet of some distinction and aneducator who sought alternatives.He began
rock climbing shortly before his first term atTrinity College, Cambridge , where he studiedClassics and won the "Chancellor's Medal for English Verse" two years running. While there, Young wrote a humorous college climbing guide called "The Roof Climbers Guide to Trinity", a satirical parody of pompous early alpine guides. [Young, G. W. (ca 1898). "The Roof-Climbers' Guide to Trinity"]During the
Edwardian Period, and up until the outbreak of hostilities heraldingWorld War I , Young made many new and difficult ascents in theAlps , including noted routes on theZermatt Breithorn (the "Younggrat"), the west ridge of theGspaltenhorn , on the west face of theWeisshorn , and a dangerous and rarely repeated route on the south face of theTäschhorn . His finest rock climb was the Mer de Glace face of theGrépon . In 1911, with H O Jones, he ascended the Brouillard ridge ofMont Blanc and made the first complete traverse of the west ridge of theGrandes Jorasses , and the first decent of the ridge to the Col des Hirondelles. On most of his routes he climbed with the guide Joseph Knubel ofSt Niklaus . Winthrop Young also made impressive routes time and time again on local rocks in theLake District and Wales. He was elected president of theClimbers' Club in 1913, and he organised thePen-Y-Pass gatherings that propelled the advancement of rock climbing and included such technical luminaries asJ. M. Archer Thompson ,George Leigh Mallory ,Siegfried Herford ,John Percy Farrar andOscar Eckenstein . These parties, beginning in earnest about 1907, and sometimes reaching sixty men, women and children, flooded the hotel and overflowed into Eckenstein's miner's cabin and various tents. They came to an end in 1914. [Hankinson, Alan (1977). "The Mountain Men", Heinemann]During the War, Young was, at first, a correspondent for the liberal "Daily News", but later, as a
conscientious objector , was active in the FAU, theFriends' Ambulance Unit . He received several decorations, but on 31 August 1917 an explosion took one of his legs, and his service in the War was over.Hankinson, Alan (1995). "Geoffrey Winthrop Young", Hodder & Stoughton] After the amputation of his leg Young walked sixteen miles in two days to avoid being captured by the Austrians.He continued to climb with an artificial leg for a number of years, ascending the
Matterhorn in 1928. To support himself and his family he worked for theRockefeller Foundation , and spent much time inGermany , and – having metKurt Hahn before the War – helped Hahn immigrate to England in 1934. Much of what may be called an outdoor adventure education springs from this connection. The now famousDuke of Edinburgh Award scheme and the International Award scheme comes from this co-operation between Hahn and Young. TheOutward Bound movement, afterWorld War II , owes a considerable debt to their friendship.During World War II, Young was president of the
Alpine Club , and it was through his untiring efforts that theBritish Mountaineering Council , the umbrella organisation for climbers inGreat Britain , was created in 1945.Books by G. W. Young
* "Mountain Craft" (1920)
* "On High Hills" (1927)
* "Mountains with a Difference" (1951)References
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