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Posted by Joseph Allen McCullough Oct 26, 2006 |
Three years ago, without knowing exactly why, I gave up my job, moved out of my apartment, and went to study writing at Bangor University on the edge of the Welsh mountains. The writing course never really worked out, but I met a girl there who loved the mountains. She loved mountains with the same strength that I love writing. Well, three years later, that girl has become a beautiful woman, and, much to everyone’s surprise, my wife.
So what does this have to do with this week’s article? Everything. This week, Stephanie McCullough will be presenting the story of the 1953 Everest expedition. It may have taken place in faraway Nepal, and the central characters may be a New Zealander and a Sherpa, but it is still very much a story of British History. In the early parts of the twentieth century, there were only a few places left on Earth that man had not reached. When the British lost the race to the south pole, by only a matter of weeks, it was a crushing blow to their national identity. The British had always been at the forefront of exploration. Thus, when it was discovered that Everest was the highest point on Earth, the Brits were determined to set the first man on its summit. In many ways, it was the space race of the first half of the century. They weren’t the only ones though, the Swiss especially were eager to claim the glory. Thus the race was on.