Charles Barrington
Charles Barrington (* 1834 in Bray ; † 1901 ) was an Irish merchant and occasional mountaineer . In 1858, together with the Swiss mountain guides Christian Almer and Peter Bohren, he made the first ascent of the Eiger . It was his first and only trip to the Alps . His real passion was horse racing - his horse Sir Robert Peel won the first Irish Grand National in 1873. Barrington was married to Sarah Leadbeater and had three children.
Alpinism
The first ascent of the Eiger came at a time when mountaineering was gaining popularity in Great Britain . With the two mountain guides, Barrington initially undertook tours over the Strahlegg pass ( 3315 m above sea level ) and on the Jungfrau ( 4158 m above sea level ). In addition, the episode has been handed down that the Irishman wanted to try to climb the Matterhorn ( 4478 m above sea level ), but could not travel to Zermatt for financial reasons .
On August 11, 1858, the company began on the Eiger ( 3967 m above sea level ) at half past three in the morning. According to a letter from Barrington to his brother, the Irishman took the lead at a key point that had previously been unsuccessful. The Swiss initially refused to take this route, but they eventually followed suit. In foggy weather, the trio reached the summit at 12 noon and stayed there for 10 minutes. The descent was via the ascent path.
Web links
- Information on Charles Barrington and the first ascent of the Eiger (press release by Jungfrau Region Marketing AG) (PDF file; 64 kB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Heinrich Harrer: The white spider . 1959
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Barrington, Charles |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Irish-English merchant and mountaineer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1834 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Bray |
| DATE OF DEATH | 1901 |