Robert Lock Graham Irving
Encyclopedia
Robert Lock Graham Irving (17 February 1877 – 10 April 1969), was an English schoolmaster, writer and mountaineer. As an author, he used the name R. L. G. Irving, while to his friends he was Graham Irving.
Irving was the son of an Anglican clergyman. He was educated at Winchester College
and New College, Oxford
. He returned to Winchester as a master, teaching French
and mathematics
and becoming 'Master in College', in charge of the ancient house
for the holders of foundation scholarships, and founded a climbing group known as the Winchester Ice Club.
He had a son, Robert Irving
(1913–1991), and a daughter, Clare. His son became a distinguished conductor
and was musical director of the New York City Ballet
, 1958 to 1989, as well as following in his father's footsteps as an amateur mountaineer. In 1991, his daughter's name was Clare Peters.
Irving died on 10 April 1969, a few months into his ninety-third year.
Irving became a member of the Alpine Club
in 1902 and was an advocate of climbing without a mountain guide
, which in those days was thought by some to be reckless, but which Irving undertook "on account of boredom [of being guided] and expense". His climbing partner – a fellow Winchester schoolmaster – having been killed in a fall early in 1904, Irving went on a solitary climbing trip to the Sierra Nevada
in the Easter vacation of that year. Finding the experience unsatisfactory – "If you climb for novelty and excitement solitary climbing is the kind to satisfy you; but if you climb for recreation of mind and body it is a failure" – he was left looking for new people with whom to climb during the summer of 1904. He took to finding companions – he called them "recruits" – for his alpine trips from within the ranks of seventeen- and eighteen-year-old boys at Winchester College, the enlistment of the first of whom (Harry Gibson)
The second of these recruits was "a special friend of the first [who] was soon enlisted, and the planning of the campaign began". This was the seventeen-year-old George Mallory
, a mathematics scholar at Winchester who later disappeared on the 1924 British Expedition to Mount Everest
. As Irving later remarked, "It was just chance that I took out to the Alps in 1904 a boy destined to become so famous on Everest." Much of Irving's fame derives from his being the person who introduced Mallory to mountaineering. Aside from Gibson and Mallory, who both went on the first trip in 1904, other members of the Winchester Ice Club were Guy Bullock (who reached Mount Everest's North Col
in 1921) and Harry Tyndale.
According to Irving's address to the Alpine Club
, entitled 'Five Years with Recruits', the Ice Club's series of controversial expeditions to climb some of the highest mountains in the Alps began in 1904, and peaks such as the Grand Combin
, Dent Blanche
, Aiguille du Blaitière, Bietschhorn
, Aiguille de Bionnassay
, Grunhorn
, Mittaghorn
, Aletschhorn
, Monte Rosa
and Mont Blanc
were successfully ascended. Rock climbing trips were also undertaken to Snowdonia
, using the Pen-y-Gwryd
hotel as a base, and snow craft was practised in the Scottish Highlands
in winter.
The feelings of the Alpine Club towards the leading of boys up potentially dangerous mountains were expressed in a 'Condemnation', in which Tom George Longstaff stated that he "did not think that members would agree with him about the advisability of such expeditions". This was followed by 'A Disclaimer', published in the Alpine Journal
for 1909 and signed by such luminaries as Longstaff, Geoffrey Winthrop Young
, Claud Schuster, W. P. Haskett Smith
and D. W. Freshfield, in which these members of the club, and nine others, '[desire] to place on record that we disclaim responsibility for any encouragement which Mr. Irving's paper may give to expeditions undertaken after the manner therein described'. However, as Claire Engel wrote in 1971, "it seems that Irving's methods have been adopted by various organisations."
Irving continued to climb with Mallory after the latter had left Winchester; in 1911 Irving led Mallory and another of his ex-pupils, Harry Tyndale, on the third ascent of the Kuffner (or Frontier) ridge on Mont Maudit
. According to Helmut Dumler, Mallory was "apparently prompted by the death of friends on the Western Front in 1916 [to write] a highly emotional article of his ascent of this great climb"; this article was published as 'Mont Blanc from the Col du Géant by the Eastern Butress of Mont Blanc' in the Alpine Journal.
Irving's book Ten Great Mountains (1940) sets out the climbing history up to then of Snowdon
, Ben Nevis
, Ushba
, Mount Logan
, Everest
, Nanga Parbat
, Kanchenjunga
, the Matterhorn
, Mount Cook
and Mont Blanc.
Irving kept up to date with mountaineering developments in the Greater Ranges
, writing of the Muztagh Tower
(7,273 m) in the Karakorum that it was "Nature’s last stronghold – probably the most inaccessible of all the great peaks, its immense precipices show no weakness in its defence".
In a pamphlet called The Mountains Shall Bring Peace (1947), Irving describes the benefits he has had from his own climbing and proposes greater participation in mountaineering as a way to achieve international brotherhood and peace.
Life and family
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
and New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
. He returned to Winchester as a master, teaching French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
and becoming 'Master in College', in charge of the ancient house
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
for the holders of foundation scholarships, and founded a climbing group known as the Winchester Ice Club.
He had a son, Robert Irving
Robert Irving (conductor)
Robert Augustine Irving, DFC*, was a British conductor whose reputation was mainly as a ballet conductor.Born in Winchester, England, the son of mountaineer and author R. L. G. Irving, he was educated at Winchester College and New College, Oxford, graduating with a degree in music...
(1913–1991), and a daughter, Clare. His son became a distinguished conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
and was musical director of the New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Leon Barzin was the company's first music director. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company...
, 1958 to 1989, as well as following in his father's footsteps as an amateur mountaineer. In 1991, his daughter's name was Clare Peters.
Irving died on 10 April 1969, a few months into his ninety-third year.
Mountaineering
In The Romance of Mountaineering, Irving writes that he was introduced to mountains at an early age: "My earliest recollections of a summer holiday centre round the ascent of a Welsh hill." Several years later he began exploring the hills on his own:Irving became a member of the Alpine Club
Alpine Club (UK)
The Alpine Club was founded in London in 1857 and was probably the world's first mountaineering club. It is UK mountaineering's acknowledged 'senior club'.-History:...
in 1902 and was an advocate of climbing without a mountain guide
Mountain guide
Mountain guides are specially trained and experienced mountaineers and professionals who are generally certified by an association. They are considered experts in mountaineering.-Skills:Their skills usually include climbing, skiing and hiking...
, which in those days was thought by some to be reckless, but which Irving undertook "on account of boredom [of being guided] and expense". His climbing partner – a fellow Winchester schoolmaster – having been killed in a fall early in 1904, Irving went on a solitary climbing trip to the Sierra Nevada
Sierra Nevada (Spain)
The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the region of provinces of Granada and Almería in Spain. It contains the highest point of continental Spain, Mulhacén at 3478 m above sea level....
in the Easter vacation of that year. Finding the experience unsatisfactory – "If you climb for novelty and excitement solitary climbing is the kind to satisfy you; but if you climb for recreation of mind and body it is a failure" – he was left looking for new people with whom to climb during the summer of 1904. He took to finding companions – he called them "recruits" – for his alpine trips from within the ranks of seventeen- and eighteen-year-old boys at Winchester College, the enlistment of the first of whom (Harry Gibson)
The second of these recruits was "a special friend of the first [who] was soon enlisted, and the planning of the campaign began". This was the seventeen-year-old George Mallory
George Mallory
George Herbert Leigh Mallory was an English mountaineer who took part in the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest in the early 1920s....
, a mathematics scholar at Winchester who later disappeared on the 1924 British Expedition to Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
. As Irving later remarked, "It was just chance that I took out to the Alps in 1904 a boy destined to become so famous on Everest." Much of Irving's fame derives from his being the person who introduced Mallory to mountaineering. Aside from Gibson and Mallory, who both went on the first trip in 1904, other members of the Winchester Ice Club were Guy Bullock (who reached Mount Everest's North Col
North Col
The North Col refers to a sharp-edged pass or col carved by glaciers connecting Mount Everest and Changtse in Tibet. It forms the head of the East Rongbuk Glacier....
in 1921) and Harry Tyndale.
Alpine Club (UK)
The Alpine Club was founded in London in 1857 and was probably the world's first mountaineering club. It is UK mountaineering's acknowledged 'senior club'.-History:...
, entitled 'Five Years with Recruits', the Ice Club's series of controversial expeditions to climb some of the highest mountains in the Alps began in 1904, and peaks such as the Grand Combin
Grand Combin
The Grand Combin is a mountain in the western Pennine Alps in Switzerland. With its high summit it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps and the second most prominent of its range...
, Dent Blanche
Dent Blanche
The Dent Blanche is a mountain in the Pennine Alps, lying in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. With its high summit, it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps.-Naming:...
, Aiguille du Blaitière, Bietschhorn
Bietschhorn
The Bietschhorn is a mountain in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland. The northeast and southern slopes of the mountain are part of the Jungfrau-Aletsch Protected Area listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site that also includes the Jungfrau and the Aletsch Glacier...
, Aiguille de Bionnassay
Aiguille de Bionnassay
The Aiguille de Bionnassay is a mountain in the Mont-Blanc massif of the Alps in France and Italy....
, Grunhorn
Grünhorn
The Grünhorn is a mountain in the Bernese Alps range of the Swiss Alps. It is located on the ridge between the two largest glaciers of the Alps: the Aletsch Glacier to the west and the Fiescher Glacier to the east...
, Mittaghorn
Mittaghorn
The Mittaghorn is a mountain in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland, situated in the middle of the Lauterbrunnen Wall.-External links:*...
, Aletschhorn
Aletschhorn
The Aletschhorn is a mountain in the Alps in Switzerland, lying within the Jungfrau-Aletsch region, which has been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO...
, Monte Rosa
Monte Rosa
The Monte Rosa Massif is a mountain massif located in the eastern part of the Pennine Alps. It is located between Switzerland and Italy...
and Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc or Monte Bianco , meaning "White Mountain", is the highest mountain in the Alps, Western Europe and the European Union. It rises above sea level and is ranked 11th in the world in topographic prominence...
were successfully ascended. Rock climbing trips were also undertaken to Snowdonia
Snowdonia
Snowdonia is a region in north Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three National Parks in Wales, in 1951.-Name and extent:...
, using the Pen-y-Gwryd
Pen-y-Gwryd
Pen-y-Gwryd is a pass at the head of Nantygwryd and Nant Cynnyd rivers in Gwynedd, North Wales and a quarter of a mile from the boundary with Conwy in northern Snowdonia, close to the foot of Snowdon...
hotel as a base, and snow craft was practised in the Scottish Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
in winter.
The feelings of the Alpine Club towards the leading of boys up potentially dangerous mountains were expressed in a 'Condemnation', in which Tom George Longstaff stated that he "did not think that members would agree with him about the advisability of such expeditions". This was followed by 'A Disclaimer', published in the Alpine Journal
Alpine Journal
The Alpine Journal is the yearly publication of the Alpine Club of London. It is the oldest mountaineering journal in the world.-History:The journal was first published on 2 March 1863 by the publishing house of Longmans in London, with Hereford Brooke George as its first editor...
for 1909 and signed by such luminaries as Longstaff, Geoffrey Winthrop Young
Geoffrey Winthrop Young
Geoffrey Winthrop Young D.Litt. was a British climber, poet and educator, and author of several notable books on mountaineering.-Mountaineering:...
, Claud Schuster, W. P. Haskett Smith
Walter Parry Haskett Smith
Walter Parry Haskett Smith is often called the Father of Rock Climbing. Born in Kent, England, the son of a wealthy landowner, he attended Eton where he excelled at athletics, before enrolling in Trinity College, Oxford.-Background:...
and D. W. Freshfield, in which these members of the club, and nine others, '[desire] to place on record that we disclaim responsibility for any encouragement which Mr. Irving's paper may give to expeditions undertaken after the manner therein described'. However, as Claire Engel wrote in 1971, "it seems that Irving's methods have been adopted by various organisations."
Mont Maudit
Mont Maudit is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in France and Italy. Until the end of the 18th century, Mont Blanc and its satellite peaks were collectively known in French as the Montagne Maudite....
. According to Helmut Dumler, Mallory was "apparently prompted by the death of friends on the Western Front in 1916 [to write] a highly emotional article of his ascent of this great climb"; this article was published as 'Mont Blanc from the Col du Géant by the Eastern Butress of Mont Blanc' in the Alpine Journal.
Irving's book Ten Great Mountains (1940) sets out the climbing history up to then of Snowdon
Snowdon
Snowdon is the highest mountain in Wales, at an altitude of above sea level, and the highest point in the British Isles outside Scotland. It is located in Snowdonia National Park in Gwynedd, and has been described as "probably the busiest mountain in Britain"...
, Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in the British Isles. It is located at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands, close to the town of Fort William....
, Ushba
Ushba
Ushba is one of the most notable peaks of the Caucasus Mountains. It is located in the Svaneti region of Georgia, just south of the border with the Kabardino-Balkaria region of Russia. Although it does not rank in the 10 highest peaks of the range, Ushba is known as the "Matterhorn of the...
, Mount Logan
Mount Logan
Mount Logan is the highest mountain in Canada and the second-highest peak in North America, after Mount McKinley . The mountain was named after Sir William Edmond Logan, a Canadian geologist and founder of the Geological Survey of Canada . Mount Logan is located within Kluane National Park and...
, Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
, Nanga Parbat
Nanga Parbat
Nanga Parbat is the ninth highest mountain on Earth, the second highest mountain in Pakistan and among the eight-thousanders with a summit elevation of 8,126 meters...
, Kanchenjunga
Kangchenjunga
Kangchenjunga is the third highest mountain of the world with an elevation of and located along the India-Nepal border in the Himalayas.Kangchenjunga is also the name of the section of the Himalayas and means "The Five Treasures of Snows", as it contains five peaks, four of them over...
, the Matterhorn
Matterhorn
The Matterhorn , Monte Cervino or Mont Cervin , is a mountain in the Pennine Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Its summit is 4,478 metres high, making it one of the highest peaks in the Alps. The four steep faces, rising above the surrounding glaciers, face the four compass points...
, Mount Cook
Aoraki/Mount Cook
Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand, reaching .It lies in the Southern Alps, the mountain range which runs the length of the South Island. A popular tourist destination, it is also a favourite challenge for mountain climbers...
and Mont Blanc.
Irving kept up to date with mountaineering developments in the Greater Ranges
Greater Ranges
The Greater Ranges comprise the high mountain ranges of Asia:*the Himalayas,*the Karakoram,*the Hindu Kush and Hindu Raj,*the Pamir Mountains,*the Tien Shan,*the Kunlun Shan,...
, writing of the Muztagh Tower
Muztagh Tower
Muztagh Tower , is a mountain in the Baltoro Muztagh, part of the Karakoram range on the border of the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan and the Xinjiang Uygur region of China...
(7,273 m) in the Karakorum that it was "Nature’s last stronghold – probably the most inaccessible of all the great peaks, its immense precipices show no weakness in its defence".
In a pamphlet called The Mountains Shall Bring Peace (1947), Irving describes the benefits he has had from his own climbing and proposes greater participation in mountaineering as a way to achieve international brotherhood and peace.
Books and articles by Irving
- 'The Ligurian Alps in Spring', Alpine Journal, August, 1911
- 'Une nuit d'avril ... à la Brèche de Roland et au Taillon', La Montagne (journal of the Club alpin françaisClub alpin françaisThe Club alpin français, usually referred to as the CAF, is a federation of club promoting mountain sports. It offers multiple training and courses to help people understand mountains....
), Sept–Oct 1929 - The Romance of Mountaineering , J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd, 1935
- La conquête de la montagne, Paris, Payot (Bibliothèque géographique), 1936
- The Mountain Way, an anthology in prose and verse, collected by R. L. G. Irving, xxii + 656 pp., London, J. M. Dent, 1938; New York, Dutton, 1938
- The Alps, London, B. T. Batsford, 1938; New York, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1940; revised editions, B. T. Batsford, 1942 and 1947
- Ten Great Mountains, J. M. Dent & Sons, 1940
- (As translator), My Caves, from the FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
of Norbert CasteretNorbert CasteretNorbert Casteret was a famous French caver and adventurer, and is one of the most recognisable names in caving worldwide. Following Édouard-Alfred Martel , Casteret, along with Robert de Joly, became a leading figure of French speleology between the world wars and into the middle of the 20th...
, London, J.M. Dent & Sons, 1947 - The Mountains Shall Bring Peace, iv + 47 pp., Oxford, Blackwell, 1947
- (With Guido Rey), The Matterhorn: Guido Rey's Il Monte Cervino was first published in English in 1907, in a translation from the ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
by J. E. C. Eaton; a revised edition, with two further chapters by R. L. G. Irving, was published in Oxford by Basil BlackwellBasil BlackwellSir Basil Blackwell was born Henry Blackwell in Oxford, England. He was the son of the founder of Blackwell's bookshop in Oxford, which went on to become the Blackwell's family publishing and bookshop empire, located on Broad Street in central Oxford...
, 1946, and reprinted in 1949 - (As translator), Cave Men New and Old, from the French of Norbert Casteret, London, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd, 1951
- A History of British Mountaineering, B. T. Batsford, 1955
Selected quotations
- "There are routes up many peaks in the Alps, Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn being conspicuous examples, on which a solitary climber risks little more than a man who wanders alone on a wild Yorkshire moor." – R. L. G. Irving, from Alpine Journal (1909)
- "A mountain becomes great as a human personality does, by extending its influence over the thoughts, words and actions of mankind." – R. L. G. Irving, from Ten Great Mountains, 1940
- "Mountains... by the interchange of what we have given them and they have given us, there is a part of our personality in them and of theirs in us that is indestructible." – R. L. G. Irving, from Alpine Journal (1937)