Cold Open

It’s 11:30 AM on May 29th, 1953 at the top of world - Mount Everest.

The blanket of thick snow around the cloud-piercing summit of the world’s tallest mountain is, as it has always been, completely untouched.

But it won’t be for much longer. An ice axe suddenly shoots into the air, embedding itself into the pristine snow. Mountaineer Edmund Hillary uses it as a lifeline, pulling himself up from the ridge below and onto the foot of the towering peak.

As he does so, Edmund’s gaze drifts downward. Below him is Tenzing Norgay, an experienced Everest expeditionist, teetering on the brink of the precipice Edmund just escaped.

Edmund lends a hand, helping pull Tenzing up to the peak.

Side by side, they stand tall against the assault of the wind and share a smile. The men have just become the first people to ever reach the top of Mount Everest. The pair rotate slowly, taking in the serene beauty of the world from its highest point.

Edmund extends his hand toward Tenzing, who brushes it aside and then pulls Edmund in for a hearty embrace, wrapping his arms around his climbing partner and jumping up and down in jubilation.

For the next fifteen minutes, Edmund and Tenzing take pictures on the summit, documenting their victory. They also take a moment to indulge in a celebratory slice of mint cake, before it’s time for them to begin the treacherous descent and share their monumental achievement with the world.

As word of Edmund and Tenzing’s feat travels around the globe, people will hail the climbers as courageous pioneers who achieved what was once thought impossible. The historic accomplishment will represent the culmination of years of work and an indomitable passion for mountaineering, inspiring generations of future explorers and etching their names into the annals of history as the first people to conquer Mount Everest on May 29th, 1953.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world. 

Today is May 29th, 1953: The First Ever Successful Summit of Mount Everest.

Act One: A Passion

It’s 1939 at a hotel nestled at the foot of Mount Cook, New Zealand’s Southern Alps.

20-year-old Edmund Hillary sits in a chair in the corner of the bustling hotel lounge, reading a newspaper. All around him, the lodge is abuzz with activity, but as two rugged, sun-kissed men enter, the room’s chatter falls into a hush.

Intrigued, Edmund looks up to see a small audience forming around the new arrivals. Listening in, he learns that these men are seasoned climbers, fresh from a grand traverse of Mount Cook’s three peaks. As Edmund watches the men receive a hero’s welcome, a wave of envy washes over him. He yearns for the kind of adventurous lifestyle these men embody. But his life is far more mundane, partially by his own making.

The escalating Second World War left Edmund torn. Guided by his deep religious convictions, he chose conscientious objection over combat. So instead of enlisting, he's been working as a beekeeper with his father in his small hometown in New Zealand. But the monotony of his domestic life has driven Edmund into a slump. His town has begun to feel increasingly stifling, and Edmund’s life has started to seem purposeless. Desperate to escape his daily routine, Edmund persuaded his father to grant him some time off and he journeyed to New Zealand’s South Island in search of adventure. Now, the young man thinks he’s found some.

As the men detail their daring ascents, Edmund slouches back into his chair, his thoughts whirling. He came to this area of New Zealand to hike, but his plans for a simple walk feel too meager in the wake of the climbers’ tales. Now, he yearns for a greater challenge — something more dangerous. As New Zealand’s tallest mountain, Mount Cook seems far too  ambitious an undertaking, but the nearby Mount Ollivier is half its height and might be the perfect climb.

Galvanized, Edmund seeks out Brian, his travelling companion, and in a fervent ramble, persuades him to climb Mount Ollivier, despite their lack of experience or equipment. Sensing Edmund's excitement, Brian agrees to attempt the climb, but only under the guidance of a seasoned mountaineer. Edmund agrees and arranges to have a guide accompany them on the mountain the following day.

The next morning, Edmund wakes early to clear and calm skies – perfect climbing weather. He races to meet Brian, before heading to the rendezvous point where they’re supposed to meet their guide. As they approach their destination, Edmund sees the figure of an elderly, burly man standing in wait, and his heart drops. Edmund was hoping for a younger guide, someone more energetic who could be capable of pushing him past his limits. He doubts this old man will be up for the job.

And not long into their ascent, Edmund grows restless and impatient. Finding the guide’s pace too slow, he and Brian forge ahead, leaving the experienced mountaineer behind. Before long, they arrive at their agreed upon finishing spot half-way up the mountain. But as Edmund looks up at the thousand feet of snow ahead of him, he imagines himself at the very top of the icy crest and it’s too great a temptation. When their guide joins them thirty minutes later, Edmund begs him to continue their ascent all the way to the summit, and with a sigh, the guide reluctantly agrees.

Climb quickly grows more arduous, but Edmund is undeterred. As he presses on, he learns how to navigate the treacherous snow along the way, kicking it up to form a stairwell to the peak, and when the group reaches a rocky outcrop, the guide suggests a rest, but Edmund's energy propels him onward. Within minutes, he reaches the top of Mount Ollivier, relishing his first mountain summit.

Edmund gazes down at the terrain below him, before rotating around the peak to take in the beauty of the Southern Alps. A new feeling of deep satisfaction washes over him. After months of misery and boredom, Edmund lets out a beaming smile; he feels happier than he ever has before and with a striking certainty, he’s sure he’s finally found the passion he’s been searching for.

Edmund's ascent of Mount Ollivier will prove to be a turning point, not just in his life, but in the history of mountaineering. His unquenchable thirst for climbing will see him take on higher and vaster peaks, attracting the attention of the mountaineering community, and culminating in an invitation to tackle the greatest challenge of all: Mount Everest.

Act Two: An Ascent

It’s May 29th, 1953 just under 26,000 feet up on Mount Everest; fourteen years after Edmund Hillary’s ascent of Mount Ollivier.

It’s 4 AM, and Edmund lies in his makeshift bed, frozen from top to bottom. He stares at the ceiling, his heart pounding in his chest. Today is the day he takes on the greatest challenge in his mountaineering career.

No one in history has summited Mount Everest, several have tried. First attempted in 1921 by a British expedition, at least ten major expeditions and two solo climbers have since tried and failed. But in recent years, a new, more attractive path to the top has been discovered — a route that will come to be known as the "yellow brick road" to the summit.

Last year, a Swiss expedition pioneered this path and almost reached the top, but they were unable to complete the ascent. Their failure has opened up the door for the British to claim the achievement, and they are eager to do so. Determined to make this attempt a success, Britain has supported and subsidized an ambitious expedition composed of 350 porters, 20 of the Himalayas’ native Sherpa guides, and 10 climbers.

Among their ranks is Edmund. And although he’s not British, Edmund’s experience and passion for mountaineering caught the attention of the expedition’s leader, Sir John Hunt, and he invited Edmund, the New Zealander, to join the team. It’s Edmund’s fourth Himalayan expedition in just over two years, and Hunt is confident the 33-year-old has what it takes to summit Everest. But today, they’ll find out for sure if that's the case.

Edmund and the expedition’s most seasoned Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, have been chosen to complete the ascent of Everest. They’re not the first in the expedition to try. Just two days ago, two other members attempted to summit the mountain and even came within a tantalizing 300 feet of the peak. But they were forced to retreat, defeated by dwindling oxygen, and a treacherous near-vertical climb. So Edmund and Tenzing were selected to take up the mantle. With Tenzing’s experience and Edmund’s tenacity, Hunt expects they will make a perfect pairing.

As the climbers prepare to begin the final ascent, the air in the camp grows electric with anxiety. Slots to climb Everest are very limited. This is Britain's last shot at conquering the mountain for three years, with the French and Swiss poised to make their own attempts in the coming summers. If Edmund and Tenzing fail today, Britain will likely surrender the accomplishment to its competitors.

Burdened with this knowledge, Edmund and Tenzing set off at 6:30 in the morning. Before long, they come upon the tracks left by their peers two days earlier. But Edmund decides not to follow them. He spots a more snow-laden route, and his mind goes to the steps he kicked out of snow back on Mount Ollivier almost fifteen years prior. It’s a technique he’s used many times since, and Edmund thinks it will work perfectly on these pristine slopes.

He turns to Tenzing and suggests they follow the snowy path instead, using the steps technique as they go along. Despite his reservations about the route and method, Tenzing agrees, and by 9 AM, they’re mere hundreds of feet from the summit. But a terrifying vertical climb, slick with ice and jutting with rocks, still stands between them and history. The drop below is a dizzying 8,000 feet. Despite the danger though, they press on, their focus locked on the peak.

As they reach the most vertical point of the ridge, their oxygen is dwindling. Edmund has to summon every last reserve of strength for a final, perilous climb. He navigates the ridge, hauling himself up until, with a triumphant swing of his ice axe, he strikes the untouched snow of Everest's summit. Edmund than pulls Tenzing up beside him, and the two stand victorious atop the world. Edmund is again filled with the same overwhelming satisfaction he felt after reaching his first summit in New Zealand, only this time, he knows the whole world will remember this moment.

Edmund and Tenzing's triumphant ascent of Mount Everest will become a defining moment in mountaineering history. The final vertical ridge they overcame will become known as 'Hillary's Ledge,' a tribute to the man who first set foot on the world's highest point. As the enormity of their achievement ripples across the globe, Edmund will receive a knighthood for the feat, but he will work hard to ensure he leaves a legacy larger than his climb up Everest. Over the coming years, Edmund will leverage his newfound fame to give back to the mountaineering community and empower the next generations of climbers.

Act Three: A Legacy

It’s May 27th, 2003 on the streets of Kathmandu.

Eighty-three-year-old Sir Edmund Hillary sits in a horse-drawn carriage, slowly parading through the pulsating heart of Nepal's capital. The streets are teeming with spectators and the city reverberates with the exuberant cries of a staggering crowd, gathered to honor Edmund as he journeys toward a jubilee celebration.

It has been almost exactly 50 years since Edmund and Tenzing Norgay reached the top of Mount Everest. Over the five decades since that famous ascent, Edmund has dedicated himself to numerous ventures and initiatives to give back to the Himalayas and the climbing community. His crowning achievement is the Himalayan Trust, a nonprofit he established to benefit the people of Nepal. Through this Trust, Edmund has overseen the building of medical clinics, schools, hospitals, and other essential services throughout the Himalayas. His charitable efforts have seen him become a revered figure in Nepal and the people that pack the streets of Kathmandu today are a testament to the country’s respect for his philanthropy and illustrious climbing career.

But Edmund knows his success is not of his own making. As he disembarks from his carriage to address the crowd, Edmund takes the moment to honor one of the many people who got him to the top of Mount Everest: his climbing companion Tenzing Norgay. Seventeen years ago, Tenzing passed away. His death profoundly affected Edmund and many in Nepal. After climbing Everest, Tenzing spent his life helping others climb the Himalayas and training aspiring mountaineers at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute.

Edmund’s speech is heavy with emotion as he remembers his late companion, paying tribute to Tenzing and the unbreakable bond they shared as climbers and friends, as well as the generosity and spirit of the Nepalese people who have helped him live out his dreams.

At the end of the 50th anniversary celebration, Nepal will award Edmund honorary citizenship, making the climber the first person to receive such an honor. By Edmund’s passing in 2008, he will be one of the most respected and beloved figures across the world, but especially in Nepal and his native New Zealand. His name will be etched on countless monuments and structures across many countries, and his image put on New Zealand’s $5 banknote. Upon Edmund’s death, Nepal will even rename one of its airports after Tenzing and Edmund. And by the end of the climbers’ lives, their profound dedication to exploration, environmental advocacy, and philanthropy will turn both Tenzing and Edmund into mountaineering heroes, their legacies extending far beyond their ascent of Everest on May 29th, 1953.

Outro

Next on History Daily. May 30th, 1948. In less than a day, a flood destroys a public housing project that was once one of Oregon’s largest cities, killing 15 people and leaving over 18,000 homeless.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammad Shahzaib.

Sound design by Katrina Zemrak.

Music by Lindsay Graham.

This episode is written and researched by Luke Lonergan.

Produced by Alexandra Currie-Buckner.

Executive Producers are Steven Walters for Airship, and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.