Death on the Matterhorn - Tragedy in the Alps | Free Documentary History

The matter horn one of the world's most challenging mountains unconquered until 1865 that year two rival teams were in a race to the [Music] top British against Italian Mountaineers Italians I beat you the Triumph of the British turned to tragedy foren fell to their deaths descendants of the climbers want To find out what went wrong forensic tests provide clues and there are new sources it's outrageous who was to blame was it an accident Foul Play or murder in the Swiss Village of Tad seven Mountaineers met for a dangerous Expedition four Englishmen with one French and

two Swiss guides their aim to climb the matter horn the alp's last unconquered Mountain Lord Francis Hudson glad you could join well gentlemen for Queen and Country for Queen and Country it was the 13th of July 1865 36 hours later four of the men would be dead the the leader of the climbing party was the ambitious young Mountaineer Edward wimper the poor son of a London printer was determined to climb both Mountains and the social ladder for weeks wimper had been waiting For an opportune moment seven times he had tried to scale the matter on

seven times he had failed here was a rather Earnest young man took himself quite seriously but had huge ambition was phenomenally fit I mean he used to walk from one end of London to the other he'd walk right out into the countryside he was incredibly fit and his very first climb was a first descent right from the start he was making First Ascents We Take a 10-minute break do me he was sent to the Alps on his first visit in 1860 not to go climbing he was working he was sent by the Publishers longman's to

do sketches to turn into Engravings for an illustrated book and that was how he made his money wimper became a travel writer the stories and illustrations of his Alpine Journeys were hugely [Music] popular wimper was really keen on the Matterhorn it was the alp's last unconquered Mountain more than 4,000 M High over 13,000 ft several Englishmen desired the glory of the first Ascent for that they needed guides but most local mountain guides weren keen on climbing the matter horn too difficult too dangerous a seemingly impossible task Peter talda Senor and his son Peter junor from

zat were an exception believing in an Ascent from the north Father talda 45 was a guide of the first generation his 22-year-old son accompanied him as Porter oh they too were pioneers and driven by ambition the Mountaineers of the time were true Pioneers they had no idea what awaited them on the mountains just like Indiana Jones they were the true heroes two others who were obsessed by The Matterhorn were the Reverend Charles Hudson and his young companion Douglas hoo Douglas hoo was the son of a wealthy shipping magnate an excellent Sportsman minent athlete but a

novice in the mountains he would play a significant role in the unfolding [Music] drama pedo is Douglas Hoss's great grand nephew since childhood he's been fascinated by the story of his famous ancestor hedo is an experienced explorer who in 2003 made the world's first solar Walk to the North Pole from Canada the reason I have done what I have done as an Explorer indeed the reason I been an Explorer in the first place is because of the story and the reality of what happened on the matter horn in 1865 for Penn the search for Clues

is also a matter of setting the record straight for 150 years the catastrophe has cast a shadow over the Hado family for it was ancestor Douglas hedo who got the blame for the tragedy I hope that um I can demonstrate that he was he was the full guy but it wasn't his fault and I would go as far as to say he was probably the least um blamable person in in the entire interprise [Music] inat Penn is drawn to the mountain that proved fatal for his ancestor it's the first time he sees it for real

God oh my goodness that's a very serious looking mountain isn't it it's seriously striking it really is a standout Peak it's like a rough diamond that hasn't yet been cut and um I'm so pleased to have seen it lit like this with some evening light I can totally see why people would think maybe this can never be climbed it's pretty aggressive the matter horn has the spell of a woman And the power of a giant an admirer once wrote yet for ages people paid little attention to the mountains including the matah horn not until the

late 18th century did scientists begin to explore the Alps surveying glaciers Peaks and ridges it was the British who soon lead the way begging mountain peaks like trophies mountaineering had become a serious [Music] sport well the British like to pretend That they invented Alpine climbing they didn't I mean the first Descent of momor was made by Swiss and French climbers but it so happened that it caught the imagination of the British it was the Age of Exploration Alpine Peaks constituted the last white spots on the map of Europe ideal Adventure territory for Alpine Pioneers like

wimper go ahead I'll follow alaz by the age of 25 he'd become one of the world's most Successful Mountaineers with a reputation of being Kurt and aloof a mountaineer with wimers objectives had to be egotistical to reach his goals there are few sports that are more egotistical than mountaineering his successes were down to his personality as were his failures today it's the mat horn Swiss side in the north that is most famous back in 1865 most experts believed that the Italian South face would be easiest to climb in Italy the mat horn is known as

La Grand Becca it was on the 10th of July 1865 that wimper arrived here in the village of BR today's Seria he was preparing a new attempt to climb the maton poor weather forced him to wait his biggest problem to find a suitable guide wimper had a loose appointment with the experienced Italian guide Jean antoan Carell but Carell told wimper he Was busy the other Mountain guides from the village were also booked without guide wimper would be unable to climb the maton that year a rival from the British Alpine club might well beat him to

it on the 12th of July the weather cleared wimper was still without guide the ambitious Englishman sensed that something was a foot Carol was heading for the matorn the Italian wanted to claim the first Ascent For himself Carell sneaky devil had been enlisted by the Italian Alpine Club they wanted to scale the matorn with an Italian team it was one of the last 4,000 M mountains and they wanted this to be an Italian Victory not least to celebrate the unity of Italy which had only been in place for a few years wimper later wrote the

Italians had stolen a March upon me I restudied My plans to see if it was not possible to outmaneuver them wimper planned to scale the matter horn from [Music] tat hold on I'm [Music] coming nobody knows how the race to conquer the Matterhorn would have progressed if it hadn't been for a chance encounter the young British noan Lord Francis Douglas arrived in boy [Music] the 19-year-old Mountaineer was related to Queen Victoria he was on an extended journey across the Alps ideal for [Music] wimper Edward wimper I suppose you're the talk of the Alpine Club am

I so who are you Lord Francis Douglas about to climb the matter horn I can see that you have your Porter do you Also have a guide I do in zamat good there's not much time to lose we have to beat them Italians oh very well lead the way in record time lord Douglas and whimper hurried to zat on the way was the farm of mountain guide Peter taler known to Lord Douglas from a recent climb Peter taler lived here with his son the talers were poor farmers who relied on extra income from wealthy Mountaineers

and Tourists pet Peter taler had achieved several first ascents he was one of the best Guides of his time it wasn't a surprise that wimper picked him as his [Music] guide we must depart instantly time is of the essence we har in I C good very well in the morning it'll be good I'll Drink To [Music] That s some people claim Peter taler went Climbing because of the money I don't think so it was his great Passion his goal in life to be the first on the peak of the horn it seems that wimper had

slight doubts about tagv about whether he could really COPE in in a crisis but he had to make do with who was available all the the guides in BR were were were busy on the Southwest Ridge many of the zat guides wouldn't go near the hearley ridge they wouldn't go Near the matter horn it had this still had this terrible aura about it and so wimper desperate to seize this this first Ascent uh before Carell he just has to make do with the people available so he forms this ad hoc team with Douglas and the

two tag valders time was short in the evening the group descended to tat their base for the matter horns Ascent in the morning 45-year-old Peter taler would lead the team Peter junr was quickly Promoted oted from Porter to guide wimper knew that this was his only chance to beat the Italians the expedition was financed by Lord Francis Douglas but in the evening another rival team arrived in samat the race to the top was entering its final [Music] phase wimper and Douglas were staying in the hotel mon Roa it was a day full of surprises that

night they're dining at the monter Roa Hotel getting ready for Their ascent and who should turn up but the Reverend Hudson Charles Hudson was England's most famous Mountaineer and wimers competitor with his young friend Hado on his first ever Alpine season and Michel C the famous Shamone guide old companion of wimers who had said he couldn't climb with whimper that year 1865 because he was he promised to climb with someone else and they're going for the matter horn too so after a Sort of hasty conference uh wimper suggests that all seven climbers should team up

together because it would be crazy to have two ropes going up the hearley ridge competing with each other they had arrived as competitors now they were joining forces to claim the first Ascent together they never before climbed in the same team I would never do this if I attempt a first Ascent in the Himalayas I will prepare and train with my partner We climb together first so we get to know each other and learn to get on the team was put together out of necessity the seven climbers who thrown together were competitors and joined forces

under pressure in the morning the weather was looking good the team Advanced rapidly there might still be a chance to beat the Italians to trace the route of the historic climb the Swiss Mountain guide And historian hman beina guides pen Hado the great grand nephew of Douglas Hado to the slopes of the Hol Mountain it lies opposite the matah Horn's North pH wimper and Hudson were experienced wimper did a lot of diffic climon Hudson did many and Douglas had just done the over Goble which is not easy as well but Douglas Hado you know he

just walked maybe in a home had in excellent shape and and no wonder if you're 18 19 year old very sporty and it seems that he Didn't see any danger it's it's incredible it's incredible if you are climbing the first time in your life and suddenly you are in the North Face of the matter one where no one's ever been before I I will not do that never no this is this is the teenage mind at work I think that's the teenage you don't never die I don't die edford wimper later wrote on the first

day we did not attend to ascend to any great height and we mounted Accordingly very leisurely and proceeded then along the ridge connecting the hearley with the m horn we were astonished to find that place is which from the riffle looked entirely impracticable were so easy that we could run about on the South Side of the Mountain the Italians were taken at easy unaware of the competition from samat ahead of the final Ascent Carol's men enjoyed their Provisions they had a mule Laden with food supplies and because times were hard in Italy and the mountain

people were poor Devils they probably ate everything before the ascent the team from tat was also resting the final assault on the peak would be made early in the morning if you take the binocs yes and then you see the lowest call there and then from there they made their bewok about 200 M higher than a harly Hut a Single tent would protect protect the team against rain Peter taler took care of the ropes Michel C and taler Jr were checking out the slopes above sh Crow was a wild man from shamoni he was the

strongest man in the team one notch up from T he was a right swashbuckler he was the leader they they came back and they say yeah no problem it's not difficult at all even we could have done the the top today who Because you know it's always seems if you are on the bottom of a face yes it seems to be much shorter than it really is for the first Ascent three ropes have been brought over from Britain a thin sesh cord the standard climbing rope of the time a second spare rope was made of

Manila it was hard to handle the team's greatest Pride was a new rope specially manufactured for the British Alpine Club to provide maximum safety in the Mountains the club rope consisted of three pieces of Manila the red threat was the mark of the Alpine Club the new rope was much stronger than the traditional sash cord unlike Marine rope the club rope was flexible the design aimed to prevent the rope from breaking during a fall in the evening the seven climbers were upbeat for whimper this Partnership of convenience had one drawback he would have to share

the glory should the team Be successful guides were deemed to be essential so it's conceivable that wimper had to make do with these new partners because they had the guides in toe and he had to go along with them but he was such a powerful personality he was such a Driven Man even if he wasn't in charge to start off with he he sort of took charge of the situation um he seemed to be the sort of person who saw himself as the natural [Music] Leader it was the 14th of July 1865 the Day of

Reckoning [Music] After Dawn both teams began their final Ascent the weather remained perfect the team was still climbing without rope wimper later wrote the whole of this great slope was now revealed Rising for 3,000 ft like a huge natural staircase [Music] the matter horn is extremely steep on All sides right from the start you have the East face to your left and the North Face to your right most of the time you will follow an extremely exposed Ridge [Music] this mountain does not forgive mistakes if you approach it without being prepared or capable it will

get you f they reached 3,900 M nobody had ever climbed this High on the hearley ridge the climbers Al themselves a half hour [Music] break then the ascent continued nobody knew how the Italians progressed on the other side Carell's team was making Headway confident they would reach the peak by afternoon wimper team was also progressing steadily at 4,200 M the terrain was getting Tough up to what we now call the shoulder on the hearley ridge it was all fairly straightforward I don't think it's actually that easy you can still fall and die there it's not

that straightforward but it's it's comparatively easy then suddenly on this final section where where the ridge rears up almost perpendicular it suddenly is a whole different game and and according to whimper Crow actually said now this is something Different it was time to rope up with the new club rope Michelle cow was leading at the front I decided to put all the seven people on the same rope to be stronger if somebody Falls but on the other side you know if two of them or three of them are fall and the other four canot hold

them so at that time it was not so known how to use the rope according to wimper the work became difficult in some places there was Little to hold snow had filled up the interstices of The Rock face leaving only occasional fragments projecting here and there thinking that the ridge itself is just too Steep and difficult they Traverse out and I've been there it's it's it's awesome actually you you suddenly you're over this this immense precipice everything's dropping away it's it's it's a huge great abyss and it's the kind of terrain which is not It's

not actually particularly difficult but it's bits of Rock with snow and ice some of the rock is a bit loose it's a kind of sort of Uncertain insubstantial terrain to be moving on uh it's delicate it's awkward where there's not that much to hold on to and and you're very conscious you know that one slip could be fatal but the mere thought of the Italian competitors kept driving the British team further and further up the Mountain across ice and rock they switched over to the North Face on the right hoping that this would be easier

yet this terrain was very different to the hearley ridge it is really steep very difficult climbing they clearly noticed this it was a huge effort for [Music] them person in the team is probably going to find this the most technically Challenging and psychologically challenging so this of course is Douglas had who's a teenager this was one of those moments on the ascent where one or several of them could have used their mature Mountain judgment and said we're at risk if an inexperienced clber attempts this this is far enough for had maybe he should descend and

someone would have to descend with him but that conversation by reports just never happened but nobody considered turning Back one team one rope [Music] eventually the team reached the top of the precipice here the slopes are much gentler the peak was suddenly in reach but the team was slow too slow for whimper [Music] you can imagine wimper this ambitious young man with a lot of experience uh and perhaps feeling he'd been held back and it it' been too slow and finally Here was this Summit of his dreams within in view sudden he thinks oh to

hell with it I'm bored with waiting I want to I want to get ahead and somehow he manages to untie slips off the loop of rope and just runs ahead to be first on the summit just out of sheer [Music] impatience Michelle Crow freed himself and took up the chase [Music] wimper had his eye on the matter horn For years he didn't want it to be taken from him when you are this close to your goal you have but one thought it's mine I want to get up there it Reveals His personality but also his

total resolve [Music] [Music] wimper described the final moments of his Ascent the higher we Rose the more Intense became our excitement what if we should be beaten by the Italians at the last moment at 1:40 p.m. wimper and core reached the peak of the matter horn 4,478 m above sea level 14,698 ft the idea of being the first person the first people to reach this particular apparently inaccessible spot it's very [Music] Thrilling just what a sense of relief I thank God Carol is still down there he didn't make it before us huge sense of relief

[Music] but then that relief turns to this um sort of embarrassing triumphalism where he starts shouting down to alert Carol to the fact that they got there first [Music] firstan and then when caral doesn't Notice they start hurling rocks down just to make quite sure that the Italians have got the message Italians I beat you it's not um the most edifying chapter in the history of British manering [Music] 10 minutes later the rest of the team reached the peak it was a Triumph not only for wimper but for all seven climbers history had been made

the glory Of a first Ascent lasts [Music] forever the Italians were thoroughly beaten the Italian climbers were very disappointed the people in bro thought they'd made it it was only after their return that they realized that the others had been [Music] successful the victors took an hour to enjoy their Triumph I think talo was in two minds he was Happy to have scaled the peak with his son but he was also wary he knew that some of the climbers were not very good Mountaineers they had poor equipment he realized what awaited them on the way

down and he was responsible for his son all that would have made him wey [Music] around 300 p.m. Co hadow Hudson and Douglas began their descent wimper stayed behind to make a sketch of his moment of [Music] Triumph wimper lingers to make the most of this glorious moment the other set off down and it's agreed that Michel C should go first and immediately behind him is Young had and the ideas is that c can can help hadow down the awkward sections which are always going to be much harder on The [Music] Descent to maintain Unity

with the Leading group T valder set off next wimper further delayed his departure he jotted down the names of the winning team and sealed them inside a bottle eventually wimper and taler Jr departed all seven climbers were now descending at the front core had Hudson and Lord Douglas then taler catching up [Music] he now connected to Lord Douglas using the traditional sash Cord eventually wimper and TV valder Jr also C up they connected to taler senior at last all seven men were reconnected all good yes it's good onwards one rope one team companions in fate

connected in life or death you know how to terrifying that particular section is and no one suggesting why didn't we use one of the very few rocks that do stick out as an anchor point and just have a rope hanging off it that we can use for hands And security it's it's very strange they had this discussion it seems but then they stopped the discussion without taking a decision they soon reached a section which had been particularly difficult on the way up seven men connected by one rope that was a huge disadvantage their movement was

restricted that in itself can be deadly and then there is fear something That must have affected young [Music] hedo having to wait at a difficult section like this is like psychological torture you want to move even if things are getting harder if you can't move forward your body cools down your muscles get stiff and no longer have the required strength you want to get out of there you don't want to hang around this section is dodgy this is not a good Place not to be moving forward this hle required help at every step Co carefully

positioned his boots it was 10 3 in the afternoon when disaster struck [Music] Co hedo Hudson and Lord Douglas disappeared down the mountain [Music] duas [Music] hson dark P can you hear me it goes so Quick in the mountains I tell you 5 Seconds earlier you had strong man happy man teenage thinking that they were famous now they have done the mother horn 5 seconds later they just there they disappear this terrible vision of these horrified faces as they slide down and then disappear and then three men are left and according to whimper they're almost

paralyzed they hardly move for for 30 minutes they just Stand there just trembling with [Music] shock you suddenly realize what can happen during a climb it gets into your bones and destroys your confidence wimper wrote that the talers were shaking and crying like young children that's absolute normal that is absolutely normal it was a total shock to shock according to Young taler whimper was shaking too an Englishman Can also be shaking they were completely flabbergasted there is only one thing you can do remain calm [Music] when the Buddies of cor Hudson and heto were found

on a glacia at the bottom they were still connected by the club rope the body of Lord Douglas was never found they were the first of 600 victims who have been claimed by The Matterhorn since 1865 So we here are here on the bottom of the North Face and we are more or less in the direct line from the top and so theel Town 1,000 M the whole North Face and in the end you see this overhanging part here in the end was some 100 met free fall and they just uh landed here [Music] what

I'm most struck by is the sheer grizzl of what is found here that's what keeps going around and round and around in my mind they did not discover whole Bodies it was very much body Parts people were being identified by uh shirt or trer or belt and so remains came pouring off this lip really splattered on the snow it is truly a ghastly end to what was so nearly a quite remarkable [Music] achievement it remains unclear exactly how the survivors managed to descend the three climbers had to overcome their shock the next 300 M took

7 hours the night was spent on the rock Face at a height of 4,100 M and without blankets whimper later wrote that he was fearing for his life talda Jr would state that throughout the night not a single word was spoken [Music] the next day the three survivors reached samat they had no idea what lay ahead to begin with there was a great welcome in the village they'd been the first to climb the matter horn then the accident was discussed who was to blame Who had made mistakes all kinds of accusations were made especially by

whimper against father taler soon a fierce argument erupted over what had happened on the mountain it was an unequal contest wimper was a professional writer Tov valder was probably illiterate the publicity is not the accident attracted huge public attention several Englishmen had died Douglas was a Lord the queen commented that mountaineering should be banned such Noble blood shouldn't be wasted on the mountains the pictures of the mat horn tragedy went around the world the asent of the matter horn really marks the end of what we like to call the Golden Age of Alpine mountaineering up

till that point there hadn't been many accidents and then suddenly there was this terrible shocking horrific accident which Suddenly appalled the British public that it was felt necessary to get it out in the open and to prove there had been no foul play that there was no conspiracy in a samat hotel a court of inquiry was set up a week after the event Mr wimo please it consisted of layman a hotelier acted as judge there's about 300 ft from the summit came whimper began his account with the departure from camp at 3:40 in The morning

up until the ridge The Climb was easy once they were above 4,000 M the guide Michelle C attached the Rope he then took over the lead at 1:40 p.m. the team reached the summit they stayed for an hour the atmosphere was [Music] positive for The Descent the team chose the same route as the one followed on the way Up all seven climbers were connected by rope wimper added that the Rope between Lord Douglas and father taler was thinner than the rest of the Rope Mr had experienced considerable difficulty coming down Mr Crow had helped by

planting his feet in a rock hold he then went to turn to go down himself where Mr hadow slipped Mr had fall also took down Mr Crow now this double weight also dragged down Mr Hudson and after him Lord Douglas the few instants that this lasted afforded sufficient time for the three at the rear to plant themselves firmly so firmly indeed that the Rope broke between Lord Douglas and T valder father [Laughter] [Music] py there were no further questions and wimper was dismissed Peter Tov valder was in a more difficult position as Mountain guide he

had been Responsible for the [Music] climbers if someone allows a death to occur by not paying attention to the professional rules or out of carelessness he could be convicted of culpable homicide according to the laws of the valet Canton at the time this would have carried a penalty of two years in prison or a [Music] fine Peter to valder stated that before Their departure he had insisted that two guides were not enough for a group of this size but wimper and hatson insisted that their status was equal to that of a guide after that taler

remained silent glad you join the Rope had always been attached by cor the other guide core had begun The Descent with had Hudson and Lord Douglas K strong spare rope was never Used according to taler wimper and taler Jr lingered at the top whereas he decided to follow the leading team before before reaching the accident Zone he connected to Douglas he used The Sinner sash cord for this because Lord Douglas's Club rope wasn't long enough to make a connection according to T valder the sesh cord had been considered sufficiently strong otherwise he would have rejected

it before the Ascent oh good yes it's good onwards then about 100 M below the peak hadow slipped oh to stand firm talda turned towards the rock face because the Rope behind him wasn't taught he quickly wrapped it around a rock a lifesaving anchor pet Peter taler had an answer for everything he said that there were several very fit climbers in the team who had experienced Similar situations but the Rope between Peter taler and Lord Douglas had been thin so why did this guide use it he defended himself by saying that the front rope was

too short to make a connection and the thin sash cord was standard at the time he had only recently used it in the mountains these were pioneering times people were still UNC which ropes were appropriate you also have to know that The tourists brought their own ropes the English knew about ropes because of their Maritime tradition that's why they brought their own ropes and that's why you couldn't accuse the Guides of using the wrong ones tval was convinced that if the Rope between him and Lord Douglas hadn't snapped he together with Crow could have saved

the climbers father believing that the Rope Wouldn't break well that's impossible we did tests during our training courses as guides the force of falling climbers is huge I think what he meant with his statement is that Crow would have held them from below and he from above but Crow also fell he couldn't do anything The Village considered talda a hero thanks to his quick response three lives have been saved I believe that Peter taler had been alert enough to turn around and check Where to Anchor the Rope a mountain guide will do this automatically you

are constantly alert looking for an anchor point should someone slip someone of Tal's caliber would have done this he was ready to react but there were also critics and grudges in the village some people claimed that the locals always believed in ters innocence But there were other voices too it wasn't easy for talda don't forget the priest was against mountaining four people were dead didn't we always tell you that this is dangerous you should stop the climbing and focus on agriculture to be content that's how the mood gradually turned [Music] against it may explain why

T valder Pack Paddle during a second round of questioning falling in line with wimper [Music] statements during a second session the court wanted to know why there were discrepancies between wimers and Tal's statements the main issue was who fell first and who was dragged down next an underlying question remained could disaster have been avoided if taler and C had held the others according to taler this had been impossible he had managed To wrap the Rope around a rock and anchor it but after that the Rope broke the one thing that both Witnesses agreed upon during

the inquiry was that the Rope had broken and wimper also agreed on another point the key role played by Douglas hadow they claimed that he had been a complete novice in the mountains the court agreed and ruled that the disaster had been a tragic accident caused by had slip on the mountain To say it's his fault he ludicrous I mean he was invited on this climb and if you invite someone to climb you're responsible for them any one of them could have slipped anyone can slip on a mountain you don't have to be inexperienced to

make a mistake everyone can make a mistake um you you could say that if someone was to blame it conceivably could have been Hudson that he wasn't keeping the Rope tight it could be that Michelle Crow who was Helping helping him down uh lost his concentration for a moment and that's why had knocked him over uh you can't blame an individual for an accident an accident is is is is called caused by a Multiplicity of the fact pen hedo Douglas H's great grand nephew never fully accepted the conclusions of the local Court of inquiry in

samat he continues his search for Clues together with Benedict parin a descendant of the Talers in the Mator Museum the rope that broke from 1865 is on display there's also a copy of the club rope with the red signature thread the original Club rope used during the accident is missing and there are small items like Hudson's prayer book and the hat and Rosary of Michelle Crow there are shoes belonging to Lord Douglas and particularly telling those worn by Douglas Hado What's very interesting about this boot is if you look to this boot you see the

nails below you know on the so yeah and the one from H you see there are almost no nail yeah completely different kind of boot you know one is a real mountaineering boot where you can tie and you have nails on the S and the other one is more or less a boot to to go to the church on Sunday morning you know so you can imagine to climb on ice with a wood like that it's almost Impossible I mean uh it's sort of insane to use the modern parin it's it's unbelievable I think it's

happened because they were in a hurry you know whimper had to move the Italians were already on the way off yeah and that's why they didn't check the equipment you know that's the point isn't it that's the point cuz someone might have said really these shoes you're standing on a bar of soap that's what you're doing on Ice what do you think is going to [Music] happen but not everybody believed in a tragic accident new Clues and new theories have kept the story alive but then the problem is once something gets in the public domain

the Press gets hold of it and the Press isn't satisfied with that kind of bland answer they want they want something more exciting so people start spreading these conspiracy theories and and rumors of of cut ropes And Foul Play which is makes so much better press [Music] rumors about the disaster spread as far as Austria only weeks after the accident the vienes paper NOA frer Pressa reported a new and Sensational Theory which focused on the rope that broke and on Edward whimper the newspaper wrote then as taler was losing his strength the Rope broke or

did a knife brought into play Behind Tal back Cut the Rope it may be that the cut was a mere amputation severing what had already been earmarked for death and saving those who were still standing yet this was a dreadful act trying to justify it for your own conscience must drive you to Insanity wimper arrived in the town of inacan people who knew him described him as deeply Disturbed and mentally unhinged if it's true that the Rope had Been cut we are dealing with homicide the ACT would have been deliberate in the valet legal code

there were two Provisions for this one was murder which is the same as intentional homicide the other one is treacherous murder which means that the Act was premeditated the these were serious offenses resulting in lifelong imprisonment or even the death penalty so did the Rope break or was it cut Professor Paul Smith investigates the original at the Mator Museum in Samat Smith is a material science expert at zurich's Institute of Technology [Music] you can see clearly how the Rope was cut over here you can tell at different sections it's clear that this rope was cut

end the end of these microfibers is vertical and that's only possible if it was cut with a knife you can tell from the way it was cut for me this is absolutely [Music] clear so who might have Cut the Rope it is my interpretation that wimper is hardly a candidate in the inquiry tala stated that wimper was standing much further up the mountain and that he had a much better view this makes it unlikely from my point of view that wimper charged down the slope to cut the rope especially given the speed at which everything

happened would have required him to pull out the knife it all sounds Unrealistic then there was T valal Jr according to his father he was behind whimper and couldn't see anything if at all it would have been cut by tal Senor who perhaps might have wrapped the Rope around a rock hanging onto it then realizing how he was being pulled down four people dangling below him the situation getting critical everyone in danger of falling so at this stage he might have Cut the Rope with a knife that would have been the most Realistic scenario yet

the samat mountain guides are absolutely sure that Peter talda didn't cut the rope with a knife even Professor Smith's disc discovery that the rope in the museum was cut won't shake their [Music] conviction what you are saying is total nonsense it's impossible even before the accident somebody must have been ready waiting with his open pen Knife you have no idea how fast such accidents occur you can tell from Peter Tal's injuries caused by the Rope cutting into his hands here was no opportunity for him to open his pen knife and cut the rope 3 to

4 M below him indeed the cut rope in the museum has only limited evidential value it's impossible to prove that this particular cut was made during the disaster according to wimper he confiscated the Disaster rope immediately after the accident in England he had it photographed how the Rope returned to samat and ended up in the museum remains unclear everyone loves the story of a cut rope but looking at it analytically and rationally four men have got their weight dangling on the Rope this piece of what's little more than and sash cord this thin thin line

I've seen it in the museum I mean you'd hardly trust that to Pull up a window let alone to hold four people falling off a mountain perhaps the answer is quite simple the Rope was so weak it had to break to find out the strength of an exact replica of the disaster rope is tested an expert feeds it into a rope testing apparatus the Rope is [Music] stretched it breaks under a weight of 300 kg 660 lb In a drop test the rope breaks when an object weighing 85 kg 187b drops a mere 20 cm

or 8 in it proves that the thin sash cord connecting T valder and Douglas during The Descent were so weak that it had to break during the accident the alleged cut never happened even the special Club robe four times as strong as the sash cord might have broken given the force of the falling buddies yet rumors about the Cutting of the Rope wouldn't go away casting a shadow over the survivors like T valder wimper had his detractors especially in the ranks of the British Alpine Club over the years many of its ambitious members had been

beaten by wimper in the mountains you you could imagine how eventually stung by these rumors and criticisms and suggestions that that perhaps he even Cut the Rope wimper would start to feel well actually Perhaps it's time I spoke my mind about the tals I I wasn't very impressed by them and so finally Five Years on he's preparing his book scrambles in the Alps and sudden he starts to slip in these criticisms about the tag valders wimper published his account of the matter horn six years after the disaster he accused taler senior of deliberately picking a

thin rope alleging that taler wanted to protect himself should the weaker climbers in front of him Fall wimper wrote there Remains the suspicious fact that the Rope which broke was the thinnest and the weakest one that we had it is suspicious because it's unlikely that any of the four men in front would have selected an old and wheat rope when there was an abundance of new and much stronger to spare and if on the other hand T valder thought that an accident was likely to happen it was to his interest to have the weaker rope

where it was Placed this is true nastiness by wimper an absolutely unfair accusation he totally destroyed Tal's reputation with this it is an insinuation I can't imagine it even crossed Tal's mind let's pick a thin rope so it snaps if I can't hold the guests the falling out between wimper and the to valers must have occurred in the dramatic hours after the disaster h Dark wimper accused them of losing their composure followed by cruel insensitivity we only know of the reaction to the fall through whimper we have wher's word for it we don't know if

it's true but according to him the the two guides were were in a state of terrible shock they were panicking not only that he says they they then started saying well what's going to happen to us are we going to be paid CU our pay masters are Now dead uh which is a pretty shocking thing to say about someone and So eventually they pull themselves together and if I remember rightly I think at one stage whimper actually goes ahead unroped down the mountain and the other two follow him and in a state of huge shock

they make their way back down the hearley Ridge and eventually it gets dark and they realize they're not going to get back to their campsite so so they just stop on a Small ledge and spend a night shivering on this ledge before continuing in the morning wimper claimed that at dusk the T Valas urged him to continue The Descent in the Moonlight later that they urged him to lie down according to wimper this was done in such a menacing way that he feared for his life [Music] they were traumatized and whimper may have felt that

because the others were dead he was next perhaps he talked Himself into this but I don't believe that talda senior or Junior wanted to harm him if this is what they had wanted they could have done this on aund occasions wimper accusations had a traumatic effect on talda sior he was already stricken following the death of his wife prior to the accident two years after the disaster his second son Joseph had drowned in the schwartzi a local Lake he had few clients his reputation was damaged it's always tough for a Mountain guide if there's been

an accident it's the same today it's not something you ever want to experience [Music] some superstitious villagers had started to talk of the Revenge of the matorn but what hit T valder the most was wimper statement that the old man was mentally confused and no longer fit to be a [Music] guide it was slander against Peter talda As a result he had no longer guests and was unable to work as a guide it weighed heavily on him financially and psychologically in reality Peter talda had used a thin sash court because no other rope was available

when he connected to Lord Douglas the second thick rope was in the backpack of Michelle [Music] Crow yet until recently it was never fully explained why Peter taler chose to Cord instead of the new and much stronger rope of the Alpine Club the rope with the red signature [Music] thread but there is a new lead at the world famous bodl library in Oxford pen Hado has discovered letters and a book from 1965 about the tragic first Ascent of the Matterhorn written by Sir Arnold Lun the father of Alpine skiing and a member of The Alpine

Club the author believes the Rope was cut by whimper not on the way down but on the way up a completely new hypothesis backed up by other Alpine club members actually the Rope was cut what a horrid fellow he was and so perhaps it is right to let the cut rope story see the light of day under scrutiny is the moment when the peak first came into [Music] sight crows and wimper were so excited that they detached themselves from the Rope actually if you're moving up a mountain to get that knot loose and then to

slip out of it and then overtake someone is actually quite difficult wimper reportedly confessed to a famous novelist just how he detached himself wimper after a good dinner remarked to Mason thinking it over I believe that I Did Cut the Rope behind me so that I could more easily race crows to the top [Music] wimper was the one who cut the rope on the way up because he wanted to be the first at the peak he cut himself out of the team's rope and ran off to feed his [Music] ego that's why taler was so

angry about the accusation that he had deliberately chosen a thin rope he picked the only rope that was available in retrospect he Was too weak but at that moment he had no other option after whimpers reported cut on the way up the strong Club rope consisted of two pieces one piece was used by the for in front the other by those catching up because not enough strong Club rope was left to connect the two groups taler had to use the thin sash cour instead wimper makes explicit statements that uh imply that his guides had somehow

caused the accident by Ineptitude or Worse deliberately Pi picking a weak rope so that they were protecting themselves if there was an accident they'd be all right and now we discover that it was wimper that cut the rope on the way up so that he could be first if you think about it it's outrageous denying any responsibility for the accident wimper never wrote about cutting the Rope on the way up instead he accused T valder of malice by choosing the thin rope when he writes a Bestselling uh book that is read around the world that

promotes him as the great leader and Mountaineer it's frankly shoddy at best from a leader who survives and gets to tell the story his way until the end of his life tala's reputation was marred by wimper accusations when asked about them he sometimes lost control he never got over wimper Accusations he was a broken man he immigrated to America he stayed a few years to get some distance to the matter horn he then returned to zamat and took a share in the construction of the local [Music] Peter taler died at the age of [Music] 68

but the curse of the matter Horn's tragic first Ascent also weigh heavily on wimper his books provided him with financial Independence but he was denied the social elevation he so [Music] desired in September 1911 whimper suffered a stroke in the Grand Hotel cout in shamoni at the age of 71 he died a lonely man I believe the disaster at the matorn left a mark on him for the rest of his life there was a certain sadness about all his stays in shamoni he died alone just as he had been alone for most of His life

he had no real friendships after the matorn a man who died embittered and all alone in his room [Music] whimpers funeral was attended by many people from sham and its surrounding area the mountain guides walk next to the hearse to pay this great Mountaineer their last respects even today the name whimper is considered a big mountaineering name in Shamoni when news of wimper death reached samat many locals commented that the mat horn had finally got its revenge but officially the people of tamat celebrated wimper as a Great British hero after all nobody wanted to scare

off the English guests nor stifle the fledgling tourism in the region outside the hotel monter Roa a plaque Comm Ates his success you're right and um aha here we are So Mr wimper the to valers get no [Music] mention Wim wimper was a blessing for the village the disaster attracted huge newspaper interest especially in England people flocked to samat they wanted to see the mountain and the spot where disaster had struck it was the starting point for tourism in the region zamat became the big winner of the tragedy from 1865 to descendants Alex pin on

the right and Ur talda have always been disappointed that samat mainly celebrated wimper as the one who made the first Ascent eventually 90 years after the tragedy a plaque was attached to to the Tal's home commemorating their achievement as companions of Edward Wimber the English were always the Pioneers but it's still not correct what happened even today when people ask who first scaled the matorn the answer is Whimper nobody talks about the T valers it hurts the people of tat could have said that women was successful together with the tag Wilders it wouldn't have resulted

in less or more English tourists and nobody would have felt insulted there were also other examples though much later take sir Hillary who climbed Mount Everest with Shera tensing and who remained a great friend and supporter of the region The example shows that other kinds of relationships were also possible the last survivor of the catastrophe pet toal Jr continued his career as Mountain guide he would receive his guests usually foreign Mountaineers in front of the hotel monosa destination maton when gazing at the hotel on the schwat Lake his father's words might have been ringing in

his ears what a Pity that wimper survived and not the Friendly Lord Douglas the locals gave T valder Jr the epithet maton Peter he went his own way he had many guests and became a highly renowned Mountain guide he climbed the matorn 125 times in his old age Peter junor retreated further down the valley away from the matorn away from too many questions he lived out his final years in this simple Hut surrounded by his numerous children and [Music] grandchildren in March 1923 he died of natural causes aged 80 it took a long time for

the T valers to be rehabilitated the delay was partly their own [Music] doing as a young boy I often visited my grandmother in Viet where they lived no word was ever spoken about the first Ascent or about mountaineering my uncle was also a Mountain guide and yet it was never mentioned why I don't know it remains a Myst even today 150 years after the first Ascent the matter horn is a magnet for Mountaineers from around the world the accident hased you over at the end of his investigation Pano decides to visit the spot where his

great grand Uncle fell to his death together with the experienced guide benedic parin he's looking for Clarity had slipped you know and then Peter taler was at that moment he was in this position here yeah and he was able to put the Rope around this block here like that he could stop the fall yeah and this block could would hold the load but not the Rope I think it's it's really powerful for me because um it's obvious that this is The Rock and it's important to me to really do the micro detail of these last

few moments and it's it's it's the only one around Here were one step away from where the slip that caused the fatal accident happened first crows then had then Hudson and then Lord Douglas go down this line and then they're gone tug wer he hears the shout from crows ah there's a he looks up maybe sees a limb going grabs the roope down like this oh he's full down like this and they've gone that's it this fast [Music] they were all out of their comfort zone out of their experience zone of course they were doing

their best or they knew they were going to die they did their best and it wasn't good enough and that's that's life and that's death uh in the mountains one question remains it's the same question posed 150 years ago is it worth risking your life for a mountain peak it's time for panad to visit his Ancestor's grave for the very first time [Music] well Douglas we meet at last you've waited 150 years for this much of what I've done in my life has been inspired by by you and what you did your ambition and your

drive and indeed your achievements inspired me throughout my Life thank [Music] you was it an accident Foul Play or murder even the latest Clues can't fully answer this question only the mountain knows the answer and the mountain remains silent [Music] [Music]