Richard Hingston's Everest Diary

Hingston was the medical officer and naturalist on the 1924 British Everest expedition. He kept a meticulous diary in which he recorded, among a myriad of details, the hope for Mallory and Irvine's success on the group's last summit attempt. Over a few days' worth of entries, that hope turned to concern and finally to despair in the heart-wrenching entry of 10 June 1924 when Hingston wrote: 'There can be no doubt, the worst has happened. Not a sign of Mallory and Irvine. They must have slipped near the summit and fallen down the face of the mountain'.

Hingston's pencilled accounts of this emotional experience are profoundly moving. Despite the discomfort, fatigue and cold at high altitude and the limitations of their equipment, this diary survives as an enduring testament to a valiant team of mountaineers.

In memory of our friend and colleague, Professor Séamus ('Shay') Lawless, who lost his life on the descent from Mount Everest, 16 May 2019.