Everest is a bit of a monster. Even today, with high-tech gear and GPS, people die on those slopes every single year. But back in 1953? It was basically a suicide mission on paper. If you’re asking who is the first person to climb Mount Everest, you probably know the names Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. They’re the legends. But the story isn't just a simple "they walked up and came back down." It was a massive, clunky, military-style operation that almost failed a dozen times before they ever smelled the thin air of the summit.
They stepped onto the top of the world at 11:30 AM on May 29, 1953.
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Hillary was a lanky beekeeper from New Zealand. Tenzing was a Sherpa who had already been higher on the mountain than almost any human alive. They weren't even the first choice for the summit push. That’s the part people forget. They were the second string. The first pair, Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, actually got within 300 feet of the top but had to turn back because their oxygen equipment failed. Imagine being that close—three hundred feet—and having to walk away.
The Logistics of Becoming the First Person to Climb Mount Everest
We’re talking about a different era of mountaineering. No North Face puffer jackets or lightweight carbon fiber poles. The 1953 British Expedition, led by Colonel John Hunt, was a behemoth. It involved over 350 porters, 20 Sherpas, and literal tons of gear. It wasn't a "climb" in the modern sense; it was a siege.
They had to find a way through the Khumbu Icefall. If you’ve seen pictures of it, it looks like a giant's graveyard of shifting ice blocks. It’s terrifying. Hillary and Tenzing spent weeks working with the team to ferry loads up to higher camps. The physical toll was insane. You lose your appetite. Your blood thickens. Your brain starts to fog up from the lack of oxygen. Honestly, it’s a miracle they could tie their boots, let alone navigate a knife-edge ridge.
When Evans and Bourdillon failed, Hunt turned to Hillary and Norgay. They were a powerhouse duo. Hillary had the brute strength and the technical experience from the Southern Alps in New Zealand. Tenzing had the soul of the mountain and a decade of experience on Everest's ridges. They spent a miserable night at Camp IX, perched on a level patch of snow barely wide enough for their tent, at 27,900 feet. They woke up to find Hillary's boots had frozen solid. He had to spend two hours thawing them over a small stove.
Think about that. If he hadn't been patient, or if the stove had died, the answer to who is the first person to climb Mount Everest might be someone else entirely, or perhaps no one at all for another decade.
The Hillary Step and the Final Push
The most famous part of the climb is the "Hillary Step." It was a 40-foot rock face near the summit. Nowadays, it's often crowded with a "queue" of climbers, but in 1953, it was a terrifying unknown. Hillary jammed his body into a crack between the rock and the ice and wiggled his way up. Tenzing followed. Once they were over that, it was just a long, snowy slog to the highest point on Earth.
When they got there, they didn't give a big speech. They shook hands. Tenzing gave Hillary a hug. Hillary took the famous photo of Tenzing waving his ice axe with the flags of the United Nations, Britain, Nepal, and India. Interestingly, there is no photo of Hillary at the summit. Tenzing didn't know how to use the camera, and Hillary didn't think it was important to teach him right then and there. He just wanted to get down alive.
The Mallory Mystery: Was Someone There First?
We can't talk about the first ascent without mentioning George Mallory and Andrew "Sandy" Irvine. In 1924, they disappeared into the clouds near the summit. For decades, people have wondered: did they make it?
When Conrad Anker found Mallory's body in 1999, it reignited the debate. Mallory’s goggles were in his pocket, suggesting he might have been descending in the dark. He had promised his wife he’d leave her photo on the summit, and that photo wasn't on his body. But there’s no proof. Without a camera or a GPS log, the history books stick with Hillary and Tenzing. They were the ones who came back. In mountaineering, the summit only counts if you survive the return trip.
Why the 1953 Ascent Still Matters
It wasn't just a sports achievement. It was a massive geopolitical moment. News reached London on the morning of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation. It felt like the start of a new era. But for the people involved, it was deeply personal. Tenzing Norgay became a hero across Asia, a symbol of post-colonial pride. Hillary used his fame to build schools and hospitals in the Everest region through the Himalayan Trust.
Most people just want the trivia answer. They want the name for a crossword puzzle. But the real story is about two guys from totally different worlds—a New Zealand beekeeper and a Tibetan-born Sherpa—who trusted each other enough to walk into the "Death Zone" and back.
It changed the way we look at the planet. Suddenly, the highest point wasn't impossible anymore. It was just very, very hard.
Actionable Insights for History and Trekking Buffs
If you're fascinated by the history of the first Everest climb, don't just stop at a Wikipedia page. Here is how you can actually engage with this history:
- Read "High Adventure" by Edmund Hillary: It's his first-hand account. He's surprisingly humble and writes about the "terrible" parts of the climb with a lot of dry humor.
- Visit the Himalayan Trust: If you want to see the legacy of the 1953 climb, look at the work being done for the Sherpa communities. It's the most meaningful part of the whole story.
- Check out the 1953 film "The Conquest of Everest": It uses actual footage from the expedition. Seeing the wool sweaters and primitive oxygen masks makes you realize how crazy they actually were to try it.
- Understand the "Who was first?" controversy: For years, people argued over which of the two stepped onto the summit first. Hillary and Tenzing eventually agreed to say they reached it "together." It’s a great lesson in shared success versus individual ego.
The mountain is different now. It's commercialized. There are ladders and fixed ropes. But the wind at the top is the same. The lack of oxygen is the same. The story of who is the first person to climb Mount Everest remains the definitive tale of human endurance because, back then, they didn't know if it was even biologically possible to survive at 29,032 feet. They went anyway.