Edmund Hillary

Edmund Hillary married Louise Mary Rose in 1953 soon after the ascent of Everest. The couple had three children. His wife and youngest daughter were unfortunately killed in a plane crash in 1975.

Years later, he married June Mulgrew, the widow of his close friend Peter Mulgrew.

Hillary died of heart failure on 11 January 2008, aged 88. A state funeral was held for him on 22 January.

Edmund Hillary was born on 20 July 1919 to Percival Augustus Hillary and Gertrude Hillary in Auckland, New Zealand. His father was a beekeeper.

He received his primary education from Tuakau Primary School and Auckland Grammar School. As a young boy he was very shy and loved to read books.

He developed an interest in mountaineering as a teenager when he went on a school trip to Mount Ruapehu. On this trip he realized that he was physically stronger than many of his tramping companions and also learned that he had great endurance.

He studied mathematics and science at the Auckland University College while actively pursuing his interest in mountaineering. He completed his first major climb in 1939 by scaling the summit of Mount Ollivier in the Southern Alps.

After completing his education he became a beekeeper like his father. The World War II broke out in 1939. Initially Hillary chose not to serve in the war because of his pacifist beliefs, but eventually he joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force and served for a while.

He resumed mountain climbing once the war was over. He joined Harry Ayres and Mick Sullivan on their expedition to Mount Cook, New Zealand’s highest peak, and reached the peak on 30 January 1948. This achievement earned him considerable national fame.

He joined a New Zealand party to the central Himalayas in 1951. By now he had set his eyes on the world’s highest peak, Mount Everest and participated in a British reconnaissance expedition of the southern flank of Everest led by Eric Shipton. Even though the expedition was not successful in scaling Mount Everest, it gave Hillary valuable experience in traversing the inhospitable terrains.

In 1952, he was invited by the Joint Himalayan Committee for the approved British 1953 attempt which he excitedly accepted. John Hunt was named the leader for this expedition. Hillary was teamed up with Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay for the assault.

The Hunt expedition consisted of over 400 people including 362 porters and 20 Sherpa guides, and 10,000 lbs of baggage. They set up base camp in March 1953 and made their way up over the next few months before finally setting up their final camp at the South Col.

Edmund Hillary, along with Tenzing Norgay, created history on 29 May 1953 when they successfully reached the summit of Mount Everest as part of the ninth British expedition to Everest. Several other mountaineers had attempted the feat in the previous years without any success, and their feat of scaling the hitherto insurmountable peak made them international heroes.