| The
birth of tourism…and mountain guiding. In
the 18th century, before the birth of tourism, the “Chamouny”
valley was far from being self-sufficient. Life here was hard and farming
difficult due to the particularly harsh winters. So the Chamoniards
left their valley for the season to find work in Paris or even in Switzerland
and Germany. On their return in the summer, they were revitalised and
full of new ideas. |
| It was not until the middle of the century (1741) that tourism was born. Two Englishmen named Windham and Pococke came to “visit the glaciers”. Curious to find out more, they wanted to go higher and walk on the glaciers, notably the glacier now known as the “Mer de Glace”. The first mountaineers were local hunters, crystal gatherers and men hardened by their work in the mountains (cutting wood, making hay …). In awe of the “spectacle” of the mountains, the visitors wrote a praise worthy description of their “voyage to the glaciers” making it a “must” for curious adventurers of the epoch. |  |
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The “grand
classics” of the epoch were the journey up to the Mer de Glace and
the ascent of the Brevent. It was from this peak that Horace Bénédict
de Saussure, the learned Genevois, calculated that Mont-Blanc must be
the highest point in Europe. In order to verify his calculations using
the air pressure on the summit of Mont-Blanc, he offered a reward to the
first person who could find a way up. It was on the 8th August 1786 at 6.23pm, 14 hours after leaving their bivouac on the ‘montagne de la Côte’ that the Doctor G Paccard and the crystal hunter J Balmat, both from Chamonix, reached the summit of Mont-Blanc. The following year, with Mont-Blanc in his sight, Jacques Balmat headed up a team of 17 mountain guides whose mission was to take Mr de Saussure to the summit. |
From
then onwards, a voyage to the glaciers and mountaineering became all
the rage with more and more tourists coming to Chamonix. The valley
“at the end of the world” began to organise itself in order
to satisfy the growing number of visitors. The first alpine mountain hut, made from planks of wood and dry stone, was the “hospice de Blair” built at Montenvers in 1779. It quickly became dilapidated and was replaced in 1795 by the “Temple de la Nature” a solid construction (now a small museum). |
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| In the summer of
1820 (34 years after the first ascent) with only eight ascents of Mont-Blanc
to date, a new caravan was put together by Dr Hamel (advisor to the Russian
Emperor) accompanied by two English tourists. They left for the summit
with 12 mountain guides. After two nights of waiting at Les Grands Mulets
for good weather, the group (now only 10 guides, as two guides descended
with a traveller who had decided to go no further) continued their ascent
under the insistence of Dr Hamel. On reaching the “Rochers Rouges” disaster struck when a wind plate became detached and swept away the five guides at the head of the group. Three of them did not escape alive. Back in Chamonix the mood was of consternation; the king of Sardinia gave a special allowance to the victims’ families. For the local authorities this was a deciding element for they now decided to define the notion of ‘leader’ (decision maker) in a caravan; as well as that of guide (or who could become a guide). |
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The
birth of la Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix. |
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Two types of courses were defined: straight forward courses, and more difficult or extraordinary courses such as : - The summit of Mont-Blanc - The jardin de Talèfre - Going onto the glaciers (except those which descended into the valley unless the client wished to go higher than the tree line) - On the glaciers of Buet The ordinary courses were all those not listed on the difficult list ! The list of tarifs was referenced along with the minimum number of guides required. At the time, the ascent of Mont-Blanc cost clients £40 per guide - four guides were necessary per client (plus a minimum of porters to carry the food and equipment).. |
 Guide with his client on the Mer de Glace around 1900. |
The
guide company saw its numbers increase until it reached 320 members
in 1868 (not all were guides; around 150 were mule owners/drivers,
a job which disappeared after the Montenvers train came into service
in 1908). Many “pirate” guides took clients up to Montenvers
to do the traverse of the Mer de Glace, with only a few undertaking
true mountaineering courses. The two grand summits for clients were
Mont-Blanc and the Aiguille du Midi via the Vallée Blanche.
In 1860, the Savoy region became part of France once again. To mark the occasion, Napoleon III visited Chamonix but finding chaotic access routes he decided to provide funds to construct a proper road from Sallanches to Chamonix. |
| This
was also the epoch of the golden age of alpinism. All the grand summits
were being attempted and conquered: the Grands Jorasses, the Aiguille
Verte, the Matterhorn…It was on the famous Matterhorn that Michel
Croz, head guide at the Chamonix guide company, was killed. |
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| Around
1880, the first technically challenging rock climbs were being achieved.
Jean Esteril Straton opened up the Petit Dru (the mountain emblem on
the guide company medal). During his descent he invented the technique
of abseiling. |
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At the beginning of the 20th century, it was Joseph Ravanel (nicknamed “Ravanel le rouge” because of his red hair) who chalked up some of the great technical firsts (Aiguille du Fou, le Peigne, the Dent du Crocodile, Caiman…). |
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 Michéle Croz |
 Jean Esteril Charlet Straton |
 Ravanel "le Rouge" |
| The year 1908
saw the opening of the train line to the Mer de Glace. The line stopped
at Caillet and only reached Montenvers the following year. For the Chamonix guide company this was an important change as it marked the end of the guide/mule drivers and the beginning of easier access to the higher altitudes (The Mer de Glace was practically at the level of Montenvers). There were slightly less than 200 members in the company. |
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At the beginning
of the 20th century, the ascent of a summit no longer sufficed (the best
having already been conquered). It was now fashionable to do specific
routes and more technical climbs. The use of crampons, which had been
around from the beginning, was forgotten for almost a hundred years and
replaced by studded shoes. Their return was gradual. In the 1930s, Armand Charlet, often accompanied by Camille Devouassoux, achieved many great firsts, including La Verte. An expert ice climber, he was the main member of the guide company as well as the French National Guide Association, being a founding member and its first president. Just after the Second World War, the conception of a national guide diploma resulted in the creation of the national ski and alpinism school (ENSA), of which Armand was one of its main directors. |
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1924:
The first ever “Fête des guides”. The idea of the
guide festival was for clients to offer a day of rest, in the valley,
for the guides. In 1924, the guide company counted 182 members. La fête des guides et la Caisse de Secours. |
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In
1930 Roger Frison Roche joined the Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix.
Many believed that he was the first “foreigner” (i.e. born
outside the valley) to be accepted into the structure but outsiders
had been accepted since 1882 when Fritz Schuler a German born in Bonneville
joined its ranks. This trend continued with other mountaineering outsiders
showing their attachment to the valley and the guide company; among
them: Edouard Frendo, Gaston Rébuffat, Lionel Terray, Louis Lachenal
and Christophe Profit… |
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An
important year for the guides was 1958 as this was when the mountain
rescue service became nationalised. From that date onwards, the State,
via its specialised rescue squads, took on the responsibility of rescuing
mountaineers in distress. Up until then it had fallen upon the mountain
guides to undertake this task, in spite of the fact that they needed
to work to earn their living. |
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In 1976 a new State diploma was created: the trekking
guide diploma. At the end of the 1970s, the guide company altered its
statutes to integrate trekking guides into its ranks.
The
Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix has never ceased to be a motor in alpinism
and local life. Keeping the balance between being a modern and innovative
structure while respecting its traditions and history is the task the
guide company strives to maintain. |
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 Medal for the Guides de la Compagnie |
 Photos traditionnelle chaque 15 Août. |
 Medal for the Accompagnateurs de la Compagnie |
A
bientôt ... |