Himalayan Expedition 1951
MARCEL LIVET, KEY FIGURE IN THE CONQUEST OF THE HIMALAYAS
CONTEXT OF THE EXPEDITION
In the aftermath of the Second World War, as life returned to normal in France, the conquest of the Himalayas, which had begun in the 1930s, resumed with renewed vigour. Competition between European nations was fierce. Everest was reserved for the British until 1953, for diplomatic reasons and because of their long-standing commitment to conquering this summit.
France then set its sights on peaks over 8,000 metres high, which had never been climbed before. In 1950, the second French expedition to the Himalayas, led by Maurice Herzog, successfully climbed Annapurna, becoming the first nation to conquer a peak over 8,000 metres high.
The following year, in 1951, the third French expedition to the Himalayas organised by Marcel Livet was forced to abandon its plans due to diplomatic uncertainties. The borders of Tibet and Nepal remained closed to French mountaineers. The expedition reorganised itself and finally headed for the Garhwal Massif, accessible via India, and its main peak, Nanda Devi, which rises to an altitude of 7,820 metres.
Nanda Devi is unique in that it has two summits, connected by a ridge nearly 3 km long, both permanently above 7,000 m. Roger Duplat, the expedition leader, decided to apply a common alpine practice, which is to link two summits via the ridge connecting them.
THE ASSAULT ON THE NANDA DEVI CROSSING
On 23 April 1951, eight French mountaineers set off on their expedition to Nanda Devi, leaving France under the leadership of expedition leader Roger Duplat. It took the mountaineers nearly two months to reach the foot of Nanda Devi, after a very long journey across India, following maps that were sometimes inaccurate. The eight mountaineers were joined in India by eight Sherpas, who became true friends by the end of this extraordinary adventure. They were led by Sherpa Tensing, who two years later became the first man to climb Everest in 1953.
On 22 June 1951, Roger Duplat, approaching Nanda Devi, wrote to Jean Montel, Marcel Livet and Jean Guye, without whom the expedition would never have taken place: "The day before yesterday, normal departure from Barbezat. Return of a group of coolies to base camp. Yesterday, they refused to leave and there was a discussion. This morning, without explanation, they were all ready to go. Two Sherpas and 14 coolies arrived with supplies (from below), so there is nothing left behind except the mail. Tomorrow, early in the morning, I will set off at the head of the group (two days) and tackle Nanda. According to the notes received, morale at the front is excellent, and here it is even better. If the weather holds for a week, we've won. Best regards. Roger Duplat."
The assault on the traverse is planned via the main summit. Four camps are to be set up in preparation for the assault, the last of which will be at an altitude of around 7,200 metres. This will be the launch point for the rope team that will carry out the traverse. On the other side, on the eastern summit, another team has set up three camps, up to 7,000 metres, to receive the victorious climbers as they descend from the second summit.
THE TRAGIC ROPE BY ROGER DUPLAT AND GILBERT VIGNE
The days passed, and the weather grew increasingly severe. But there was still no sign of Roger Duplat and Gilbert Vignes. The group waiting for the rope team below the West Summit climbed to the summit of Nanda Devi East on 6 July, at an altitude of 7,434 metres, in terrible weather, in search of their comrades. But at the summit, they saw nothing. Tensing, the conqueror of Everest, would later say of this climb that it was the most difficult summit he had ever had to climb in his life. On 8 June, the team gathered at base camp, and a telegram was sent to announce the terrible news.
