History of Kilimanjaro
Although artefacts dating back to about 1000BC have been found on the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro, little is known about its early inhabitants, and early records rely on brief references in the notes of Western travellers and cartographers which mentioned ‘the great snow mountain’, and even the Middle Eastern and Chinese merchants who traded in East Africa appeared to stick firmly to the coastal region.
It was not until 1848 that a European first set eyes on Kilimanjaro; Johannes Rebmann was a missionary based in Mombasa and on his travels to Chagga came across an amazing sight- ‘something remarkably white on top of a high mountain’. Redmann’s accounts of Kilimanjaro caused a sensation, and a very sceptical response from academics lead by William Desborough, one of Britain’s foremost geographers, who dismissed the claims out of hand. ‘The Snow Debate’ continued for a decade or so, and it was not until 1862, when Baron Carl von der Decken visited Kilimanjaro and trekked to over 4000m up its slopes, that the Royal Geographic Society finally accepted that the mountain close to the equator was snow capped. Charles New, another missionary, made two summit attempts in 1871, but failed and died shortly afterwards having been attacked by locals, and for 10 years it all went quiet with no further expeditions. The British and Germans both had colonial ambitions in the region, and at a meeting in 1886 both sides agreed the border between British controlled Kenya and German controlled East Africa, which incorporated Kilimanjaro.
In 1887 Count Samuel Teleki made a serious Kilimanjaro summit bid, before ear problems forced him down. Then, on his third attempt, a German geology professor, Dr Hans Mayer successfully made it to the summit having established a series of camps and supply points en route to ensure there was sufficient food available at the top, and was supported by an entourage of porters, expert climbers and cooks. He christened the unnamed peak – Kaiser Wilhelm’s Peak, and the difficulties of his ascent (as there was far more snow and ice at that time) are well described in book ‘Across East African Glaciers’. A full 25 years passed before the second successful summit climb (by M Lange – a surveyor in 1909) and the summit of Mawenzi was reached by climbers Oehler and Klute in 1912.
Tourism replaced exploration in the twentieth century, particularly with the construction of Kibo Hut in 1932, and trekkers began to visit Tanzania to make their own climbs to the summit of Africa’s highest mountain. This early trickle of tourists increased from a thousand or so in the late 1950’s to over 20,000 each year by 2000.
The mountain continues to inspire and challenge all who set eyes on it.
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It was not until 1848 that a European first set eyes on Kilimanjaro; Johannes Rebmann was a missionary based in Mombasa and on his travels to Chagga came across an amazing sight- ‘something remarkably white on top of a high mountain’. Redmann’s accounts of Kilimanjaro caused a sensation, and a very sceptical response from academics lead by William Desborough, one of Britain’s foremost geographers, who dismissed the claims out of hand. ‘The Snow Debate’ continued for a decade or so, and it was not until 1862, when Baron Carl von der Decken visited Kilimanjaro and trekked to over 4000m up its slopes, that the Royal Geographic Society finally accepted that the mountain close to the equator was snow capped. Charles New, another missionary, made two summit attempts in 1871, but failed and died shortly afterwards having been attacked by locals, and for 10 years it all went quiet with no further expeditions. The British and Germans both had colonial ambitions in the region, and at a meeting in 1886 both sides agreed the border between British controlled Kenya and German controlled East Africa, which incorporated Kilimanjaro.
In 1887 Count Samuel Teleki made a serious Kilimanjaro summit bid, before ear problems forced him down. Then, on his third attempt, a German geology professor, Dr Hans Mayer successfully made it to the summit having established a series of camps and supply points en route to ensure there was sufficient food available at the top, and was supported by an entourage of porters, expert climbers and cooks. He christened the unnamed peak – Kaiser Wilhelm’s Peak, and the difficulties of his ascent (as there was far more snow and ice at that time) are well described in book ‘Across East African Glaciers’. A full 25 years passed before the second successful summit climb (by M Lange – a surveyor in 1909) and the summit of Mawenzi was reached by climbers Oehler and Klute in 1912.
Tourism replaced exploration in the twentieth century, particularly with the construction of Kibo Hut in 1932, and trekkers began to visit Tanzania to make their own climbs to the summit of Africa’s highest mountain. This early trickle of tourists increased from a thousand or so in the late 1950’s to over 20,000 each year by 2000.
The mountain continues to inspire and challenge all who set eyes on it.
