Mallory Synopsis

This is a well researched historical fiction novel about George Mallory who may have been the first person to stand on the summit of Mt. Everest.

1916 - George Mallory has married Ruth Turner the most beautiful woman in the world. With an overwhelming need to prove he is worthy and show his devotion to his majestic wife, he volunteers to fight in the war.

During a battle in France, his leg is wounded and he is forced to use his rock climbing skills to escape capture by German soldiers. While recovering from surgery, he learns his long time friend and climbing partner, Geoffrey Young, has had his leg amputated from battle injuries. Knowing they will never climb together again, he struggles with separating his loss from his friend’s. George feels he has failed by not returning home as a hero and not proven his devotion to Ruth.

1921 – Sir James Mann Wordie lectures at the Alpine Club of London and recounts the hardships onboard the Endurance with Ernest Shackleton. After the presentation, Wordie offers Mallory a spot on an expedition to find a route to the top of Mt. Everest. George is enthralled at the thought of adding his name to the team of men that find the route to the top of the highest mountain in the world. This may satisfy his need to prove his worth for his beautiful wife.

June 1921 - Darjeeling India – Led by Howard Bury, the team followed by a train of coolies run into a minor setback when the expedition doctor dies from heart failure. While they buried Dr. Kellas next to the trail, Mallory sees the Chomolungma mountain range for the first time. He wrote in a letter to Ruth, “A whole group of mountains began to appear in gigantic fragments… peaks floating into the sky higher than imagination had ever suggested and there taller than all of them, Mt. Everest.”
Rongbuk Valley - George and his longtime friend Guy Bullock take 16 coolies and camp at 16,500 feet near a monastery, the last sign of civilization. He wrote to his wife, “We’re about to walk off the map. It’s beginning to get exciting.”

Wearing several layers of average wool street clothes, George and Guy scout the glacier for a route reaching an altitude of 23,000 feet. After a month of searching, no route could be found.

August 1921 – Mallory, Bullock and French Canadian Eric Wheeler along with three coolies reached the top of the North Col. The lack of oxygen and frigid temperatures take their tolls on the men. A continuous gale blows so hard it snatches their breath away. The turned up collars of their wool sport coats offer no relief from the frozen wind. George explains, “No man can live in this wind for more than an hour.” The expedition is over.

On the voyage back home, George kept to his cabin feeling like a failure. He recounts the route in his mind over and over until he realized they had inadequate resources.

Back home, as he watches his Ruth play with their beautiful children, he feels his failure at finding a route to the top of Everest somehow means he doesn’t deserve such a wonderful family. He explains to Ruth that he must accomplish something grand to earn the privilege of having her as his wife.

George spends the next year explaining to the Royal Geographic Society the expedition was inadequately resourced. Against George’s advice, the Society recommends bringing oxygen tanks on the next attempt.

April 1922- At a press conference days before the team is scheduled to leave a reporter asks George, “What do you hope to accomplish by climbing this mountain?”
George responds, "…it is no use. There is not the slightest prospect of any gain whatsoever. We may learn a little about the human body at high altitudes… We shall not bring back a single bit of gold or silver… We shall not find a single foot of earth that can be planted with crops… There is something in man which responds to the challenge of this mountain and goes out to meet it, the struggle is the struggle of life itself upward and forever upward…"

The reporter follows up, “Then why do you want to climb this mountain?”
George tells him, “Because it’s there.”

May 1922 – The expedition, led by General Charles Bruce, joined by Edward Norton and Dr. Howard Somervell, head straight for the East Rongbuk Glacier. Mallory and Somervell climb the icy slopes of the North Col in homemade hobnail boots.
They manage to erect tents on a narrow icy shelf just below the crest. That night they put together two plans for summit bids, one with oxygen and one without.

Their boots were no match for the blue ice. They had to cut steps with their ice axes which made for slow and exhausting progress. At 25,000 feet they set up camp. The coolies suffer from altitude sickness and are sent to a lower elevation.

The next day, roped together, Morshead, Norton and Mallory made slow progress across the Northeast Shoulder. Morshead fell and pulled the other climbers down with him. Mallory rammed his axe into the ice to stop their fall. With extreme strength he held his ground and kept them from descending to their death.

June 1922 - Frost-bitten and exhausted George attempts the North Col with 14 coolies. Five of the men roped together with Mallory at the front of the line while the other nine follow untethered. Over the gusting winds, they hear a loud explosion as large slab of snow breaks loose above the team. It washes over all the men and sweeps away those not on the rope. Mallory and those tied to him work their way to the surface. Despite frantic digging, they only recovered two of the men from back of the group. Realizing seven men had died under his direction, George felt devastated. The second expedition comes to an end.

On the voyage back to England, all George could think about was his failure and how he would look in Ruth’s eyes.

August 1923 – George decides to give up his quest to climb Everest and went on a speaking tour of America. Each time he lectures it reminds him of his failure.

February 1924 – George has put Everest far behind him and decides to concentrate on his family. The flame he once felt to prove his worth for Ruth is flickering out. He tries to replace his grand act with a focus on being a proper husband and father.

With all of his desires to climb completely flattened, he receives a telegram from General Bruce asking him to attempt another summit. Instantly, all the emotions he had suppressed rise to the surface. Ruth expresses to him his need to rid this mountain from his soul and wishes she could join him on the mountain.

George explains she will be with him. In his left chest pocket he will carry a British flag. In his right chest pocket he will carry her picture and leave it at the summit. This way all who climb the mountain after him will see the face of the most beautiful woman and understand what pushed him to be the first to climb Everest.

April 1924 – General Bruce led the third expedition this time joined by Andrew Irvine a young engineering student with little climbing experience. His main job is to maintain the oxygen equipment.

In Tibet, Bruce contracts malaria and places Norton in charge. Norton appoints Mallory as the team leader. They arrive in Rongbuk and are met with fierce winds and winter snow still on the ground.

May 1924 – A significant amount of fuel has been spent waiting for the weather to clear and they have not yet scaled the North Col. Most of the porters are suffering from altitude sickness and severe frostbite. With less time and so few porters, Mallory realizes using oxygen may speed their climb.

June 1924 – With a camp 5 established on the North Ridge, the porters refuse to go any higher. George sends them to a lower camp with a note for Norton which read, “Show’s crashed.”

Norton and Somervell climb higher and establish camp 6 on the North Face at an altitude of 26,700 feet. The next morning as they make an attempt at the summit they gasped for breath and feel extremely weak. Somervell suffers from a severe sore throat and cannot continue. He encourages Norton try for the summit on his own. The clear blue sky leads Norton to remove his sunglasses. 200 vertical feet from the summit, his unprotected eyes fall prey to snow blindness and he is forced to rejoin Somervell.

On the way back down to camp 5, Somervell feels the lining of his throat freeze and block his breathing. He sinks in the snow prepared to die and with one last heave of his chest aided by his hands he is able to cough out the frozen lining of his throat and breathe freely.

At Camp 5 Mallory gathers the oxygen equipment. With Noel suffering from altitude sickness he chooses Irvine to help him make the summit attempt. His last preparation before leaving, he places his British flag in one pocket and the picture of Ruth in the other.

On the climb up, Mallory and Irvine cross paths with Somervell and Norton. George realizes he has forgotten his camera back at camp. Somervell hands him his camera and tells him, “Bring back pictures from the top of this bloody mountain.”

At a large rock called the second step, George belays Andrew until they both stand on top of the rock. George asks, “Have you ever wondered what it would be like to touch the breath of God?”

“I don’t think that thought has ever crossed my mind. Why?”

George points to the summit 100 yard away as the wind blows a wisp of snow off the peak. “Because that is what we are about to do.”

Watching through a telescope from camp 6, Odell spots Mallory and Irvine 300 feet from the summit with nothing but gentle slope in front of them. As a cloud blows in and covers the climbers, Odell heads back down to camp 5. He announces to the rest of the team, “Gentlemen, break out the champagne for soon we will be in the presence of greatness.”

The next morning when Mallory and Irvine have not returned the team launches a rescue party. They search for two days but find no trace of their friends.

Ruth learns of the news two days before the newspapers break the story. She tells reporters, “George’s spirit was ready for another way of life and this was his way of going to it and it was beautiful.”

1933 – Irvine’s Ice axes is found on the ridge below the third step.

1953 – Hillary and Norgay stand on the summit of Everest.

1995 – George Mallory’s grandson, George Mallory II, reaches the summit of Everest.

May 1, 1999 - In an attempt to find Andrew Irvine’s pack which contains Somervell’s camera, an expedition team discovers the frozen body of George Mallory on the North Face. His British flag and picture of Ruth are not in his pocket.

If you would like to read the first three chapters of Mallory, send me an email. timepirate64@gmail.com