Snapshot of Mont Blanc History

Even when the high mountains are shrouded in cloud, Chamonix is dominated by the overwhelming presence of Mont Blanc – both physically and historically.


It is not a classically splendid looking peak like the Swiss Matterhorn but appears as a great glazed meringue-like dome that garnishes the glaciers far above the cobblestones of Chamonix. Mont Blanc has over the years inspired poetry, madness and even the creation of Frankenstein!

Mont Blanc — Poetry, Madness and Frankenstein

Back in the early 1800’s Lord Byron described Mont Blanc as

“ . . . the monarch of mountains;
They crowned him long ago
On a throne of rocks, in a robe of clouds,
With a diadem of snow’ (Manfred Act I, Scene I)

During the same period, another of the British romantic poets, Shelley experienced an ‘undisciplined overflowing of the soul’ in the presence of Mont Blanc and a ’sentiment of ecstatic wonder not unallied to madness’. His wife, Mary Shelley, developed an infatuation with ice in Chamonix that later inspired her creation of Frankenstein.

Mont Blanc the Stomping Ground of Dragons

For many centuries, remaining unconquered in spite of numerous summit attempts, Mont Blanc kept the Priorie of Chamonix captivated by an aura of mystery and inaccessibility. In the early 1500’s before ventures at altitude had been made into the Himalaya it was thought that a night out, high on a mountain, would mean certain death. Mont Blanc was envisaged as the stomping ground of dragons and all kinds of mythic beasts.

Mont Blanc Finally Conquered in 1786

In 1786 the summit of Mont Blanc at 4807 metres was finally conquered when Michel-Gabriel Paccard a local doctor with a scientific bent and Jaques Balmat an ambitious crystal gatherer became the first men to stand on the highest mountain in Europe west of the Caucuses. This feat brought international acclaim to the modest pastoral town of Chamonix and a steady stream of tourists was to follow to attempt the illustrious peak. Today more than 2000 people climb to the top each year and as a result Chamonix has evolved as a major tourist centre.

For more reading about the history of Mont Blanc we recommend Fergus Fleming’s, Killing Dragons - The Conquest of the Alps.