Founded in 1857, Britain"s Alpine Club was the world"s first mountaineering society. Its history is the history of mountaineering, and from the beginning, its members have been at the leading edge of worldwide mountaineering. This book begins with the story of the Club"s inception, then takes readers through the evolution of the Alpine tradition, the development of climbing between the wars, and on to postwar triumphs. It explores the Golden Decade of the 8000m peaks in the 1950s as well as how improvements in technology have enabled ever steeper faces and walls to be conquered. Illustrated with a lavish selection of photos from the Alpine Club archives, this book is as handsome as it is compelling.