Paul Güssfeldt
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Dr Paul Güssfeldt (spelled Güßfeldt in German) (14 October 1840 – 18 January 1920) was a German geologist, mountaineer and explorer.


Biography

Güssfeldt was born in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, where he also died almost 80 years later. After attending the Collège Français in his home city, he studied natural sciences and mathematics in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
(where he joined the Vandalia
student corps Corps (or Korps; "''das ~''" ('' n''), (''sg.''), (''pl.'')) are the oldest still-existing kind of ''Studentenverbindung'', Germany's traditional university corporations; their roots date back to the 15th century. The oldest corps still existi ...
), from 1859 to 1865, and then in Berlin,
Gießen Giessen, spelled Gießen in German (), is a town in the German state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of both the district of Giessen and the administrative region of Giessen. The population is approximately 90,000, with roughly 37,000 univers ...
and
Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...
. When the first expedition was sent out by the German African Society (german: Afrikanischen Gesellschaft) in 1872, he was chosen its leader. The expedition sailed to the coast of the
Kingdom of Loango The Kingdom of Loango (also ''Lwããgu'') was a pre- colonial African state, during approximately the 16th to 19th centuries in what is now the western part of the Republic of the Congo, Southern Gabon and Cabinda. Situated to the north of the ...
, but was shipwrecked near
Freetown Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and p ...
on 14 January 1873 and lost all its stores and equipment. Although Güssfeldt succeeded in establishing a station on the coast, he was unable to penetrate into the interior, and returned to Germany in the summer of 1875. In 1876 he visited
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
and the Arabian Desert (with
Georg August Schweinfurth Georg August Schweinfurth (29 December 1836 – 19 September 1925) was a Baltic German botanist and ethnologist who explored East Central Africa. Life and explorations He was born at Riga, Latvia, then part of the Russian Empire. He was edu ...
). He made several
first ascents In mountaineering, a first ascent (abbreviated to FA in guide books) is the first successful, documented attainment of the top of a mountain or the first to follow a particular climbing route A climbing route is a path by which a climber rea ...
in the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
, including
Piz Scerscen Piz Scerscen ( Romansh, it, Monte Scerscen, formerly ''Monte Rosso di Scerscen''), culminating at 3,971 m above sea level, is one of the highest peaks in the Bernina Range, straddling the border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a satellite ...
with Hans Grass and Caspar Capat on 13 September 1877 via the north-west spur (the ''Eisnase'' route). On 12 August 1878, Hans Grass, Johann Gross and he first climbed the ''Biancograt'' north ridge of
Piz Bernina Piz Bernina ( Romansh, it, Pizzo Bernina, ) is the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps, the highest point of the Bernina Range, and the highest peak in the Rhaetian Alps. It rises and is located south of Pontresina and near the major Alpine r ...
. He made winter ascents of the
Grandes Jorasses The Grandes Jorasses (4,208 m; 13,806 ft) is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif, on the boundary between Haute-Savoie in France and Aosta Valley in Italy. The first ascent of the highest peak of the mountain (''Pointe Walker'') was by Hor ...
and the
Gran Paradiso , photo = Gran_Paradiso.jpg , photo_caption = The Gran Paradiso , elevation_m = 4061 , elevation_ref =Geoportale IGM owww.pcn.minambiente.it/ref> , prominence_m = 1879 , prominence_ref = , range = Graian Alps , parent_peak = , listing ...
, as well as putting up several new routes on
Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (french: Mont Blanc ; it, Monte Bianco , both meaning "white mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe, rising above sea level. It is the second-most prominent mountain in Europe, after Mount Elbrus, and i ...
, including the Peuterey ridge on 15–19 August 1893 (with
Emile Rey Emil or Emile may refer to: Literature *''Emile, or On Education'' (1762), a treatise on education by Jean-Jacques Rousseau * ''Émile'' (novel) (1827), an autobiographical novel based on Émile de Girardin's early life *''Emil and the Detective ...
,
Christian Klucker Christian Klucker (28 September 1853 – 21 December 1928) was a Swiss mountain guide who made many first ascents in the Alps, particularly in the Bernina Range, the Bregaglia and the Pennine Alps. Amongst his first ascents were: :*''Gurgel'' ...
and César Ollier). ''Pointe Güssfeldt'' (4,112 m), the highest summit on the
Aiguille Blanche de Peuterey The Aiguille Blanche de Peuterey (4,112 m) is a mountain of the Mont Blanc massif in Italy. It is considered the most difficult and serious of the alpine 4000-m mountains to climb. There are three tops to the mountain: *''Pointe Güssfeldt'' ( ...
is named after him, as is the ''Güssfeldtsattel'', the col between Piz Scerscen and
Piz Roseg Piz Roseg (pronounced as ''peetse rawzech'') is a mountain of the Bernina Range, overlooking the Val Roseg in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. There are two summits on its main ridge: :*the south-east and higher summit (3,937 m) :*the north-w ...
also known as the ''Porta da Roseg''. This steep ice slope was first climbed by Güssfeldt with guides Hans Grass, Peter Jenny and Caspar Capat on 13 September 1872. Güssfeldt explored a portion of the
Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...
, where he discovered a number of
glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...
s in latitude 34° 30' S. He also ascended to the top of the volcano of Maipo. In 1883 he made the first attempt on
Aconcagua Aconcagua () is a mountain in the Principal Cordillera of the Andes mountain range, in Mendoza Province, Argentina. It is the List of highest mountains on Earth, highest mountain in the Americas, the highest outside Asia, and the highest in the ...
by a European. Bribing porters with the story that there was treasure on the mountain, he approached Aconcagua via the Rio Volcan, making two attempts on the peak by the north-west ridge and reaching an altitude of 6,500 metres. The route that he prospected is now the normal route up the mountain. Between 1889 until 1914 Güssfeldt was invited by the German Emperor
Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Empir ...
to join him for his annual summer cruise in the
North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
, which Güssfeldt was given the responsibility of planning as well. The emperor was fond of Güssfeldt and wrote about him in his memoirs.Wilhelm II, ''Aus meinem Leben 1859–1888,'' 1927, p. 238


Works

* ''In den Hochalpen. Erlebnisse aus den Jahren 1859-85'' (3d ed. 1893) * ''Kaiser Wilhelms II. Reisen nach Norwegen in den Jahren 1889-92'' (1892) * ''Die Loangoexpedition'', jointly with Julius Falkenstein and
Eduard Pechuël-Loesche Moritz Eduard Pechuël-Loesche, (26 July 1840, Zöschen – 29 May 1913, Munich), was a German naturalist, geographer, ethnologist, painter, traveler, author, plant collector and Professor of Geography in Jena and Erlangen. Eduard was the eldest ...
(1879 et seq.)


Sources

*Johannes E. S. Schmidt: ''Die Französische Domschule und das Französische Gymnasium zu Berlin. Schülererinnerungen 1848–1861.'' Herausgegeben und kommentiert von Rüdiger R. E. Fock., published by Verlag Dr. Kovac, Hamburg 2008, (German) *Paul Güßfeldt: ''Dr. Gussfeldt’s Work in the Andes. Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society and Monthly Record of Geography'' (New Monthly Series), 6, No. 11, 1884, pp. 658–661. *


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gussfeldt, Paul 1840 births 1920 deaths German mountain climbers German explorers of Africa People from Berlin Französisches Gymnasium Berlin alumni People of the Franco-Prussian War Members of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina