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''The Night Climbers of Cambridge'' is a book, written under the pseudonym "Whipplesnaith", about nocturnal climbing on the colleges and town buildings of Cambridge, England, in the 1930s. The book remains popular among Cambridge University students and the 1930s and 1950s editions can be hard to find. It is often credited with popularising and inspiring the first generation of urban explorers and night climbers.


History

After extensive research, it was revealed that "Whipplesnaith" is a pseudonym for Noël Howard Symington, who feared retribution for his work. Eric Waddams, a choral scholar at Kings, who either took or featured in most of the photographs, was a contributor. There was also a third unknown contributor. The book was originally published in October 1937 by
Chatto and Windus Chatto & Windus is an imprint of Penguin Random House that was formerly an independent book publishing company founded in London in 1855 by John Camden Hotten. Following Hotten's death, the firm would reorganize under the names of his business ...
and proved popular. The book was revised in November 1937 and reprinted in 1952 and 1953, selling out each time. The second edition contains a reordered selection of photographs and a missing diagram explaining the escape from the roof of the Marks and Spencer, as well as other useful information on night climbing. The book was sought after, especially in Cambridge itself where it was regarded as one of few "guidebooks" to the routes onto the roofs of the town's ancient buildings. Famous climbs documented in the book are the
King's College King's College or The King's College refers to two higher education institutions in the United Kingdom: *King's College, Cambridge, a constituent of the University of Cambridge *King's College London, a constituent of the University of London It ca ...
and St John's College chapels and the "
Senate House Senate House may refer to: * The building housing a legislative senate ** List of legislative buildings **Senate House State Historic Site, in Kingston, New York, where the state's first Constitution was ratified in 1777. * The building (formerly) h ...
leap" across Senate House Passage between Gonville and Caius College and the Senate House. ''The Night Climbers of Cambridge'' is often credited with inspiring the next generation of urban explorers and spawned many
University of Cambridge legends There are a number of popular legends associated with Cambridge University and its 800 year-old history, often recounted by Punt (boat), punt guides to tourists while cruising the River Cam. Some are true, some contain elements of truth, and others ...
and traditions. Since its publication several climbs of King's College Chapel have been completed. A new authorised edition was published on 26 October 2007 by Oleander Press, Cambridge, to mark the 70th anniversary of the original edition. The new edition includes images digitally remastered from the original negatives, and has proved popular among
Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collectively, in contrast to other British universities, and more broadly to de ...
students and urban explorers.


Similar projects

In addition to ''The Night Climbers of Cambridge'', an omnibus edition of ''The Roof Climber's Guide to Trinity''''Roof Climber's Guide to Trinity'', Omnibus edition, Oleander Press, Cambridge, 2011 was published on 11 July 2011 by Oleander Press. Its introduction contains further details about Symington and his book. In addition it included not before seen information on night-climbing and urban exploring in Cambridge and the surrounding towns, villages and country houses. The ''Roof Climber's Guide to Trinity'' has remained popular, though it is easier to find in bookshops than the original ''Night Climbers''. Given its sometimes clandestine nature, some Cambridge students have described ''The Night Climbers of Cambridge'' as a modern day Marauder's Map of
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
fame. In 2014, a team of Cambridge engineers designed an online app called the "Cambridge Marauders Map", which allowed friends to view their movements within the colleges of Cambridge and identify potential hazards. The Marauders Map app included many climbing and urban exploring features taken from ''The Night Climbers of Cambridge''. The app is no longer publicly available.


Legacy

Symington stood for Harborough in
1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...
as an independent
Mosleyite Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...
candidate, receiving 273 votes. In 1958 he published the book ''Return to Responsibility: A New Concept of the Case for Fascism in the Post-War World''. Eric Waddams was head of music at Elizabeth College, Guernsey in the 1950s and 1960s. ''The Night Climbers of Cambridge'' is repeatedly referred to in ''The Bad Quarto'', a mystery novel by Jill Paton Walsh. Her novel mentions a supposed additional chapter regarding night climbing in St Agatha's College, the fictional Cambridge setting for most of Walsh's stories about Imogen Quy, college nurse at St Agatha's. Night climbing plays a central role in ''The Bad Quarto'', along with a production of the 1603 quarto version of ''Hamlet''.


See also

* Buildering * Geoffrey Winthrop Young * Ivo Stourton * Nick Raynsford *
The Night Climbers of Oxford The Night Climbers of Oxford is a secret society, dedicated to nocturnally scaling college and town buildings in Oxford, England. The society is noted for its political activism, controversial acts, feats of climbing and parkour, as well as urban e ...


References


External links


Night Climbing in Cambridge
Cambridge University Caving Club journal, 1983
Students risked their lives to scale the night time heights
Cambridge News The ''Cambridge News'' (formerly the ''Cambridge Evening News'') is a British daily newspaper. Published each weekday and on Saturdays, it is distributed from its Waterbeach base. In the period December 2010 – June 2011 it had an average dail ...
, 24 April 2007
Nocturnal missions
'' The Times'', 10 June 2007
Confessions of a night climber
'' The Times'', 2 November 2007
A stegophilic view of Cambridge spires
'' The Daily Telegraph'', 29 December 2007
Urban climbing, 1930s style
'' The Guardian'', 21 May. 2009 * The shadowy climber
bbc.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Night Climbers Of Cambridge 1937 books Books about Cambridge Culture of the University of Cambridge Climbing books Works published under a pseudonym Chatto & Windus books Urban climbers