Souls of the Alps #06: Alfred Wills – The Judge Who Opened the Golden Age

The golden age of alpinism had to begin somewhere — and it began with a British judge who stood before the peaks not to pass judgment, but to be humbled. Alfred Wills, though not as well-known as some of the legends who followed, played a crucial role in popularizing mountaineering in the mid-19th century. His passion for the Alps helped transform them from remote wilderness into a dream destination for adventurers across Europe.

Born in 1828 in England, Wills pursued a career in law, eventually becoming a High Court judge. But beyond the courtroom, his heart belonged to the mountains. In 1854, he achieved a landmark ascent of the Wetterhorn in the Bernese Alps. While not technically the first to summit, Wills' climb was widely publicized in Britain — and is often credited as the symbolic beginning of the Golden Age of Alpinism.

What made his ascent special wasn’t just the climb itself, but the effect it had. His vivid and enthusiastic account of the experience, published in his book Wanderings Among the High Alps (1856), captured the imagination of Victorian society. Suddenly, climbing mountains wasn't just a pastime for guides and locals — it became an aspiration for the educated and adventurous classes.

Wills was a founding member and later president of the Alpine Club, the first mountaineering club in the world. Through both his advocacy and example, he helped shape a new era of alpine exploration, where intellect, ambition, and reverence for nature all met on the ridgelines.

Though others may have climbed higher or taken on more technical routes, Alfred Wills gave the Alps their stage, helping to turn the mountains into a world where souls could seek elevation — literal and spiritual.

“Among the mountains, man learns humility — and his proper place in nature.”
— Alfred Wills (from Wanderings Among the High Alps)