Paul Preuss (climber)

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Paul Preuss (19 August 1886 – 3 October 1913) was an Austrian climber who achieved recognition for his bold solo ascents and for the purity of his climbing style. Born in Altaussee, he attended Gymnasium in Vienna and, later, studied at the University of Vienna and Munich University, where he was awarded a Dr.Phil. degree in 1912. His major subject was the physiology of plants, but soon after gaining his degree he turned to empirical philosophy, hoping to become a university lecturer in that academic specialty.

As a child he was very weak, but grew into slender, well-developed athlete, proficient in chess, tennis, fencing, and, of course, climbing. Still a boy, he became fascinated with a particular climb that had been done on the Trisselwand near Aussee. After several weeks of studying the route, he soloed it – his first adventure on the heights. Working his way up the ladder of difficulty, he made a solitary ascent of the west face of Todtenkirchl in 1911, taking only 2¾ hours, including a new variation in the upper section. He climbed more than 1,200 routes in the Eastern Alps, including the northeast face of Crozzen di Brenta and the east summit face of Guglia di Brenta. He also did a cross traverse of the Kleine Zinne, doing all four routes that existed at that time, in a period of one day.

In the summers of 1912 and 1913 he journeyed to the Western Alps, where – under the tutelage of the English climber, Oscar Eckenstein - he learned the skills of ice climbing. Once he felt confident, he began a series of climbs around Mont Blanc, including the direct ascent of that peak via its Brenva flank. He did several noteworthy traverses, including one of the Grandes Jorasses by its Hirondelles ridge.

Preuss published several papers on climbing a year before his death. In one of these – "Künstliche Hilfsmittel auf Hochturen" – he delineates his philosophy of climbing in six "theorems", starting with the axiomatic assumption that a climber should only attempt climbs that are below his highest level of competence. The following are paraphrased versions of his rules:

1. One should be more than equal to the demands of the proposed climb.
2. One should ascend only those climbs that one can downclimb safely.
3. Artificial aids are justified only in sudden dangerous situations.
4. Pitons should be used only for emergencies, never as a basis of mountaineering.
5. The rope is to be used to facilitate a climb, but never as the sole means for making a climb possible.
6. The principle of safety derives from a reasonable estimate of what one is capable of, not from the use of artificial aids.

Geoffrey Winthrop Young, the great British climber, echoed these sentiments years after Preuss was gone.

Paul Preuss was said to be amiable and good-natured, and to be a faithful comrade in the most demanding of circumstances.

He died of a thousand foot fall in October of 1913 while making a solo attempt of the north face of the Mandlwand.