Sir Christian John Storey Bonington, CBE (born 6 August 1934 in Hampstead, London) is a British mountaineer.
His career has included nineteen expeditions to the Himalayas, including four to Mount Everest and the first ascent of the south face of Annapurna.
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Educated at University College School in Hampstead, he joined the Royal Fusiliers before attending Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, and on graduation was commissioned in the Royal Tank Regiment in 1956. After three years in North Germany, he spent two years at the Army Outward Bound School as a mountaineering instructor.
In 1958, Bonington was part of the party that made the first British ascent of the South West Pillar of the Aiguille du Dru in 1958, and the first ascent of the Central Pillar of Freney on the south side of Mont Blanc in 1961 with Don Whillans, Ian Clough and Jan Dlugosz. In 1960 he was part of the successful joint the British-Indian-Nepalese forces expedition to Annapurna II.
On leaving the British Army in 1961, he joined Van den Berghs, a division of Unilever. But he left after nine months, and became a professional mountaineer and explorer. In 1966 he was given his first assignment by the Daily Telegraph magazine to cover other expeditions, including - climbing Sangay in Ecuador; hunting Caribou with Eskimos on Baffin Island. In 1968 he accompanied Captain John Blashford-Snell and his British Army team in the attempt to make the first ever descent of the Blue Nile.
He has written fifteen books, made many television appearances, and received many honours, including, since January 2005, the chancellorship of Lancaster University. He is honorary president of the Hiking Club and has a boat named after him among Lancaster University Boat Club's fleet. Furthermore he is the Honorary President of the British Orienteering Federation. He has lived in Cumbria with his wife, Wendy since 1974. He is a patron, and former president (1988-91), of the British Mountaineering Council (BMC). He succeeded Edmund Hillary as the Honorary President of Mountain Wilderness, an international NGO dedicated to the worldwide protection of mountains.
Married to Wendy, a freelance illustrator of children's books. The couple have two sons: Daniel and Rupert.
In 1974 Bonnington received the Founder's Medal of the Royal Geographical Society[1]. Bonington has been recognised as one of the great explorers of modern times by St. Helen's School, Northwood, England. One of its four houses is named after him, and has yellow as its House Colour. Bonington was presented with the Golden Eagle Award for services to the outdoors in 2008 by the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild.
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