Hunt, Lord (1910-1998), John Hunt, Baron Hunt of Llanfairwaterdine, led the first expedition to reach the summit of Mount Everest. The members of the 1953 expedition who actually reached the summit were Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. Hunt was knighted in 1953 for his part in the expedition. His book Ascent of Everest (1953) describes the exploit.
Hunt was born on June 22, 1910, in Shimla, India. His full name was Henry Cecil John Hunt. After attending the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst, he was commissioned in 1930. He retired from the British Army in 1956 with the rank of brigadier. He was director of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme from 1956 to 1966 and received his life peerage in 1966. Hunt was rector of Aberdeen University from 1966 to 1969. He was chairman of the Parole Board for England and Wales from 1967 to 1974 and president of the National Association of Youth Clubs from 1954 to 1970. Hunt’s other books include an autobiography, Life Is Meeting (1978), and In Search of Adventure (1989). He died on Nov. 7, 1998.
