Friday 18 June 2010

John Menlove Edwards

It was a hundred years ago today (June 18) that the writer, poet, and leading British rock climber in the inter-war period, John Menlove Edwards was born. A psychiatrist by profession, he is remembered for his great climbing routes in the Llanberis Pass, Wales, as well as his guide books and literature.

Mention must also be made of his depression, mental illness and his suicide in 1958. A homosexual at a time when homosexuality was a criminal act in Britain, Menlove Edwards was also a conscientious objector during WWII. Whatever one thinks about COs, this must have been an extremely brave act for individuals when names and addresses were published in the daily papers. This is how the Manchester Guardian reported the refusal of his application on May 14 1941:

Short biographies can be read here and here, but Jim Perrin's Menlove is the definitive account.

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