Piz Languard’s forgotten place in Swiss mountaineering history
Friday 11th September 2026 on 12:30 in
Switzerland
Piz Languard, a 3,263-metre mountain near Pontresina in the Engadin, was once widely known for its spectacular views and relatively easy ascent, SRF reports. Natural scientist Gian-Reto Walther has written a book exploring the mountain’s history and the stories surrounding it.
The mountain was described as the “Eiffel Tower of the Alps”, the “King of Switzerland” and the “Finger of God”. Switzerland’s most famous mountain, the Matterhorn, was once even called the “Piz Languard of Zermatt”.
Walther, who has climbed the summit several times, said Piz Languard became particularly famous in the 19th century because climbers could reach it without crampons. Its panoramic views also attracted visitors.
At a time when mountaineering was becoming an elite leisure activity, Alice of Great Britain and Ireland, the third child of Queen Victoria, climbed the mountain. Walther found a collection of her letters to her mother in which she described the ascent. She suffered badly, with sunburn on her face and blisters on both feet. Her conclusion was that once was enough.
Piz Languard also played an important role in earlier national surveying efforts. A triangulation point, an iron pyramid once used for surveying, still stands on the summit. Walther said the pyramids on Niesen and Piz Languard were the first of their kind. The one on Niesen has since been removed, while the one on Piz Languard remains.
Walther spent almost 20 years collecting material for his book, searching archives, examining postcards and studying the guestbook of the Georgy Hut, a mountain hut below the summit. The hut says it is the highest in the canton of Graubünden, at 3,175 metres above sea level.
There were once plans to build a rack railway to the summit. Walther believes the failure to realise the project may have contributed to the mountain’s decline in public prominence.
Other nearby summits can now be reached more easily, he said. At Piz Languard, visitors still have to climb the entire route themselves.