30 Facts About Henry Morshead

Henry Morshead's death was due to murder and the circumstances remain mysterious.

Henry Morshead was educated at Winchester College where he did reasonably well and at a second attempt passed the exams to enter the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, to become an officer in the Royal Engineers in 1901.

Henry Morshead became in charge of the Forest Map Office, then the Computing Office, then the Triangulation Surveying Party.

Henry Morshead became knowledgeable in the history of Himalayan exploration, particularly in Tibet.

Henry Morshead distinguished himself on several arduous winter Himalayan expeditions.

Henry Morshead was tough, well able to live off the land in regions of great heat and danger.

Henry Morshead's family had moved to Canada when Evie was a child where her father, Harry Templer Widdicombe, failed to make his fortune so her mother had returned to England with the children.

Henry Morshead's mother had founded a ladies' residential club which flourished.

Henry Morshead married Evie in 1917 and they had four sons and a daughter.

In 1913 Frederick Bailey, an intelligence officer with the Indian Army, invited Henry Morshead to be the surveyor in an expedition to explore the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, now known to be the world's deepest gorge.

Bailey and Henry Morshead explored from the south with Henry Morshead surveying the entire route and calculating the results as they went so as not to delay progress.

Henry Morshead's company was moved for the Battle of the Somme where he was promoted to major in 1916 and was awarded the DSO.

Henry Morshead was at the Battle of Arras and the Battle of Passchendaele after which he was evacuated home with trench fever, returning to France in 1918 and promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel to command the 46th Divisional Engineers.

Henry Morshead was wounded by shrapnel while reconnoitring the crossings of the St Quentin Canal and was sent back to England.

On 20 May 1922 with Mallory, Howard Somervell and Teddy Norton, Henry Morshead was in the first assault team, which attempted reaching the summit without oxygen.

The next morning another rucksack was let slip but Henry Morshead climbed down 100 feet to recover it.

However, on resuming the climb Henry Morshead was almost immediately unable to continue and so went down to camp V while the other three continued.

Henry Morshead had severe frostbite to his hands and a foot and later three finger joints had to be amputated.

Henry Morshead had to turn this down because his employers would not give permission, even for unpaid leave.

However, in the 1924 Olympic Games medals were awarded for mountaineering and Henry Morshead received a special medal awarded to the climbers on the 1922 expedition.

Henry Morshead led an active social life, with sports and big game hunting on the agenda.

Henry Morshead was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1928, becoming deputy director of the Geodetic Branch.

April 1929 brought promotion to Director of the Survey of India's Burma Circle where Henry Morshead lived in Maymyo, Burma.

Henry Morshead studied the Burmese language and made lengthy tours of inspection of surveying in that country.

In February 1931 Henry Morshead stayed in Burma while the rest of the family returned to England for reasons of schooling.

On 17 May 1931 Henry Morshead set off riding by himself and later that day his riderless pony was discovered back in Maymyo.

Henry Morshead had been shot in the chest at point blank range.

In 1980 Ian Henry Morshead visited Burma and spoke to some of the people involved at the time.

Henry Morshead disapproved of a local leader of the community, Syed Ali, who had been seen out horse riding with Ruth.

Ian Morshead speculated, but finally doubted his own speculation, that Syed Ali had arranged for Henry to be killed and this had been carried out by the Gurkha.