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Who was the first person to reach the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro?
Official records, hidden porters, and the question of who truly stood on Uhuru Peak first
The short answer: Hans Meyer (German) and Ludwig Purtscheller (Austrian) on October 6, 1889. But the full story is richer and more complex. Was there an earlier African ascent? Did a porter reach the summit before the Europeans? And why did the Chagga people, who lived on the mountain’s slopes, never try to climb to the ice cap? This article separates documented fact from legend.
The official first ascent (1889)
After two failed attempts, Hans Meyer teamed up with the experienced mountaineer Ludwig Purtscheller. They hired over 80 porters, plus a German missionary and a local chief named Mangi Rindi (also known as Chief Mansur) for protection. The team followed the Marangu route (now the “Coca‑Cola” route) but took a much slower pace – about 16 days from the base to the summit. At 3 am on October 6, 1889, Meyer and Purtscheller reached the highest point, which they named Kaiser-Wilhelm-Spitze. They raised a German flag and recorded the first documented arrival.
Did an African reach the summit before them?
There are strong oral traditions among the Chagga people that a warrior named Orombo or a chief named Mangi Meli may have climbed to the crater rim in the early 19th century. However, no written or photographic record exists, so the “first person” title officially goes to Meyer and Purtscheller. But some researchers argue that a porter or guide must have preceded the Europeans – after all, they carried equipment up multiple times and knew the terrain intimately. In fact, a porter named Kinyala is believed by some local historians to have reached the summit alongside the two Europeans, making him the first African (and possibly the actual first human). Because his name was not recorded in expedition logs, his story remains oral history.
Why didn’t the Chagga climb Kilimanjaro earlier?
The Chagga lived in the fertile foothills for centuries. They believed the glacier‑capped summit was the throne of their god Ruwa, too sacred to be touched. Some elders also believed that to reach the ice would bring bad luck or illness. So, ironically, the mountain’s own mystique protected it from being summited by the people who knew it best.
The first woman to summit
The first woman to reach the summit was Sheila MacDonald (British) in 1927. She climbed with her husband and proved that women could endure the extreme cold and altitude. Today, roughly half of all successful climbers are women.
The first African after the colonial era
After independence, the first Tanzanian to summit as a tourist (not as a guide) is hard to pinpoint, but one notable figure is Simon Mtuy, a Tanzanian runner who has summited dozens of times. However, the first black African (non‑porter) recorded climb appears to be John “Jeb” M. R. … – the records are fuzzy. What is clear is that today, more and more Tanzanians climb Kilimanjaro for adventure, not just for work.
Other “firsts” worth knowing
- 1861 – Baron von der Decken reaches 4,300 m (first European to camp on the mountain).
- 1887 – Meyer’s first attempt (5,400 m).
- 1889 – Meyer & Purtscheller (first recorded summit).
- 1927 – Sheila MacDonald (first woman).
- 1961 – Uhuru Peak renamed (Tanzanian independence).
- 1973 – First wheelchair‑assisted climb (not fully wheelchair, but adaptive).
- 2012 – First double amputee (Kyle Maynard) crawls to the summit.