| Dufourspitze | |
|---|---|
| French: Pointe Dufour, Italian: Punta Dufour, Romansh: Piz da Dufour | |
 From the peak to the southeast towards Italy, the Dunantspitze in the rear hides the 18-metre lower Grenzgipfel (English: Border Summit) | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 4,634 m (15,203 ft) |
| Prominence | 2,165 m (7,103 ft) ↓ Great St Bernard Pass[1] Ranked 7th in the Alps |
| Isolation | 78.3 km (48.7 mi) → M Blanc de Courmayeur[2] |
| Listing | Country high point Canton high point Ultra Seven Second Summits |
| Coordinates | 45°56′12.6″N 7°52′01.4″E / 45.936833°N 7.867056°E |
| Naming | |
| Native name | |
| English translation | Peak Dufour, Highest Peak, Large Horn |
| Geography | |
  Dufourspitze Location in Switzerland  Dufourspitze Dufourspitze (Canton of Valais)  Dufourspitze Dufourspitze (Alps) | |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Canton | Valais |
| Parent range | Pennine Alps |
| Topo map | Swisstopo 1348 Zermatt |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1 August 1855 by Matthäus and Johannes Zumtaugwald, Ulrich Lauener, Christopher and James Smyth, Charles Hudson, John Birkbeck and Edward Stephenson. |
| Easiest route | rock/snow/ice climb |
The Dufourspitze is the highest peak of Monte Rosa, an ice-covered mountain massif in the Alps. Dufourspitze is the highest mountain of both Switzerland and the Pennine Alps and is also the second-highest mountain of the Alps and Western Europe, after Mont Blanc. It is located between Switzerland (Canton of Valais) and Italy (Piedmont and Aosta Valley). The peak itself is located wholly in Switzerland.
Following a long series of attempts beginning in the early nineteenth century, Monte Rosa's summit, then still called Höchste Spitze (English: Highest Peak), was first reached on 1 August, the Swiss National celebration day, in 1855 from Zermatt by a party of eight climbers led by three guides: Matthäus and Johannes Zumtaugwald, Ulrich Lauener, Christopher and James Smyth, Charles Hudson, John Birkbeck and Edward Stephenson.
- ^ Retrieved from the Swisstopo topographic maps. The key col is the Great St Bernard Pass (2,469 m)
- ^ Retrieved from Google Earth. The nearest point of higher elevation is east of Mont Blanc.