Emanuel Merck

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Emanuel Merck

Heinrich Emanuel Merck (born September 15, 1794 in Darmstadt ; † February 14, 1855 ibid) was a German pharmacist and founder of the pharmaceutical company Merck in Darmstadt.

Life

Merck studied pharmacy in Berlin and Vienna and worked in his father's Engel pharmacy, which he continued from 1816. Before that, he was among other things in the Rose 's pharmacy in Berlin, which also had a national reputation as a research facility for pharmacy (it was previously managed by Martin Klaproth ). In addition, he dealt with the chemistry of natural plant substances .

In his laboratory he succeeded in isolating and purifying alkaloids , a class of highly effective plant ingredients that, because of their medicinal properties, received special attention from science. In 1827 Merck produced the alkaloids known at the time and sold them to pharmacists, chemists and doctors . From 1838 to 1841 he ran a candle factory and from 1828 was a member of the city council in Darmstadt. As a court expert , he was involved in the trial of the Countess von Görlitz's murder in 1850. He was very close friends with Justus Liebig .

Merck was the son of the pharmacist Johann Anton Merck , the fourth generation to succeed the childless Friedrich Jacob Merck , who had acquired the Engel pharmacy in Darmstadt in 1668 and passed it on to his nephew Georg Friedrich Merck . The pharmacy was the nucleus of the company, which was founded in 1850 by Heinrich Emanuel Merck and his sons as a business association . Today's Merck KGaA is the oldest pharmaceutical company in the world.

Heinrich Emanuel Merck married his cousin Adelheid, daughter of Johann Heinrich Merck ; the couple left three sons, Carl (1823–1885), Georg (1825–1873) and Wilhelm (1833–1899), who took over his inheritance. At that time, about 23 to 50 workers were employed in Merck's pharmaceutical and chemical manufactory . Around 70% of the company is still owned by the Merck family.

His daughter Henriette Magdalena married Georg Freiherr von Wedekind , who later became a member of the Reichstag .

Heinrich Emanuel Merck was buried in the old cemetery in Darmstadt (grave site: I Mauer 123/124).

Heinrich Emanuel Merck Prize

The Award for Analytical Chemistry ( Heinrich Emanuel Merck Prize ) named after Merck has been awarded since 1988 and is endowed with 15,000 euros.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Liebig Museum, Liebig-Merck correspondence (PDF; 4.5 MB)
  2. ↑ Merck, Georg Friedrich. Hessian biography. In: Landesgeschichtliches Informationssystem Hessen (LAGIS).
  3. ↑ Merck, Johann Heinrich. Hessian biography. In: Landesgeschichtliches Informationssystem Hessen (LAGIS).
  4. ↑ Carl, Georg and Wilhelm Merck - website of the German Historical Museum (accessed June 27, 2008)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Merck, Emanuel
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Merck, Heinrich Emanuel (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German pharmacist and founder of the pharmaceutical company Merck
DATE OF BIRTH September 15, 1794
PLACE OF BIRTH Darmstadt
DATE OF DEATH February 14, 1855
Place of death Darmstadt