The First Nobel Laureates

The first Nobel Prizes were not awarded until 1901, five years after Alfred Nobel’s death. Here are the winners of the original Nobel Prizes whose achievements have left an indelible mark on our existence.

Physics: Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen

Röntgen accidentally discovered what we now know as x-rays in 1895 while testing the effect of passing an electrical discharge through a vacuum tube. At one point in his research he accidentally saw his own skeleton and thought it was an error. However, he continued with his experiments, and today Röntgen is considered to be the father of diagnostic radiology.

Chemistry: Jacobus Henricus van ‘t Hoff

In 1874, Dr. van ‘t Hoff observed the principles of stereochemistry. Later on in his research, he would study osmotic pressure, kinetics, and equilibrium. He actually received the Nobel Prize for describing the behavior of liquids using mathematics, similar to how people had been doing for gases. His discoveries form the basis of what we know about physical chemistry today.

Physiology or Medicine: Emil Adolf von Behring

Behring discovered the diptheria antitoxin, as well as a serum therapy for tetanus. We don’t think much about it today, but diptheria was a leading cause of death among children prior to his discovery, and tetanus was the leading cause of death on the battlefield. Behring’s work on hygiene and immunity forms the basis of modern operating room procedures.

Literature: Sully Prudhomme

Prudhomme originally studied to be an engineer before becoming a lawyer. He did not enjoy law and eventually began writing poetry. Prudhomme is a perfect example of what can happen when you don’t give up on your dreams. The official text of the announcement of the awards states, “in special recognition of his poetic composition, which gives evidence of lofty idealism, artistic perfection and a rare combination of the qualities of both heart and intellect.”

Peace: Henry Dunant and Frédéric Passy

Henry Dunant founded the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1863, and was instrumental in the first Geneva Convention which took place in 1864. Today, the Red Cross is one of the most recognizable organizations in the world, while the Geneva Conventions, of which there are now four treaties, provide the basis of the modern rules of warfare and have been ratified by 194 countries.

Frédéric Passy was a French economist who believed in the necessity of arbitration and dialogue in preventing international disputes. Passy was instrumental in creating the Inter-Parliamentary Union, which was the first permanent forum for multilateral negotiations, and he was also the first president of the union.

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