Early life and education Alexander von Humboldt

humboldt boy widowed mother, maria elisabeth (colomb) von humboldt

alexander von humboldt born in berlin in prussia on 14 september 1769. baptized baby in lutheran faith, duke of brunswick serving godfather.

humboldt s father, alexander georg von humboldt, belonged prominent pomeranian family, although not 1 of titled gentry; major in prussian army, had served duke of brunswick. @ age 42, alexander georg rewarded services in 7 years war post of royal chamberlain. profited contract lease state lotteries , tobacco sales. first married daughter of prussian general adjutant schweder. in 1766, alexander georg married maria elisabeth colomb, well-educated woman , widow of baron hollwede, whom had son. alexander georg , maria elisabeth had 3 children, daughter, died young, , 2 sons, wilhelm , alexander. first-born son, wilhelm s , alexander s half-brother, of ne er well, not mentioned in family history.

alexander georg died in 1779, leaving brothers humboldt in care of emotionally distant mother. did have high ambitions alexander , older brother wilhelm, hiring excellent tutors, enlightenment thinkers, including kantian physician marcus herz , botanist karl ludwig willdenow, became 1 of important botanists in germany. humboldt s mother expected them become civil servants of prussian state. money baron holwede left alexander s mother became, after death, instrumental in funding alexander s explorations, contributing more 70% of private income.

due youthful penchant collecting , labeling plants, shells , insects, alexander received playful title of little apothecary . marked political career, alexander studied finance 6 months in 1787 @ university of frankfurt (oder), mother might have chosen less academic excellence closeness home in berlin. on april 25, 1789, matriculated @ göttingen, known lectures of c. g. heyne , anatomist j. f. blumenbach. brother wilhelm student @ göttingen, did not interact since intellectual interests quite different. vast , varied interests time developed.

at göttingen met georg forster, naturalist had been captain james cook on second voyage. humboldt traveled forster in europe. 2 traveled england, humboldt s first sea voyage, netherlands, , france. in england, met sir joseph banks, president of royal society, had traveled captain cook; banks showed humboldt huge herbarium, specimens of south sea tropics. scientific friendship between banks , humboldt lasted until banks s death in 1820, , 2 shared botanical specimens study. banks mobilized scientific contacts in later years aid humboldt s work.

humboldt s scientific excursion rhine resulted in 1790 treatise mineralogische beobachtungen über einige basalte rhein (brunswick, 1790) (mineralogic observations on several basalts on river rhine).

portrait of alexander von humboldt friedrich georg weitsch, 1806

humboldt s passion travel of long standing. humboldt s talents devoted purpose of preparing himself scientific explorer. emphasis, studied commerce , foreign languages @ hamburg, geology @ technische universität bergakademie freiberg in 1791 under a.g. werner, leader of neptunist school of geology; anatomy @ jena under j.c. loder; , astronomy , use of scientific instruments under f.x. von zach , j.g. köhler. @ freiberg, met number of men prove important him in later career, including spaniard manuel del rio, became director of school of mines crown established in mexico; christian leopold von buch, became regional geologist; and, importantly, karl freiesleben, became humboldt s tutor , close friend. during period, brother wilhelm married, alexander did not attend nuptials.