Nobel Prize

One of the founders of Nitroglycerin Aktiebolaget (later Nitro Nobel), Smitt was Chairman of the Board from 1864 to 1904. In the 1850s Smitt amassed a fortune in South America. He liquidated his assets in 1856 and returned to Stockholm. There, his prudent property investments, particularly in the Kungsholmen district, earned him the sobriquet “King…

by Birgitta Lemmel In 1873 Alfred Nobel settled in Paris and bought a magnificent house on He had a small laboratory in the yard, where he worked together with the young French chemist Georges D. Fehrenbach, who was to become Nobel’s faithful and trustworthy assistant behind the scenes during the nearly two decades that the…

by Birgitta Lemmel Between 1865 and 1873 Alfred Nobel’s home, laboratory, and the focal point of his business were in Hamburg. In 1873 he left Hamburg and moved to Paris. He had always had a great liking for Paris, which was the lively center of international business and had all cultural activities that he had…

(1812-1888) Ascanio Sobrero Italian chemist who discovered nitroglycerine. Ascanio Sobrero worked as an assistant to Professor J. T. Pelouze in Paris and then became professor of chemistry in Turino, Italy. His face was badly scarred as a result of an explosion in the 1840s. He considered nitroglycerine to be far too dangerous to be of…

(1801-1872) Immanuel Nobel Father of Alfred Nobel. Self-taught inventor and building contractor in Stockholm. Immanuel Nobel grew up in a poor family who could not afford any formal education. His father taught him how to read and write. At the age of 14 he became a sailor. Exactly what Immanuel did after his return to…

Nitroglycerine is an explosive liquid which was first made by Ascanio Sobrero in 1846 by treating glycerol with a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acid. The reaction which follows is highly exothermic, i.e. it generates heat and will result in an explosion of nitroglycerine, unless the mixture is cooled while the reaction is taking place.…

(1805-1889) Mother of Alfred (1833-1896), Robert (1829-1896), Ludvig (1831-1888), Emil (1843-1864) and two children who died as infants. Andriette Nobel (maiden name Ahlsell) was a gifted woman, daughter of an accountant. In 1827 she married Immanuel Nobel and for a couple of years the two lived in Stockholm under reasonable economic conditions. In 1833 Immanuel…

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Production of Dynamite at Krümmel Year Metric Tons 1867 11 1868 78 1869 185 1870 424 1871 785 1872 1,350 1873 2,050 1874 3,150

The manager’s house in 1880. Alfred Nobel also stayed here during his visits. View of the Nobel site and the river Elbe around 1880. The Nobel site around 1905. Entrance to the factory around 1908. The manager’s house is seen to the right. Loading of powder at Krümmel in 1915.