Victor Meyer (1848-1897) is one of the great organic chemists of the second half of the 19th century. While his extensive experimental work in Organic Chemistry and Physical Chemistry is well known among chemists, little is known about his personal life and his professional career. The aim of this article is to contribute to filling this gap by presenting not only his research activities (aliphatic nitro compounds, oximes, thiophene, aromatic compounds containing iodine, stereochemistry, vapor density determination, pyrochemistry), but also details of his academic career in Zurich, Göttingen, and Heidelberg, as well as his personality and personal life, until his tragic end.
Juergen Heinrich Maar (Tue,) studied this question.