Albert Popper

Albert Popper (Czech: Vojtěch Popper; Hebrew name: Abraham; 1808 – 3 September 1889) was a mayor of Vimperk (Winterberg) and doctor for the House of Schwarzenberg.

Popper was born in the village of Bresnitz (Březnice) to a Jewish family. At the time of his birth the number of Jewish families in the Kingdom of Bohemia was strictly controlled by the Familianten quota system, which was partially abolished in 1848 and fully abolished in 1859.

In addition to the government control of Jewish procreation, during most of Popper's life Jews were prohibited from owning property, choosing their place of domicile, attending public schools, or holding public office. This situation did not change until late in Albert Popper's life with the reforms of 1867 in the Austrian portion of the dual monarchy.

Popper, nevertheless, was able to gain permission to attend the University of Vienna, where he earned his doctorate in Pharmacology in 1835.[1] He went on to earn his medical degree and settled in Vimperk where he established a pharmacy and served as the official doctor to the Schwarzenberg princes.[2][3][4][5]

In 1841, Popper published a treatment for Chlorosis (Hypochromic anemia) containing Vitriolum martis (sulfuric acid and iron) and Sal tartari (potassium carbonate) in Österreichische medicinische Wochenschrift which was republished and refined in the following years.[6][7][8][9][10]

By the time of the Vimperk fire of 1857, Popper was the town's mayor. After the fire, he implored the Habsburg monarchy for assistance. Emperor Franz Joseph himself came to Vimperk and was the guest of Albert Popper. The emperor agreed to provide imperial funds for repair and reconstruction.

  1. ^ Abstract of Albert Popper's 1835 Doctoral Dissertation
  2. ^ Schematismus des Königreichs Böhmen. Prague. 1842. p. 314.
  3. ^ Schematismus des Königreichs Böhmen. Prague. 1844. p. 337.
  4. ^ Schematismus des Königreichs Böhmen. Prague. 1846. p. 349.
  5. ^ Handbuch des Königreiches Böhmen für das Jahr 1848. Prague. 1848. p. 278.
  6. ^ von Raimann, Johannes Nepomuk (17 July 1841). "Vitriolum Martis artefactum und Sal Tartari gegen Chlorosi". Österreichische medicinische Wochenschrift. 3 (29). Braumüller und Seidel, Vienna: 676–677.
  7. ^ Schmidt, Carl Christian (1842). Jahrbücher der in- und ausländischen gesammten Medicin, Volume 35. Leipzig. p. 198.
  8. ^ Dierbach, Johann Heinrich (1843). Die neuesten Entdeckungen in der Materia Medica: für praktische Aerzte geordnet, Volume 2. Heidelberg. pp. 1267–1268.
  9. ^ "On the Mode of prescribing and preparing Pills composed of the Sulphate of Iron and Carbonate of Potass". The Medical Times: A Journal of English and Foreign Medicine, and Miscellany of Medical Affairs. 13. J. Angerstein Carfrae, Essex Street, Strand, London: 255. 28 March 1846.
  10. ^ Anton, Karl Christian (1857). Vollständiges, pathologisch geordnetes Taschenbuch der bewährtesten Heilformeln fuer innere Krankheiten:Mit einer ausfuehrlichen Gaben- und Formenlehre, so wie mit therapeutischen Einleitungen und den noethigen Bemerkungen ueber die specielle Anwendung der Recepte. Leipzig. p. 209.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)