Gösta Mittag-Leffler
Arild Stubhaug Gösta Mittag-Leffler AManofConviction Translated by Tiina Nunnally
Arild Stubhaug Department of Mathematics University of Oslo Blindern Oslo Norway arilds@math.uio.no Translator: Tiina Nunnally PO Box 14630 Albuquerque, NM 87191 USA Title of the Norwegian original edition 2007: Med viten og vilje - Gösta Mittag-Leffler (1846 1927) Publisher: H.Aschehoug & Co. (W.Nygaard), Oslo ISBN 978-82-03-23493-4 English translation Tiina Nunnally 2010 Springer-Verlag thanks Per Øystein Roland of NORLA (Norwegian Literature Abroad, Fiction and Non-Fiction, http://www.norla.no/), Oslo, for the excellent collaboration and financial support for the translation, which made the publication of this book possible. Thanks go also to Harald Engelstad of H. Aschehoug & Co, Oslo. ISBN 978-3-642-11671-1 e-isbn 978-3-642-11672-8 DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-11672-8 Springer Heidelberg Dordrecht London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2010932036 Mathematics Subject Classification (2000): 01A55, 01A60, 01A70 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2010 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way, and storage in data banks. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9, 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Violations are liable to prosecution under the German Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse. Cover design:wmxdesigngmbh Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
Contents PART I Prelude JourneyattheTurnoftheCentury... 3 TheHouseinDjursholm... 23 PART II Family and Childhood LefflerandMittag... 41 Gösta sparents... 45 TheTeacher sfamilyinstockholm... 53 FourYearsatStockholmGymnasium... 61 PART III Studies FirstSemesterinUppsala... 75 FestivitiesandStudentDrills... 85 SummerontheWestCoast... 91 TheAristocracyofLennartsnäs... 95 ControversyovertheAcademicDegreeRegulations... 105 HisSister sdebutandhisfather sillness... 113 FirstTripAbroad... 121 TheStablemasteratÖvrejärva... 129 DoctoralDegree... 133 DocentinUppsala... 139 ATurningPoint... 145 WithaRoominParis... 149 InGöttingen... 169 WithaBaseinBerlin... 183 TravelingtoHelsingfors... 199 IntheFinnishCapital... 203 WaitingTime... 215 v
vi Contents PART IV Professor, Husband, and Entrepreneur InstallationinHelsingfors,AnniversaryCelebrationinUppsala... 225 In TheLandCalledSuomi... 237 FirstEncounterwithItaly... 249 MeetingSigne... 253 Acta Mathematica... 265 WeddingandHoneymoon... 277 NewRolesinStockholm... 283 Acta andthecollege... 291 SonyaK.andthe Brilliant Life... 297 WinterTravels... 317 SummerinSwitzerland... 321 StrifeintheAcademyofSciences... 327 RectoroftheCollege... 333 SocialEntertainmentsAbound... 343 ATerribleSummer... 353 InvolvedinAllMannerofThings... 357 TravelingtoAlgeria... 363 MeetinginWernigerode... 367 ANewShiftinStockholm... 373 KingOscar sprize... 377 NewEffortsonSonya sbehalf... 381 PART V Fame, Friends, and Enemies ConstructioninDjursholm... 391 Sonya sdeath... 397 LifeGoesOn I... 405 DonationtotheCollege... 411 BusinessAffairs,BirthandDeath... 413 LifeGoesOn II... 419 Battlefields... 425 CelebratingHis50thBirthday... 431 Seekinga Practical,UsefulResult... 435 AMarriageTeeteringontheBrink... 439 OneThingAfterAnother... 445 OntheVergeofBankruptcy... 451 CelebratingNielsHenrikAbel... 459 TwoFunerals... 471 TheNobelPrizes,AnotherBattle... 479 TheAlmanacDispute... 485
Contents vii Signe sinheritance... 497 PoliticalAmbitionsandHugeBusinessVentures... 505 CelebratingHis60thBirthday... 517 KingOscar sdeath... 523 MoreCelebrationsandMoreDisputes... 533 TheBigPoincaréCampaign... 543 PART VI From Dreams of Power to Resignation ANewHomeintheDalarnaRegion... 555 Travels,Congresses,Prizes... 563 TheCaseAgainstPrimeMinisterStaaff... 571 WorldWar,WritingHisWillandTestament... 579 EstablishmentofaMathematicsInstitute... 591 InternationalCooperationAftertheWar... 601 Signe sdeath... 617 StillontheMove... 637 NewTravelsandFinancialSetbacks... 647 LastYears... 659 Chronology... 673 AcademicandProfessionalHonors... 677 MathematicsPublications... 679 Non-mathematicsPublications... 685 Sources... 689 Notes... 693 Acknowledgments... 713 Bibliography... 715 IndexofNames... 721
Illustrations Most of the pictures in this book are from the Institut Mittag-Leffler (IML) in Djursholm. Only rarely is the name of the photographer known. Additional information follows. (Top) Daguerrotype panorama. Provided by the Stockholm City Museum (photographerunknown)... 171 (Top)Thisphoto,takeninthe1860s,showsDeanCarlén sfamily... 172 (Top)PhotobyDanielNyblin,Helsingfors... 174 (Top)PhotobyFredrikHögberg,Södertälje,September1884... 175 (Bottom)FacsimilefromIdun, 3 October 1909. Photo by Anton Blomberg. 178 ThepaintingisinIML.PhotobyJonasFörare... 303 (Top and bottom)picturepostcards(photographerunknown)... 304 (Top) The drawing belongs to IML. Photo by Jonas Förare. (Bottom)Photo byxavierviennot... 305 ThewatercolorisinIML.PhotobyJonasFörare... 307 (Top and bottom) Photo by Jonas Förare. Carl Milles s sculpture is from 1904. The Walter Runeberg sculpture group on Senatstorget in Helsingfors was unveiled in 1894. There are two examples of the Patria group in bronze one in IML and the other at the courthouse in Helsingfors...... 308 ThedrawingisinIML.PhotobyJonasFörare... 309 ThepicturewasprobablytakenbyFritsLäffler... 487 All four pictures were taken by Mittag-Leffler s doctor, Einar Wettervik. TheoriginalglassplatesareinIML... 488, 489 (Bottom)Contemporarypostcard... 491 (Marie Curie): Facsimile from Idun,17December1911... 494 (Poincaré visiting Mittag-Leffler) (bottom right): Facsimile from Hvar 8Dag, June 1905. Photographer unknown. (Print by Bengt Silfersparre).. 494 ix
x Illustrations (Top right) The drawing on the front page of Söndags-Nisse was done by P.Lindroth... 628 (Bottom left) Provided by the National Library, Oslo. Unknown origin... 630 (Bottom left) Photo from KB, L62:3, page 42. Photographer unknown.... 630 (Top) Original owned by Agneta Nordberg, née Hallberg, Uddevalla. Photographerunknown... 632 (Bottom)ThephotowaspresumablytakenbyAntonBlomberg... 632