Boris Rajewsky (; ; 17 July 1893 – 22 November 1974) was a

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

-born

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

biophysicist, who was one of the most influential researchers on the impact of

radiation In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or a material medium. This includes: * ''electromagnetic radiation'' consisting of photons, such as radio waves, microwaves, infr ...

on living organisms in the 20th century. He served as Rector of the

Goethe University Frankfurt Goethe University Frankfurt () is a public research university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealthy and active liberal citizenry of Frankfurt ...

from 1949 to 1951.

Life and career

He was the son of a Ukrainian noble family and grew up in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. He studied physics at the St. Vladimir Imperial University of Kiev from 1912, and obtained a doctorate there in 1918. He moved to Germany in 1922 and became a German citizen in 1927. He became the assistant of Friedrich Dessauer and obtained an additional doctorate at the Goethe University in 1929. In 1934 he became Professor of Physics at the Goethe University, and in 1943 he became Pro-Rector of the university. He served as the university's Rector 1949–1951 and again as Pro-Rector 1951–1954. From 1946 he was chairman of the scientific council of the

Max Planck Society The Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science (; abbreviated MPG) is a formally independent non-governmental and non-profit association of German research institutes. Founded in 1911 as the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, it was renamed to the M ...

, and in 1955, he became an adviser to the German Atomic Commission, a body of experts appointed by the federal government. He was a member of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

from 1937 to 1945. However, he later maintained that he had always been an opponent of national socialism.Ernst Klee: Das Personenlexikon zum Dritten Reich. Wer war was vor und nach 1945. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, 2nd ed., Frankfurt am Main 2005, , pp. 477−478. He was the father of the noted cell biologist and cancer researcher

Manfred F. Rajewsky ''Manfred: A dramatic poem'' is a closet drama written in 1816–1817 by Lord Byron. It contains supernatural elements, in keeping with the popularity of the ghost story in England at the time. It is a typical example of Gothic fiction. Byro ...

(1934–2013), of the noted immunologist Klaus Rajewsky (b. 1936), and of the sociologist Xenia Julia Maria Rajewsky (1939–2011).

Honours

*Honorary doctorates at the

Free University of Berlin The Free University of Berlin (, often abbreviated as FU Berlin or simply FU) is a public university, public research university in Berlin, Germany. It was founded in West Berlin in 1948 with American support during the early Cold War period a ...

, the

University of Giessen University of Giessen, official name Justus Liebig University Giessen (), is a large public research university in Giessen, Hesse, Germany. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in the German-speaking world. It is named afte ...

Leibniz University Hannover Leibniz University Hannover (), also known as the University of Hannover, is a public university, public research university located in Hanover, Germany. Founded on 2 May 1831 as Higher Vocational School, the university has undergone six period ...

, the

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (; ) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol (state), Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. It is the largest education facility in the Austrian States of Austria, ...

, the

University of Naples The University of Naples Federico II (; , ) is a public university, public research university in Naples, Campania, Italy. Established in 1224 and named after its founder, Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II, it is the oldest public, s ...

and the

University of Turin The University of Turin (Italian language, Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public university, public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the List ...

*Member of the Scientific Society (Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft) at the Goethe University Frankfurt (from 1955 to 1970 as President) *Faculty Medal of the Faculty of Natural Sciences, Goethe University Frankfurt *Gold Medal of the

Sapienza University of Rome The Sapienza University of Rome (), formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", abbreviated simply as Sapienza ('Wisdom'), is a Public university, public research university located in Rome, Italy. It was founded in 1303 and is ...

*Fellow of the

Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (), in short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded on 1 January 1652, based on academic models in Italy, it was originally named the ''Academi ...

* Goethe Plaque of the City of Frankfurt, 1951 *Commander's Cross (Großes Verdienstkreuz) of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

, 1953 * Goethe Plaque of the State of Hesse, 1958 *Academia Medica in Rome, 1959 *Sigillum Magnum of the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna (, abbreviated Unibo) is a Public university, public research university in Bologna, Italy. Teaching began around 1088, with the university becoming organised as guilds of students () by the late 12th century. It is the ...

, 1962 *Knight Commander's Cross (Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern) of the

, 1963 *Lenin Medal in Gold

Bibliography

* * * * * * *

References

Literature

* *H. Muth: Boris Rajewsky zum 80. Geburtstag. in: ''Biophysik'' 10, 3-5 (1973) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rajewsky, Boris 1893 births 1974 deaths German biochemists Ukrainian chemists People from Chyhyryn Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Soviet emigrants to Germany Ukrainian emigrants to Germany Max Planck Institute directors