Clara Immerwahr (21 June 1870 – 2 May 1915) was a German chemist of Jewish descent.[1] She was the first woman to be awarded a doctorate in chemistry in Germany, and is credited with being a pacifist as well as a women's rights activist.[2] From 1901 until her suicide in 1915, she was married to the Nobel Prize-winning chemist Fritz Haber. Contents

Early life and education Edit

Immerwahr was born on the Polkendorff Farm near Breslau (then in eastern Prussia; now known as Wrocław, in western Poland). She was the youngest daughter of Jewish parents, chemist Philipp Immerwahr and his wife Anna (née Krohn). She grew up on the farm with her three older siblings, Elli, Rose and Paul. In 1890, her mother died of cancer; while Elli and her husband Siegfried stayed at the farm, Clara moved with her father to Breslau.[3] Immerwahr studied at the University of Breslau, in 1900 attaining her degree and a Ph.D. in chemistry under Richard Abegg.[4] Her dissertation was entitled Beiträge zur Löslichkeitsbestimmung schwerlöslicher Salze des Quecksilbers, Kupfers, Bleis, Cadmiums und Zinks (Contributions to the Solubility of Slightly Soluble Salts of Mercury, Copper, Lead, Cadmium, and Zinc). She was the first woman Ph.D. at the University of Breslau [5] and received the designation magna cum laude.[6]

Marriage and work Edit

Death Edit

The grave of Fritz and Clara Haber, Hörnli graveyard, near Basel, Switzerland Shortly after Haber's return from Belgium, Immerwahr shot herself in the chest using Haber's military pistol. On 2 May 1915, she died in her son's arms.[9][10] The morning after her death, Haber left for the first gas attack against the Russians on the Eastern Front.[15][16] Her suicide remained largely in the dark. Six days after her death, only the small local newspaper Grunewald-Zeitung reported that "the wife of Dr. H. in Dahlem, who is currently on the front, has set an end to her life by shooting herself. The reasons for this act of the unhappy woman are unknown."[17][18] There is no evidence of an autopsy. The poorly documented circumstances of her death have resulted in considerable discussion and controversy as to her reasons.[9][10] Immerwahr's ashes were moved from Dahlem to Basel and buried together with Haber's after his death in 1934.[9] Subsequently, their son Hermann Haber emigrated to the United States, where he eventually committed suicide in 1946.[13][19] Ludwig ("Lutz") Fritz Haber (1921–2004), the son of Fritz Haber and his second wife, Charlotte, published a book on the history of poison gas, The Poisonous Cloud (1986).[20]

In drama and fiction Edit

A number of works have been inspired to explore Fritz and Clara's relationship. The short film Haber, written and directed by Daniel Ragussis, attempts to examine some of the issues in the couple's relationship.[21] The Habers also feature prominently in the novel A Reunion of Ghosts by Judith Claire Mitchell, where their characters are named Lenz and Iris Alter.[22] Works such as The Greater Good (2008), directed by Celia de Wolff and written by Justin Hopper, portray Clara as deeply affected by her husband's research on gas warfare.[23] Their lives are also portrayed in the American television series Genius.[citation needed]