Maximilian Joseph von Chelius

Chelius' grave in Heidelberg

Maximilian Joseph von Chelius (January 16, 1794 – August 17, 1876) was a German surgeon and ophthalmologist who was born in Mannheim. He received his medical doctorate in 1812 at the University of Heidelberg, and afterwards was a civilian and military physician in Munich, and was an army surgeon in the last phases of the Napoleonic Wars (1814-15). In 1818 he returned to Heidelberg where he remained for the remainder of his career.

Chelius was a prime catalyst in the creation of the medical faculty at the University of Heidelberg, and is considered the founder of the surgical tradition at the facility. He was a professor at Heidelberg from 1818 until 1864, and was a specialist in ophthalmic surgery. One of his better-known patients was composer Frédéric Chopin, whom Chelius treated for sepsis of the finger. Afterwards, a grateful Chopin gave a private concert in Chelius' home. Today, the building where Chelius lived from 1830 until 1876 is the site of the Kurpfälzisches Museum in Heidelberg.

Selected writings

• Handbuch der Chirurgie: zu dem Gebrauche bei seinen Vorlesungen (Manual of surgery, derived from lectures); 1822
• Zur Lehre von den Staphylomen des Auges (Concerning the theory of Staphylomen of the eye)
• Handbuch der Augenheilkunde: zu dem Gebrauche bei seinen Vorlesungen (Manual of Ophthalmology, derived from lectures); 1844
• Über die durchsichtige Hornhaut des Auges, ihre Function und ihre krankhaften Veränderungen (Book concerning the Function and Diseases of the Cornea)

References

• This article is based on a translation of an article from the German Wikipedia.
• Surgical Professors at the University of Heidelberg

Persondata
Name	Chelius, Maximilian Joseph von
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	January 16, 1794
Place of birth
Date of death	August 17, 1876
Place of death