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History

Alfred Nobel was born on October 21, 1833 in Stockholm, Sweden to Inmmanuel Nobel and Andrietta Ahlsell. Immanuel himself was an engineer and designed bridges. Early in his life they left Stockholm and moved to St Petersburg, where his father supplied the Russian army with equipment. Alfred was given an excellent education thanks to personal tutors, which could be afforded due to the success of his fathers business. Aswell as being fluent in several languages, Alfred had keen interests not only in science, but poetry and literature also. His father thought that Alfred needed to broaden his horizons so he sent him abroad to train as a chemical engineer, during which time he visited Germany, Sweden, France and the United States.

During his time in Paris he worked with an Italian chemist called Ascanio Sobrero, who had recently invented nitroglycerine. Alfred spent time trying to control the unpredictable explosive capabilities of nitroglycerine, so that it could be used in construction work. Due his fathers bankruptcy he left St Petersburg to move back to Sweden with his father and brother Emil. Alfred continued to work with nitroglycerine, but after several explosions and one in which his brother and a few other workers were killed he was forced to move to Lake Malaren to continue with his work. In 1864 he eventually discovered what is know known as dynamite. He continued to work throughout his life on explosive aswell as other chemical technologies and had registered 355 patents by the time of his death in 1896. Companies such as Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) were founded by Nobel and still play prominent roles in todays economy.

During his life Alfred was heavily influence by an Austrian woman named Bertha von Suttner, who is thought to have been the inspiration behind was in know known as the peace prize. Bertha wrote a famous book called 'Lay Down Arms' which is critical of the arms race and she became a figurehead for the peace movement.

When his will was opened after his death it became apparent that his fortune was to be used to award prizes for achievements in chemistry, physics, medicine, literature and peace. The award for economics was added later and is sponsored by a Swedish bank. Ragnar Sohlman and Rudolf Lilljequist, were the executors of his will and the formed the Nobel Foundation, which handled Nobels financial assets.