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Alfred Nobel

Inventor · Chemist · Engineer · Entrepreneur

1833–1896 · Born in Stockholm, Sweden · 4 min read

  • Verified: 13 November 2026
  • Sources: 5
  • Independently reviewed
Portrait photograph of Alfred Nobel before 1896, a bearded man in a dark suit with a bow tie
Photo: Gösta Florman / Wikimedia Commons , Public domain

Swedish chemist and inventor who created dynamite in 1866, held 355 patents, and founded the Nobel Prizes by his will of 1895.

Early Life

Alfred Nobel was born on 21 October 1833 in Stockholm, Sweden, the third son of Immanuel Nobel, an engineer and inventor, and Andriette Ahlsell Nobel. The family was poor in his childhood, and his father went bankrupt in the year Alfred was born. In 1842 the family moved to St Petersburg, Russia, where Immanuel Nobel's business prospered building mines and armaments. Alfred was educated by private tutors in St Petersburg and showed an early gift for languages and chemistry. He never attended university, but his father sent him abroad in 1850 to study, first to Paris, where he worked with the chemist Pelouze and met Sobrero, and then to the United States.

Education

Nobel was educated by private tutors in St Petersburg and never took a university degree. He studied chemistry in Paris under Théophile-Jules Pelouze and worked briefly in the United States with the engineer John Ericsson. He spoke several languages, including Swedish, Russian, French, English and German, and wrote poetry and drama in his spare time.

Career

Nobel was born in Stockholm in 1833, the third son of the engineer and inventor Immanuel Nobel. In 1842 the family moved to St Petersburg, where his father built bridges and armaments for the Russian government, and Alfred was educated by private tutors. He studied chemistry in Paris under Théophile-Jules Pelouze, where he met Ascanio Sobrero, the inventor of nitroglycerine, and worked briefly in the United States with the engineer John Ericsson. Returning to Sweden, he began experiments with nitroglycerine in 1862. An explosion at his family's Heleneborg factory in 1864 killed his youngest brother Emil and others, but Nobel persisted, patented the blasting cap that year, and in 1866 invented dynamite. He built factories across Europe, including at Krümmel in Germany and Ardeer in Scotland, and later bought the Bofors ironworks in Sweden, turning it into an armaments maker. He lived mostly in Paris and later in Sanremo, Italy, where he died in 1896. His will, signed in Paris on 27 November 1895, directed that his fortune fund annual prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace.

Achievements

Nobel's central achievement was dynamite. Nitroglycerine, invented by the Italian chemist Ascanio Sobrero in 1847, was far more powerful than gunpowder but detonated unpredictably and could not be used safely. Nobel first made it usable with the blasting cap, patented in 1864, which detonated it in a controlled way, and then, in 1866, found that absorbing the liquid in kieselguhr, a porous earth, turned it into a paste that could be shaped into rods and handled safely. He patented the mixture as dynamite in 1867. Dynamite transformed mining, quarrying, tunnelling and construction around the world, and Nobel followed it with blasting gelatin in 1875 and ballistite in 1887. By his death in 1896 he held 355 patents. His last will, signed in 1895, left the bulk of his fortune to fund the Nobel Prizes, first awarded in 1901, which became the highest honours in science, literature and peace.

  • Invented dynamite in 1866–67, stabilising nitroglycerine by absorbing it in kieselguhr so it could be handled and detonated safely
  • Patented the blasting cap (detonator) in 1864, which made controlled detonation of nitroglycerine possible
  • Patented dynamite in Sweden and Britain in 1867 and in the United States in 1868
  • Invented blasting gelatin in 1875 and ballistite, a smokeless powder, in 1887
  • Held 355 patents by the time of his death in 1896
  • Built an international explosives business with factories across Europe and beyond
  • Signed his last will on 27 November 1895, leaving the bulk of his fortune to fund the Nobel Prizes, first awarded in 1901

Legacy

Nobel is remembered in two ways that pull against each other: as the inventor of dynamite, the explosive that made mining and tunnelling possible and also made war more destructive, and as the founder of the Nobel Prizes, the honours that reward the greatest benefit to humankind. The prizes, first awarded in 1901, five years after his death, became the most prestigious awards in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and peace, and later in economics. His name also lives on in the element nobelium, named after him, and in the companies descended from his explosives businesses. The story that a premature obituary calling him a merchant of death drove him to found the prizes is widely told but has never been proved from the newspaper itself; his will gives no reason for the bequest, and historians still debate his motives.

Contributions

Nobel's contribution was to make a dangerous substance useful. Nitroglycerine was too unstable to use, so it was a laboratory curiosity; Nobel's blasting cap gave it a controlled trigger, and his dynamite gave it a safe form, a paste that could be carried, drilled into rock and fired on command. That turned explosives into a tool for building: dynamite blasted the tunnels of the Alps, the mines of South Africa and the canals of Panama. The fortune it made him then funded something entirely different, the Nobel Prizes, which have steered a century of science and literature by rewarding work that benefits humankind.

Notable Works

  • Dynamite (invented 1866, patented 1867)
  • Blasting cap / detonator (1864)
  • Blasting gelatin (1875)
  • Ballistite smokeless powder (1887)
  • Nobel Prizes, founded by his will of 1895

Milestones

  • 1833 — Born on 21 October in Stockholm, Sweden Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1842 — Moved with his family to St Petersburg, Russia Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1850 — Sent abroad to study; studied chemistry in Paris Source: ThoughtCo
  • 1862 — Began experiments with nitroglycerine Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1863 — Received his first patent on nitroglycerine Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1864 — Patented the blasting cap; Heleneborg explosion killed his brother Emil Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1866 — Invented dynamite by absorbing nitroglycerine in kieselguhr Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1867 — Patented dynamite in Sweden and Britain Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1868 — Received the United States patent for dynamite Source: ThoughtCo
  • 1875 — Invented blasting gelatin Source: ThoughtCo
  • 1884 — Elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Source: ThoughtCo
  • 1887 — Invented ballistite, a smokeless powder Source: ThoughtCo
  • 1895 — Signed his last will in Paris on 27 November, founding the Nobel Prizes Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1896 — Died on 10 December in Sanremo, Italy, aged 63 Source: NobelPrize.org
  • 1901 — The first Nobel Prizes were awarded on 10 December Source: NobelPrize.org

Timeline

  1. 21 October 1833

    Born in Stockholm, Sweden, the third son of Immanuel Nobel and Andriette Ahlsell Nobel

    Source: NobelPrize.org; Wikipedia
  2. 1842

    Moved with his family to St Petersburg, Russia, where his father built armaments

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org
  3. 1850

    Sent abroad to study; studied chemistry in Paris under Théophile-Jules Pelouze and met Ascanio Sobrero

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org; ThoughtCo
  4. 1862

    Began experiments with nitroglycerine

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org
  5. 1863

    Received his first patent on nitroglycerine as an industrial explosive

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org
  6. 1864

    Patented the blasting cap; an explosion at the Heleneborg factory killed his brother Emil

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org; ThoughtCo
  7. 1866

    Invented dynamite by absorbing nitroglycerine in kieselguhr

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org
  8. 1867

    Patented dynamite in Sweden and Britain; demonstrated it at a quarry in Redhill, England

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org; ThoughtCo
  9. 1868

    Received the United States patent for dynamite

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: ThoughtCo
  10. 1875

    Invented blasting gelatin

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org; ThoughtCo
  11. 1884

    Elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: Wikipedia; ThoughtCo
  12. 1887

    Invented ballistite, a smokeless powder

    Year only — exact date unknown Source: NobelPrize.org; ThoughtCo
  13. 27 November 1895

    Signed his last will in Paris, leaving the bulk of his fortune to fund the Nobel Prizes

    Source: NobelPrize.org
  14. 10 December 1896

    Died in Sanremo, Italy, aged 63

    Source: NobelPrize.org
  15. 10 December 1901

    The first Nobel Prizes were awarded, five years after his death

    Source: NobelPrize.org

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was Alfred Nobel?

Alfred Nobel (1833–1896) was a Swedish chemist, engineer and inventor best known for inventing dynamite and for founding the Nobel Prizes. He stabilised the explosive nitroglycerine by absorbing it in kieselguhr, patented the mixture as dynamite in 1867, and built an international explosives business.

In his last will, signed in 1895, he left the bulk of his fortune to fund annual prizes in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and peace.

Source: NobelPrize.org ; Wikipedia

What is dynamite, and how did Nobel invent it?

Dynamite is a stable explosive invented by Alfred Nobel in 1866 and patented in 1867. He made it by absorbing nitroglycerine, a powerful but dangerously unstable liquid invented by Ascanio Sobrero in 1847, in kieselguhr, a porous earth also called diatomaceous earth.

The mixture formed a paste that could be shaped into rods, carried safely and detonated on command with Nobel's blasting cap. It transformed mining, quarrying, tunnelling and construction around the world.

Source: NobelPrize.org ; ThoughtCo

What was the blasting cap, and why did it matter?

Nobel's blasting cap, or detonator, patented in 1864, was a small charge that could be set off by a fuse to detonate nitroglycerine in a controlled way. Before it, nitroglycerine could explode without warning from heat or shock, which made it unusable.

The blasting cap was therefore the key that unlocked the explosive: with it, Nobel could fire a charge exactly when and where he wanted, and dynamite became a practical tool rather than a hazard.

Source: NobelPrize.org

How did the Nobel Prizes come about?

On 27 November 1895, in Paris, Nobel signed his last will, directing that the bulk of his fortune be used to fund annual prizes for those who had conferred the greatest benefit on humankind, in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace.

He died a year later, on 10 December 1896, and after legal disputes over the will, the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901, on the anniversary of his death. A prize in economics was added later, in 1969.

Source: NobelPrize.org ; Wikipedia

Did a premature obituary inspire the Nobel Prizes?

The famous story says that in 1888 a French newspaper mistakenly published Alfred Nobel's obituary when his brother Ludvig died, calling him the merchant of death, and that the shock made him found the prizes to buy a better reputation.

A mistaken report did appear, but the dramatic headline has never been found in the newspaper itself, and Nobel's will gives no reason for the bequest. Historians therefore treat the story as unproved, and this profile records it as a popular tale rather than as fact.

Source: NobelPrize.org ; Wikipedia

How many patents did Alfred Nobel hold, and what else did he invent?

By the time of his death in 1896, Nobel held 355 patents, most of them for explosives and related chemistry. Besides dynamite, his best-known inventions were the blasting cap of 1864, blasting gelatin of 1875, a more powerful explosive made by combining nitroglycerine with gun-cotton, and ballistite of 1887.

He also worked on synthetic rubber, artificial silk and other chemical products, and he owned the Bofors ironworks in Sweden, which he turned into an armaments maker.

Source: NobelPrize.org ; ThoughtCo

Sources & References

  1. Alfred Nobel — his life and work — NobelPrize.org — NobelPrize.org (accessed 13 November 2026)
  2. Alfred Nobel — the man behind the prize — NobelPrize.org — NobelPrize.org (accessed 13 November 2026)
  3. Alfred Nobel — Wikipedia — Wikipedia (accessed 13 November 2026)
  4. Biography of Alfred Nobel, Inventor of Dynamite — ThoughtCo (accessed 13 November 2026)
  5. File:AlfredNobel adjusted.jpg — Wikimedia Commons (portrait file page) — Wikimedia Commons (accessed 13 November 2026)

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Written by Abdul Hannan. Independently reviewed before publication. First published 13 November 2026; last verified 13 November 2026.

Birth date: 21 October 1833 · Death date: 10 December 1896 · Died in Sanremo, Italy · Date precision: exact.