A. M. Zaitsev: Lasting Contributions of a Synthetic Virtuoso a Century after his Death

and a pioneer in organosulfur and organozinc chemistry. Zaitsev held the Chair of Chemistry at Kazan for 39 years, and in that time was responsible for the training of some of the most eminent organic chemists of the next generation, among them Egor Egorevich Vagner (Georg Wagner, 1849– 1903), Sergei Nikolaevich Reformatskii (1860–1934), and Aleksandr Erminingel dovich Arbuzov (1877–1968). In addition, he served two terms as the President of the Russian Physical-Chemical Society, and he was elected a Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Today, Kazan is the capital of the Russian Republic of Tatarstan. It is located approximately 750 km east of Moscow on the Volga River, and is a city of approximately 1.2 million that is a major scientific and economic hub. In 1804, when the university there was founded, the population of Kazan was just over 40000; during Zaitsev s career, the population more than tripled from just over 60000 to more than 200000. Zaitsev was born to Mikhail Savvich Zaitsev and his second wife, Nataliya Vasil evna Lyapunova, the sister of the astronomer Mikhail Vasil evich Lyapunov (1820–1868), who also served as Professor of Astronomy at Kazan University. Zaitsev s family had lived in the Kazan district since the time of Ivan the Terrible, and held a prominent place in the trading guilds (his grandfather, Savva Stepanovich Zaitsev had been an elder in the cathedral, and was one of the group directing the cathedral renovation during 1824–1825). Mikhail Zaitsev had determined that his son should follow him into the guilds, so when the time came for young Aleksandr to complete his education, it was only at the urging of his uncle that his father permitted him to enter the university, and then only so long as Aleksandr entered the Judicial-Economics faculty as a cameralist. It was Lyapunov who taught young Zaitsev the Latin he needed to enter the university. As his father wished, Zaitsev entered Kazan University as a cameralist. The cameralisty were students in training to become government bureaucrats, and at the time that Zaitsev entered Kazan University, all cameralisty were required to study chemistry for two years. It was during these studies that he encountered one of the most influential Russian organic chemists of the nineteenth century: Aleksandr Mikhailovich Butlerov (1828–1886; Figure 2). At the time, Butlerov was Professor of Chemistry at Kazan. He had studied chemistry under Nikolai Nikolaevich Zinin (1812–1880), the discoverer of the reduction of nitrobenzene to aniline, and Karl Karlovich Klaus (1796–1864), the discoverer of ruthenium, but he had written his kandidat dissertation in entomology. However, to meet the needs of the university, he was seconded to teaching chemistry, like his mentor, Zinin. He first became Klaus assistant in chemistry and, after Klaus left for Dorpat, he assumed all instruction in chemistry. His Magistr Khimii (M. Chem.) dissertation was largely a review of the literature, although it did contain the first report of the oxidation of alkenes with osmium tetroxide. His dissertation for the degree of Doktor Khimii (Dr. Chem.), which was necessary before he could assume the Chair in Chemistry, was also largely a historical review. It is worthwhile noting that the faculty at Kazan did not approve Butlerov s dissertation for the degree of Dr. Chem., so he Figure 1. Aleksandr Mikhailovich Zaitsev late in his career (estimated after 1900).