Maximilian Joseph von Chelius

Who was Maximilian Joseph von Chelius?

Maximilian Joseph von Chelius was a German surgeon and ophthalmologist born in Mannheim.

Chelius received his medical doctorate in 1812 at the University of Heidelberg, and afterwards worked as both a civilian and military physician in Munich. He was an army surgeon in the last phases of the Napoleonic Wars. In 1818 he returned to Heidelberg, where he served as a professor until 1864.

He was a catalyst in the development of the medical faculty at the University of Heidelberg, being considered the founder of the surgical tradition at the facility. Chelius specialized in the field of 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.