Johann Bernhard Aloys von Gudden (June 7, 1824 - June 13, 1886) was a German neuroanatomist and psychiatrist. He earned his doctorate from the University of Halle in 1848 and became an intern at the asylum in Siegburg. From 1851 to 1855 he was a psychiatrist in the mental asylum at Illenau in Baden. From 1855 to 1869 he was director of the Unterfränkische Landes-Irrenanstalt mental institution in Werneck. In 1869 he was appointed director of the Burghölzli Hospital, and also a professor of psychiatry at the University of Zürich. Later in his career he was professor of psychiatry at the University of Munich. June 7 is the 158th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (159th in leap years), with 207 days remaining. ... 1824 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... June 13 is the 164th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (165th in leap years), with 201 days remaining. ... Year 1886 (MDCCCLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... A neuroanatomist is a person who studies the branch of anatomy that deals with the nervous system. ... Psychiatry is a branch of medicine that studies and treats mental and emotional disorders (see mental illness). ... The Martin-Luther-University of Halle-Wittenberg is located in the German cities of Halle, Saxony-Anhalt and Wittenberg. ... Siegburg is a city within the Rhein-Sieg-Kreis (Rhein-Sieg-County) of Germany with a population of 41. ... Baden is a historical state in the southwest of Germany, on the right bank of the Rhine. ... Palace in Werneck, by Balthasar Neumann and Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt. ... The University of Zurich (in German: Universität Zürich) is the largest university of Switzerland, in the city of Zurich. ... With approximately 48,000 students, the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich (German: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München or LMU) is one of the largest universities in Germany. ...

Gudden made many contributions in the field of neuroanatomy, especially his work of mapping and describing the paths, connections, origins/termini and neuroanatomical centers of the cranial and optic nerve networks. The commissural fibers of the optic tract are eponymously called the commissure of Gudden. He is also credited for developing a specialized microtome for sectioning the brain for pathological study. Among his well-known students and assistants are Emil Kraepelin (1856-1926), Franz Nissl (1860-1919), Auguste-Henri Forel (1848-1931), Sigbert Josef Maria Ganser (1853-1931) and Oskar Panizza (1853-1921). Neuroanatomy is the anatomy of the nervous system. ... The optic tract is a part of the visual system in the brain. ... A microtome is a mechanical instrument used to cut very thin slices for microscopic examination. ... In animals the brain, or encephalon (Greek for in the head), is the control center of the central nervous system, responsible for thought. ... Emil Kraepelin (February 15, 1856–October 7, 1926) was a German psychiatrist who attempted to create a synthesis of the hundreds of mental disorders classified by the 19th century, grouping diseases together based on classification of common patterns of symptoms, rather than by simple similarity of major symptoms in the... Franz Nissl Franz Nissl (1860-1919) was born in Frankenthal in the Bavarian Palatinate, the son of Theodor Nissl and Maria Haas. ... Auguste-Henri Forel towards the end of his life Auguste-Henri Forel (September 1, 1848 - July 27, 1931) was a Swiss myrmecologist, neuroanatomist and psychiatrist, notable for his investigations into the brain structure of humans and ants. ... Oskar Panizza Leopold Hermann Oskar Panizza (12 November 1853 – 28 September 1921) was a German psychiatrist and avant-garde author, playwright, novelist, poet, essayist, publisher and literary journal editor. ...

As director of mental institutions, Gudden advocated a no-restraint policy, humane treatment of the mentally ill, communal social interaction amongst patients, and a well-trained medical staff. These were considered innovative, if not revolutionary ideas concerning mental health treatment in the mid-19th century. Gudden was a respected psychiatrist in Germany and was appointed personal physician to King Ludwig II of Bavaria. On June 13, 1886, Ludwig and Gudden were both found dead in the water near the shore of Lake Starnberg at 11:30 p.m. that night, allegedly drowned, possibly murdered. To this day the details of their deaths remain a mystery. Ludwig (Louis) II, King of Bavaria, Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm; sometimes known in English as Ludwig the Mad and as the Märchenkönig (Fairy-tale King) in German. ... Lake Starnberg (German: Starnberger See) in southern Bavaria is one of Germanys largest lakes and a popular recreation area for the nearby city of Munich. ...

Bibliography:

• Beiträge zur Lehre von den Scabies
• Experimentelle Untersuchungen über das Schädelwachstum

Source:

• American Journal of Psychiatry