Friedrich Ernst Ludwig von Fischer

Friedrich Ernst Ludwig Fischer (20 February 1782, Halberstadt – 17 June 1854) was a Russian botanist, born in the Holy Roman Empire. He was director of the St Petersburg botanical garden from 1823 to 1850. He was conferred personal nobility by the Tsar Nicholas I in 1833 from which date he went by Friedrich Ernst von Ludwig Fischer. The genus Fischeria is named in his honour.

Life and work Fischer was born in Halberstadt, Harz, where his father, Gottlob Nathanael Fischer, was a preacher at the Church of the Hospital of the Holy Spirit. His mother Anna Auguste Heyer was the daughter of a headmaster. He was tutored at home by his father before going to the University of Halle. His father died in 1800 on March 20 and his mother died shortly after on April 7. He initially went to study theology but apparently changed and received a medical degree in 1804 with a dissertation under Kurt Sprengel (1766–1833) titled Specimen de Vegetabilium imprimis Filicum propagione [Examples regarding the propagation of plants, particularly ferns]. He was not interested in practicing medicine and took up a position to manage the botanical garden of Count Alexei Razumowsky's (1748–1822) in Gorenki (near Moscow). In 1808 he produced a catalogue of plants of the garden. The genus Fischeria was created by Augustus de Candolle in his honour in 1813. In 1821 he toured Europe and England meeting a number of botanists. By the time he returned his employer had passed away and in 1823, he was appointed director of the imperial botanical garden in St. Petersburg by Alexander I. In 1830, he married Helene von Struve, the daughter of an officer in Hamburg. During his final years, he served as a medical councillor for the Ministry of the Interior.

In 1833 Fischer was awarded the Order of St Vladimir, 3rd class, and 2nd class of the Order of St. Anna which conferred personal nobility and he thereafter called himself "von Fischer". He was a foreign member of the Linnean Society from 1820, the Leopoldina Academy from 1837 under the name "Aiton". In 1815, he was elected a corresponding member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. In 1841, his status was changed to that of foreign member. He died in St. Petersburg.