In 1857 Hugo Schiff observed that the reaction between benzoyl chloride with potassium cyanide produced the desired benzonitrile. Work done later by British chemist Edmund A. Letts delved much deeper into the synthesis of nitriles.
In 1857, Hugo Schiff discovered that reacting benzoyl chloride with potassium cyanide yielded the desired benzonitrile.  Subsequently, Edmund A. Letts conducted further research on synthesizing nitriles.