He was born in Bad Bergzabern, Palatinate, then a district of Bavaria, known for his research in the calculus of variations, particularly influenced by Karl Weierstrass' 1879 lectures on the subject.
Born in Bad Bergzabern, a district that was once part of Bavaria, he made contributions to the field of the calculus of variations, with particular emphasis on this area and its influence from Karl Weierstrass' 1879 lectures.