Honorary membership is the GDCh’s highest distinction – and at the same time a piece of living history of chemistry. It recognises scientists who have made a lasting contribution to the advancement of chemistry and have furthered the GDCh’s objectives in a particularly notable way.
Appointments are made by the General Assembly on the basis of proposals from the GDCh Board; honorary members enjoy all the rights of ordinary members – without the associated obligations. This distinction is also highly respected internationally – here you can explore the history of our honorary members.
The Honorary Members of the GDCh
2024
Barbara Albert
Darmstadt
(*1966)
2023
Heribert Offermanns
Hanau
(1937–2025)
2021
Hildegard Nimmesgern
Mörfelden-Walldorf
(*1951)
2021
Herbert Walter Roesky
Göttingen
(1935–2025)
2019
François Diederich
Zurich/Switzerland
(1952–2020)
2017
Helga Rübsamen-Schaeff
Düsseldorf
(*1949)
2017
Peter Gölitz
Weinheim
(*1952)
2017
Egon Fanghänel
Halle/Saale
(1935–2023)
2016
Dieter Jahn
Edingen-Neckarhausen
(*1951)
2015
Henning Hopf
Braunschweig
(1940-2026)
2014
Günther Wilke
Mülheim a. d. Ruhr
(1925 - 2016)
2012
Ekkehardt Winterfeldt
Hannover
(1932–2014)
2012
Gunter S. Fischer
Halle/Saale
(*1943)
2008
Gerhard Ertl
Berlin
(*1936)
2007
Georg A. Olah
Los Angeles/USA
(1927–2017)
2006
Hans-Jürgen Quadbeck-Seeger
Bad Dürkheim
(*1939)
2004
Leopold Horner
Mainz
(1911–2005)
2003
Heindirk tom Dieck
Friedrichsdorf
(*1939)
2001
Wilhelm Fresenius
Taunusstein
(1913–2004)
2000
Rudolf Zahradnik
Prague/Czech Republic
(1928 - 2020)
1999
Roald Hoffmann
Ithaca/USA
(*1937)
1999
Heinz A. Staab
Heidelberg
(1926 - 2012)
1998
Jean-Marie Lehn
Strasbourg/France
(*1939)
1997
Hubert Markl
Konstanz & Munich
(1938–2015)
1994
Heinrich Nöth
Munich
(1928 - 2015)
1991
Rolf Huisgen
Munich
(1920–2020)
1988
Oskar Glemser
Göttingen
(1911–2005)
1984
Ernst Otto Fischer
Munich
(1918–2007)
1983
Vladimir Prelog
Zurich/Switzerland
(1906–1998)
1982
Harry Julius Emeléus
Cambridge/UK
(1903 - 1993)
1981
Adolf Friedrich Johann Butenandt
Munich
(1903–1995)
1979
Rudolf Brill
Berlin
(1899–1989)
1968
Karl Waldemar Ziegler
Mülheim a. d. Ruhr
(1898 - 1973)
1967
Karl Johann Freudenberg
Heidelberg
(1886–1983)
1967
Friedrich Wesseley
Vienna/Austria
(1897–1967)
1967
Albin Kurt Mothes
Halle/Saale
(1900–1983)
1965
Otto Bayer
Leverkusen
(1902–1982)
1963
Wilhelm Karl Klemm
Münster
(1896 - 1985)
1959
Arthur Stoll
Arlesheim/Switzerland
(1887–1971)
1958
Hans Leberecht Meerwein
Marburg
(1879–1965)
1958
Alfred Richard Wilhelm Kühn
Tübingen
(1885–1968)
1957
Otto Heinrich Warburg
Berlin
(1883–1970)
1956
Hermann Staudinger
Freiburg
(1881–1965)
1955
Robert Burns Woodward
Cambridge, USA
(1917–1979)
1953
Philipp Heinrich Hörlein
Wuppertal-Elberfeld
(1882–1954)
1952
Sir Alexander Robertus Todd
Cambridge/UK
(1907–1997)
1952
Paul Karrer
Zürich/Switzerland
(1889 - 1971)
1952
Pierre Jolibois
Paris/France
(1884–1954)
1952
Arvid Hedvall
Gothenburg/Sweden
(1888–1974)
1952
Otto Hahn
Göttingen
(1879–1968)
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