24 moments

1. Birth

   1862-01-23 · Wehlau (now Znamensk), Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia

   Hilbert was born in East Prussia; the birthplace is disputed between Wehlau and Königsberg. This card uses Wehlau, the location given by MacTutor, while preserving the uncertainty. Wikipedia records a birthplace ambiguity: Hilbert himself stated Königsberg, while other accounts give Wehlau.

2. Friedrichskolleg school attendance

   1872-01-01 · Collegium Fridericianum, Königsberg, East Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia)

   Hilbert entered the Friedrichskolleg Gymnasium in his home city during his secondary education. The school building is historic; coordinates represent central Kaliningrad.

3. Transfer to Wilhelm Gymnasium

   1879-09-01 · Wilhelm Gymnasium, Königsberg, East Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia)

   Hilbert transferred to the more science-oriented Wilhelm Gymnasium for his final school year. The historic school site is not precisely identified here; coordinates represent central Kaliningrad.

4. University studies begin

   1880-01-01 · University of Königsberg (Albertina), Königsberg, East Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia)

   After finishing school, Hilbert began university study at the Albertina in Königsberg. The Albertina's historic campus no longer survives in its original institutional form; coordinates represent central Kaliningrad.

5. Second-semester study

   1881-01-01 · Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Baden, German Empire

   Hilbert spent his second university semester attending lectures in Heidelberg, following a common German academic practice. The source places this visit in Hilbert's second semester; 1881 is the supported year-level placement in his undergraduate chronology.

6. Research visit to Felix Klein

   1885-01-01 · University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony, German Empire

   

   Following his doctorate, Hilbert traveled to Leipzig for a research visit and attended Felix Klein's lectures. The visit is placed after Hilbert's February 1885 doctorate and before his early-1886 Paris journey; year precision is therefore appropriate.

7. Mathematical visit to Paris

   1886-01-01 · Paris, France

   

   Hilbert traveled to Paris with Eduard Study, meeting leading French mathematicians including Henri Poincaré and Charles Hermite. The source specifies early 1886 and says Hilbert arrived at the end of March, but does not establish a single day.

8. Return for habilitation

   1886-01-01 · University of Königsberg (Albertina), Königsberg, East Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia)

   

   Hilbert returned to Königsberg to prepare his habilitation and deliver an inaugural Albertina lecture, beginning his academic career there. Coordinates represent central Kaliningrad because the historic Albertina campus is no longer extant in its original form.

9. Visit to Berlin

   1886-01-01 · Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire

   

   Hilbert continued from Göttingen to Berlin, where he reported receiving a friendly welcome despite warnings about Leopold Kronecker. The source places Berlin after his spring 1886 Göttingen visit and before his return to Königsberg.

10. Visit to Göttingen en route home

    1886-01-01 · Göttingen, Province of Hanover, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire

    

    On returning from Paris, Hilbert stopped in Göttingen and met Hermann Amandus Schwarz before continuing toward Berlin. The visit occurred in spring 1886; coordinates represent Göttingen's historic university area.

11. Mathematical tour: Berlin

    1888-03-01 · Berlin, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire

    

    Hilbert began a month-long tour of major German mathematical centers, consulting approximately twenty mathematicians. The source establishes March 1888 and the cities visited, but not a day-by-day itinerary.

12. Mathematical tour: Göttingen

    1888-03-01 · Göttingen, Province of Hanover, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire

    

    Hilbert spent eight days in Göttingen during his March 1888 tour before returning to Königsberg. The eight-day stay belongs to the March 1888 tour; the precise dates of the stay are not supplied.

13. Mathematical tour: Leipzig

    1888-03-01 · Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony, German Empire

    

    During his March 1888 research tour, Hilbert visited Leipzig and met Paul Gordan. This stop formed part of the month-long tour that began in March 1888.

14. Appointment to Göttingen chair

    1895-01-01 · University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Province of Hanover, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire

    

    Hilbert was appointed professor of mathematics at Göttingen, the institution that became the base of his career for the rest of his life. Coordinates represent the historic university area; Hilbert's later Mathematical Institute occupied a nearby but distinct site.

15. Presentation of the Hilbert problems

    1900-08-08 · Sorbonne, Paris, France

    

    Hilbert spoke at the Sorbonne during the Second International Congress of Mathematicians and presented ten of the problems that became known as Hilbert's problems.

16. Göttingen residence and professorship

    1915-01-01 · University of Göttingen, Göttingen, German Empire

    

    Hilbert remained based in Göttingen during the period when his work shifted strongly toward theoretical physics and general relativity. This is a representative point within a continuous Göttingen residence spanning 1895–1943, apart from documented journeys.

17. Foundational talks in Hamburg

    1921-01-01 · University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    

    Hilbert answered Hermann Weyl's critique of foundations with three talks in Hamburg during the summer of 1921. The cited source supports summer 1921 but does not provide individual lecture dates.

18. Lectures on modern physics

    1923-07-01 · University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    

    Hilbert delivered a three-lecture series on fundamental questions of modern physics at the University of Hamburg. The underlying study dates the three Hamburg lectures to 26–28 July 1923; month precision is used because the abstract page does not display those individual dates.

19. Lecture to the Physical Society

    1923-10-27 · Zürich, Switzerland

    

    Hilbert repeated the third Hamburg lecture, with summaries of the first two, before the Physical Society in Zürich. Coordinates represent central Zürich; the cited account identifies the Physical Society but not a street address.

20. Lecture on the infinite

    1925-06-04 · Münster, Germany

    

    Hilbert delivered his lecture “Über das Unendliche” in Münster, a major statement of the finitary standpoint in his foundational program. The specific Münster venue is not supplied by the cited reference.

21. International Congress address

    1928-09-03 · University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    

    Hilbert delivered “Probleme der Grundlegung der Mathematik” at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Bologna. The congress began on 3 September 1928; the proceedings place Hilbert's lecture in the opening-session sequence.

22. Opening of the Mathematical Institute

    1930-01-01 · Mathematical Institute, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany

    

    Hilbert and Richard Courant opened Göttingen's new Mathematical Institute, built with Rockefeller Foundation funds. Year-level dating is the maximum precision supplied by the source.

23. Retirement address

    1930-09-01 · Königsberg, East Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia)

    

    Hilbert was present in Königsberg for the 1930 scientific meetings and delivered the retirement-address conclusion associated with “Wir müssen wissen. Wir werden wissen.” The article's note places his presence at the Königsberg meetings in September 1930; the retirement address is dated 8 September 1930, but the quoted sentence itself does not specify the day.

24. Death

    1943-02-14 · Göttingen, Germany

    

    Hilbert died in Göttingen at age 81, after remaining associated with the city for nearly five decades. The exact residence or medical location within Göttingen is not identified by the source.