The outcome of Einstein winning a Nobel Prize held significant implications. Beyond his scholarly reputation and that of the Nobel Institute’s mission to recognize exceptional achievements, the financial wellbeing of his former wife, Mileva, and their two sons depended on this recognition.
In the aftermath of World War I, Germany faced severe hyperinflation, as the government printed more money to meet war reparations, causing the German mark to plummet in value against foreign currencies. Living in Berlin, Einstein was personally affected by this economic turmoil.
Einstein and Mileva had divorced in 1919, several years after she had returned to Switzerland with their sons, Hans-Albert and Eduard. As part of the settlement, Einstein had pledged any future Nobel Prize winnings to Mileva to support their children’s needs. With inflation worsening, the need for this prize money became increasingly urgent.
By this time, Einstein had accumulated a decade of Nobel nominations. Nevertheless, each year, the Nobel Committee, facing mounting criticism, dismissed his work on relativity as “unproven.” This stance shifted in 1919 when Cambridge astrophysicist Arthur Eddington famously confirmed a key prediction of relativity by measuring the deflection of starlight near the Sun during a total solar eclipse. Despite this groundbreaking validation, the committee withheld the prize once again.
The reasons were complex. Antisemitism was growing in post-war Germany, with Jews scapegoated for the country’s defeat. Einstein, both Jewish and a pacifist, became an easy target. Additionally, the intricacies of relativity left it vulnerable to criticism. Opponents like Ernst Gehrcke and Philipp Lenard exploited its complex mathematics to cast doubt on its validity.
By 1921, the situation reached a breaking point: unable to reach a consensus, the Nobel Committee chose to withhold the prize altogether rather than award it for relativity. After a year of debate, a compromise was reached. At the recommendation of physicist Carl Wilhelm Oseen, Einstein would receive the 1921 Nobel Prize not for relativity but for his 1905 work on the photoelectric effect, a phenomenon involving the emission of electrons from metal surfaces under specific illuminations. This research introduced the concept of photons and arguably laid the foundation for quantum mechanics.
Some argue that this work had a greater impact than relativity; however, relativity transformed our understanding of the universe on a grand scale, representing a monumental leap in human intellectual progress.
The Nobel citation acknowledged Einstein “for his services to theoretical physics, and especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.” Although this mention of “theoretical physics” might appear to nod at relativity, a caveat clarified that the award was presented “without taking into account the future value of [Einstein’s] theories of relativity and gravitation.” This disclaimer, which Einstein reportedly found offensive, suggested the committee’s reluctance to endorse relativity fully, despite Eddington’s support. While some perceived Eddington’s selective use of data as biased in Einstein’s favor, it was a standard scientific practice.
It remains uncertain whether the committee intended to leave the door open for a future Nobel Prize for relativity once it had undergone more thorough testing. However, as Einstein’s fame grew, he distanced himself from the physics community by refusing to accept quantum theory, effectively closing the possibility of further Nobel recognition.
In a final twist, Einstein did not attend his prize ceremony. Though informed in advance of his selection, he chose to continue a lecture tour in Japan, partly due to his diminished regard for the prize and partly for personal safety. Following the assassination of German foreign minister Walther Rathenau by anti-Semitic extremists, Einstein learned that his own name appeared on a list of targeted individuals. In light of these threats, an extended trip to Asia seemed prudent.
Ultimately, perhaps the most significant outcome of Einstein’s Nobel Prize was the financial support it provided to Mileva and their sons, especially vital when Eduard later required hospitalization for schizophrenia.
As the Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded again this week, the legacy of Einstein’s complex relationship with the Nobel Committee and his remarkable contributions to science endure.
