Ernst Gräfenberg (26 September 1881 – 28 October 1957) was a German-born physician and scientist. He is known for developing the intra-uterine device (IUD), and for his studies of the role of the woman's urethra in

orgasm Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling") or sexual climax is the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, resulting in rhythmic, involuntary muscular contractions in the pelvic region charac ...

. The

G-spot The G-spot, also called the Gräfenberg spot (for German gynecologist Ernst Gräfenberg), is characterized as an erogenous area of the vagina that, when stimulated, may lead to strong sexual arousal, powerful orgasms and potential female ejac ...

is named after him.

Career

Gräfenberg studied

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, earning his doctorate on 10 March 1905. He began working as a doctor of

ophthalmology Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a medic ...

at the university of

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg is ...

, but then moved to the Department of

Obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

and

Gynaecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined are ...

at the

University of Kiel Kiel University, officially the Christian-Albrecht University of Kiel, (german: Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, abbreviated CAU, known informally as Christiana Albertina) is a university in the city of Kiel, Germany. It was founded in ...

, where he published papers on

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

metastasis Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spread from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, then, ...

(the "Gräfenberg theory"), and the physiology of egg implantation. In 1910 Gräfenberg worked as a gynaecologist in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, and by 1920 was quite successful, with an office on the

Kurfürstendamm The Kurfürstendamm (; colloquially ''Ku'damm'', ; en, Prince Elector Embankment) is one of the most famous avenues in Berlin. The street takes its name from the former ''Kurfürsten'' (prince-electors) of Brandenburg. The broad, long boulevar ...

. He was chief gynaecologist of a municipal hospital in Britz, a working-class Berlin district, and was beginning scientific studies of the physiology of human reproduction at Berlin University. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was a medical officer, and continued publishing papers, mostly on human female physiology. In 1929 he published his studies of the " Gräfenberg ring", the first

IUD An intrauterine device (IUD), also known as intrauterine contraceptive device (IUCD or ICD) or coil, is a small, often T-shaped birth control device that is inserted into the uterus to prevent pregnancy. IUDs are one form of long-acting rever ...

for which there are usage records. 17th-century, Dutch physician

Regnier de Graaf Regnier de Graaf (English spelling), original Dutch spelling Reinier de Graaf, or Latinized Reijnerus de Graeff (30 July 164117 August 1673) was a Dutch physician, physiologist and anatomist who made key discoveries in reproductive biology. He ...

described

female ejaculation Female ejaculation is characterized as an expulsion of fluid from the Skene's gland at the lower end of the urethra during or before an orgasm. It is also known colloquially as squirting (or gushing), although research indicates that female eja ...

and referred to an erogenous zone in the vagina that he linked with the male prostate; this zone was later reported by Gräfenberg. The term "G-Spot" was coined by Addiego et al. in 1981, named after Gräfenberg, even though Gräfenberg's 1940s research was dedicated to urethral stimulation. In 1950, Gräfenberg stated, "An erotic zone always could be demonstrated on the anterior wall of the vagina along the course of the urethra." When

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

assumed power in Germany, Gräfenberg, a

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

, was forced in 1933 to resign as head of the department of gynaecology and obstetrics in the Berlin-Britz municipal hospital. In 1934, Hans Lehfeldt attempted to persuade him to leave

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

; he refused, believing that since his practice included wives of high Nazi officials, he would be safe. He was wrong and was arrested in 1937 for having smuggled out a valuable stamp from Germany. On 9 November 1938 he was sentenced to three years imprisonment by the

Landgericht Berlin The Landgericht Berlin is a regional court in Berlin, divided into two divisions for civil and criminal cases. In the German court hierarchy, it is above the eleven local courts (Amtsgerichte) of the city and below the Kammergericht, which is the ...

and received a large fine for this alleged offense. Until 15 August 1940 he was imprisoned in the

Brandenburg-Görden Prison Brandenburg-Görden Prison is located on Anton-Saefkow-Allee in the Görden quarter of Brandenburg an der Havel. Erected between 1927 and 1935, it was built to be the most secure and modern prison in Europe. Both criminal and political prisoners we ...

Margaret Sanger Margaret Higgins Sanger (born Margaret Louise Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966), also known as Margaret Sanger Slee, was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term "birth control ...

ransomed him from Nazi prison, whereupon he went to the U.S. and opened a practice in New York City. Among others, the German novelist

Erich Maria Remarque Erich Maria Remarque (, ; born Erich Paul Remark; 22 June 1898 – 25 September 1970) was a German-born novelist. His landmark novel '' All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1928), based on his experience in the Imperial German Army during Worl ...

helped Gräfenberg to build his new existence in the U.S.

Private life

Gräfenberg was born in

Adelebsen Adelebsen is a municipality in the Göttingen (district), district of Göttingen, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It consists of the localities Adelebsen, Barterode, Eberhausen, Erbsen, Güntersen, Lödingsen and Wibbecke. The Burg Adelebsen is located ...

near

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, the son of Salomon Gräfenberg (1834–1918) and Minna Gräfenberg (née Eichenberg; 1845–1910). Ernst's father owned an iron wares business in Adelebsen and served as the head of the Jewish community there from 1868 to 1882, and as an Adelebsen community council member (Bürgervorsteher) from 1889 to 1893.Eggert, Björn. Entry for
Gertrud Seidl (geborene Gräfenberg), 1883–1943
(sister of Ernst Gräfenberg), in ''Stolpersteine Hamburg''. Retrieved 22 February 2015 from www.stolpersteine-hamburg.de In 1893 the family moved to Göttingen, where Ernst attended the municipal high school, or Gymnasium, later known as the . Gräfenberg was briefly married to writer Rosie Waldeck.Th
U.S. Copyright Renewals, 1962 July – December
indicate that Rosie Waldeck is also known as Rosie Graefenberg Waldeck, and as "R.G." was author of ''Prelude to the past; the autobiography of a woman.'' ''Time'' magazine, in it

indicates that she is the same person; however, they give the "G" as standing for Goldschmidt, her maiden name. He died largely unnoticed on 28 October 1957 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, but the Jewish weekly '' Aufbau'' published an obituary. He was buried on the

Ferncliff Cemetery Ferncliff Cemetery and Mausoleum is located at 280 Secor Road in the hamlet of Hartsdale, town of Greenburgh, Westchester County, New York, United States, about north of Midtown Manhattan. It was founded in 1902, and is non-sectarian. Fernc ...

References

External links

Ernst Gräfenberg: From Berlin to New York
by

Beverly Whipple Beverly Whipple is Professor Emerita at Rutgers University and a professional author and sexologist. She is a co-author of the publication '' The G Spot and Other Recent Discoveries About Human Sexuality.'' Career Following a career in nursing ...

, Ph.D, RN, FAAN Professor Rutgers,

The State University of New Jersey Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

, USA
''The Role of Urethra in Female Orgasm''
by Ernest Gräfenberg, M.D. {{DEFAULTSORT:Grafenberg, Ernst 1881 births 1957 deaths American people of German-Jewish descent German gynaecologists Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States German sexologists Jewish American scientists Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni People from the Province of Hanover University of Göttingen alumni Academic staff of the University of Kiel German military personnel of World War I