["How it all came about". On the beginnings of current neurosurgery in Germany up to the beginning of the "Zentralblatt für Neurochirurgie"].

: Till the thirties of our century surgery of brain and spinal cord was done by general surgeons. At that time the activities of Ernst von Bergmann, Fedor Krause and the operative autodidact and Neurologist Otfried Foerster met with great response. These achievements, however, had no influence on the development and dissemination of Neurosurgery in Germany. The revolutionary work of Cushing concerning Neurosurgery had no effect on surgeons either. The results of the operative treatment of intracerebral tumors in Germany continued to be depressing. It's entirely the credit of Fritz Konig (Wurzburg) having caused the decisive change of this situation. He enabled his resident Wilhelm Tonnis to be educated by Herbert Olivecrona in his Department of Neurosurgery in Stockholm. After his return from Sweden the first independent Department of Neurosurgery was founded for Wilhelm Tonnis in Wurzburg. Wilhelm Tonnis tried to overcome the still existing opposition against the independence of Neurosurgery by the foundation of an own scientific journal. The "Zentralblatt fur Neurochirurgie" was founded in 1936 at the newspaper Publisher Ambrosius Barth, Leipzig. This "Zentralblatt fur Neurochirurgie" was the only scientific journal of the world till 1943. The consequences of war stopped its distribution abroad. This was the reason for the foundation of "The Journal of Neurosurgery" in 1944. Corresponding to its tradition the new beginning shall consolidate the scientific bond between all neurosurgeons of the world.