Georg Simmel was born in
Berlin on March 1, 1858. Simmel went on to study
history and
philosophy at the University of Berlin with some of the most important academic figures of the day. In 1881, when he received his
doctorate in philosophy, he was extremely knowledgeable in the fields of history,
psychology, as well as the
social sciences. In 1885, Simmel stayed at the University of Berlin to become an unpaid
lecturer who was dependent on student fees, however, his
guardian had left him a substantial amount of money so that he was not beset by financial concerns as were so many. He was a very popular lecturer, not only for students, but for the cultural elite as well.
Relevant webpage:
http://socio.ch/sim/index_sim.htm