Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646-1716) was a German mathematician and philosopher. Known as a statesman to the general public of his own times and as a mathematician to his scholarly contemporaries, he was subsequently thought of primarily as a philosopher.

Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz was born in Leipzig on June 23, 1646. His father, who was professor of moral philosophy at the University of Leipzig, died in the boy's sixth year. As a result, his early education was somewhat haphazard, but through his own industry he was ready for the university at the age of 15. He pursued the course in law in preparation for a political career and also studied theology, mathematics, and the new natural philosophy of the Enlightenment, receiving his bachelor's degree in 1663.

After 3 years of further study at Leipzig, Leibniz transferred to the University of Altdorf, where he received his doctorate in law in 1667. He declined the...