[Correspondence between Winkler and Von Monakow. I. Personal affairs and visions]

Cornelis Winkler (1855-1941) and Constantin von Monakow (1853-1930) are considered to be pioneers in neurology in the Netherlands and Switzerland respectively. Winkler became the first professor of Psychiatry and Neurology in Utrecht (1893) and Von Monakow the first professor of Neurology in Zürich (1894). They first met in Amsterdam (1907). Many other meetings followed and they maintained a lively correspondence. Winkler's letters to Von Monakow (1908-1927) are archived at the Institute of Medical History in Zürich and are the principal source for two articles. This first article considers personal affairs and views: the friendly relationship, the experiences during World War I, the personal struggle with respect to the emancipation of neurology at the start of the 19th century, Von Monakow's manuscript of Vita Mea and finally Von Monakow's succession.