Otto Leeser 1888 - 1964

**Otto Leeser **1888 - 1964 MD, PHd was a German Jewish homeopath who had to leave Germany due to Nazi persecution during World War II, and he escaped to England via Holland. Leeser also arranged the escape of many other people (Elizabeth S. Plaut, The Gumprichs of Münster/Westphalia: a tale of four continents, (Abbeyfield Publishers, 2000). Page 184).

Leeser, a Consultant Physician at the Stuttgart Homeopathic Hospital and a member (Otto Leeser, Textbook of Homeopathic Materia Medica (reprinted by B. Jain Publishers, 1 Jan 2000). Multiple pages) of the German Central Society of Homeopathic Physicians, fled Germany in 1933 after being expelled by the German Medical Association. In England Otto Leeser joined the staff of the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital. After the war, Leeser returned to work at the Stuttgart Homeopathic Hospital and the Robert Bosch Homeopathic Hospital.

Otto Leeser taught John Pert and Edwin D W Tomkins.

From http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.simillimum.net/Hist.deutsch.entw.htm&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=7&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DOtto%2BLeeser%26start%3D40%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN%26pwst%3D1 ‘… The Robert Bosch Homeopathic Hospital was one of the major facilities for homeopathy in Wuerttemberg; it was opened in 1940, and well known names in homeopathy the postwar years have worked there, such as: Hermann Schlueter, Alfons Stiegele, Erich Unseld, the most famous medical director was probably Otto Leeser and his senior Julius Mezger. The Robert Bosch Homeopathic Hospital had a clinic where Oswald Schlegel, Hans Theodor Ritter, Konrad and Hotzer worked, to name just a few names…’

From http://homeoint.org/morrell/british/connor.htm ‘… Otto Leeser came over from Germany at the start of the Hitler era, sponsored by the Faculty of Homeopaths, and established the London Homeopathy Labs, Riversleigh, High Wycombe, Bucks, who manufactured homeopathic remedies for sale to doctors and pharmacists, and cultivated indigenous plants and made mother tinctures. All liquid potencies were made according to Samuel Hahnemann up to 30c, and from 30 to 1M all potencies were prepared on a Korsakoff dynamiser.

After the war he was invited to take over the new Robert Bosch Homeopathic Hospital in Stuttgart. He and his brothers were true haemophiliacs. He was my tutor and I (John Pert) was introduced him to William Ernest Boyd of Emanometer fame…

Based in High Wycombe, Dr. Leeser taught Edwin D W Tomkins, the homeopathic pharmacist John Pert and others, as well as running a homeopathic supply company, publishing house, Hippocrates Publishing Co, and a homeopathic manufacturing chemists, London Homeopathy Labs.

He returned to Germany in the 1950s to run the Robert Bosch Homeopathic Hospital in Stuttgart, but died shortly after.

He was based at Rosecroft, Pretoria Rd, High Wycombe, Bucks, and his companies ran from c.1940-1974 [last entry, High Wycombe Telephone Directory 1974]. Hippocrates Publishing Co is no longer listed as a publisher in the 1975 British Books in Print.  Leeser also published many interesting and erudite works about homeopathy.

Leeser was based in the 1930-50s in High Wycombe at the RHL Labs, he was an excellent Botanist with a 1st class knowledge of plants. He made potencies up to 30 by hand and then up to M, 10M, 50M, CM using the Korsakoff fluxion method similar to the Skinner machine used in the USA to make the high potencies.” [Pert 1991]

Leeser died c.1965 [sold to Guyana Hagmara?]. He was a homeopathic remedies manufacturer, mainly, but did some teaching through the London Homeopathy Labs. In the 1950s it was lay homeopaths who ‘flew the flag’, the BHA was dead and uninteresting”.

Edwin D W Tomkins maintained that Leeser was a brilliant botanist and an expert both on pharmaceutical chemistry and the homeopathic pharmacopoeia, as well as having an excellent knowledge of materia medica and how drugs are prepared in homeopathic pharmacy.

Also an extremely interesting and knowledgeable person, who communicated easily and shared his knowledge with others freely and generously. Dr. Leeser’s [MD PhD Berlin] policy was to train absolutely anyone who was keen, in the minutiae of homeopathic botany, pharmacy, materia medica and practice. In this respect, at least, Leeser was an important if little known homeopathic teacher…’

Leeser Re-established the Robert Bosch Homeopathic Hospital. He Spent WWII in England. ‘… He was one of those rare human beings - fortunately not too rare among homeopaths - who devoted his whole life enthusiastically to homeopathy…’

After World War II, homeopathy recovered only gradually. In Stuttgart, Otto Leeser started educating doctors in his courses, 600 students all in all.

Otto Leeser wrote Textbook of Homeopathic Materia Medica, Leesers Lehrbuch der Homöopathie, Actionsand Medicinal use of Snake Venoms, Solanaceae, The Contribution of Homeopathy to the Development of Medicine, Homeopathy and chemotherapy, and many articles submitted to The British Homeopathic Journal,