A glimpse of the de Rham era

Abstract

The object of this essay is to give an impressionistic overview of the mathematical period during which Georges de Rham played an important role, both through his own mathematical creation as well as his influence on other mathematicians. Our understanding of the man and his work has been much influenced by a study of his far-flung correspondence and his unpublished papers to which we had access. Some general introductory material has been appended to clarify the position of Swiss mathematics in general in order to initiate foreign readers to the life and times of de Rham.