Gmelin was born at
Tübingen as part of a well-known family of naturalists. His father was Johann Conrad Gmelin, an
apothecary and
surgeon. His uncle was
Johann Georg Gmelin, who was also uncle to
Johann Friedrich Gmelin (the naturalist publisher of the
Systema Naturae of
Carolus Linnaeus). Samuel earned his medical degree in 1763 from the
University of Leiden at the young age of 18. While living in the
Dutch Republic, Gmelin developed a keen interest in marine
algae. In 1766 he was appointed professor of
botany at
St Petersburg. In the following year he was sent on an expedition to study the natural history of the
Russian Empire. He explored the rivers
Don and
Volga, and the western and eastern coasts of the
Caspian Sea. Whilst travelling in the
Caucasus he was taken hostage by Usmey Khan of Khaïtakes and died of ill treatment in captivity in
Akhmedkent,
Dagestan. He was only 30 years of age. His death led to
a Russian punitive expedition which briefly conquered
Derbent. Gmelin was the author of ''
(1768), the first work dedicated to marine biology dealing exclusively with algae and the first using the binomial system of nomenclature. It includes elaborate illustrations of seaweed and marine algae on folded leaves. However, algal specimens used by Gmelin in the Historia fucorum
are thought to no longer exist (Dixon & Irvine, 1970). The results of his travels were published in '' ("Trip Through Russia To Study the Three Natural Provinces") (1770–1784, 4 vols.). The final volume was to be completed by
Güldenstädt, but was ultimately edited by
Peter Simon Pallas after Güldenstädt's death. ==Biography==