 In 1845 he received his medical doctorate from the University of Vienna, afterwards visiting asylums in Italy, Germany, England and France.In 1856 he received his habilitation in Vienna, where he practiced medicine for the remainder of his career.In 1872 he became head of the department of mental illness at Vienna General Hospital, followed by an appointment in 1875 as director of the "Landesirrenanstalt" (State Lunatic Asylum).