Alexander Grothendieck was a German-born French mathematician who made significant contributions to algebraic geometry. One of the pioneers in the field of modern algebraic geometry, he added elements of commutative algebra, homological algebra, sheaf theory and category theory to its foundations. Regarded as one of the greatest pure mathematicians of the second half of the 20th century, he reformulated algebraic geometry so as to enable geometric methods to be applied to problems in number theory. Born in Germany, he moved to France with his mother during the World War II. His early life was very difficult, and he spent several years in camps for people displaced during the war. As a refugee child, he attended a secondary school founded by local Protestant pacifists and anti-war activists. He became fascinated with mathematics and received his higher education from University of Montpellier and University of Nancy. Soon he embarked on a very productive career as a mathematician and became a leading expert in the theory of topological vector spaces. He was a brilliant mathematician who made major contributions to algebraic geometry, number theory, topology, category theory and complex analysis. However, he abandoned his thriving academic career in the 1970s and retired into obscurity a few years later.