Introduction -- Hermann Haken: Youth and university education.-The Erlangen years: Solid State Physics 1950 - 1960 -- Appointment to the Theoretical Physics Chair at the Technical University Stuttgart -- Hermann Haken and the "Stuttgart School", 1960 - 1970: their contribution to the development of laser theory -- Early years of Synergetics: 1970 - 1978 -- The Propagation of Synergetics: 1978 - 1987 -- Synergetics 1987-2010: Applications in medicine, cognition and psychology - a survey -- Theories of self-organization: The role of synergetics.