Did Einstein "Nostrify" Hilbert's Final Form of the Field Equations for General Relativity?

TL;DR

The paper investigates whether Einstein's final form of the field equations for General Relativity was influenced by Hilbert's earlier derivation, concluding that Einstein likely discovered the equations independently through his own work.

Contribution

This study provides historical analysis suggesting Einstein derived his final field equations independently, challenging the idea that he was influenced by Hilbert's earlier work.

Findings

Einstein probably found the final equations by manipulating his own November 1915 equations.

Historical evidence supports Einstein's independent discovery, not 'nostrification' of Hilbert's work.

The paper clarifies the timeline of Einstein's and Hilbert's derivations of the field equations.

Abstract

Einstein's biographer Albrecht F\"olsing explained: Einstein presented his field equations on November 25, 1915, but six days earlier, on November 20, Hilbert had derived the identical field equations for which Einstein had been searching such a long time. On November 18 Hilbert had sent Einstein a letter with a certain draft, and F\"olsing asked about this possible draft: "Could Einstein, casting his eye over this paper, have discovered the term which was still lacking in his own equations, and thus 'nostrified' Hilbert?" Historical evidence support a scenario according to which Einstein discovered his final field equations by "casting his eye over" his own previous works. In November 4, 1915 Einstein wrote the components of the gravitational field and showed that a material point in a gravitational field moves on a geodesic line in space-time, the equation of which is written in terms of the Christoffel symbols. Einstein found it advantageous to use for the components of the gravitational field the Christoffel symbols. Einstein had already basically possessed the field equations in 1912, but had not recognized the formal importance of the Christoffel symbols as the components of the gravitational field. Einstein probably found the final form of the generally covariant field equations by manipulating his own (November 4, 1915) equations. Other historians' findings seem to support the scenario according to which Einstein did not "nostrify" Hilbert.