The hallucenogenic drug, LSD, was invented by a pharmaceutical company in which European country?

The potent psychedelic drug LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) was first synthesized in Basel, Switzerland. The discovery was made by a chemist named Albert Hofmann, who was working for the pharmaceutical company Sandoz. In 1938, Hofmann was researching a fungus that grows on rye, known as ergot, in search of new medicines. One of the compounds he created in this process was LSD.

Initially, the psychoactive effects of the substance were unknown. It wasn't until five years later, in 1943, that Hofmann accidentally ingested a small amount of the compound and experienced its powerful hallucinogenic properties. To confirm the cause of his strange sensations, he intentionally took a dose a few days later and experienced the world's first intentional acid trip while riding his bicycle home from the lab.

Following this discovery, Sandoz Laboratories began marketing LSD under the brand name Delysid for psychiatric research and use. For many years, it was studied for its potential therapeutic applications, including the treatment of alcoholism and as an aid in psychotherapy. The drug later became widely associated with the counterculture movement of the 1960s.