Here we review the life and scientific heritage of the founder of soil science, Vasily Dokuchaev, based on primary sources and memoirs of his contemporaries. He was the first to consider soil a specific natural body that included specific laws, genetic relationships, and a defined zonal location. We recognize three stages in Dokuchaev's scientific career. The first stage (1870–1878) is related to his education and scientific views influenced by his geological schooling and research. During the second stage (1879–1896) extensive soil studies were conducted, he developed some key concepts of soil science, attracted followers, and founded a school of soil studies and promoted knowledge about soil. Natural soil and environmental zoning and progress in the theory of soil science characterize the third stage (1896–1900) of his career.