The American Cyclopædia (1879)/Kinkel, Johann Gottfried

KINKEL, Johann Gottfried, a German poet and patriot, born at Oberkassel, Aug. 11, 1815. The son of a clergyman, he studied theology and afterward philosophy, and particularly the history of art, holding professorships in each branch at the university of Bonn (1837-'48). Implicated in the revolutionary movements of 1848 and 1849, he was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment in the fortress of Spandau. In 1850 he effected his escape with he assistance of Karl Schurz and some other devoted friends, fled to England, spent some time in the United States, and returned to London, where he engaged in teaching, lecturing, and journalism. In 1866 he was appointed professor of the history of art at Zürich. He has written lyrical poems, books on the fine arts, especially on Christian art, and miscellaneous works. New editions of his poems, in two collections, and of a number of his stories, were published at Stuttgart in 1874. He married the divorced wife of the publisher Mathieux of Cologne, who was the daughter of Prof. Mockel, and was an accomplished musician and writer on music and other subjects. She lost her life Nov. 17, 1858, by falling or throwing herself out of a window. Her posthumous works include Hans Ibeles in London (2 vols., 1860; 2d ed., 1874).