Nicolaus Anton Johann Kirchhof
Nicolaus Anton Johann Kirchhof (* July 23, 1725 in Itzehoe ; † September 10, 1800 in Hamburg ) was a Hamburg merchant, councilor and scholar.
Life
Kirchhof was the son of Itzehoer main pastor, provost and consistorial councilor Albert Christian Kirchhof (1673-1745). He completed a commercial apprenticeship, but from a young age occupied himself with mathematics, astronomy and physics. In 1757 he became a citizen of Hamburg and founded a trading company. In the same year he married Cecilie Elisabeth von Heyn (1729–76), with whom he had six children. In the year of her death, he married Elisabeth Engel (1745–1823), the daughter of the businessman Johann Arnold Ellermann.
As a citizen of Hamburg, the wealthy merchant has been involved in political bodies in Hamburg since 1763. As an enlightener, he co-founded the Patriotic Society from 1765 in 1765 , which is still a non-profit organization today. In 1770 he was involved in the implementation of a reform of the Hamburg bank from 1619, whose cover fund was switched from fluctuating taler currency to exchange rate fixed fine silver bars. In 1784 he was elected councilor.
As an autodidact in the field of natural science, he enjoyed high recognition. His lectures with the demonstration of experiments were very popular, but he had to reduce them sharply because of his additional workload as a councilor. His physical cabinet consisted of equipment for mechanics, optics and electricity . Kirchhof wrote a number of scientific writings, which he u. a. published in Lichtenbergs Magazin.
After Kirchhof's death, the collection was bought up by the Admiralty College in 1803 and given to the Johanneum for teaching purposes. It is more likely that the collection ended up in the city library , which was housed in the Johanneum building.
Works
- Description of a piece of equipment, which sensually proves the attractive force of the earth against the storm cloud and the usefulness of the lightning rod, together with a copper plate and a description of various useful machines translated from Mr. Ferguson's lectures . Hamburg and Berlin 1781.
- Astronomy according to Newton's principles explained, comprehensible for those who do not study mathematics, together with an appendix on the use of the earth and celestial globe by J. Ferguson with some additions , Berlin and Stettin 1783.
- The laws of the falling of bodies and Newton's theorems derived from them, as well as the reason why the tides rise and fall on both sides of the earth at the same time, are explained in a comprehensible way. Hamburg 1792.
- Extract from Cook and King's journey between 1776 and 1780, along with a list of their observed latitudes and longitudes. Likewise remarks about the deviations of the magnetic needle to prove that the length of the places could not be determined with certainty. Berlin and Stettin 1794.
- News of the latest improvement to the fire engine by Mr. James Watt . In Göttingen's magazine 1782.
literature
- Hans-Dieter Loose : Kirchhof, Nicolaus Anton Johann. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 11, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1977, ISBN 3-428-00192-3 , p. 646 f. ( Digitized version ).
- Hans-Dieter Loose : Nicolaus Anton Johann Kirchhof - businessman, senator and scholar. Scholars in Hamburg in the 18th and 19th centuries. Contribution to the history of Hamburg, Volume 12, Hamburg 1976
- Werner von Melle: Kirchhof, Nicolaus Anton Johann . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 16, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1882, pp. 8-11.
- Hamburg and Altona , a magazine on the history of time, manners and taste, 5th year, 4th volume, 10th, 11th and 12th issue, Herman Nestler, Hamburg, 1806, contemporary biographical report, pp. 10-14, ( online )
- Friedrich Johann Lorenz Meyer , Nekrolog , pp. 11-17 ( online , State and University Library Bremen) and in samples of a picture gallery of Hamburg men of the eighteenth century , pp. 167ff., ( Online , State and University Library Bremen) in J. Smidt (Senator in Bremen) (Ed.): Hanseatische Magazin , 5th volume, Bremen, Friedrich Wilmans, 1802
- Journal von und für Deutschland , Volumes 1–6; 9th year, by Sigmund Freiherr von Bibra , 1792, contemporary description of the collection items in the physical cabinet, pp. 452–453, ( online )
- Heinrich Sander : Description of his travels through France, the Netherlands, Holland, Germany and Italy , Vol. 2. Leipzig, 1784, p. 218, ( online )
Portraits
- Daniel Beyel, copperplate engraving , no place or year information, 21.2 × 15.8 cm. ( online , Hamburg State and University Library).
Individual evidence
- ^ Hans-Dieter Loose: Kirchhof, Nicolaus Anton Johann. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 11, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1977, ISBN 3-428-00192-3 , p. 646 f. ( Digitized version ).
- ^ Peter Heinrich Christoph Brodhagen , Friedrich Johann Lorenz Meyer: Physikalisches Kabinett of the late Senator Kirchhoff zu Hamburg , pp. 27–45, ( online. )
- ↑ numerous pieces of equipment had been built by the English instrument maker Edward Nairne .
- ↑ See Jürgen W. Koch: The Hamburg syringe master and mechanic Johann Georg Repsold (1770-1830) . Dissertation at the Department of Mathematics at the University of Hamburg (top year); Footnote p. 7
- ^ Christian Petersen: History of the Hamburg City Library , Perthes, Besser & Mauke, 1838, p. 93, ( online )
- ↑ a b c d e page 14, in Hamburg and Altona , a magazine on the history of time, manners and taste, 5th year, 4th volume, 10th, 11th and 12th issue, Herman Nestler, Hamburg, 1806
- ↑ 3rd South Sea voyage
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kirchhof, Nicolaus Anton Johann |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German businessman, scholar and senator in Hamburg |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 23, 1725 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Itzehoe |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 10, 1800 |
| Place of death | Hamburg |