Ernst von Baer's embryological teaching was already being widely felt,
men were learning to recognize the importance to morphological and
zoological studies of a knowledge of the development of animals; and
Kölliker plunged with enthusiasm into the relatively new line of
inquiry. His earlier efforts were directed to the invertebrata, and his
memoir on the development of cephalopods, which appeared in 1844, is a
classical work; but he soon passed on to the vertebrata, and studied not
only the amphibian embryo and the chick, but also the mammalian embryo.
He was among the first, if not the very first, to introduce into this
branch of biological inquiry the newer microscopic technique--the
methods of hardening, section-cutting and staining. By doing so, not
only was he enabled to make rapid progress himself, but he also placed
in the hands of others the means of a like advance. The remarkable
strides forward which embryology made during the middle and during the
latter half of the 19th century will always be associated with his name.
His _Lectures on Development_, published in 1861, at once became a
standard work.
But neither zoology nor embryology furnished Kölliker's chief claim to
fame. If he did much for these branches of science, he did still more
for histology, the knowledge of the minute structure of the animal
tissues. This he made emphatically his own. It may indeed be said that
there is no fragment of the body of man and of the higher animals on
which he did not leave his mark, and in more places than one his mark
was a mark of fundamental importance. Among his earlier results may be
mentioned the demonstration in 1847 that smooth or unstriated muscle is
made up of distinct units, of nucleated muscle-cells. In this work he
followed in the footsteps of his master Henle. A few years before this
men were doubting whether arteries were muscular, and no solid
histological basis as yet existed for those views as to the action of
the nervous system on the circulation, which were soon to be put
forward, and which had such a great influence on the progress of
physiology. By the above discovery Kölliker completed that basis.
Even to enumerate, certainly to dwell on, all his contributions to
histology would be impossible here: smooth muscle, striated muscle,
skin, bone, teeth, blood-vessels and viscera were all investigated by
him; and he touched none of them without striking out some new truths.
The results at which he arrived were recorded partly in separate
memoirs, partly in his great textbook on microscopical anatomy, which
first saw the light in 1850, and by which he advanced histology no less
than by his own researches. In the case of almost every tissue our
present knowledge contains something great or small which we owe to
Kölliker; but it is on the nervous system that his name is written in
largest letters. So early as 1845, while still at Zürich, he supplied
what was as yet still lacking, the clear proof that nerve-fibres are
continuous with nerve-cells, and so furnished the absolutely necessary
basis for all sound speculations as to the actions of the central
nervous system. From that time onward he continually laboured, and
always fruitfully, at the histology of the nervous system, and more
especially at the difficult problems presented by the intricate patterns
in which fibres and cells are woven together in the brain and spinal
cord. In his old age, at a time when he had fully earned the right to
fold his arms, and to rest and be thankful, he still enriched
neurological science with results of the highest value. From his early
days a master of method, he saw at a glance the value of the new Golgi
method for the investigation of the central nervous system, and, to the
great benefit of science, took up once more in his old age, with the aid
of a new means, the studies for which he had done so much in his youth.
It may truly be said that much of that exact knowledge of the inner
structure of the brain, which is rendering possible new and faithful
conceptions of its working, came from his hands.
Lastly, Kölliker was in his earlier years professor of physiology as
well as of anatomy; and not only did his histological labours almost
always carry physiological lessons, but he also enriched physiology with
the results of direct researches of an experimental kind, notably those
on curare and some other poisons. In fact, we have to go back to the
science of centuries ago to find a man of science of so many-sided an
activity as he. His life constituted in a certain sense a protest
against that specialized differentiation which, however much it may
under certain aspects be regretted, seems to be one of the necessities
of modern development. In Johannes Müller's days no one thought of
parting anatomy and physiology; nowadays no one thinks of joining them
together. Kölliker did in his work join them together, and indeed said
himself that he thought they ought never to be kept apart.
Naturally a man of so much accomplishment was not left without honours.
Formerly known simply as Kölliker, the title "von" was added to his
name. He was made a member of the learned societies of many countries;
in England, which he visited more than once, and where he became well
known, the Royal Society made him a fellow in 1860, and in 1897 gave him
its highest token of esteem, the Copley medal. (M. F.)
KOLLONTAJ, HUGO (1750-1812), Polish politician and writer, was born in
1750 at Niecislawice in Sandomir, and educated at Pinczow and Cracow.
After taking orders he went (1770) to Rome, where he obtained the degree
of doctor of theology and common law, and devoted himself
enthusiastically to the study of the fine arts, especially of
architecture and painting. At Rome too he obtained a canonry attached to
Cracow cathedral, and on his return to Poland in 1755 threw himself
heart and soul into the question of educational reform. His efforts were
impeded by the obstruction of the clergy of Cracow, who regarded him as
an adventurer; but he succeeded in reforming the university after his
own mind, and was its rector for three years (1782-1785). Kollontaj next
turned his attention to politics. In 1786 he was appointed
_referendarius_ of Lithuania, and during the Four Years' Diet
(1788-1792) displayed an amazing and many-sided activity as one of the
reformers of the constitution. He grouped around him all the leading
writers, publicists and progressive young men of the day; declaimed
against prejudices; stimulated the timid; inspired the lukewarm with
enthusiasm; and never rested till the constitution of the 3rd of May
1791 had been carried through. In June 1791 Kollontaj was appointed
vice-chancellor. On the triumph of the reactionaries and the fall of the
national party, he secretly placed in the king's hands his adhesion to
the triumphant Confederation of Targowica, a false step, much blamed at
the time, but due not to personal ambition but to a desire to save
something from the wreck of the constitution. He then emigrated to
Dresden. On the outbreak of Kosciuszko's insurrection he returned to
Poland, and as member of the national government and minister of finance
took a leading part in affairs. But his radicalism had now become of a
disruptive quality, and he quarrelled with and even thwarted Kosciuszko
because the dictator would not admit that the Polish republic could only
be saved by the methods of Jacobinism. On the other hand, the more
conservative section of the Poles regarded Kollontaj as "a second
Robespierre," and he is even suspected of complicity in the outrages of
the 17th and 18th of June 1794, when the Warsaw mob massacred the
political prisoners. On the collapse of the insurrection Kollontaj
emigrated to Austria, where from 1795 to 1802 he was detained as a
prisoner. He was finally released through the mediation of Prince Adam
Czartoryski, and returned to Poland utterly discredited. The remainder
of his life was a ceaseless struggle against privation and prejudice. He
died at Warsaw on the 28th of February 1812.
Of his numerous works the most notable are: _Political Speeches as
Vice-Chancellor_ (Pol.) (in 6 vols., Warsaw, 1791); _On the Erection
and Fall of the Constitution of May_ (Pol.) (Leipzig, 1793; Paris,
1868); _Correspondence with T. Czacki_ (Pol.) (Cracow, 1854); _Letters
written during Emigration, 1792-1794_ (Pol.) (Posen, 1872).
See Ignacz Badeni, _Necrology of Hugo Kollontaj_ (Pol.) (Cracow,
1819); Henryk Schmitt, _Review of the Life and Works of Kollontaj_
(Pol.) (Lemberg, 1860); Wojciek Grochowski, "Life of Kollontaj" (Pol.)
in _Tygod Illus._ (Warsaw, 1861). (R. N. B.)
KOLOMEA (Polish, _Kolomyja_), a town of Austria, in Galicia, 122 m. S.
of Lemberg by rail. Pop. (1900), 34,188, of which half were Jews. It is
situated on the Pruth, and has an active trade in agricultural products.
To the N.E. of Kolomea, near the Dniester, lies the village of
Czernelica, with ruins of a strongly fortified castle, which served as
the residence of John Sobieski during his campaigns against the Turks.
Kolomea is a very old town and is mentioned already in 1240, but the
assertion that it was a Roman settlement under the name of _Colonia_ is
not proved. It was the principal town of the Polish province of Pokutia,
and it suffered severely during the 15th and 16th centuries from the
attacks of the Moldavians and the Tatars.
KOLOMNA, a town of Russia, in the government of Moscow, situated on the
railway between Moscow and Ryazan, 72 m. S.E. of Moscow, at the
confluence of the Moskva river with the Kolomenka. Pop. (1897), 20,970.
It is an old town, mentioned in the annals in 1177, and until the 14th
century was the capital of the Ryazan principality. It suffered greatly
from the invasions of the Tatars in the 13th century, who destroyed it
four times, as well as from the wars of the 17th century; but it always
recovered and has never lost its commercial importance. During the 19th
century it became a centre for the manufacture of silks, cottons, ropes
and leather. Here too are railway workshops, where locomotives and
wagons are made. Kolomna carries on an active trade in grain, cattle,
tallow, skins, salt and timber. It has several old churches of great
archaeological interest, including two of the 14th century, one being
the cathedral. One gate (restored in 1895) of the fortifications of the
Kreml still survives.
KOLOZSVÁR (Ger. _Klausenburg_; Rum. _Cluj_), a town of Hungary, in
Transylvania, the capital of the county of Kolozs, and formerly the
capital of the whole of Transylvania, 248 m. E.S.E. of Budapest by rail.
Pop. (1900), 46,670. It is situated in a picturesque valley on the banks
of the Little Szamos, and comprises the inner town (formerly surrounded
with walls) and five suburbs. The greater part of the town lies on the
right bank of the river, while on the other side is the so-called Bridge
Suburb and the citadel (erected in 1715). Upon the slopes of the citadel
hill there is a gipsy quarter. With the exception of the old quarter,
Kolozsvár is generally well laid out, and contains many broad and fine
streets, several of which diverge at right angles from the principal
square. In this square is situated the Gothic church of St Michael
(1396-1432); in front is a bronze equestrian statue of King Matthias
Corvinus by the Hungarian sculptor Fadrusz (1902). Other noteworthy
buildings are the Reformed church, built by Matthias Corvinus in 1486
and ceded to the Calvinists by Bethlen Gabor in 1622; the house in which
Matthias Corvinus was born (1443), which contains an ethnographical
museum; the county and town halls, a museum, and the university
buildings. A feature of Kolozsvár is the large number of handsome
mansions belonging to the Transylvanian nobles, who reside here during
the winter. It is the seat of a Unitarian bishop, and of the
superintendent of the Calvinists for the Transylvanian circle. Kolozsvár
is the literary and scientific centre of Transylvania, and is the seat
of numerous literary and scientific associations. It contains a
university (founded in 1872), with four faculties--theology, philosophy,
law and medicine--frequented by about 1900 students in 1905; and amongst
its other educational establishments are a seminary for Unitarian
priests, an agricultural college, two training schools for teachers, a
commercial academy, and several secondary schools for boys and girls.
The industry comprises establishments for the manufacture of woollen and
linen cloth, paper, sugar, candles, soap, earthenwares, as well as
breweries and distilleries.
Kolozsvár is believed to occupy the site of a Roman settlement named
_Napoca_. Colonized by Saxons in 1178, it then received its German name
of _Klausenburg_, from the old word Klause, signifying a "mountain
pass." Between the years 1545 and 1570 large numbers of the Saxon
population left the town in consequence of the introduction of Unitarian
doctrines. In 1798 the town was to a great extent destroyed by fire. As
capital of Transylvania and the seat of the Transylvanian diets,
Kolozsvár from 1830 to 1848 became the centre of the Hungarian national
movement in the grand principality; and in December 1848 it was taken
and garrisoned by the Hungarians under General Bem.
KOLPINO, one of the chief iron-works of the crown in Russia, in the
government of St Petersburg, 16 m. S.E. of the city of St Petersburg, on
the railway to Moscow, and on the Izhora river. Pop. (1897), 8076. A
sacred image of St Nicholas in the Trinity church is visited by numerous
pilgrims on the 22nd of May every year. Here is an iron-foundry of the
Russian admiralty.
KOLS, a generic name applied by Hindus to the Munda, Ho and Oraon tribes
of Bengal. The Mundas are an aboriginal tribe of Dravidian physical
type, inhabiting the Chota Nagpur division, and numbering 438,000 in
1901. The majority of them are animists in religion, but Christianity is
making rapid strides among them. The village community in its primitive
form still exists among the Mundas; the discontent due to the oppression
of their landlords led to the Munda rising of 1899, and to the remedy of
the alleged grievances by a new settlement of the district. The Hos, who
are closely akin to the Mundas, also inhabit the Chota Nagpur division;
in 1901 they numbered 386,000. They were formerly a very pugnacious
race, who successfully defended their territory against all comers until
they were subdued by the British in the early part of the 19th century,
being known as the Larka (or fighting) Kols. They are still great
sportsmen, using the bow and arrow. Like the Mundas they are animists,
but they show little inclination for Christianity. Both Mundas and Hos
speak dialects of the obscure linguistic family known as Munda or Kol.
See _Imp. Gazetteer of India_, vols. xiii., xviii. (Oxford, 1908).
KOLYVAÑ. (1) A town of West Siberia, in the government of Tomsk, on the
Chaus river, 5 m. from the Ob and 120 m. S.S.W. of the city of Tomsk. It
is a wealthy town, the merchants carrying on a considerable export trade
in cattle, hides, tallow, corn and fish. It was founded in 1713 under
the name of Chausky Ostrog, and has grown rapidly. Pop. (1897), 11,703.
(2) KOLYVAÑSKIY ZAVOD, another town of the same government, in the
district of Biysk, Altai region, on the Byelaya river, 192 m. S.E. of
Barnaul; altitude, 1290 ft. It is renowned for its stone-cutting
factory, where marble, jasper, various porphyries and breccias are
worked into vases, columns, &c. Pop., 5000. (3) Old name of Reval
(q.v.).
KOMÁROM (Ger., _Komorn_), the capital of the county of Komárom, Hungary,
65 m. W.N.W. of Budapest by rail. Pop. (1900), 16,816. It is situated at
the eastern extremity of the island Csallóköz or Grosse Schütt, at the
confluence of the Waag with the Danube. Just below Komárom the two arms
into which the Danube separates below Pressburg, forming the Grosse
Schütt island, unite again. Since 1896 the market-town of Uj-Szöny,
which lies on the opposite bank of the Danube, has been incorporated
with Komárom. The town is celebrated chiefly for its fortifications,
which form the centre of the inland fortifications of the
Austro-Hungarian monarchy. A brisk trade in cereals, timber, wine and
fish is carried on. Komárom is one of the oldest towns of Hungary,
having received its charter in 1265. The fortifications were begun by
Matthias Corvinus, and were enlarged and strengthened during the Turkish
wars (1526-64). New forts were constructed in 1663 and were greatly
enlarged between 1805 and 1809. In 1543, 1594, 1598 and 1663 it was
beleaguered by the Turks. It was raised to the dignity of a royal free
town in 1751. During the revolutionary war of 1848-49 Komárom was a
principal point of military operations, and was long unsuccessfully
besieged by the Austrians, who on the 11th of July 1849 were defeated
there by General Görgei, and on the 3rd of August by General Klapka. On
the 27th of September the fortress capitulated to the Austrians upon
honourable terms, and on the 3rd and 4th of October was evacuated by the
Hungarian troops. The treasure of the Austrian national bank was removed
here from Vienna in 1866, when that city was threatened by the
Prussians.
KOMATI, a river of south-eastern Africa. It rises at an elevation of
about 5000 ft. in the Ermelo district of the Transvaal, 11 m. W. of the
source of the Vaal, and flowing in a general N. and E. direction reaches
the Indian Ocean at Delagoa Bay, after a course of some 500 miles. In
its upper valley near Steynsdorp are gold-fields, but the reefs are
almost entirely of low grade ore. The river descends the Drakensberg by
a pass 30 m. S. of Barberton, and at the eastern border of Swaziland is
deflected northward, keeping a course parallel to the Lebombo mountains.
Just W. of 32° E. and in 25° 25´ S. it is joined by one of the many
rivers of South Africa named Crocodile. This tributary rises, as the
Elands river, in the Bergendal (6437 ft.) near the upper waters of the
Komati, and flows E. across the high veld, being turned northward as it
reaches the Drakensberg escarpment. The fall to the low veld is over
2000 ft. in 30 m., and across the country between the Drakensberg and
the Lebombo (100 m.) there is a further fall of 3000 ft. A mile below
the junction of the Crocodile and Komati, the united stream, which from
this point is also known as the Manhissa, passes to the coast plain
through a cleft 626 ft. high in the Lebombo known as Komati Poort, where
are some picturesque falls. At Komati Poort, which marks the frontier
between British and Portuguese territory, the river is less than 60 m.
from its mouth in a direct line, but in crossing the plain it makes a
wide sweep of 200 m., first N. and then S., forming lagoon-like expanses
and backwaters and receiving from the north several tributaries. In
flood time there is a connexion northward through the swamps with the
basin of the Limpopo. The Komati enters the sea 15 m. N. of Lourenço
Marques. It is navigable from its mouth, where the water is from 12 to
18 ft. deep, to the foot of the Lebombo.
The railway from Lourenço Marques to Pretoria traverses the plain in a
direct line, and at mile 45 reaches the Komati. It follows the south
bank of the river and enters the high country at Komati Poort. At a
small town with the same name, 2 m. W. of the Poort, on the 23rd of
September 1900, during the war with England, 3000 Boers crossed the
frontier and surrendered to the Portuguese authorities. From the Poort
westward the railway skirts the south bank of the Crocodile river
throughout its length.
KOMOTAU (Czech, _Chomútov_), a town of Bohemia, Austria 79 m. N.N.W. of
Prague by rail. Pop. (1900), 15,925, almost exclusively German. It has
an old Gothic church, and its town-hall was formerly a commandery of the
Teutonic knights. The industrial establishments comprise manufactories
of woollen cloth, linen and paper, dyeing houses, breweries,
distilleries, vinegar works and the central workshops of the Buschtehrad
railway. Lignite is worked in the neighbourhood. Komotau was originally
a Czech market-place, but in 1252 it came into the possession of the
Teutonic Order and was completely Germanized. In 1396 it received a town
charter; and in 1416 the knights sold both town and lordship to
Wenceslaus IV. On the 16th of March 1421, the town was stormed by the
Taborites, sacked and burned. After several changes of ownership,
Komotau came in 1588 to Popel of Lobkovic, who established the Jesuits
here, which led to trouble between the Protestant burghers and the
over-lord. In 1594 the lordship fell to the crown, and in 1605 the town
purchased its freedom and was created a royal city.
KOMURA, JUTARO, COUNT (1855- ), Japanese statesman, was born in Hiuga.
He graduated at Harvard in 1877, and entered the foreign office in Tokyo
in 1884. He served as chargé d'affaires in Peking, as Japanese minister
in Seoul, in Washington, in St Petersburg, and in Peking (during the
Boxer trouble), earning in every post a high reputation for diplomatic
ability. In 1901 he received the portfolio of foreign affairs, and held
it throughout the course of the negotiations with Russia and the
subsequent war (1904-5), being finally appointed by his sovereign to
meet the Russian plenipotentiaries at Portsmouth, and subsequently the
Chinese representatives in Peking, on which occasions the Portsmouth
treaty of September 1905 and the Peking treaty of November in the same
year were concluded. For these services, and for negotiating the second
Anglo-Japanese alliance, he received the Japanese title of count and was
made a K.C.B. by King Edward VII. He resigned his portfolio in 1906 and
became privy councillor, from which post he was transferred to the
embassy in London, but he returned to Tokyo in 1908 and resumed the
portfolio of foreign affairs in the second Katsura cabinet.
KONARAK or KANARAK, a ruined temple in India, in the Puri district of
Orissa, which has been described as for its size "the most richly
ornamented building--externally at least--in the whole world." It was
erected in the middle of the 13th century, and was dedicated to the
sun-god. It consisted of a tower, probably once over 180 ft. high, with
a porch in front 140 ft. high, sculptured with figures of lions,
elephants, horses, &c.
KONG, the name of a town, district and range of hills in the N.W. of the
Ivory Coast colony, French West Africa. The hills are part of the band
of high ground separating the inner plains of West Africa from the coast
regions. In maps of the first half of the 19th century the range is
shown as part of a great mountain chain supposed to run east and west
across Africa, and is thus made to appear a continuation of the
Mountains of the Moon, or the snow-clad heights of Ruwenzori. The
culminating point of the Kong system is the Pic des Kommono, 4757 ft.
high. In general the summits of the hills are below 2000 ft. and not
more than 700 ft. above the level of the country. The "circle of Kong,"
one of the administrative divisions of the Ivory Coast colony, covers
46,000 sq. m. and has a population of some 400,000. The inhabitants are
negroes, chiefly Bambara and Mandingo. About a fourth of the population
profess Mahommedanism; the remainder are spirit worshippers. The town of
Kong, situated in 9° N., 4° 20´ W., is not now of great importance.
Probably René Caillié, who spent some time in the western part of the
country in 1827, was the first European to visit Kong. In 1888 Captain
L. G. Binger induced the native chiefs to place themselves under the
protection of France, and in 1893 the protectorate was attached to the
Ivory Coast colony. For a time Kong was overrun by the armies of Samory
(see SENEGAL), but the capture of that chief in 1898 was followed by the
peaceful development of the district by France (see IVORY COAST).
KONGSBERG, a mining town of Norway in Buskerud _amt_ (county), on the
Laagen, 500 ft. above the sea, and 61 m. W.S.W. of Christiania by rail.
Pop. (1900), 5585. With the exception of the church and the town-house,
the buildings are mostly of wood. The origin and whole industry of the
town are connected with the government silver-mines in the
neighbourhood. Their first discovery was made by a peasant in 1623,
since which time they have been worked with varying success. During the
18th century Kongsberg was more important than now, and contained double
its present population. Within the town are situated the smelting-works,
the mint, and a Government weapon factory. Three miles below the Laagen
forms a fine fall of 140 ft. (Labrofos). The neighbouring Jonksnut (2950
ft.) commands extensive views of the Telemark. A driving-road from
Kongsberg follows a favourite route for travellers through this
district, connecting with routes to Sand and Odde on the west coast.
KONIA. (1) A vilayet in Asia Minor which includes the whole, or parts
of, Pamphylia, Pisidia, Phrygia, Lycaonia, Cilicia and Cappadocia. It
was formed in 1864 by adding to the old eyalet of Karamania the western
half of Adana, and part of south-eastern Anadoli. It is divided into
five sanjaks: Adalia, Buldur, Hamid-abad, Konia and Nigdeh. The
population (990,000 Moslems and 80,000 Christians) is for the most part
agricultural and pastoral. The only industries are carpet-weaving and
the manufacture of cotton and silk stuffs. There are mines of chrome,
mercury, cinnabar, argentiferous lead and rock salt. The principal
exports are salt, minerals, opium, cotton, cereals, wool and livestock;
and the imports cloth-goods, coffee, rice and petroleum. The vilayet is
now traversed by the Anatolian railway, and contains the railhead of the
Ottoman line from Smyrna.
(2) The chief town [anc. _Iconium_ (q.v.)], altitude 3320 ft., situated
at the S.W. edge of the vast central plain of Asia Minor, amidst
luxuriant orchards famous in the middle ages for their yellow plums and
apricots and watered by streams from the hills. Pop. 45,000, including
5000 Christians. There are interesting remains of Seljuk buildings, all
showing strong traces of Persian influence in their decorative details.
The principal ruin is that of the palace of Kilij Arslan II., which
contained a famous hall. The most important mosques are the great
_Tekke_, which contains the tomb of the poet Mevlana Jelal ed-din Rumi,
a mystic (sufi) poet, founder of the order of Mevlevi (whirling)
dervishes, and those of his successors, the "Golden" mosque and those of
Ala ed-Din and Sultan Selim. The walls, largely the work of Ala ed-Din
I., are preserved in great part and notable for the number of ancient
inscriptions built into them. They once had twelve gates and were 30
ells in height. The climate is good--hot in summer and cold, with snow,
in winter. Konia is connected by railway with Constantinople and is the
starting-point of the extension towards Bagdad. After the capture of
Nicaea by the Crusaders (1097), Konia became the capital of the Seljuk
Sultans of Rum (see SELJUKS and TURKS). It was temporarily occupied by
Godfrey, and again by Frederick Barbarossa, but this scarcely affected
its prosperity. During the reign of Ala ed-Din I. (1219-1236) the city
was thronged with artists, poets, historians, jurists and dervishes,
driven westwards from Persia and Bokhara by the advance of the Mongols,
and there was a brief period of great splendour. After the break up of
the empire of Rum, Konia became a secondary city of the amirate of
Karamania and in part fell to ruin. In 1472 it was annexed to the
Osmanli empire by Mahommed II. In 1832 it was occupied by Ibrahim Pasha
who defeated and captured the Turkish general, Reshid Pasha, not far
from the walls. It had come to fill only part of its ancient circuit,
but of recent years it has revived considerably, and, since the railway
reached it, has acquired a semi-European quarter, with a German hotel,
cafés and Greek shops, &c.
See W. M. Ramsay, _Historical Geography of Asia Minor_ (1890); _St
Paul the Traveller_ (1895); G. Le Strange, _Lands of the E. Caliphate_
(1905). (D. G. H.)
KONIECPOLSKI, STANISLAUS (1591-1646), Polish soldier, was the most
illustrious member of an ancient Polish family which rendered great
services to the Republic. Educated at the academy of Cracow, he learned
the science of war under the great Jan Chodkiewicz, whom he accompanied
on his Muscovite campaigns, and under the equally great Stanislaus
Zolkiewski, whose daughter Catherine he married. On the death of his
first wife he wedded, in 1619, Christina Lubomirska. In 1619 he took
part in the expedition against the Turks which terminated so
disastrously at Cecora, and after a valiant resistance was captured and
sent to Constantinople, where he remained a close prisoner for three
years. On his return he was appointed commander of all the forces of the
Republic, and at the head of an army of 25,000 men routed 60,000 Tatars
at Martynow, following up this success with fresh victories, for which
he received the thanks of the diet and the palatinate of Sandomeria from
the king. In 1625 he was appointed guardian of the Ukraine against the
Tatars, but in 1626 was transferred to Prussia to check the victorious
advance of Gustavus Adolphus. Swedish historians have too often ignored
the fact that Koniecpolski's superior strategy neutralized all the
efforts of the Swedish king, whom he defeated again and again, notably
at Homerstein (April 1627) and at Trzciand (April 1629). But for the
most part the fatal parsimony of his country compelled Koniecpolski to
confine himself to the harassing guerrilla warfare in which he was an
expert. In 1632 he was appointed to the long vacant post of _hetman
wielki koronny_, or commander in chief of Poland, and in that capacity
routed the Tatars at Sasowy Rogi (April 1633) and at Paniawce (April and
October 1633), and the Turks, with terrific loss, at Abazd Basha. To
keep the Cossacks of the Ukraine in order he also built the fortress of
Kudak. As one of the largest proprietors in the Ukraine he suffered
severely from Cossack depredations and offered many concessions to them.
Only after years of conflict, however, did he succeed in reducing these
unruly desperadoes to something like obedience. In 1644 he once more
routed the Tatars at Ockmatow, and again in 1646 at Brody. This was his
last exploit, for he died the same year, to the great grief of
Wladislaus IV., who had already concerted with him the plan for a
campaign on a grand scale against the Turks, and relied principally upon
the Grand Hetman for its success. Though less famous than his
contemporaries Zolkiehwski and Chodkiewicz, Koniecpolski was fully their
equal as a general, and his inexorable severity made him an ideal
lord-marcher.
See an unfinished biography in the _Tyg. Illus. of Warsaw_ for 1863;
Stanislaw Przylenski, _Memorials of the Koniecpolskis_ (Pol.)
(Lemberg, 1842). (R. N. B.)
KÖNIG, KARL RUDOLPH (1832-1901), German physicist, was born at
Königsberg (Prussia) on the 26th of November 1832, and studied at the
university of his native town, taking the degree of Ph.D. About 1852 he
went to Paris, and became apprentice to the famous violin-maker, J. B.
Vuillaume, and some six years later he started business on his own
account. He called himself a "maker of musical instruments," but the
instruments for which his name is best known are tuning-forks, which
speedily gained a high reputation among physicists for their accuracy
and general excellence. From this business König derived his livelihood
for the rest of his life. He was, however, very far from being a mere
tradesman, and even as a manufacturer he regarded the quality of the
articles that left his workshop as a matter of greater solicitude than
the profits they yielded. Acoustical research was his real interest, and
to that he devoted all the time and money he could spare from his
business. An exhibit which he sent to the London Exhibition of 1862
gained a gold medal, and at the Philadelphia Exposition at 1876 great
admiration was expressed for a tonometric apparatus of his manufacture.
This consisted of about 670 tuning-forks, of as many different pitches,
extending over four octaves, and it afforded a perfect means for
testing, by enumeration of the beats, the number of vibrations producing
any given note and for accurately tuning any musical instrument. An
attempt was made to secure this apparatus for the university of
Pennsylvania, and König was induced to leave it behind him in America on
the assurance that it would be purchased; but, ultimately, the money not
being forthcoming, the arrangement fell through, to his great
disappointment and pecuniary loss. Some of the forks he disposed of to
the university of Toronto and the remainder he used as a nucleus for
the construction of a still more elaborate tonometer. While the range of
the old apparatus was only between 128 and 4096 vibrations a second, the
lowest fork of the new one made only 16 vibrations a second, while the
highest gave a sound too shrill to be perceptible by the human ear.
König will also be remembered as the inventor and constructor of many
other beautiful pieces of apparatus for the investigation of acoustical
problems, among which may be mentioned his wave-sirens, the first of
which was shown at Philadelphia in 1876. His original work dealt, among
other things, with Wheatstone's sound-figures, the characteristic notes
of the different vowels, manometric flames, &c.; but perhaps the most
important of his researches are those devoted to the phenomena produced
by the interference of two tones, in which he controverted the views of
H. von Helmholtz as to the existence of summation and difference tones.
He died in Paris on the 2nd of October 1901.
KÖNIGGRÄTZ (Czech, _Hradec Králové_), a town and episcopal see of
Bohemia, Austria, 74 m. E. of Prague by rail. Pop. (1900), 9773, mostly
Czech. It is situated in the centre of a very fertile region called the
"Golden Road," and contains many buildings of historical and
architectural interest. The cathedral was founded in 1303 by Elizabeth,
wife of Wenceslaus II; and the church of St John, built in 1710, stands
on the ruins of the old castle. The industries include the manufacture
of musical instruments, machinery, colours, and _carton-pierre_, as well
as gloves and wax candles. The original name of Königgrätz, one of the
oldest settlements in Bohemia, was _Chlumec Dobroslavsky_; the name
_Hradec_, or "the Castle," was given to it when it became the seat of a
count, and _Kralove_, "of the queen" (Ger. _Königin_), was prefixed when
it became one of the dower towns of the queen of Wenceslaus II.,
Elizabeth of Poland, who lived here for thirty years. It remained a
dower town till 1620. Königgrätz was the first of the towns to declare
for the national cause during the Hussite wars. After the battle of the
White Mountain (1620) a large part of the Protestant population left the
place. In 1639 the town was occupied for eight months by the Swedes.
Several churches and convents were pulled down to make way for the
fortifications erected under Joseph II. The fortress was finally
dismantled in 1884. Near Königgrätz took place, on the 3rd of July 1866,
the decisive battle (formerly called Sadowa) of the Austro-Prussian war
(see SEVEN WEEKS' WAR).
KÖNIGINHOF (_Dvur Kralove_ in Czech), the seat of a provincial district
and of a provincial law-court, is situated in north-eastern Bohemia on
the left bank of the Elbe, about 160 kilometres from Prague. Brewing,
corn-milling and cotton-weaving are the principal industries. Pop. about
11,000. The city is of very ancient origin. Founded by King Wenceslaus
II. of Bohemia (1278-1305), it was given by him to his wife Elizabeth,
and thus received the name of Dvur Kralove (the court of the queen).
During the Hussite wars, Dvur Kralove was several times taken and
retaken by the contending parties. In a battle fought partly within the
streets of the town, the Austrian army was totally defeated by the
Prussians on the 29th of June 1866. In the 19th century Dvur Kralove
became widely known as the spot where a MS. was found that was long
believed to be one of the oldest written documents in the Czech
language. In 1817 Wenceslas Hanka, afterwards for a long period
librarian of the Bohemian museum, declared that he had found in the
church tower in the town of Dvur Kralove when on a visit there, a very
ancient MS. containing epic and lyric poems. Though Dobrovsky, the
greatest Czech philologist of the time, from the first expressed
suspicions, the MS. known as the Kralodvorsky Rukopis manuscript of
Königinhof was long accepted as genuine, frequently printed and
translated into most European languages. Doubts as to the genuineness of
the document never, however, ceased, and they became stronger when Hanka
was convicted of having fabricated other false Bohemian documents. A
series of works and articles written by Professors Goll, Gebauer,
Masoryk, and others have recently proved that the MS. is a forgery, and
hardly any Bohemian scholars of the present day believe in its
genuineness.
The discussion of the authenticity of the MS. of Dvur Kralove lasted
with short interruptions about seventy years, and the Bohemian works
written on the subject would fill a considerable library. Count
Lützow's _History of Bohemian Literature_ gives a brief account of the
controversy.
KÖNIGSBERG (Polish _Krolewiec_), a town of Germany, capital of the
province of East Prussia and a fortress of the first rank. Pop. (1880),
140,800; (1890), 161,666; (1905), 219,862 (including the incorporated
suburbs). It is situated on rising ground, on both sides of the Pregel,
4½ m. from its mouth in the Frische Haff, 397 m. N. E. of Berlin, on the
railway to Eydtkuhnen and at the junction of lines to Pillau, Tilsit and
Kranz. It consists of three parts, which were formerly independent
administrative units, the Altstadt (old town), to the west, Löbenicht to
the east, and the island Kneiphof, together with numerous suburbs, all
embraced in a circuit of 9½ miles. The Pregel, spanned by many bridges,
flows through the town in two branches, which unite below the Grüne
Brücke. Its greatest breadth within the town is from 80 to 90 yards, and
it is usually frozen from November to March. Königsberg does not retain
many marks of antiquity. The Altstadt has long and narrow streets, but
the Kneiphof quarter is roomier. Of the seven market-places only that in
the Altstadt retains something of its former appearance. Among the more
interesting buildings are the Schloss, a long rectangle begun in 1255
and added to later, with a Gothic tower 277 ft. high and a chapel built
in 1592, in which Frederick I. in 1701 and William I. in 1861 crowned
themselves kings of Prussia; and the cathedral, begun in 1333 and
restored in 1856, a Gothic building with a tower 164 ft. high, adjoining
which is the tomb of Kant. The Schloss was originally the residence of
the Grand Masters of the Teutonic order and later of the dukes of
Prussia. Behind is the parade-ground, with the statues of Albert I. and
of Frederick William III. by August Kiss, and the grounds also contain
monuments to Frederick I. and William I. To the east is the
Schlossteich, a long narrow ornamental lake covering 12 acres. The
north-west side of the parade-ground is occupied by the new university
buildings, completed in 1865; these and the new exchange on the south
side of the Pregel are the finest architectural features of the town.
The university (Collegium Albertinum) was founded in 1544 by Albert I.,
duke of Prussia, as a "purely Lutheran" place of learning. It is chiefly
distinguished for its mathematical and philosophical studies, and
possesses a famous observatory, established in 1811 by Frederick William
Bessel, a library of about 240,000 volumes, a zoological museum, a
botanical garden, laboratories and valuable mathematical and other
scientific collections. Among its famous professors have been Kant (who
was born here in 1724 and to whom a monument was erected in 1864), J. G.
von Herder, Bessel, F. Neumann and J. F. Herbart. It is attended by
about 1000 students and has a teaching staff of over 100. Among other
educational establishments, Königsberg numbers four classical schools
(gymnasia) and three commercial schools, an academy of painting and a
school of music. The hospitals and benevolent institutions are numerous.
The town is less well equipped with museums and similar institutions,
the most noteworthy being the Prussia museum of antiquities, which is
especially rich in East Prussian finds from the Stone age to the Viking
period. Besides the cathedral the town has fourteen churches.
Königsberg is a naval and military fortress of the first order. The
fortifications were begun in 1843 and were only completed in 1905,
although the place was surrounded by walls in early times. The works
consist of an inner wall, brought into connexion with an outlying system
of works, and of twelve detached forts, of which six are on the right
and six on the left bank of the Pregel. Between them lie two great
forts, that of Friedrichsburg on an island in the Pregel and that of the
Kaserne Kronprinz on the east of the town, both within the environing
ramparts. The protected position of its harbour has made Königsberg one
of the most important commercial cities of Germany. A new channel has
recently been made between it and its port, Pillau, 29 miles distant, on
the outer side of the Frische Haff, so as to admit vessels drawing 20
feet of water right up to the quays of Königsberg, and the result has
been to stimulate the trade of the city. It is protected for a long
distance by moles, in which a break has been left in the Fischhauser
Wiek, to permit of freer circulation of the water and to prevent damage
to the mainland.
The industries of Königsberg have made great advances within recent
years, notable among them are printing-works and manufactures of
machinery, locomotives, carriages, chemicals, toys, sugar, cellulose,
beer, tobacco and cigars, pianos and amber wares. The principal exports
are cereals and flour, cattle, horses, hemp, flax, timber, sugar and
oilcake. There are two pretty public parks, one in the Hufen, with a
zoological garden attached, another the Luisenwahl which commemorates
the sojourn of Queen Louisa of Prussia in the town in the disastrous
year 1806.
The Altstadt of Königsberg grew up around the castle built in 1255 by the
Teutonic Order, on the advice of Ottaker II. King of Bohemia, after whom
the place was named. Its first site was near the fishing village of
Steindamm, but after its destruction by the Prussians in 1263 it was
rebuilt in its present position. It received civic privileges in 1286, the
two other parts of the present town--Löbenicht and Kneiphof--receiving
them a few years later. In 1340 Königsberg entered the Hanseatic League.
From 1457 it was the residence of the grand master of the Teutonic Order,
and from 1525 till 1618 of the dukes of Prussia. The trade of Königsberg
was much hindered by the constant shifting and silting up of the channels
leading to its harbour; and the great northern wars did it immense harm,
but before the end of the 17th century it had almost recovered.
In 1724 the three independent parts were united into a single town by
Frederick William I.
Königsberg suffered severely during the war of liberation and was
occupied by the French in 1807. In 1813 the town was the scene of the
deliberations which led to the successful uprising of Prussia against
Napoleon. During the 19th century the opening of a railway system in
East Prussia and Russia gave a new impetus to its commerce, making it
the principal outlet for the Russian staples--grain, seeds, flax and
hemp. It has now regular steam communication with Memel, Stettin, Kiel,
Amsterdam and Hull.
See Faber, _Die Haupt- und Residenzstadt Königsberg in Preussen_
(Königsberg, 1840); Schubert, _Zur 600-jährigen Jubelfeier
Königsbergs_ (Königsberg, 1855); Beckherrn, _Geschichte der
Befestigungen Königsbergs_ (Königsberg, 1890); H. G. Prutz, _Die
königliche Albertus-Universität zu Königsberg im 19 Jahrhundert_
(Königsberg, 1894); Armstedt, _Geschichte der königlichen Haupt- und
Residenzstadt Königsberg_ (Stuttgart, 1899); M. Schultze, _Königsberg
und Ostpreussen zu Anfang 1813_ (Berlin, 1901); and Gordak, _Wegweiser
durch Königsberg_ (Königsberg, 1904).
KÖNIGSBORN, a spa of Germany, in the Prussian province of Westphalia,
immediately to the N. of the town of Unna, of which it practically forms
a suburb. It has large saltworks, producing annually over 15,000 tons.
The brine springs, in connexion with which there is a hydropathic
establishment, have a temperature of 93° F., and are efficacious in skin
diseases, rheumatism and scrofula.
See Wegele, _Bad Königsborn und seine Heilmittel_ (Essen, 1902).
KÖNIGSHÜTTE, a town of Germany, in the Prussian province of Silesia,
situated in the middle of the Upper Silesian coal and iron district, 3
m. S. of Beuthen and 122 m. by rail S.E. of Breslau. Pop. (1852), 4495;
(1875), 26,040; (1900), 57,919. In 1869 it was incorporated with various
neighbouring villages, and raised to the dignity of a town. It has two
Protestant and three Roman Catholic churches and several schools and
benevolent institutions. The largest iron-works in Silesia is situated
at Königshütte, and includes puddling works, rolling-mills, and
zinc-works. Founded in 1797, it was formerly in the hands of government,
but is now carried on by a company. There are also manufactures of
bricks and glass and a trade in wood and coal. Nearly one-half of the
population of the town consists of Poles.
See Mohr, _Geschichte der Stadt Königshütte_ (Königshütte, 1890).
KÖNIGSLUTTER, a town of Germany, in the duchy of Brunswick, on the
Lutter 36 m. E. of Brunswick by the railway to Eisleben and Magdeburg.
Pop. (1905), 3260. It possesses an Evangelical church, a castle and some
interesting old houses. Its chief manufactures are sugar, machinery,
paper and beer. Near the town are the ruins of a Benedictine abbey
founded in 1135. In its beautiful church, which has not been destroyed,
are the tombs of the emperor Lothair II., his wife Richenza, and of his
son-in-law, Duke Henry the Proud of Saxony and Bavaria.
KÖNIGSMARK, MARIA AURORA, COUNTESS OF (1662-1728), mistress of Augustus
the Strong, elector of Saxony and king of Poland, belonged to a noble
Swedish family, and was born on the 8th of May 1662. Having passed some
years at Hamburg, where she attracted attention both by her beauty and
her talents, Aurora went in 1694 to Dresden to make inquiries about her
brother Philipp Christoph, count of Königsmark, who had suddenly and
mysteriously disappeared from Hanover. Here she was noticed by Augustus,
who made her his mistress; and in October 1696 she gave birth to a son
Maurice, afterwards the famous marshal de Saxe. The elector however
quickly tired of Aurora, who then spent her time in efforts to secure
the position of abbess of Quedlinburg, an office which carried with it
the dignity of a princess of the Empire, and to recover the lost
inheritance of her family in Sweden. She was made coadjutor abbess and
lady-provost (_Pröpstin_) of Quedlinburg, but lived mainly in Berlin,
Dresden and Hamburg. In 1702 she went on a diplomatic errand to Charles
XII. of Sweden on behalf of Augustus, but her adventurous journey ended
in failure. The countess, who was described by Voltaire as "the most
famous woman of two centuries," died at Quedlinburg on the 16th of
February 1728.
See F. Cramer, _Denkwürdigkeiten der Gräfin M. A. Königsmark_
(Leipzig, 1836); and _Biographische Nachrichten von der Gräfin M. A.
Königsmark_ (Quedlinburg, 1833); W. F. Palmblad, _Aurora Königsmark
und ihre Verwandte_ (Leipzig, 1848-1853); C. L. de Pöllnitz, _La Saxe
galante_ (Amsterdam, 1734); and O. J. B. von Corvin-Wiersbitzki,
_Maria Aurora, Gräfin von Königsmark_ (Rudolstadt, 1902).
KÖNIGSMARK, PHILIPP CHRISTOPH, COUNT OF (1665-1694), was a member of a
noble Swedish family, and is chiefly known as the lover of Sophia
Dorothea, wife of the English king George I. then electoral prince of
Hanover. Born on the 14th of March 1665, Königsmark was a brother of the
countess noticed above. After wandering and fighting in various parts of
Europe he entered the service of Ernest Augustus, elector of Hanover.
Here he made the acquaintance of Sophia Dorothea, and assisted her in
one or two futile attempts to escape from Hanover. Regarded, rightly or
wrongly, as the lover of the princess, he was seized, and disappeared
from history, probably by assassination, on the 1st of July 1694. One
authority states that George I. was accustomed to boast about this deed;
but this statement is doubted, and the Hanoverian court resolutely
opposed all efforts to clear up the mystery. It is not absolutely
certain that Sophia Dorothea was guilty of a criminal intrigue with
Königsmark, as it is probable that the letters which purport to have
passed between the pair are forgeries. The question of her guilt or
innocence, however, has been and still remains a fruitful and popular
subject for romance and speculation.
See _Briefwechsel des Grafen Königsmark und der Prinzessin Sophie
Dorothea von Celle_, edited by W. F. Palmblad (Leipzig, 1847); A.
Köcher, "Die Prinzessin von Ahlden," in the _Historische Zeitschrift_
(Munich, 1882); and W. H. Wilkins, _The Love of an Uncrowned Queen_
(London, 1900).
KÖNIGSSEE, or Lake of St Bartholomew, a lake of Germany, in the kingdom
of Bavaria, province of Upper Bavaria, about 2½ m. S. from
Berchtesgaden, 1850 ft. above sea-level. It has a length of 5 m., and a
breadth varying from 500 yards to a little over a mile, and attains a
maximum depth of 600 ft. The Königssee is the most beautiful of all the
lakes in the German Alps, pent in by limestone mountains rising to an
altitude of 6500 ft., the flanks of which descend precipitously to the
green waters below. The lake abounds in trout, and the surrounding
country is rich in game. On a promontory by the side of the lake is a
chapel to which pilgrimages are made on St Bartholomew's Day. Separated
by a narrow strip of land from the Königssee is the Obersee, a smaller
lake.
KÖNIGSTEIN, a town of Germany, in the kingdom of Saxony, situated in a
deep valley on the left bank of the Elbe, at the influx of the Biela, in
the centre of Saxon Switzerland, 25 m. S.E. of Dresden by the railway to
Bodenbach and Testchen. It contains a Roman Catholic and a Protestant
church, a monument to the composer Julius Otto, and has some small
manufactures of machinery, celluloid, paper, vinegar and buttons. It is
chiefly remarkable for the huge fortress, lying immediately to the
north-west of the town, which crowns a sandstone rock rising abruptly
from the Elbe to a height of 750 ft. Across the Elbe lies the
Lilienstein, a similar formation, but unfortified. The fortress of
Königstein was probably a Slav stronghold as early as the 12th century,
but it is not mentioned in chronicles before the year 1241, when it was
a fief of Bohemia. In 1401 it passed to the margraves of Meissen and by
the treaty of Eger in 1459 it was formally ceded by Bohemia to Saxony.
About 1540 the works were strengthened, and the place was used as a
_point d'appui_ against inroads from Bohemia. Hence the phrase
frequently employed by historians that Königstein is "the key to
Bohemia." As a fact, the main road from Dresden into that country lies
across the hills several miles to the south-west, and the fortress has
exercised little, if any, influence in strategic operations, either
during the middle ages or in modern times. It was further strengthened
under the electors Christian I., John George I. and Frederick Augustus
II. of Saxony, the last of whom completed it in its present form. During
the Prussian invasion of Saxony in 1756 it served as a place of refuge
for the King of Poland, Augustus III., as it did also in 1849, during
the Dresden insurrection of May in that year, to the King of Saxony,
Frederick Augustus II. and his ministers. It was occupied by the
Prussians in 1867, who retained possession of it until the peace of
1871. It is garrisoned by detachments of several Saxon infantry
regiments, and serves as a treasure house for the state and also as a
place of detention for officers sentenced to fortress imprisonment. A
remarkable feature of the place is a well, hewn out of the solid rock to
a depth of 470 ft.
See Klemm, _Der Königstein in alter und neuer Zeit_ (Leipzig, 1905);
and Gautsch, _Aelteste Geschichte der sächsischen Schweiz_ (Dresden,
1880).
KÖNIGSWINTER, a town and summer resort of Germany, in the Prussian Rhine
province, on the right bank of the Rhine, 24 m. S.S.E. of Cologne by the
railway to Frankfort-on-Main, at the foot of the Siebengebirge. Pop.
(1905), 3944. The romantic Drachenfels (1010 ft.), crowned by the ruins
of a castle built early in the 12th century by the archbishop of
Cologne, rises behind the town. From the summit, to which there is a
funicular railway, there is a magnificent view, celebrated by Byron in
_Childe Harold's Pilgrimage_. A cave in the hill is said to have
sheltered the dragon which was slain by the hero Siegfried. The mountain
is quarried, and from 1267 onward supplied stone (trachyte) for the
building of Cologne cathedral. The castle of Drachenburg, built in 1883,
is on the north side of the hill. Königswinter has a Roman Catholic and
an Evangelical church, some small manufactures and a little shipping. It
has a monument to the poet, Wolfgang Müller. Near the town are the ruins
of the abbey of Heisterbach.
KONINCK, LAURENT GUILLAUME DE (1809-1887), Belgian palaeontologist and
chemist, was born at Louvain on the 3rd of May 1809. He studied medicine
in the university of his native town, and in 1831 he became assistant in
the chemical schools. He pursued the study of chemistry in Paris, Berlin
and Giessen, and was subsequently engaged in teaching the science at
Ghent and Liége. In 1856 he was appointed professor of chemistry in the
Liége University, and he retained this post until the close of his life.
About the year 1835 he began to devote his leisure to the investigation
of the Carboniferous fossils around Liége, and ultimately he became
distinguished for his researches on the palaeontology of the Palaeozoic
rocks, and especially for his descriptions of the mollusca, brachiopods,
crustacea and crinoids of the Carboniferous limestone of Belgium. In
recognition of this work the Wollaston medal was awarded to him in 1875
by the Geological Society of London, and in 1876 he was appointed
professor of palaeontology at Liége. He died at Liége on the 16th of
July 1887.
PUBLICATIONS.--_Éléments de chimie inorganique_ (1839); _Description
des animaux fossiles qui se trouvent dans le terrain Carbonifère de
Belgique_ (1842-1844, supp. 1851); _Recherches sur les animaux
fossiles_ (1847, 1873). See _Notice sur L. G. de Koninck_, by E.
Dupont; _Annuaire de l'Acad. roy. de Belgique_ (1891), with portrait
and bibliography.
KONINCK, PHILIP DE [de Coninck, de Koningh, van Koening] (1619-1688),
Dutch landscape painter, was born in Amsterdam in 1619. Little is known
of his history, except that he was a pupil of Rembrandt, whose influence
is to be seen in all his work. He painted chiefly broad sunny
landscapes, full of space, light and atmosphere. Portraits by him,
somewhat in the manner of Rembrandt, also exist; there are examples of
these in the galleries at Copenhagen and Christiania. Of his landscapes
the principal are "Vue de l'embouchure d'une rivière," at the Hague; a
slightly larger replica is in the National Gallery, London; "Lisière
d'un bois," and "Paysage" (with figures by A. Vandevelde) at Amsterdam;
and landscapes in Brussels, Florence (Uffizi), Berlin and Cologne.
Several of his works have been falsely attributed to Rembrandt, and many
more to his namesake and fellow-townsman SALOMON DE KONINCK (1609-1656),
who was also a disciple of Rembrandt; his paintings and etchings consist
mainly of portraits and biblical scenes.
Both these painters are to be distinguished from DAVID DE KONINCK
(1636-?1687), who is also known as "Rammelaar." He was born in Antwerp.
He studied there under Jan Fyt, and later settled in Rome, where he is
stated to have died in 1687; this is, however, doubtful. His pictures
are chiefly landscapes with animals, and still-life.
KONITZ, a town of Germany, in the province of West Prussia, at the
junction of railways to Schneidemühl and Gnesen, 68 m. S.W. of Danzig.
Pop. (1905), 11,014. It is still surrounded by its old fortifications,
has two Evangelical and two Roman Catholic churches, a new town-hall,
handsome public offices, and a prison. It has iron-foundries, saw-mills,
electrical works, and manufactures of bricks. Konitz was the first
fortified post established in Prussia by Hermann Balk, who in 1230 had
been commissioned as _Landmeister_, by the grand-master of the Teutonic
order, to reduce the heathen Prussians. For a long time it continued to
be a place of military importance.
See Uppenkamp, _Geschichte der Stadt Konitz_ (Konitz, 1873).
KONKAN, or CONCAN, a maritime tract of Western India, situated within
the limits of the Presidency of Bombay, and extending from the
Portuguese settlement of Goa on the S. to the territory of Daman,
belonging to the same nation, on the N. On the E. it is bounded by the
Western Ghats, and on the W. by the Indian Ocean. This tract comprises
the three British districts of Thana, Ratnagiri and Kolaba, and the
native states of Janjira and Sawantwari. It may be estimated at 300 m.
in length, with an average breadth of about 40. From the mountains on
its eastern frontier, which in one place attain a height of 4700 ft.,
the surface, marked by a succession of irregular hilly spurs from the
Ghats, slopes to the westward, where the mean elevation of the coast is
not more than 100 ft. above the level of the sea. Several mountain
streams, but none of any magnitude, traverse the country in the same
direction. One of the most striking characteristics of the climate is
the violence of the monsoon rains--the mean annual fall at Mahabaleshwar
amounting to 239 in. The coast has a straight general outline, but is
much broken into small bays and harbours. This, with the uninterrupted
view along the shore, and the land and sea breezes, which force vessels
steering along the coast to be always within sight of it, rendered this
country from time immemorial the seat of piracy; and so formidable had
the pirates become in the 18th century, that all ships suffered which
did not receive a pass from their chiefs. The Great Mogul maintained a
fleet for the express purpose of checking them, and they were frequently
attacked by the Portuguese. British commerce was protected by occasional
expeditions from Bombay; but the piratical system was not finally
extinguished until 1812. The southern Konkan has given its name to a
dialect of Marathi, which is the vernacular of the Roman Catholics of
Goa.
KONTAGORA, a province in the British protectorate of Northern Nigeria,
on the east bank of the Niger to the north of Nupe and opposite Borgu.
It is bounded W. by the Niger, S. by the province of Nupe, E. by that of
Zaria, and N. by that of Sokoto. It has an area of 14,500 sq. m. and a
population estimated at about 80,000. At the time of the British
occupation of Northern Nigeria the province formed a Fula emirate.
Before the Fula domination, which was established in 1864, the ancient
pagan kingdom of Yauri was the most important of the lesser kingdoms
which occupied this territory. The Fula conquest was made from Nupe on
the south and a tribe of independent and warlike pagans continued to
hold the country between Kontagora and Sokoto on the north. The province
was brought under British domination in 1901 as the result of a military
expedition sent to prevent audacious slave-raiding in British protected
territory and of threats directed against the British military station
of Jebba on the Niger. The town of Kontagora was taken in January of
1901. The emir Ibrahim fled, and was not captured till early in 1902.
The province, after having been held for a time in military occupation,
was organized for administration on the same system as the rest of the
protectorate. In 1903 Ibrahim, after agreeing to take the oath of
allegiance to the British crown and to accept the usual conditions of
appointment, which include the abolition of the slave trade within the
province, was reinstated as emir and the British garrison was withdrawn.
Since then the development of the province has progressed favourably.
Roads have been opened and Kontagora connected by telegraph with
headquarters at Zungeru. British courts of justice have been established
at the British headquarters, and native courts in every district. In
1904 an expedition reduced to submission the hitherto independent tribes
in the northern belt, who had up to that time blocked the road to
Sokoto. Their arms were confiscated and their country organized as a
district of the province under a chief and a British assistant resident.
KOORINGA [BURRA], a town of Burra county, South Australia on Burra
Creek, 101 m. by rail N. by E. of Adelaide. Pop. (1901), 1994. It is the
centre of a mining and agricultural district in which large areas are
devoted to wheat-growing. The famous Burra Burra copper mine, discovered
by a shepherd in 1844, is close to the town, while silver and lead ore
is also found in the vicinity.
KÖPENICK (CÖPENICK), a town of Germany, in the Prussian province of
Brandenburg, on an island in the Spree, 9 m. S.E. from Berlin by the
railway to Fürstenwalde. Pop. (1905), 27,721. It contains a royal
residence, which was built on the site of a palace which belonged to the
great elector, Frederick William. This is surrounded by gardens and
contains a fine banqueting hall and a chapel. Other buildings are a
Roman Catholic and a Protestant church and a teachers' seminary. The
varied industries embrace the manufacture of glass, linoleum,
sealing-wax and ink. In the vicinity is Spindlersfeld, with important
dye-works.
Köpenick, which dates from the 12th century, received municipal rights
in 1225. Shortly afterwards, it became the bone of contention between
Brandenburg and Meissen, but, at the issue of the feud, remained with
the former, becoming a favourite residence of the electors of
Brandenburg. In the palace the famous court martial was held in 1730,
which condemned the crown-prince of Prussia, afterwards Frederick the
Great, to death. In 1906 the place derived ephemeral fame from the
daring feat of a cobbler, one Wilhelm Voigt, who, attired as a captain
in the army, accompanied by soldiers, whom his apparent rank deceived,
took the mayor prisoner, on a fictitious charge of having falsified
accounts and absconded with a considerable sum of municipal money. The
"captain of Köpenick" was arrested, tried, and sentenced to a term of
imprisonment.
See Graf zu Dohna, _Kurfürstliche Schlösser in der Mark Brandenburg_
(Berlin, 1890).
KOPISCH, AUGUST (1799-1853), German poet, was born at Breslau on the
26th of May 1799. In 1815 he began the study of painting at the Prague
academy, but an injury to his hand precluded the prospects of any great
success in this profession, and he turned to literature. After a
residence in Dresden Kopisch proceeded, in 1822, to Italy, where, at
Naples, he formed an intimate friendship with the poet August, count of
Platen Hallermund. He was an expert swimmer, a quality which enabled him
in company with Ernst Fries to discover the blue grotto of Capri. In
1828 he settled at Berlin and was granted a pension by Frederick William
IV., who in 1838 conferred upon him the title of professor. He died at
Berlin on the 3rd of February 1853. Kopisch produced some very original
poetry, light in language and in form. He especially treated legends and
popular subjects, and among his _Gedichte_ (Berlin, 1836) are some naïve
and humorous little pieces such as _Die Historie von Noah_, _Die
Heinzelmännchen_, _Das grüne Tier_ and _Der Scheiderjunge von
Krippstedt_, which became widely popular. He also published a
translation of Dante's _Divine Comedy_ (Berlin, 1840), and under the
title _Agrumi_ (Berlin, 1838) a collection of translations of Italian
folk songs.