Wolfgang von Kempelen
| Wolfgang von Kempelen | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Wolfgang Franciscus de Paula Johannes Elemosinarius von Kempelen 23 January 1734 Pressburg, Kingdom of Hungary, Habsburg Empire (now Bratislava, Slovakia) |
| Died | 26 March 1804 (aged 70) Vienna, Habsburg Empire (now Austria) |
| Nationality | Hungarian |
| Occupation | Inventor |
| Known for | The Turk |
Wolfgang von Kempelen (Hungarian: Kempelen Farkas; 23 January 1734 – 26 March 1804) was a Hungarian author and inventor, known for his chess-playing "automaton" hoax The Turk and for his speaking machine.
Von Kempelen was born in Pressburg, part of the Kingdom of Hungary within the Habsburg Empire, the last child of Engelbert Kempelen (1680–1761), and Anna Theresa Spindler. Contrary to some reports, he did not hold the title of "Ritter" or "Baron." This misconception may stem from historical confusion with one of his older brothers, Johannes Nepomuk Joseph, who attained the rank of general within the Habsburg Empire, and who was granted the title Kempelen von Pázmánd after purchasing a former Jesuit estate in Pázmánd, a village south of Budapest.
Von Kempelen studied law and philosophy in Pressburg, and attended the Academy in Győr, Vienna and Rome, but mathematics and physics also interested him. He spoke German, Hungarian, Latin, French, Italian, and later, some English and Romanian, which he learned during his travels in England and assignments in The Banat. He applied for his first position with the Habsburg Court in 1755 as a supernumary clerk in the Hungarian Court Chamber in Pozsony. Later he became a secretary (1757), a Councillor of the Court Chamber (1764), Director of Salt Mining (1765), Second Commissioner of the Constitutional Commission for the Region of Banat (1769), and finally Imperial-Royal Court Councillor (1787). During this time he also helped transfer the University of Nagyszombat to Buda Castle, and oversaw the building of the Court Theatre in Buda's former Carmelite monastery.
He married twice, first in 1757 to Maria Franziska Piani, who died suddenly in 1758 of an abdominal obstruction, and again in 1762 to Maria Anna von Gobelius, who had served as a lady's companion in the house of Count Johannes Erdödy, the vice-president of the Hungarian Court Chancery. Five children were born from his second marriage, of whom two survived into adulthood: Maria Theresia (1768–1812) and Karl (1771–1822).
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