KNOX KOCH. 



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1557, ' ' that they would follow forth their purpose, 

 and commit themselves, and whatever God had given 

 them, into his hands, rather than suffer idolatry to 

 reign, and the subjects to be defrauded of the only 

 food of their souls." Knox, in the mean time, had 

 returned to Geneva, where he published his treatise 

 entitled the First Blast of the Trumpet against the 

 monstrous Regimen of Women, chiefly aimed at the 

 cruel government of queen Mary of England, and at 

 the attempt of the queen regent of Scotland to rule 

 without a parliament. A Second Blast was to have 

 followed; but the accession of queen Elizabeth to the 

 throne of England, who was expected to be friendly 

 to the Protestant cause, prevented it. In April, 1559, 

 he would have visited England, but was prevented 

 by the resentment felt by Elizabeth at his late treatise. 

 He therefore proceeded directly to Scotland, where 

 he found a persecution of the Protestants just ready to 

 commence at Stirling. He hurried to the scene of action 

 to share the danger, and, mounting a pulpit, inflamed 

 the people by a vehement harangue against idolatry. 

 The indiscretion of a priest, who, immediately on the 

 conclusion of this discourse, was preparing to cele- 

 brate mass, precipitated his hearers into a general 

 attack on the churches of the city, in which the altars 

 were overturned, the pictures destroyed, the images 

 broken, and the monasteries almost levelled to the 

 ground. These proceedings were censured by the 

 reformed preachers, and by the leaders of the party. 

 From this time, Knox continued to promote the refor- 

 mation by every means in his power, and, by his 

 correspondence with the secretary Cecil, was chiefly 

 instrumental in establishing the negotiation between 

 the congregation and the English, which terminated 

 in the march of an English army into Scotland. 

 Being joined by almost all the chief men of the 

 country, these forces soon obliged the French troops, 

 who had been the principal support of the regent, to 

 quit the kingdom ; and the parliament was restored 

 to its former independence. Of that body, the 

 majority had embraced Protestant opinions, and no 

 opportunity was omitted of assailing the ancient 

 religion, until at length the Presbyterian plan recom- 

 mended by Knox and his brethren, was finally sanc- 

 tioned, the old ecclesiastical courts being abolished, 

 and the exercise of religious worship, according to 

 the rites of the Roman church, prohibited. In 

 August, 1561, the unfortunate Mary, then widow 

 of Francis II., king of France, arrived in Scotland 

 to reign in her own right. She immediately set up 

 a mass in the royal chapel, which, being much fre- 

 quented, excited the zeal of Knox, who was equally 

 intolerant with the leaders of the conquered party ; 

 and, in the face of an order of the privy council, 

 allowing the private mass, he openly declared from 

 the pulpit, " that one mass was more frightful to him 

 than 10,000 armed enemies, landed in any part of 

 the realm." This freedom gave great offence, and 

 the queen had long and angry conferences with him 

 on that and other occasions, in which he never paid 

 the slightest homage either to sex or rank. He 

 preached with equal openness against the marriage 

 of Mary; and Darnley, after his union, being induced 

 to hear him, he observed, in the course of his sermon, 

 that " God set over them, for their offences and in- 

 gratitude, boys and women." In the year 1567, he 

 preached a sermon at the coronation of James VI., 

 when Mary had been dethroned, and Murray ap- 

 pointed regent. In 1572, he was greatly offended 

 with a convention of ministers at Leith, for permitting 

 the titles of archbishop and bishop to remain during 

 the king's minority, although he approved of. the 

 regulations adopted in reference to their elections. 

 At this time, his constitution was quite broken, and 

 he received an additional shock by the news of the 



massacre of St Bartholomew. He had, however, 

 strength enough to preach against it, which he 

 desired the French ambassador might be acquainted 

 with, but soon after took to his bed, and died, Nov. 

 24, 1572. He was interred at Edinburgh, several 

 lords attending, and particularly the earl of Morton, 

 that day chosen regent, who, when he was laid in 

 his grave, exclaimed, " There lies he who never feared 

 the face of man, who hath been often threatened with 

 dag and dagger, but yet hath ended his days in peace 

 and honour ; for he had God's providence watching 

 over him in an especial manner when his life was 

 sought." The .character of this eminent reformer 

 has been sketched by doctor Robertson, in his His- 

 tory of Scotland, who, in observing upon the severity 

 of his deportment, impetuosity of temper, and zeal- 

 ous intolerance, observes, that the qualities which 

 now render him less amiable, fitted him to advance 

 the reformation among a fierce people, and enabled 

 him to encounter dangers, and surmount opposition, 

 to which a more gentle spirit would have yielded. 

 John Knox was a man of exalted principles, great 

 intellectual energy, undaunted intrepidity, and ex- 

 emplary piety and morality. He was twice married, 

 and had two sons by his first wife. His writings, in 

 addition to those already mentioned, are, a Faithful 

 Admonition to the Professors of the Gospel of Christ 

 in the Kingdom of England (1554); a Letter to Queen 

 Mary, Regent of Scotland ; a Steady Exhortation to 

 England for the speedy embracing of Christ's Gospel. 

 After his death appeared his History of the Reforma- 

 tion of Religion within the Realm of Scotland, to the 

 fourth edition of which (Edinburgh, 1732, folio) areap- 

 pended all his other works. See M'Crie's Life of Knox. 



KNOX, VICESIMUS, D. D. ; an eminent divine, 

 author of a variety of works, both in theology and 

 polite literature. He was born Dec. 8, 1 752, and 

 educated at Oxford. On the death of his father, he 

 was chosen his successor in the head-mastership of 

 Tunbridge grammar school, over which he presided 

 thirty-three years, till, retiring in 1812, he was him- 

 self, in turn, succeeded by his son. His works, many 

 of which have been translated into various European 

 languages, are, Essays, moral and literary (three vols. 

 8vo and 12mo) ; Liberal Education (two volumes, 

 8vo and 12mo); Winter Evenings (three volumes, 

 8vo and 12mo) ; Personal Nobility, or Letters to a 

 young Nobleman (one volume, 12mo) ; Christian 

 Philosophy (two volumes, 12rno) ; Considerations on 

 the Nature and Efficacy of the Lord's Supper (one 

 volume, 8vo), and a pamphlet on the National Impor- 

 tance of Classical Education, with a variety of ser- 

 mons on different occasions ; expurgated editions of 

 Horace and Juvenal, and a series of selections from 

 the works of the best English authors, generally 

 known as Elegant Extracts, and Elegant Epistles. 

 Doctor Knox wrote the Latin language with great 

 purity and elegance, both in prose and verse. He 

 died Sept. 6,1821. 



KOBOLD, in Germany; a spirit which differs from 

 the spectre in never having been a living human 

 creature. It corresponds to the English goblin. The 

 kobold is connected with a house, or a family, and 

 appears in bodily shape. Though inclined to mis- 

 chievous teazing, they do, on the whole, more good 

 than evil to men, except when irritated. In the mines, 

 they are thought to appear, sometimes in the shape 

 of a blue flame, sometimes in that of a dwarfish child, 

 and to indicate rich veins. They do the miners mis- 

 chief when disturbed by them. 



KOCH, CHRISTOPHER, WILLIAM, professor of law, 

 at Strasburg, and a writer well versed in the history 

 of the middle ages, born 1737, at Buxweiler, in 

 Alsace, conducted the school for teaching public law 

 in Strasburg with sucli success, that scholars flocked 

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