page_title: Wolfgang von Kempelen
section_title: Personal life
hierarchical_section_title: Wolfgang von Kempelen / Personal life
caption_attribution_description: English: Photo of the reconstruction of the Turk, the a chess-playing automaton designed by Kempelen
context_page_description: Wolfgang von Kempelen was a Hungarian author and inventor. He is known for his chess-playing "automaton" hoax, The Turk, and for his speaking machine.
context_section_description: Von Kempelen was born in Pressburg, part of the Kingdom of Hungary. He was the last child of Engelbert Kempelen (1680–1761), and Anna Theresa Spindler. 
  He studied law and philosophy in Pressburg, and attended the Academy in Győr, Vienna and Rome. He was interested in mathematics and physics. He spoke German, Hungarian, Latin, French, Italian. Later, during his travels he learned English and Romanian. His first job was in 1755 as a 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).  He also helped move the University of Nagyszombat to Buda Castle, and looked after the building of the Court Theatre in Buda's old Carmelite monastery.
  He married twice, first in 1757 to Maria Franziska Piani, who died in 1758, and again in 1762 to Maria Anna von Gobelius. Five children were born from his second marriage, of whom two survived into adulthood: Maria Theresia (1768–1812) and Karl (1771–1822).
caption: A reconstruction of The Turk
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