Musing and Music

Today, I decided to give myself a break from my studies and spent the afternoon doing research on family history. I found some really neat things. I have always learned a lot about my mother's side of the family, however the Katlhoff side has remained quite a mystery to me. So, it was out of this curiosity that I went searching to find out more about the Kalthoffs in Europe. As it turns out, there were some pretty influential Kalthoffs throughout the course of history who worked as gunsmiths. I am not sure if I could trace my family line to these Kalthoffs, but I sure am going to do more research to see if I can. To save me the time, I have inserted the wikipedia information on the Kalthoff gunsmiths below:

This family was founded by Herman Kolthoff from Kultenhof Estate, Danish Duchy of Slesvig (now Kaltenhof, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany), who had several sons that went on to fame across Europe. They are best known for the Kalthoff repeater - a rapid fire repeating rifle that could deliver 20-30 rounds/minute in the 1650s.
Peder Hermansen Kalthoff - Served Frederik III of Denmark as Head of Armory, 1600-1672
Matthias Kalthoff - Gunsmith Denmark, 1608-1681
Caspar Kalthoff Elder -- Served Charles I of England, 1606-1664
Caspar Kalthoff Younger -- Served Tsar Alexis I of Russia and Charles II of England
Henrick Hermansen Kolthoff -- Founded Foundries in Sweden and Norway, 1610-1661
William Hermansen Kalthoff -- Patented repeating gun in France

Of these men, I found Caspar Kalthoff the most interesting:

The maker, Caspar Kalthoff, was a Dutch gunsmith and inventor who worked in England from 1628. From 1634 he had a forge and lodgings in the Tower of London and an experimental firing range at Vauxhall. He returned to Holland in 1655, having invented a catapult for the purpose of killing the Lord Protector. Kalthoff returned to London in 1663 and demonstrated a seven-shot gun to the Royal Society (Blackmore 1986, p.125). There is a similar gun with the engraved inscription 'C.Kalthof' in the Royal Collection, Windsor Castle. (http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1260820/seven-shot-magazine-caspar-kalthoff/)

I spent a good portion of my afternoon gathering knowledge. Yet, I don't have a clue whether or not I am any kind of descendant of this Kalthoff line. Nevertheless, it was most interesting to learn about.

This evening I attended the Duchess Elizabeth Memorial Concert, which featured the pianist Martin Roscoe. My favorite piece was one from the ballet Coppelia. I missed the opening because I was still in class and I was informed at the intermission by my biology professor's family that His Grace the Duke and Duchess were there, as well as other members of the family to pay tribute to their mother. Sure enough, there they were. I must say, Her Grace is very beautiful for her years. At the end of the event, Roy Todd (the former Contemporary Britain professor for St. Cloud students) announced that Martin Roscoe had accepted the position as president of the Alnwick Music Society. This was big news for the locals who were quite pleased. Overall, it was a great way to spend the evening.