Vivat Victorius Fridericus Franciscus "Franz" Nachtegall (October 3, 1777 – 12 May 1847) was an early proponent and directly responsible for introducing

physical education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorati ...

in schools of

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. He was born in Copenhagen on October 3, 1777. He took lessons of fencing and vaulting in childhood. Nachtegall was apparently stimulated to begin teaching

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

after reading the

GutsMuths Johann Christoph Friedrich GutsMuths, also called Guts Muth or Gutsmuths (9 August 1759 – 21 May 1839), was a teacher and educator in Germany, and is especially known for his role in the development of physical education. He is thought of a ...

manual of gymnastics. In 1799 he was invited to teach gymnastics at the Vesterbro school. In 1804 he was appointed as the first director of a training school for the teaching of gymnastics to the army of Denmark. This school provided instructions for future NCOs in both the army and navy. In 1805 he prepared a detailed gymnastic manual for the military course. In 1807 he was appointed professor of gymnastics at

Copenhagen University The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...

. In 1808 he was awarded an honorarium for giving free instructions to civilians, who were interested in teaching physical education. From 1821 to 1842, Nachtegall was Director of Gymnastics, with oversight of the programs of the army and navy.

References

1777 births 1847 deaths Danish educators History of gymnastics People associated with physical culture {{gymnastics-bio-stub