Johann Elias Schlegel

Johann Elias Schlegel (born Jan. 17, 1719, Meissen, Saxony—died Aug. 13, 1749, Sorø, Den.) was a German author and critic whose plays and criticism helped give the German theatre a much-needed new impetus. He was educated at the famous classical-humanist boarding school Schulpforta. After studying law in Leipzig, he became private secretary to the Saxon ambassador in Copenhagen in 1743 and from 1748 taught at the Sorø Academy. He was the uncle of August Wilhelm...