Karl Friedrich Christian Hoeck (May 13, 1794, atOelber am weißen Wege – January 13, 1877, inGöttingen) was a Germanclassical historian andphilologist as well as alibrarian.
After attending the gymnasium (high school) atWolfenbüttel, Hoeck studied classical studies in Göttingen from 1812 until 1816. During his period as a student he was already connecting to the university library; in 1814 he became accessist, and in 1815 secretary. Towards the end of his studies he was a member, together withChristian Karl Josias von Bunsen,Karl Lachmann andErnst Schulze, of the Philological Seminary and specialized in ancient history under the direction ofArnold Hermann Ludwig Heeren. With a prize essay from the year 1816 he achieved his doctorate on 3 March 1818 and worked fromEaster of the same year as a private lecturer for classical philology and ancient history at theUniversity of Göttingen. As a philologist he delivered exegetical meetings on the historiansHerodotus andLivy and on the oratorDemosthenes, as an historian on the world of ancient history and antiquities.
In the year of his appointment to extraordinary professor, 1823, Hoeck published the first volume of his magnum opus on mythology, history, religion, and state of the island ofCrete in the prehistorical to the Roman period. In the first volume he dealt with the topography and prehistory of the island; in the second volume (1828), that ofMinoan Crete; in the third (1829), theDoric. Although this work was highly appreciated by experts in the field, his success was restricted by theGeschichten Hellenischer Stämme und Städte (History of Hellenic Tribes and Cities) (Breslau, 1820-1824) byKarl Otfried Müller which appeared shortly before his.
In the 1840s, Hoeck's second great work, which dealt with the history of thedecline of the Republic to theEmperor Constantine, appeared. Hoeck devoted particular attention to the constitution and administration of theRoman Empire. Due to the constantly increasing material, the work remained unfinished: only the first volume, which dealt with the time fromAugustus toNero, appeared in three books (1841, 1843, and 1850).
Hoeck witnessed the pinnacle of his career in 1845 when he was named successor of the lateGeorg Friedrich Benecke as leader of the university library. Here he remained another thirty years in the office and dignity thereof; in 1858 he was promoted to upper librarian, and in 1862 he was appointed councilor. During his period in office, he managed the library on the old principles and forms of organization going back toChristian Gottlob Heyne. Due to the stagnation of the collections since the 1830s, there was no present need for reforms. In 1865 he was awarded an honorary citizenship of the city of Göttingen. In 1875, after sixty years in the service of the library, Hoeck applied for retirement and retired as leader of the library. He died two years later in his 83rd year.
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