John Nichol

John Nichol (8 September 1833 – 11 October 1894), was a Scottish literary scholar, academic, writer who served as the first Regius Professor of English Language and Literature at the University of Glasgow. He was well known for his drama Hannibal (1873) as well as his biographies of Robert Burns, Lord Byron, and of his friend Thomas Carlyle. He is also well known for his books Tables of European Literature and History (1876) and Tables of Ancient Literature and History (1877).

Early life

Nichol was born on 8 September 1833 in Montrose, Forfarshire (present-day Angus) to Jane Tullis (1809–1850) and John Pringle Nichol, an astronomer and political economist.

John Jr. studied first at Glasgow (1848–55) and then Balliol College, Oxford (1855–9) as a Snell Exhibitioner, graduating with a First-Class degree in Classics, Philosophy and Mathematics. After graduating, Nicholl remained at Oxford as a coach. With Albert Venn Dicey, Thomas Hill Green, Swinburne and others, he formed the Old Mortality Society for discussions on literary matters.

Glasgow

In 1862 he was made Regius Professor of English Literature at Glasgow. He had already made a reputation as an acute critic and a successful lecturer, and his influence at Glasgow was very marked. During his tenure as Regius Professor, he also lectured at Oxford University as well as private tutoring across Britain, and formed a strong reputation as an inspiring lecturer, later joining Glasgow's Dialectic Society.

He left Glasgow for London in 1889, and died on 11 October 1894. A Memoir by Professor Knight was published in 1896.