town of Prussia, province of East Prussia, and capital of a government of the same name, on the Pissa, 70 miles E.S.E. of Königsberg. The town is well built, with spacious and regular streets, and fine promenades, shaded by linden trees. It is the seat of the different governmental courts, and has a gymnasium, schools of architecture and midwifery, a public library, and an hospital. It has manufactures of woollen and linen stuffs, leather, and brandy; and some trade in corn. Gumbinnen was only a small village till 1732, when it was improved and made a town by Frederick William I., to whom a statue was erected in the market-place in 1832. Many Protestant families from Salzburg, driven from their homes, settled here and contributed to its rise and prosperity. Pop. (1849) 6794. The government of Gumbinnen has an area of 6312 English square miles, and is almost one continued flat, extensively covered with lakes. The cultivated land is fertile, but a large portion of this government is densely wooded, or covered with heath and morass. The chief products are wheat, rye, flax, and hemp; and cattle and sheep are numerous. Pop. (1849) 614,047, of whom 601,016 are Protestants.

Gumpeltzhaimer, Adam, a musician, born at Trosberg, in Bavaria, in 1560. The year of his death is not known. In 1581 he was appointed cantor of the school of Augsburg. He merits historical notice as one of the early creators of that German style of harmony which was afterwards employed with such effect by Handel, J.S. Bach, and others. "His modulations," says an eminent critic, "were based on the modern system of tonality; and while they were lively and unexpected, were still smooth and natural." There are several published collections of his Spiritual Songs for Four Voices.