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Robert Heindl

German Criminologist (1883-1958)

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionNov 7, 2025
Entity authorityQ1707722
Source-derived summary

Robert Heindl (24 July 1883 – 25 September 1958) was a German criminologist and lawyer, most noted for his advocacy of fingerprinting. This began after he read an article in 1902 on Edward Henry's use of the method in India - he requested the relevant files from the British imperial authorities in Calcutta, studied them extensively and then proposed to all the main police authorities in Germany that they adopt the technique. He was born in Munich and died in Irschenhausen. In 1953 he was awarded the Cross of Merit of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Robert Heindl” as german Criminologist (1883-1958). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Robert, Heindl and German.

Editorial reviewA concise reference frame for defining the subject, testing terminology and identifying the institution closest to the evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1883, 1958, 1902, 1953—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1883-07-24. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Robert, Heindl and German providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Robert Heindl”, the useful work is to connect “german Criminologist (1883-1958)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Nov 7, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q1707722. VIAF identifies the subject as 25359479. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1883, 1958, 1902 and 1953.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

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Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

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  2. Expand the search: follow Robert Heindl primary sources, Robert Heindl archive and Robert research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Robert Heindl” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.