Born as member of an old Westphalian noble family and educated at three universities in a broad variety of subjects, he entered the Prussian service as head of local and regional authorities.

Vincke modernized the provincial administration, supported agricultural reforms, industrial development and enlargement of traffic ways, and fostered the coexistence of the diverse Christian confessions in the multiconfessional province.

He supported the idea of public self-government on local and regional level, but the restorative tendencies in the governmental policy laid down limits for his efforts.

[7] His professional career in civil administration began in the Prussian capital Berlin as collaborator of the Chamber of War Affairs and State Property (Kriegs- und Domänenkammer),[d] and soon in August 1798 he was appointed as Landrat in Minden,[3] the head of district administration, a honorary position with only small remuneration, so his father gave him regular financial support.

His duty was broken once more from November 1801 until March 1803 by a journey to Spain at the instigation of the Prussian government in order to buy merinos to improve the sheep breeding.

[8] Further steps of career were President of the Chamber of War Affairs and State Property in Aurich (East Frisia) (1803) and the same function in Münster and Hamm simultaneously (1804 to 1807) as successor of the Baron vom Stein.

[10] At the end of the year, King Frederick William III ordered a backdated payment for his engagement and appointed him leader (Regierungspräsident) of the regional government in Potsdam,[10] but Vincke dismissed from it in March 1810 and dealt afterwards with the management of his first wife's inherited property Haus Ickern near Castrop (then Grand Duchy of Berg).

[9] After the Kingdom of Prussia had allied to Russia during the German campaign of 1813, Vincke was arrested by the French Occupants in March 1813 for some days because of his relation to the Baron vom Stein, and after that banished to the region left of the Rhine.

[9] As consequence of Napoleon‘s defeat in the Battle of Leipzig in October 1813, Prussia regained and increased its Westphalian territories, wherein Vincke became the leading position as civil governor in November 1813.

[14] Under Prussian government the Catholic nobility had lost its former political influence, and great differences in theologically based ideas of school education or interconfessional marriages arose.

[14] When after the ordered unification of Lutherans and Calvinists in the Prussian Union of Churches a new agenda for worship, written under personal collaboration and supervision of King Frederick William III, had to be implemented, a lot of parishes refused to accept it; in his capacity as President of the Consistory of Westphalia Vincke helped to find a compromise after some years.

[14][16] In contrast to his liberal political ideas he showed a conspicuous antisemitism: he claimed the Jews should be integrated into the Christian society by baptism or leave the country.

[3] Vincke's younger sister Charlotte (1780–1833) married Baron (since 1840: Count) Kaspar Heinrich von Sierstorpff-Driburg (1750–1842), the founder and owner of the Bad Driburg spa.

Their son Count Ernst von Sierstorpff-Driburg married his cousin, Ludwig's daughter Caroline (1822–1870);[3] both are great-great-grandparents of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands.