Lucas Watzenrode the Elder

Lucas Watzenrode the Elder (German also "Lukas", Polish "Łukasz") (1400 – 1462) was a trader in the Hanseatic city of Thorn (Toruń), father of bishop Lucas Watzenrode the Younger, and grandfather of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus.

Life

Watzenrode the Elder was born 1400 in Thorn, Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights, as a child of a German trader family. In the "Thorner Bürger Buch" ("Thorun citizen registry book") he was registered as landowner, businessmen, judge, councilman etc., living at "Seglergasse" ("sailor alley") in Thorn. He was married to Katharina von Rüdiger in 1436. In 1448, he and other burghers of Thorn are recorded as having been summoned to the court at Limburg. He died at his birthplace in 1462.

Offspring

In addition to their son Lucas Watzenrode the Younger, who became bishop of Ermeland and strongly supported the independence of Ermeland, Lucas and his wife Katharina had two daughters who both were married in Thorn, Barbara to Nicolas Koppernigk, Christina to Tideman von Allen.

When Barbara Koppernigk and her husband had died, Lucas the Younger took care of their four children, Katharina, Barbara, Andreas and Nicolaus, who would become known as Nicolaus Copernicus, the astronomer.

Christina and Tideman's daughter Cordula von Allen married Reinhold Feldstedt, who was born 1468 in Danzig (Gdańsk) and died 1529 in Danzig. Their daughter Katharina Feldstedt married Herman Giese, born 1523 in Danzig. Tiedemann Giese, a famous bishop of Warmia (Ermeland), was a descendant.

References

*Library Danzig, J. Kretzmer, "Liber de episcopatu et episcopi Varmiensis ex vetusto Chronico Bibliotheca Heilsbergensis", 1593
*Christoph Hartknoch, "Preussische Kirchen-Historia", Frankfurt a.M., 1668
*M.G. Centner, "Geehrte und Gelehrte Thorner", Thorn 1763
*A. Semrau, "Katalog der Geschlechter der Schöffenbank und des Ratsstuhles in der Altstadt Thorn 1233-1602", in: "Mitteilungen des Copernicus-Vereins für Wissenschaft und Kunst zu Thorn" 46 (1938)
*Wojciech Iwanczak, "Lucas Watzenrode", in "Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon", Bautz Verlag [http://www.bautz.de/bbkl/w/watzenrode.shtml]
*"Poczet biskupów warmiskich", Olsztyn 1998