The Country and the World of Copernicus

Abstract

Copernicus was born in Toruń (Thorn) and quite likely attended school at the neighboring town of Chełmno. Except for five years as student in Cracow and eight in Italy, Copernicus spent the adult years of his life at the bishopric of Lidzbark as canon of the diocese of Warmia (Ermland), at the chapter’s administrative center in Olsztyn and, the longest period, at the cathedral of Frombork. It is from here that he traveled to the provincial councils of Prussia and made two trips to the capital of Poland Cracow and perhaps one to Poznań.

NICOLAUS COPERNICUS, Torunii in Prusia natus, patre Nicolao Copernico, matre vero quae erat germana soror Lucae a Watzelrod Toruniensis, episcopi Varmiensis, praeclare de Republica Polonorum meriti in causa Cruciferorum.

The mottoes placed at the head of each chapter are taken from the first large Polish biography of Copernicus, published by Szymon Starowolski in Scriptorum Polonicorum Hecatontas, Venice 1627.