Adalbert Brunke (16 May 1912 – 25 September 2013) was the Bishop of the Cape Oranje Diocese of the

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa is a Lutheran church in South Africa. The church has 580,000 baptized members in seven dioceses in South Africa, Botswana, and Eswatini, and is (by a wide margin) the largest Lutheran church in th ...

(ELCSA). Brunke was born in Alt Czapel (Stare Czaple) in

West Prussia The Province of West Prussia (german: Provinz Westpreußen; csb, Zôpadné Prësë; pl, Prusy Zachodnie) was a province of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and 1878 to 1920. West Prussia was established as a province of the Kingdom of Prussia in 177 ...

. In 1939 the Lutheran Church of Germany sent him to

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

. After the start of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he was interned in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

by British authorities. In 1949 he began his missionary activity. He was elected the first bishop of his diocese in 1972. Brunke became famous for his pastoral care for

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

throughout his detention on

Robben Island Robben Island ( af, Robbeneiland) is an island in Table Bay, 6.9 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of the coast of Bloubergstrand, north of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the Dutch word for seals (''robben''), hence the Dutch/Afrik ...

. Mandela later thanked Brunke several times for his sacrificial service.

References

1912 births 2013 deaths German centenarians German prisoners and detainees Men centenarians People from West Prussia Lutheran bishops in Africa 20th-century Lutheran bishops 21st-century Lutheran bishops {{lutheranism-stub