Claus Christoffersen Lyschander (also ''Lyscander, Lyskander''; 1558–1623/4) was a Danish poet and historian. A native of Nørre Vram,

Skåne Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous with Skåne C ...

, Denmark (now in

Bjuv Municipality Bjuv Municipality ( sv, Bjuvs kommun) is a municipality in Skåne County in South Sweden in southern Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Bjuv. The amalgamations connected to the 1971 local government reform in Sweden took place in this ar ...

, Sweden), his boyhood was affected by the

Northern Seven Years' War The Northern Seven Years' War (also known as the ''Nordic Seven Years' War'', the ''First Northern War'' or the ''Seven Years War in Scandinavia'') was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden and a coalition of Denmark–Norway, Lübeck, and Polan ...

, some of his older siblings and his mother fell victim to the epidemics which accompanied the war. After the war, he was schooled in Herrisvad convent school. His earliest known period in Danish and Latin was composed at the age of 20. He studied at

Rostock university The University of Rostock (german: link=no, Universität Rostock) is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continen ...

under David Chytraeus. He spent several years in Germany, possibly studying at the university at Wittenberg. In January 1587 wrote a letter of recommendation for Lyschander to Frederick II. Lyschander was made pastor of Herfølge and Sædder parishes, one of the more prestigious positions in Zealand, where he replaced

Jon Jakobsen Venusinus Jon Jakobsen Venusinus (c. 1558 – 1608) was a Danish theologian, naturalist and historian. He was born on the island of Ven as the son of the local pastor, Jakob Jonsen. The father was transferred to Landskrona in 1563, where Jon Jakobsen ...

whom he later also succeeded as Royal Historian. Lyschander married in 1588 and was appointed dean at Bjæverskov Herred (

Præstø County Præstø County ( da, Præstø Amt) is a former counties of Denmark, province in Denmark, located on the southern part of Zealand (Denmark), Zealand. It was established in 1750 as a merger between Tryggevælde County and Vordingborg County. Mø ...

). He published several historiographical works in verse form between 1608 and 1623. He was appointed Royal Historian (''kongelig historiograf'') by Christian IV in 1616, charged with compiling a national historiography of Denmark "after Saxo" (i.e. covering the 13th century onward). The work was scheduled for six years, but Lyschander laid out a plan of 116 volumes. Maybe because it seemed unlikely that Lyschander was able to complete the national history within the appointed time, royal chancellor Christian Friis appointed

Johan Isaksson Pontanus Johan Isaaksz PontanusIn Latin Johannes Isacius Pontanus, in Danish Johan Isaksen (21 January 1571–7 October 1639) was a Dutch historiographer. Pontanus was the son of Margaretha van Delen and Isaac Pietersz, the Dutch consul to Denmark stat ...

with the same task as Lyschander, but Lyschander was allowed to continue to work on his own project. In 1619, Lyschander presented a draft version of his ''Synopsis Historiae Danicae'', which was published in 1622 (now known under the title of ''Danske Kongers Slægtebog'' "Genealogy of the Danish kings").

References

*Holger Frederik Rørdam,
Klaus Christoffersen Lyskanders levned
', 1868. *Carl Frederik Bricka, ''Dansk biografisk Lexikon'' 10 (1896)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lyschander, Claus Christoffersen 16th-century Danish historians 17th-century Danish historians Danish male poets 17th-century Danish poets Danish Lutheran clergy 1558 births 1623 deaths 17th-century male writers