The Academic Gymnasium Danzig (german: Akademisches Gymnasium Danzig, pl, Gdańskie Gimnazjum Akademickie,
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
: ''Gymnasium Dantiscanum'') was a school founded in
Gdańsk,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
. It was founded in 1558 by
Johann Hoppe (1512–1565), who had previously worked at schools in
Chełmno
Chełmno (; older en, Culm; formerly ) is a town in northern Poland near the Vistula river with 18,915 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is the seat of the Chełmno County in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship.
Due to its regional impor ...
and
Elbląg until Catholic
Prince-Bishop Stanislaus Hosius
Stanislaus Hosius ( pl, Stanisław Hozjusz; 5 May 1504 – 5 August 1579) was a Polish Roman Catholic cardinal. From 1551 he was the Prince-Bishop of the Bishopric of Warmia in Royal Prussia and from 1558 he served as the papal legate to the H ...
closed them. For most of its existence it had a character similar to that of a university.
History
It was in operation as educational gymnasium for
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
clergy until 1817.
It was one of the most developed educational centers in the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...
.
It also was the site of Collegium Medicum-one of the first associations of doctors in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
In the 16th century, as many cities in the Polish province of
Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia ( pl, Prusy Królewskie; german: Königlich-Preußen or , csb, Królewsczé Prësë) or Polish PrussiaAnton Friedrich Büsching, Patrick Murdoch. ''A New System of Geography'', London 1762p. 588/ref> (Polish: ; German: ) was a ...
became
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
, the population began to seek a Lutheran education. The
University of Königsberg
The University of Königsberg (german: Albertus-Universität Königsberg) was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as the world's second Protestant academy (after the University of Marburg) by Duke Albert of Pruss ...
in neighbouring
Ducal Prussia
The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establishe ...
, founded in 1544, was not big enough to educate all the new Protestant clerics and administrators needed for the newly Lutheran state in addition to arrivals from other parts of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, so local Latin schools in the Commonwealth were upgraded. The future home of the Gymnasium would be the former
Franciscan
, image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg
, image_size = 200px
, caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans
, abbreviation = OFM
, predecessor =
, ...
monastery turned into a school. In 1539, a ''Schola Dantiscana'' program was started by
Andreas Aurifaber. In 1558
Johann Hoppe founded a secular gymnasium that would become the Academic Gymnasium Danzig.
Achatius Curaeus (1531–1594), from the
University of Wittenberg
Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (german: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg), also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg and the largest and oldest university in ...
, was made the first rector, but due to the theological conflicts between
Gnesio-Lutherans
Gnesio-Lutherans (from Greek γνήσιος nesios genuine, authentic) is a modern name for a theological party in the Lutheran churches, in opposition to the Philippists after the death of Martin Luther and before the Formula of Concord. In t ...
and
Philippists
The Philippists formed a party in early Lutheranism. Their opponents were called Gnesio-Lutherans.
Before Luther's death
''Philippists'' was the designation usually applied in the latter half of the sixteenth century to the followers of Phili ...
, he soon left.
In 1580, the school received the title Academic Gymnasium. Along with similar schools in
Elbląg and
Toruń
)''
, image_skyline =
, image_caption =
, image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg
, image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg
, nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town
, pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...
, the gymnasium transformed the province of Royal Prussia into a center of classical studies in the 16th century. The university ambitions of the Gymnasium can be proved by the fact that in 1580-1611 the following chairs were created: theology, philosophy, law and history, rhetoric, mathematics, medicine with anatomy, Greek, Hebrew and oriental languages. In 1589 a Polish language course was created.
In 1817, after the
Partitions of Poland, when Gdańsk became part of the
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...
, the municipal gymnasium was founded and named ''Städtisches Gymnasium Danzig'' (City High School of Danzig), in contrast to the earlier (royal) ''Königliches Gymnasium''. The Academic Gymnasium Danzig was in operation until March 1945, when Danzig fell to the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...
. Subsequently, the city as
Gdańsk, became again part of Poland.
Notable people
Notable lecturers of the Academic Gymnasium include
Bartholomäus Keckermann,
Peter Crüger
Peter Crüger or Peter Krüger (20 October 1580 – 6 June 1639) was a mathematician, astronomer, polymath, and teacher of Johannes Hevelius.
Life
Crüger was born in Königsberg, Duchy of Prussia, a fief of the Kingdom of Poland.
In scientifi ...
,
Krzysztof Celestyn Mrongovius, ,
Abraham Calovius
Abraham Calovius (also Abraham Calov or Abraham Kalau; 16 April 161225 February 1686) was a Lutheran theologian, and was one of the champions of Lutheran orthodoxy in the 17th century.
Biography
He was born in Mohrungen (Morąg), Ducal Prussia ...
,
Michael Christoph Hanow (Hanovius),
Gottfried Lengnich, , , . Among its students and alumni were
Johannes Hevelius
Johannes Hevelius
Some sources refer to Hevelius as Polish:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Some sources refer to Hevelius as German:
*
*
*
*
*of the Royal Society
* (in German also known as ''Hevel''; pl, Jan Heweliusz; – 28 January 1687) was a councillor ...
,
Andreas Gryphius
Andreas Gryphius (german: Andreas Greif; 2 October 161616 July 1664) was a German poet and playwright. With his eloquent sonnets, which contains "The Suffering, Frailty of Life and the World", he is considered one of the most important Baroque ...
,
Gottfried Lengnich,
Hugo Münsterberg,
Daniel Gralath, ,
Christian Hoffmann von Hoffmannswaldau
Christian Hoffmann von Hoffmannswaldau (baptised 25 December 1616 – 4 April 1679) was a German poet of the Baroque era.
He was born and died in Breslau (Wrocław) in Silesia. During his education in Danzig (Gdańsk) and Leiden, he befrie ...
, , , .
In June 2008, the National Museum in Gdańsk unveiled a memorial table dedicated to Academic Gymnasium to mark the 450th anniversary of its founding.
Rectors
Rectors of Akademic Gymnasium Danzig:
First rector
Humanist
Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry.
The meaning of the term "human ...
Achatius Curaeus, advisor
Johann Hoppe
*1580-1629
Jacob Fabritius
*1602-1609
Bartholomäus Keckermann- co-rector with Fabritius
*1631-1643
Johann Botsack
*1643-1650
Abraham Calov
*1651-1669
Johann Maukisch
*1670-1682
Aegidius Strauch
*1685-1715
Samuel Schelwig
*1717-
Michael Christoph Hanow (Hanovious)
*1717-1730
Johann Georg Abicht
*1732-1752
Albert Menon Verpoorten
*1753-1769
Ernst August Bertling
*1770-1794
Wilhelm Paul Verpoorten
*1799-1809 Daniel Gralath ? relative of
Daniel Gralath
*1810-1811
Friedrich Theodor Rinck
*1812-1813
Nicolaus Gottfried Eckermann
*1814-1817
Christian Gottfried Ewerbeck
References
Literature
*L.Mokrzecki: Studium z dziejów nauczania historii. Rozwój dydaktyki przedmiotu w Gdańskim Gimnazjum Akademickim do schyłku XVII, Gdańsk 1973
* Sven Tode: Bildung und Wissenskultur der Geistlichkeit im Danzig der Frühen Neuzeit, in: Bildung und Konfession, hg. v. H.J. Selderhuis/ M. Wriedt, Siebeck Mohr Tübingen 2006, S. 61 ff.
* Martin Brecht u.a. (Hg.): Geschichte des Pietismus, Bd. I., Göttingen 1993
* Siegfried Wollgast: Philosophie in Deutschland zwischen Reformation und Aufklärung 1550-1650, Akademie-Verlag Berlin 1993
* 425 Jahre Städtisches Gymnasium Danzig. 1558 - 1983. Gedenkschrift für die Ehemaligen und Freunde der Schule, hg. v. Bernhard Schulz, Gernsbach 1983
* Reinhard Golz, Wolfgang Mayrhofer: ''Luther and Melanchthon in the Educational Thought of Central and Eastern Europe'', 1998,
Luther and Melanchthon in the Educational Thought of Central and Eastern Europe
External links
*
Leopold von Wintermi
Building at the Danzig Wintermarkt, 19th century
{{DEFAULTSORT:Danzig, Academic Gymnasium
1558 establishments in Poland
History of Gdańsk
Educational institutions established in the 1550s
Defunct schools in Poland
Educational institutions in Gdańsk