Johannes Rhagius Aesticampianus (also Johannes Rak von Sommerfeld or Hans Rack) (1457 - 31 May 1520) was a German theologian and

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 "humani ...

Life

Johannes Rak was born in 1457 in Sommerfeld (now Lubsko, Poland). His father, Matthias Rak, died young, and Johannes' grandfather Martin Rak, a mayor of Sommerfeld, saw to his education. Johannes matriculated at the University of Kraków on 19 May 1491, when he studied natural history and

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

. In Kraków, he came under the influence of

Conrad Celtes Conrad Celtes (german: Konrad Celtes; la, Conradus Celtis (Protucius); 1 February 1459 – 4 February 1508) was a German Renaissance humanist scholar and poet of the German Renaissance born in Franconia (nowadays part of Bavaria). He led the ...

. On Celtes' advice, Johannes undertook a study tour in 1499. He travelled to Vienna, Venice, Padua, Ferrara, Rome, and finally to Bologna, where he studied Greek. In Bologna he studied under

Filippo Beroaldo Filippo Beroaldo, sometimes called "the Elder" to distinguish him from his cousin Filippo Beroaldo the Younger, and also known as Philip or Philippus Beroaldus (7 November 1453 – 17 July 1505) was an Italian humanist active as a professor at the ...

and befriended Jakob Questenberg (1460–1527). In 1506, he took a position at the newly founded University of Frankfurt as the Professor of Poetry and Rhetoric, alongside Gregor Schmerlin. He counted

Ulrich von Hutten Ulrich von Hutten (21 April 1488 – 29 August 1523) was a German knight, scholar, poet and satirist, who later became a follower of Martin Luther and a Protestant reformer. By 1519, he was an outspoken critic of the Roman Catholic Church. Hutte ...

as one of his students; they had met in Frankfurt an der Oder, and Hutten followed him to Frankfurt. He earned a doctorate in theology in Rome. In 1512 he lecture on Greek at Paris, and in 1513 he lectured at the University of Cologne. In 1514 he opened a Latin school in

Cottbus Cottbus (; Lower Sorbian: ''Chóśebuz'' ; Polish: Chociebuż) is a university city and the second-largest city in Brandenburg, Germany. Situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree, Cottbus is also a major railway junction with exten ...

and a year later in Saxon Freiburg, which was headed by

Ulrich Rülein von Calw Ulrich Rülein von Calw (1465–1523) was a physician, doctor, mathematician and well-known mining engineer. He was also active as a surveying, surveyor, Urban planner, town planner and astrologer and was the mayor () of the mining town of Freiberg ...

. Aesticampanius continued his university work and lectured on Pliny at the University of Wittenberg in the winter semester of 1517. In winter 1519, Aesticampianus fell ill and afterwards suffered from shortness of breath. He died not long after on May 31 in Wittenberg, and was buried in the

Stadtkirche Wittenberg The Stadt- und Pfarrkirche St. Marien zu Wittenberg (Town and Parish Church of St. Mary's) is the civic church of the German town of Lutherstadt Wittenberg. The reformers Martin Luther and Johannes Bugenhagen preached there and the building a ...

Works

* ''Petri Heliae grammatica c. comment Joh. Sommerfelt Argent''. 1499. * ''Carmina Aesticampiani mit dem Versiculi Theodorici Gresmundi''. Straßburg, 1502. * ''Epigrammata Johannis Aesticampiani'' mit ''Carmen Huttens''. Leipzig, 1507. * ''Grammatica Martiani foelicis Capelle''.

Frankfurt an der Oder Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (), is a city in the German state of Brandenburg. It has around 57,000 inhabitants, is one of the easternmost cities in Germany, the fourth-largest city in Brandenburg, and the largest German ...

, 1507. * '' Tabula Cebetis Philosophi Socratici, cum Jo. Aesticampiani Epistola, Impr.'' Frankfurt an der Oder, 1507. * ''Septem divi Hieronymi epistolae… cum Johanni Aesticampiani carmine'' Leipzig 1508; * ''C. Plinii Secundi Veronensis ad Titum Vespasianum in Libros naturalis historiae Epistola cum praefatione J. A. Rhetoris et poetae Laureati''. Leipzig, 1508. * ''Germania des Tacitus''. Leipzig, 1509. * ''Marciani Capellae Rhetorica, cum Jo. Rhagii verbosa praefatione''. Leipzig, 1509. * ''M. Tullii Ciceronis de Oratrore libri III. Etc. Praefatus est Jo. Rhagius Aesticampianus Theologus, ad Vitum Werlerum Sulzfeldensem, editorem''. Leipzig, 1515. * ''Modus epistolandi Magistri Johannis Aesticampiani''.

Wien en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, 1515. * ''Aurelii Augustini libellus de Vita christiana''. Leipzig, 1518. * ''Augustini libellus de vita Christiana'' Leipzig, 1518. * ''Carmen de Lusatia, quod Melanchthon Basileam, ut excuderetur, miserat, nescio quo fato periit, et nondum repertum est''. n.p., n.d. * ''Hymnus in laudem Barbarae''. n.p., n.d. * ''Commentarius in Grammaticam Marciani Capellae, et Donati figuras''. * ''Libanii graeci declamatoris disertismi, beati Johannis Chrysostomi praeceptoris, Epistolae, cum adjectis Johannis Summerfelt argumentis et emendatione et castigatione clarissimis''.

References

* Geiger, Ludwig. "Aesticampianus, Joh. Rhagius." In ''

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...

'', vol. 1, pp. 133 f. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot, 1875. * Grimm, Heinrich. "Aesticampianus, Johannes Rhagius." In ''

Neue Deutsche Biographie ''Neue Deutsche Biographie'' (''NDB''; literally ''New German Biography'') is a biographical reference work. It is the successor to the ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, Universal German Biography). The 26 volumes published thus far cover ...

'', vol. 1, p. 92 f. Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 1953. * Koch, Wans Theodor. "Die Wittenberger Medizinische Fakultät (1502-1652) - Ein biobibliographischer Überblick." In Stefan Oehmig: ''Medizin und Sozialwesen in Mitteldeutschland zur Reformationszeit'', edited by Stefah Oehmig. Leipzig:

Evangelische Verlagsanstalt The Evangelische Verlagsanstalt (EVA) is a denominational media company founded in Berlin in 1946. Its shareholders are the and the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Saxony. The managing director is Sebastian Knöfel. Book publisher The range inc ...

, 2007. * Lachmann, Erhard. ''Johann Rhagius Aesticampianus – eine erzählende Nachbetrachtung zur Lebensgeschichte des Humanisten.'' 1981. * Walter, Peter. "Rhagius, Johannes." In ''Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon'', vol. 8, pp. 116–19. Herzberg: Bautz, 1994. {{DEFAULTSORT:Aesticampianus, Johannes German Renaissance humanists German Lutheran theologians German Roman Catholic theologians 1457 births 1520 deaths