Eustachy Trepka (born around 1510, died October 17, 1558) was a Polish

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 ...

theologian, pastor, and translator. Trepka's family had its origins near

Sieradz Sieradz ( la, Siradia, yi, שעראַדז, שערעדז, שעריץ, german: 1941-45 Schieratz) is a city on the Warta river in central Poland with 40,891 inhabitants (2021). It is the seat of the Sieradz County, situated in the Łódź Voivode ...

and

Wielkopolska Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; german: Großpolen, sv, Storpolen, la, Polonia Maior), is a historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed by Kalisz, the oldest city ...

. According to some sources his family was nicknamed ''Nękanda'' with a

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

Topór. Eustachy attended the

Lubrański Academy The Lubrański Academy ( Polish: ''Akademia Lubrańskiego''; Latin: ''Collegium Lubranscianum'') was a university college that was established in 1518 in Poznań by Bishop Jan Lubrański. It was the first school with university aspirations in Pozna ...

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...

where he was mostly likely a student of the Lutheran theologian Christoph Hegendorff. He was also probably a tutor to the Górka family, who were his protectors. In the 1540s, together with his sponsor Andrzej Górka, Trepka traveled to Wittemberg and met

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

and his collaborator Philipp Melanchthon. Subsequently, in 1546, he was invited by Duke Albert of Prussia to come to Królewiec (Königsberg, today

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...

), the capital of

Duchy of 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 establish ...

which at the time was a fief of

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...

. There, Trepka was tasked by the Duke with carrying out translations of religious work from Latin into Polish, and he was employed in the print shop of Hans Daubmann. He also published with Daubmann's competitor, Aleksander Augezdecky. Works translated by Trepka include ''Mleko duchowne dla karmienia i wychowywania chrześcijańskich dziatek'', 1556 ("Spiritual milk for nourishment and upbringing of Christian children"), by the Spanish theologian

Juan de Valdés Juan de Valdés (c.1490 – August 1541) was a Spanish religious writer and Catholic reformer. He was the younger of twin sons of Fernando de Valdés, hereditary ''regidor'' of Cuenca in Castile, where Valdés was born. He has been confuse ...

, and the ''Large Catechism'' of

Johannes Brenz Johann (Johannes) Brenz (24 June 1499 – 11 September 1570) was a German Lutheran theologian and the Protestant Reformer of the Duchy of Württemberg. Early advocacy of the Reformation Brenz was born in the then Imperial City of Weil der S ...

. Trepka served as the Duke's adviser in regard to Polish affairs and in house translator. His son, Jerzy Trepka, was also employed by the Duke. Eustachy Trepka was an ideological opponent of the Polish Protestant evangelical reformer

Jan Łaski Jan Łaski or Johannes à Lasco (1499 – 8 January 1560) was a Polish Calvinist reformer. Owing to his influential work in England (1548–1553) during the English Reformation, he is known to the English-speaking world by the Anglicised form J ...

and the Congregationists of Greater Poland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trepka, Eustachy 1559 deaths 1510 births Protestant Reformers Polish translators