Christoph Hartknoch
Christoph Hartknoch (* 1644 in Jablonken, Duchy of Prussia, † 1687 in Thorn ) was a Prussian historian and cartographer.
Life
Christoph Hartknoch from Passenheim, was in the village Jablonken, near Ortelsburg - (today Jabłonka, powiat Szczycieński ), born. Hartknoch, son of Stephan Hartknoch from Lyck ( Elk ), moved in 1650 with his family after Passenheim ( Pasym ). There he experienced the brutality and horror of the Tatar attacks (see Mongol invasion ), on the southern East Prussia. His teacher saved his life by pushing him out the window. Many people have been killed and destroyed places, but the hard Knochs managed to escape to Königsberg.
In Konigsberg, he began to learn theology at an evangelical institution. Soon after his parents died and he had to look for work. He was tutor in Kaunas and then rector of the Protestant school in Vilnius. Soon he returned to Königsberg and began there to interest by reading books and documents in history.
In 1679 he wrote a book on Prussian history, first in Latin and then in German language Old and New Prussia, as well as a Prussian Church History ( Church Historia ). The works contain descriptions and illustrations of the Prussian people, their history and culture and also engravings of cities in Prussia, for example, the city of Thorn ( Toruń ), where Hartknoch last lived and taught at the high school. He received Ethnographic material mainly from Matthew Praetorius.
Through his work in the Lithuanian city of Kaunas and Vilnius, he was also interested in their history. He then wrote a first-time detailed history of the Lithuanian - Polish alliance.
The city of Thorn in Prussia at the time was almost entirely Protestant. In 1677 Hartknoch was invited to become director of the Thorn Gymnasium. He accepted and worked there for ten years. Due to the severe living conditions, and the resulting Tatar attacks resulting poverty, hard Knochs gave body to the age of 43. He died in 1687 in Torun and was buried there.
His detailed scientific work contributed much to the knowledge of Prussia, Pomerania, Polotsk, Kurland ( Couronia ) and Poland.
In his book Old and New Prussia he also published an illustration of Nicolaus Copernicus, a native of Thorn. Old and New Prussia, and the Prussian Church Historia wrote Hartknoch towards the end of his life and while he was director at Thorner school. He apologizes in the book that he zeitbedrängt working on the edition of the book, because he could tell from his body that it soon went to the end with him. A year later he died, 43 years old.
Known family members
From the family Hartknoch comes also a well-known bookseller, the beginning of the 19th century Königsberg moved to Dresden. When Hosterwitzer church " Maria am Wasser " can still be seen today his grave stone with the inscription " Hartknoch, the friend of man ."