Copernicus

In 1473, Copernicus was born in Torun, Royal Prussia, also know as the Kingdom of Poland. (O'Connor and Robertson) His polish name was Mikolaj Kopernik. (Weisstein) When he was ten his father, an influential entrepreneur and well liked citizen of Torun, died. Information about Copernicus' mother is scarce. Little is known about her except that she passed away before Copernicus' father did, and she was the daughter of a wealthy merchant. After him and his three other siblings were orphaned, Copernicus' uncle raised him and his brother and two sisters. (O'Connor and Robertson) Copernicus went on to attend Cracow University where he studied optics and mathematics. Then he studied canon law, or the laws that govern the affairs of the Christian church, in Bologna. After finishing his schooling in Italy, he was appointed to the position of canon in the Frauenburg cathedral thanks to the influence of his uncle. The position that Copernicus held at the cathedral allowed him to associate with a powerful circle of colleagues. (Landry)

Copernicus' attraction to astronomy eventually became his main interest. He conducted most of his investigations in isolation and worked almost completely alone on his discoveries. His celestial observations were made by the naked eye, for it would still be more than a hundred years or so before the telescope would be invented. (Landry) In 1512, Copernicus' early interpretation of the solar system was published by the name of Commentariolus. His publication was based on his heliocentric theory, which places the sun at the center of the universe. He was troubled by what the church's response might be to this hypothesis and that caused him to postpone an earlier publication of his theory. (Weisstein)

In 1530, Copernicus finished De Revolutionibus, his novel regarding the earth's travels. His newest theory was that the earth completed a rotation on its axis once a day, and that it completed a rotation around the sun once a year. Incomplete versions of his prose were distributed among other astronomers who were considering his theories, but Copernicus was in no rush to publish his work. This time, hesitation to publish his book was not out of fear of the church's reaction. More accurately, his reluctance was because he was a perfectionist. Even after spending roughly three decades on his book, he never really felt his dissertation was complete. If it had not been for George Rheticus, a twenty-five year old German Mathematician, Copernicus' work may have never reached the printing press. (Landry)

Rheticus became enamored with Copernicus and sought him out after reading one of his essays. Rheticus paid a visit to Copernicus' home, he anticipated