Alexander Guagnini

Gravure of Alessandro Guagnini out of his "Description..."
Coat of arms of Gwagnin
Title page of the Description of Sarmatian Europe, Spiræ 1581 (in Latin)
European Sarmatia Chronicles, Mikolaj Loba Printshop, Cracow, 1611 (in Polish)
Portrait of Gediminas. The same image was used to illustrate Casimir III of Poland.

Alexander Guagnini (Polish: Alexander Gwagnin,[1] Italian: Alessandro Guagnini dei Rizzoni; 1538 in Verona, Republic of Venice – 1614 in Kraków, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth) was a Venetian-born Polish writer, military officer, chronicler and historian of Italian heritage.[2] He is known as a Crown Rotmistrz of Poland and Commandant of Vitebsk.[3] Guagnini fought for the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Livonian War and the Moldavian Magnate Wars.

Gwagnin is best known for his Latin work Sarmatiae Europeae descriptio, usually translated as Description of Sarmatian Europe, published in Kraków, 1578, which contained descriptions of the countries of Eastern Europe (history, geography, religion, traditions of Poland, Lithuania, Samogitia, Ruthenia, Masovia, Prussia, Pomerania).[4]

Along with his father, Guagnini came to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth during the Livonian War.[a] He spent almost his entire life in Poland and considered it his other Motherland and wrote about that in his Description of Sarmatian Europe.[a] During his years of service Guanini was close to the Great Hetman Lithuanian and at the end of it he was closely connected with the court of Cracow Archbishop.[a] He was referred in front of the Polish Sejm by the first persons of European states.[a]

  1. ^ Annotated footnote to an edition of Compendium Maleficarum by Francesco Maria Guazzo and Montague Summers, [1]
  2. ^ Zdenek, David (2003). Finding the Middle Way: The Utraquists' Liberal Challenge to Rome and Luther. Woodrow Wilson Center Press. p. 432. ISBN 0801873827.
  3. ^ Poe, Marshall (2003). Early Exploration of Russia: The Moscovia of Antonio Possevino, S.J. Taylor & Francis. p. 153. ISBN 041532274X.
  4. ^ Guagnini, Alexander (1578). Sarmatiae Europeae descriptio, quae regnum Poloniae, Lituaniam, Samogitiam, Russiam, Masoviam, Prussiam, Pomeraniam, Livoniam, & Moschoviae, Tartariaeque partem complectitur (in Latin). Kraków: Maciej Wirzbięta.


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