Constantia Zierenberg (1605–1653) was a singer and musician from Danzig (Gdańsk) in the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ...

.Daniel Stone,''A History of East Central Europe'', University of Washington Press, 2001, p. 30,
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/ref> Constantia, the daughter of Anna Kerlin and Johann Zierenberg, who would be mayor from 1630 to 1642, was raised as a

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

. She received an excellent musical education and was also a painter. Constantia was fluent in six languages:

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used b ...

, and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

. She sang for both

Sigismund III Vasa Sigismund III Vasa ( pl, Zygmunt III Waza, lt, Žygimantas Vaza; 20 June 1566 – 30 April 1632 Adoption of the Gregorian calendar, N.S.) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1587 to 1632 and, as Sigismund, King of Sweden and ...

(reigned 1587–1632) and for

Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa; lt, Vladislovas Vaza; sv, Vladislav IV av Polen; rus, Владислав IV Ваза, r=Vladislav IV Vaza; la, Ladislaus IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV of Poland (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of ...

(1632–1648) on the occasion of their visits to Danzig. Constantia went to the imperial city of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

and on a year-long trip to a number of other European cultural cities. Back home, in 1628, Constantia married the Calvinist Sigmund Kerschenstein (born 1603). They had three children, only one of whom survived her when she died in 1653. Numerous poetic and other literary works were dedicated to her, like Johann George Moeresius who wrote a series of poems in her honour. In 1626, the

ese publisher Filippo Lomazzo compiled and published the musical anthology ''Flores praestantissimorum virorum a Philippo Lomatio Bibliopola delibati''. It is preceded by a page-long dedication ''ad nobilissiam Constantiam Czirenbergiam Gedanensiam''

In the dedication, she is praised for her musical talent, especially for her singing, which was recognized and admired by the most accomplished musicians and royalty of her time.

Notes

Sources

Katarzyna Grochowska, ''From Milan to Gdańsk: The Story of A Dedication''
1605 births 1653 deaths Musicians from Gdańsk Polish women singers Calvinist and Reformed writers 17th-century Polish people 17th-century women singers {{poland-singer-stub