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

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

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

Sieradz Sieradz (,) 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 Voivodeship. Sieradz is a capital of the historical Sieradz Land. Sieradz is one of the olde ...

and

Wielkopolska Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; ), is a Polish Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed by Kalisz, the oldest city in Poland. The bound ...

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

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

Topór. Eustachy attended the Lubrański Academy in

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

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, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...

and his collaborator

Philipp Melanchthon Philip Melanchthon (born Philipp Schwartzerdt; 16 February 1497 – 19 April 1560) was a German Lutheran reformer, collaborator with Martin Luther, the first systematic theologian of the Protestant Reformation, an intellectual leader of the ...

. Subsequently, in 1546, he was invited by Duke Albert of Prussia to come to Królewiec (Königsberg, today

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...

), the capital of

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (, , ) or Ducal Prussia (; ) was a duchy in the region of Prussia established as a result of secularization of the Monastic Prussia, the territory that remained under the control of the State of the Teutonic Order until t ...

which at the time was a fief of

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

. 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 confused ...

, and the ''Large Catechism'' of Johannes Brenz. 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 ...

and the Congregationists of

Greater Poland Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; ), is a Polish Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed by Kalisz, the oldest city in Poland. The bound ...

References

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