Albrecht Giese

Albrecht Giese (IV.) (* February 10, 1524 in Danzig ; † August 1, 1580 ibid) was a Danzig councilor and diplomat and came from the famous Giese patrician family . One of his relatives was the Hanseatic merchant Georg Giese , another was Bishop Tiedemann Giese , the personal friend of Nicolaus Copernicus , who worked in the nearby Frauenburg . The Giese merchant family held public offices in the Danzig city council.

Life

Albrecht Giese studied at the universities of Greifswald , Wittenberg and Heidelberg . As was customary in the Hanseatic cities at the time, he traveled through various countries for several years to learn languages ​​and trade. In 1564 he returned to Danzig and became a councilor there. For the next six years he represented his hometown as a delegate at the Hanseatic Days in Lübeck . He took on his most difficult role when he accompanied the mayor of Gdańsk Johann Brandes in his negotiations with the Polish king, which took place in Petrikau . As an independent city in treaty with the Polish king, Gdansk refused to accept the changes to its rights proposed with the unrecognized Lublin Union and insisted on its autonomous rights from the treaties previously concluded with the Polish crown.

After 1560, Sigismund II August of Poland tried to build a Polish navy in Danzig. Gdańsk's government viewed this as a violation of the city's independence, which led to a crisis. The Gdańsk delegation remained steadfast towards the Polish delegation and did not sign any document stating a diminution of Gdańsk rights. The Polish Crown put pressure on the delegation. Danziger delegation was detained for several weeks and with gag occupied. In 1569 they were deported to Krakow and imprisoned for another year. Councilor Giese, Mayor Georg Kleefeld and the other mayor and councilor were imprisoned in different places. The Gdańsk City Council did not allow itself to be blackmailed and after further negotiations the mayors were reinstated after 100,000 guilders were paid for their release .

After that, Stephan Báthory tried to take the city of Danzig, but Danzig did not recognize him. Gdansk was placed under military occupation in 1577, but the city held out, but had to pay another 200,000 guilders. Danzig had successfully preserved its evangelical faith and its autonomy. Johann Hasentöter wrote the song O, Danzig, hold on tight .

Albrecht Giese was appointed royal burgrave of Danzig by the Polish king in 1579 . As such, he oversaw the legal system of the Free City of Danzig. Because of the suspected proximity to the royal family, he came under fire.

Web links

• List of Burgraves of Gdansk ( Memento of November 10, 2007 in the Internet Archive )