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Life
and Times of Tycho Brahe |
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Tycho
Brahe was a brilliant Danish astronomer and a devout Protestant Christian.
In 1576, King Frederick II of Denmark granted him the island of Hven,
between Denmark and Sweden, where he built an astronomical observatory.

Tycho
Brahe (1546-1601). |
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Unaniborg Castle on the island
of Hven was the greatest scientific research institute in the
world.
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This
was before the invention of the telescope by Hans Lippershey so all
his observations had to be done by eyesight.
Without
the aid of a telescope he took careful measurements of the stars and
planets. His calculations proved that the Ptolemaic and Copernican
models of the universe were absolutely untenable.

Tychonic
planetary system. |
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By
1584, his observations had enabled him to construct a scientific
and comprehensive model of the solar system which placed the earth
at the center of the universe with the sun revolving around the
earth and the planets revolving around the sun.
He called
it the Tychonic planetary system.
That same
year, a self "educated" son of a swineherd named Nicholas
Reimers Ursus visited the observatory and managed to copy some
of his heavenly charts.
This Nicholas
Reimers Ursus was appointed court mathematician to the unholy
Roman emperor Rudolf II in Prague. The trap was now set to lure
Tyco to Prague, murder him, and replace his model with the corrupt
Copernican moving earth system. |
In
1588, the Jesuits moved to shut down his observatory. His patron, King
Frederick II, died at the young age of 54 (poisoned of course) and he
was replaced by a regency.
When
Frederick's son, Jesuit puppet "Christian" IV, became king
in 1596, the Inquisition really came after Tyco Brahe. He left Denmark
for good with his wife and family never to return.
Ursus and Johannes
Kepler destroyed the work of Tycho Brahe
2 men
were used by the Jesuits to destroy the life and work of the great Dane
Tycho Brahe. Their names were Nicholas Reimers Ursus and Johannes Kepler.
Nicholas
Reimers
Ursus
no
photo
available
yet!
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Nicholas Reimers Ursus (1551-1600). Unholy Roman
empire court mathematician from 1591 to 1600).
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Nicholas
Reimers was the son of a swineherd from the present day Holstein
region in northern Germany.
In 1559, the
region was conquered by Denmark and became part of that kingdom
with Danish now spoken as well as German.
The self "educated"
Reimers became an assistant to Eric Lange, a Danish nobleman and
relative of Tycho Brahe.
Reimers visited
Unaniborg and managed to steal the solar model of Tycho.
In 1588, Reimers
added an additional surname Ursus (bear) to his name and wrote
a book based on the Tychonic model. This book got him a job as
an astrologer with the unholy Roman emperor Frederick
II in Prague. He was the "bait" to lure Tycho to Prague.
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The
second of our deadly duo is Johannes Kepler now known as one of the
"fathers" of "science."

Johannes
Kepler (1571-1630).
Unholy Roman empire court mathematician from 1601 to1612).
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This
sinister Jesuit managed to become the assistant of the great scientist
and astronomer Tycho Brahe.
Kepler was
an absolutely unknown figure in the world of astronomy until he
sent a book to Brahe, who was then in exile from his own country.
On the same day as Brahe received Kepler's book, he also received
a horribly libelous book by Ursus claiming that he (Brahe) was
forced to leave Denmark for some horrible crime.
The book by Ursus has a copy of a letter written by JOHANNES KEPLER
praising Ursus as one of the best mathematicians and astronomers
in Europe!!
Tycho
began a correspondence with Kepler and eventually invited him
to Prague. He sees Kepler as useful for one purpose only: Kepler
agrees to help him prosecute Ursus for libel.
Tycho never
trusted Kepler and refused to show him his charts and calculations.
This made Kepler FURIOUS.
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Tycho
Brahe in Prague
Forced
to flee his native land with the Inquisition hot on his heels, Tycho
published his masterpiece entitled: Astronomiae Instaurate Mechanica,
and he mailed copies to all the principal courts in Europe. No door
opened to him except one: the court of the unholy Roman emperor Rudolf
von Habsburg. Rudolf spent several years in Spain with king Philip II
and when he arrived back in Vienna he poisoned his father, Emperor Maximilian
II. His other brothers hated him and that is why he moved his headquarters
to Prague.
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Forced
to flee his homeland, Emperor Rudolf II welcomed Tycho
Brahe to his court.
He was thrilled
to have such a brilliant mathematician and astronomer at his court
and made all kinds of financial promises which never materialized.
Tycho's deadly
enemy, the plagiarist and slanderer Ursus, had been court astrologer
to this superstitious king since 1591.
When Ursus
heard that Tycho was coming to Prague he left town quickly and
died shortly thereafter because dead men tell no tales!!
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Kepler
joined Tycho Brahe in Prague
In
1600, Kepler managed to insinuate himself into the confidence of Tycho
Brahe and was appointed assistant mathematician. He immediately began
to make demands . . . with the good natured and trusting Tycho consenting
to most of them. The one demand that Tycho refused to grant was access
to his observations....This denial filled Kepler with RAGE.
Tycho
attends a banquet . . . and dies 11 days later!!
On
Oct. 13, 1601, Tycho attended a banquet with some friends:
"A
few weeks after the audience with Rudolf, Brahe accompanied Councilor
Ernfried von Minckwitz to a banquet at the mansion of Peter Vok Ursinus
Rozmberk across the square from the entrance to the Hradcany Castle.
While there, the illness that would take his life came on with alarming
rapidity. For the next ten days he would writhe in agony, on the last
night feverishly repeating the refrain, "May I not have appeared
to have lived in vain!" On the morning of the eleventh day, the
most famous astronomer in all Europe drew his last breath" (Heavenly
Intrigue, p. 198). .
On
Oct. 24, 1601, Tycho Brahe finally succumbed to the poison:
"It
was then that Brahe sang hymns and prayed with his family, strongly
enjoined them to "have care of all those in want without distinction,"
commanded them to live piously and honorably and to hope for divine
aid. It was also at this time that, conscious of how low the family
finances had fallen, he made a special point of bequeathing his observational
logbooks and instruments—the most valuable possessions he owned—to
his heirs. "Thereafter between prayers and exhortations, he said
goodbye to us all and to this life so tranquilly that he was not seen
or heard to fail. And so, on the twelfth day from this, which was
October 24, when he had lived 54 years, 9 months, and 29 days, the
illustrious and most noble Lord Tycho Brahe, a singular gift of nature
and an ornament to literature, was taken away."(Heavenly
Intrigue, p. 201).
Kepler
succeeded Tycho as court mathematician!!
Kepler
succeeded Tycho as court mathematician to Emperor Rudolf II. Tycho had
specified in his will that his heirs should get all his observations—over
34 volumes representing almost 40 years of hard work. Kepler managed
to STEAL all of them. With Copernicus and Galileo, Kepler is now known
as one of the "fathers" of "science" thanks to the
work of Tycho Brahe.
Official Chronology
of Tycho Brahe
1529 |
The blessed
Reformation is established in Denmark by reformer John Taussan—
a disciple of Saint Martin Luther.
|
1546 |
Tycho
Brahe is born on Dec. 14, in Helsingborg, Denmark. His family
belongs to the highest order of nobility in the country. Saint
Martin Luther goes home to Heaven. |
1559 |
Tycho enters
the university of Copenhagen. |
1566 |
Tycho attends
the university of Wittenberg but has to leave because of the plague.
He attends the university of Rostock instead. |
1572 |
Tycho marries
Kirsten Jorgensdatter, the daughter of a Lutheran pastor. Kirsten
was a commoner so her children by Tycho were considered commoners
and not entitled to Danish hereditary nobility status. |
1576 |
King Frederick
II of Denmark grants him the island of Hven (heaven!!), between
Denmark and Sweden, where he builds an astronomical observatory
with a paper mill and printing press. Without the aid of a telescope
he takes careful measurements of the stars and planets. His calculations
are proving that the Ptolemaic and Copernican models of
the universe are absolutely untenable. |
1584 |
By
this time, his observations had enabled him to construct a scientific
and comprehensive model of the solar system which places the earth
at the center of the universe with the sun revolving around the
earth and the planets revolving around the sun. He calls it the
Tychonic system. A self "educated" son of a swineherd
named Nicholas Reimers visits the observatory and manages to copy
some of his heavenly charts. |
April
1588 |
His patron,
King Frederick II, dies at the young age of 54 (poisoned of course)
and he is replaced by a regency. |
July
1588 |
Nicholas Reimers
adopts the additional surname Ursus (the bear) and publishes a book
entitled: Foundation of Astronomy in which he claims Brahe's
solar model as his own—with some minor alterations. He mails
copies of his book to all potential sponsors. |
1591 |
Unholy Roman
emperor Rudolf II appoints Ursus court mathematician. Rudolf is
a superstitious Roman Catholic, and the principal task of his court
mathematician is the preparation of horoscopes. |
1596 |
Frederick's
son, Christian IV becomes king of Denmark. The new king refuses
all financial support to the observatory. Tycho is accused of all
kinds of petty offences and he is forced to abandon his island observatory—the
best and most advanced research institute in Europe at that time.
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June
1597 |
Tycho makes
his last observation on the island on March 15. He packs up all
his belongings and moves to Copenhagen. The new king refuses to
help him and his Lutheran pastor on the island is thrown into jail
and threatened with beheading....Tycho sees the handwriting on the
wall and decides to leave his homeland. |
August
1597 |
Nicholas Reimers
Ursus publishes a book entitled Astronomical Hypotheses
in which he makes scabrous, outrageous attacks on Tycho. The book
is so libelous that the printer is not even named. He implies that
Tycho was never legally married and actually committed incest with
his daughters. He implies that Tycho left Denmark because of some
horrible crime. The book has a copy of a letter written by JOHANNES
KEPLER praising Ursus as one of the best mathematicians and astronomers
in Europe!! |
1598 |
Forced to move
from place to place, a friend gives him use of a castle at Wandsburg
on the outskirts of Hamburg. Hoping to find a sponsor at some royal
court he published his masterpiece entitled: Astronomiae Instaurate
Mechanica, and mails copies to all the principal courts of
Europe. No door opens to him except one: the court of the unholy
Roman emperor Rudolf II. |
1598 |
On the very
same day, Tycho receives a copy of the libelous book by Ursus and
a book and letter from an unknown "astronomer" named Johannes
Kepler. Kepler praises Tycho's astronomy and is very anxious to
join him in his work. He tells Tycho that he never intended for
Ursus to publish his letter. |
1599 |
Tycho arrives
in Prague. Ursus— the libelous writer and court astrologer—
leaves town in a hurry. He dies shortly thereafter because dead
men tell no tales....Tycho was about to prosecute him for his plagiarism
and malicious character assassination. Tycho is appointed court
mathematician in his stead. |
1600 |
Kepler join
Tycho in Prague. Tycho finds Kepler useful for one purpose only:
Kepler agrees to write a book exposing the plagiarism of Ursus.
Tycho does not trust Kepler and refuses to show him his charts.
Kepler is furious and begins to make all kinds of demands. |
1601 |
The great astronomer
and mathematician Tycho Brahe is poisoned at a banquet by Johannes
Kepler. 2 days later, Kepler replaces him as court mathematician.
He gains access to all of Tycho's instruments and charts. |
1610 |
Galileo's book
The Starry Messenger arrives in Prague. Kepler lauds Galileo's
book with a book of his own entitled:A Converstaion with the
Starry Messenger. |
1612 |
Unholy Roman
emperor Rudolf II dies. Kepler had predicted a long life for him
in one of his horoscopes!! |
1618 |
Thirty
Years' War begins. This was one of the most devastating wars
in the history of the world. When it was over, Germany lost 1/3
of her population; Spain was finally evicted from Holland, and France
emerged as the dominant power in Europe. The unholy Roman empire
received a deadly blow from which it would never recover!! |
Vital Links
References
Boerst,
William J. Tycho Brahe, Mapping the Heavens. Morgan Reynolds
Publishing, Greensboro, North Carolina, 2003.
Ferguson,
Kitty. Tycho and Kepler. Walker & Co., New York, 2002.
Gow,
Mary, Tycho Brahe Astronomer. Enslow Pub., Berkeley Heights,
NJ. 2002.
Gilder,
Joshua & Gilder, Anne-Lee. Heavenly Intrigue. Johannes Kepler,
Tyco Brahe, and the Murder Behind One of History's Greatest Scientific
Discoveries. Doubleday & Co., New York, 2004.
Holzer,
Hans, The Alchemist, The Secret Magical Life of Rudolf von Habsburg,
Stein & Day Publishers, New York, 1974.
Rosen,
Edward. Three Imperial Mathematicians: Kepler Trapped Between Tycho
Brahe and Ursus. Abaris Books, New York, 1986.
Voelkel,
James E. Johannes Kepler and the New Astronomy. Oxford University
Press, New York, 1999.
Thoren
Victor E. The Lord of Uraniborg : a biography of Tycho Brahe.
Cambridge University Press, New York, 1990
Copyright
© 2007 Niall Kilkenny
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