Nicolaus Copernicus Albert, Alexander Jagiellon, and Sigismund I the Old. He was a friend and key advisor to each ruler, and his influence greatly strengthened the ties between Warmia and Poland proper. Watzenrode came to be considered the most powerful man in Warmia, and his wealth, connections and influence allowed him to secure Copernicus' education and career as a canon at Frombork Cathedral. Copernicus is postulated to have spoken Latin, German, and Polish with equal fluency; he also spoke Greek and Italian, and had some knowledge of Hebrew. The vast majority of Copernicus's extant writings are in Latin, the language of European
Renaissance in Poland celebrated life and the position of country's noble, while Kochanowski wrote about the pleasures and beauty of life in the countryside, surrounded by nature. Literary forms varied, from ode, pastorals and sonnets to elegy, satire and romance. In applied sciences, scholars of the period include Jan Łaski ("John Lasco"), evangelical reformer, Maciej of Miechów ("Maciej Miechowita"), writer and university teacher, Nicolaus Copernicus, astronomer known in Polish as Mikołaj Kopernik, Wawrzyniec Grzymała Goślicki ("Laurentius Grimaldius Gosliscius"), political thinker and philosopher; Marcin Kromer, writer and geographer; Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski, writer and philosopher; Piotr Skarga, Jesuit political reformer; Józef Struś, doctor, scientist, mayor