Nicolaus Copernicus Monument, Toruń Nicolaus Copernicus Monument, Toruń The Nicolaus Copernicus Monument in the home town of astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) was erected in 1853 by a "monument committee" of the city's residents. King Frederick the Great of Prussia (1712–1786) intended to erect a monument at Copernicus' grave in Frauenburg (Frombork), but the grave could not be located. Astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) lived in Thorn (Toruń), then in the Kingdom of Poland, for many years. In the late 18th century, Poland was partitioned and the city of Thorn passed to Prussia. From 1807 to 1813, the city was part of the Duchy of Warsaw,
Italian Renaissance Renaissance peaked in the mid-16th century as domestic disputes and foreign invasions plunged the region into the turmoil of the Italian Wars (1494-1559). However, the ideas and ideals of the Italian Renaissance endured and spread into the rest of Europe, setting off the Northern Renaissance. Italian explorers from the maritime republics served under the auspices of European monarchs, ushering the Age of discovery. The most famous among them are Christopher Columbus who served for Spain, Giovanni da Verrazzano for France, Amerigo Vespucci for Portugal, and John Cabot for England. Italian universities attracted polymaths and scholars such as Copernicus, Vesalius, Galileo