Christoph Wegleiter (Poet)

Born: April 22, 1659 - Nürnberg, Bavaria, Germany
Died: August 13, 1706 - Altdorf, Germany

Christoph Wegleiter was a well-known Nürnberg theologian and hobby astronomer. His fater, Leonhard Wegleiter, was Buchhalter accountant and his mother Anna Sabina Cless.

Christoph Wegleiter visited the Egidiengymnasium and heard later lectures in Auditorium. In addition, starting from 1676 he studied theology in Altdorf, probably heard mathematics lectures with Johann Christoph Sturm (1635-1703). In 1679 he became member of the Pegnesischen Blumenordens. In 1680 he became Magister; in the same year he was also crowned as poet. Subsequently, he studied in Frankfurt/Main and in Strasbourg, from where he also travelled to Basel. In 1682 he moved from Nürnberg to Jena. From here he turned to Wittenberg, Helmstedt, Magdeburg over Leipzig, and Halle, then back again to Nürnberg and Altdorf. In 1685 he began another journey, which led him across Frankfurt/Main and Cologne to the Netherlands. From here he came in 1686 to England. In 1688 he came back home, where he received a chair for theology in Nürnberg. Here he also taught some students in English. On September 2, 1689 he married Sabina Elizabeth Taglauer, daughter of Ferdinand Taglauer. He had at least three daughters, two survived. In 1697 he became a doctor of theology. Only 47 years old, he died in August 1706 in Altdorf.

Work

In 1679 Christoph Wegleiter published a speech, in which he sat down apart with memorable inventions of the current century. Therein he described in detail one of Georg Christoph Eimmart (1638-1705) invented sextant. From therefore it is assumed that he co-operated at least occasionally on his observatory. In the same year Wegleiter and Sturm disputed over the influence of the stars. This concerns a disputation directed against the Astrology, whose author is Sturm to defend Wegleiter had these theses in the context of a public disputation.

Selected works

Oratio de palmariis seculi nostri inventis. Altdorf: Heinrich Mayer 9.6.1679
Siderum Influentia. Altdorf: Heinrich Meyer 27.9.1679. Disputation unter Johann Christoph Sturm

Source: Astronomie in Nürnberg Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (June 2006)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (June 2006)

Texts of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

BWV 443, BWV 471

Chorale Texts used in Bach’s Vocal Works

Title

Year

EKG

Zahn

Beschränkt, ihr Weisen dieser Welt

1690

Jesu, deine Liebeswunden

?

1302

Links to other Sites

Astronomie in Nürnberg: Christoph Wegleiter [German]

Bibliography

Hans Gaab: Zur Geschichte der Eimmart-Sternwarte. Spezialausgabe des Regiomontanus-boten. Nürnberg: März 2005, S. 22
Matthias Simon: Nürnbergisches Pfarrerbuch. Nürnberg: Verein für Bayerische Kirchengeschichte 1965, S. 247 Eintrag 1509
Georg Andreas Will: Nürnbergisches Gelehrtenlexikon Bd. 4. Nürnberg: Lorenz Schüpfel 1758, S. 187-191