Was murder of astronomer Tycho Brahe inspiration for Hamlet?

[Flaxbee]

Neither here nor there, just thought some DUers might find this interesting.... :hi:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/denmark/4322720/400-year-old-murder-mystery-of-astronomer-to-be-solved.html

400-year-old murder mystery of astronomer 'to be solved'
A tale of murderous intrigue involving a king, a queen and a brilliant scientist could finally come to a close after 400 years as researchers are preparing to exhume the remains of the celebrated Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe following new leads that he was poisoned by a contract killer in 1601.

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Tycho, known by his first name was the custom of the epoch. He has gained scientific repute for his unparalleled bare-eye observations of the skies before telescope was invented and became the first astronomer to discover a supernova, as well to catalogue over thousand new stars.

The flamboyant aristocrat was also famous for his eccentric lifestyle and appearance: he is said to have lost his nose in a drunken duel as a student and used various prostheses of gold, silver and copper. His favourite pet was a moose that entertained the guests at his castle on the island of Hven off the Danish coast, accompanied by a supposedly clairvoyant dwarf named Jepp. The moose died after falling down the stairs following a dinner party when it was given too much beer to drink.

<snip>

Professor Andersen claims that King Christian IV ordered the murder of Tycho because of rumours that the astronomer had a liaison with his mother, Queen Sophie, and could even have been his father. He even believes that Shakespeare was aware of the rumour and that he might have used it as inspiration for the plot of Hamlet, which was written around the time of Tycho's death.

[Richard Steele]

1. Man, can I empathise. I lose MORE moose that way...nm

[Flaxbee]

6. poor moose.

:(

[Nevernose]

2. Makes more sense if you're an Oxfordian

Since the Earl of Oxford was an amateur astronomer (I wish I could remember my source on this -- I want to say NPR last Spring).

From Wikipedia:
Oxfordians point out that like Hamlet, Oxford's father died suddenly (in 1562) and his mother remarried shortly thereafter. At 15, Oxford was made a royal ward and was placed in the household of Lord Burghley, the Lord High Treasurer, and Queen Elizabeth I's closest and most trusted advisor. Burghley is often regarded as the prototype for the character of chief minister Polonius. Oxfordians note that in the First Quarto the character was not named Polonius, but Corambis (Cor ambis = two hearted) - a swipe, as Charlton Ogburn notes "at Burghley’s motto, Cor unum, via una, or 'one heart, one way.'

Oxfordians also note that Hamlet was engaged to marry Ophelia, daughter to Polonius, while Edward de Vere was engaged to marry Anne Cecil, daughter to Lord Burghley. Like Laertes, who received the famous list of maxims from his father Polonius, Burghley's son Robert Cecil received a similarly famous list from his father - lists that mainstream scholar Sir E.K. Chambers acknowledged were parallel. Polonius also sent the spy Reynaldo to watch his son when Laertes was away at school and for similar reasons, Burghley set a spy on his son, Thomas, when he was away in Paris.

Likewise, Hamlet was a member of the higher nobility, supported an acting company and had a trusted friend named Horatio, while Oxford was a member of the higher nobility, supported acting companies and had a cousin named Horace (or Horatio) Vere. Both Sir Horatio de Vere (as he was also known) and Hamlet’s friend Horatio had the same personality, being known for their ability to remain calm under all conditions.<58>

On 23 July 1567, the seventeen-year old Oxford killed an unarmed under-cook by the name of Thomas Brincknell while practicing fencing with Edward Baynam, a merchant tailor, in the backyard of Cecil's house in the Strand. Oxfordians note that Brincknell's "accidental" death is reminiscent of the accidental murder of the spying Polonius.

In a coincidence often noted by Oxfordians, on Oxford's return across the English Channel, his ship was hijacked by pirates, who stripped him naked, apparently with the intention of murdering him. When they were made aware of Oxford's noble status, he was allowed to go free, albeit without most of his possessions. Hamlet tells a similar story of a pirate abduction when he recounts to Horatio how he freed himself from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

[Flaxbee]

7. interesting - thanks for posting. I haven't really

followed the Shakespeare theories, but the astronomer angle for Brahe caught my eye. So much intrigue!

[Nevernose]

11. Even if you don't buy the Oxford stuff

The similarities are downright amazing. Just google "Earl of Oxford" and you'll have days worth of reading.

[Lethe]

3. i heard that he died because he didn't piss

because he was in the company of royals, and he couldn't just go off and piss.

he held it so long he actually poisoned himself

[Flaxbee]

8. the article mentions that - that his bladder burst

and he died from that. But a lock of his hair apparently was loaded with mercury, so who knows. I'll bet he was murdered, though...

[Robeson]

4. Cool. Thanks for posting...

...I can't wait to see the results.

[Flaxbee]

9. you're welcome!

:hi: Very interesting stuff, I'm going to try to catch the follow up....

[Tuesday Afternoon]

5. My favorite Shakespearean play

thanks for the link.

[Flaxbee]

10. hey, Tuesday Afternoon - you're welcome

will be interesting to see what comes of it.

[struggle4progress]

12. This poor dude gets dug up a lot. He didn't look so great in 1901.

http://www.benecke.com.nyud.net:8090/images/tychobrahe.jpg
The Search for Tycho Brahe's Nose
By Mark Benecke, Forensic Biologist
Annals of Improbable Research Vol. 10 (Issue July/August 2004):6-7
http://wiki.benecke.com/index.php?title=2004-08-AIR:The_Search_for_Tycho_Brahe's_Nose

[Flaxbee]

13. really interesting! The article I posted mentioned his use of a

false nose of silver or gold, but I hadn't read the history of it. What an interesting guy he must have been.

[struggle4progress]

16. He was a great scientist: his observations of Mars, when analyzed fully

by Kepler, completely destroyed the hypothesis that the planets followed circular orbits around the sun

[struggle4progress]

14. How did Tycho Brahe die? (Webpage from the city of Landskrona)

http://www.tychobrahe.com/eng_tychobrahe/myt.html

[struggle4progress]

15. "... mercury had been advocated as a diuretic in the sixteenth century ..."

Kidney Int Suppl. 1997 Jun;59:S118-26.
Related Articles, Links
A history of edema and its management.
Eknoyan G.
Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9185118?dopt=Abstract