The Constellation
Scutum |
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Mythology and History |
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The Shield. |
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Scutum was invented by the Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius,
who put the consellation in his catalogue of 1690. The proper name
is Scutum Sobieskii, Sobieski's Shield. |
Jan Sobieski (1629-1696) was the eldest
son of the castellan of Crakow, Jakob Sobieski. He was a brilliant
military leader and by 1665 had become the field commander of the Polish
army.
The main threat to Poland at this
time (indeed to all of central Europe) came from the Turks. While
Sobieski attempted to repulse the Turks, the Polish king's envoys ceded
all the Ukraine to Turkey. Meanwhile Sobieski won victory after victory.
In November of 1673 the king died. Sobieski left the front lines
and presented himself as a candidate for the throne back in Warsaw (the
kingship was an elected position). In May of 1674, he became King
John III.
Sobieski returned to his former job
as army commander, and after nearly a ten year struggle, he was able to
sign the Treaty of Warsaw with Leopold I. Following this treaty,
Sobieski further safeguarded Europe from the Turks. Personally leading
the Polish cavalry, on September 12, 1683, he broke the Turkish siege on
Vienna, and liberated Hungary in the bargain.
Seven years later, Hevelius commemorated
these events with the inclusion of Scutum Sobieskii in the
heavens.
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