Nanker

Coat of Arms

John of Luxembourg. Bas-relief in the Cathedral of Wroclaw.

Nanker (born Jan Kołda; also known as Nankier; ca. 1270–1341) was a Polish noble of Oksza coat of arms, bishop of Kraków (1320–1326) and bishop of Wrocław (1326–1341).

Supporter of King Władysław I and archbishop and primate of Poland Jakub Świnka, he initiated the construction of the Wawel Cathedral. In 1337 he excommunicated John of Bohemia.

Biography

Jan Kołda was born in around 1270 in Kamień, a Polish garrison at Rozbark silver mines at the eastern border of the Duchy of Bytom.

In 1304 he was Archdeacon of Sandomierz From 1305-1307 studied, Canon law at the University in Bologna, Italy which was a centre of legal scholarship. In 1318 he returned to Poland and was appointed by the Chancellor of St. Mary's Church, and Dean of the chapter of Kraków. As Bishop of Krakow he set out the diocesan statutes, and initiated the construction of the Gothic Cathedral on the Wawel Hill. In 1337 he excommunicated King John of Luxembourg and became an ardent supporter of Papal policy.

He died on April 8, 1341 in Nysa and was buried in the Cathedral Church of John the Baptist in Wrocław

In 1952, the beatification process for Nankier was resumed and he is well known in Polish popular culture thanks to the movie "Casimir the Great" in which his role was played by Tadeusz Fijewski.