The Reception of Books from Braniewo in the 17th-century Uppsala University Library

Abstract

It is well known that Swedish armies took a number of literary spoils of war from Poland in the 17th century, among others, the library of the Jesuit College in Braniewo in 1626. This article discusses how the collections from Braniewo were received and arranged in the first library building of Uppsala University, to which they had been donated by the Swedish King Gustavus II Adolphus. Books with contents related to theology are discussed in particular. As is shown in the article, books from Braniewo by Catholic authors or editors that were of a more neutral nature, such as books on Church history, Bibles and Bible concordances, were generally considered more useful at this Lutheran university than books by Catholic authors containing, for instance, Bible commentaries, sermons and dogmatics.