Wilhelm Gnapheus
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Wilhelm (sometimes William) Gnapheus (1493-1568) was a Dutch-born Protestant religious figure and writer.
Born in The Hague, Gnapheus emigrated to north Germany because of religious persecution, eventually becoming rector of the grammar school in Elbing. He wrote a play in Latin, Acolastus, based upon the story of the Prodigal Son. This was performed by his pupils in 1529, and was translated into German in 1530 by G. Binder of Zurich. He later taught at the university in Königsberg from 1544 until 1547; as a member of the Dutch Reformed Church, he was evicted from his post through the intolerance of local Lutherans. He was later to serve as a tutor at the court of Countess Anna of East Frisia, dying in Norden, in Hanover, in 1568.
