Located between three lakes, Wąbrzeźno was certainly well known to Copernicus. The town was one of the seats of the Chełmno ordinaries, who, during the astronomer's lifetime, included Jan Dantyszek and Tiedemann Giese, both of whom belonged to his close circle. Copernicus often stayed with the latter, albeit at the bishop's castle in Lubawa. Perhaps he also had the opportunity to visit the bishop's castle in Wąbrzeźno, which was rebuilt during his lifetime. The construction of the residence of the bishops of Chełmno began in the early 14th century. Around 1330, Wąbrzeźno was granted town privileges. During the Teutonic Knights' era, the town was destroyed several times as a result of warfare. In 1466, after the Second Peace of Toruń, Wąbrzeźno, together with the entire Chełmno Land, became part of the Kingdom of Poland. Another important medieval
monument in Wąbrzeźno, which Copernicus certainly knew and may have visited, is the church of St. Simon and St. Jude Thaddeus from the first half of the 14th century. The temple, which is also a Marian sanctuary, houses, among other things, a restored sculpture of the Virgin Mary with Child from around 1500, which was supposed to come here from the castle chapel. It is worth mentioning that one of Nicolaus Copernicus' closest friends, Dietrich von Rehden, a clergyman who was one of the executors of the astronomer's will, came from Radzyń Chełmiński, a town located only 10 km from Wąbrzeźno.
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