Sophia Brahe

Danish horticulturalist

Sophia (or Sophie) Thott Lange (; 24 August 1559 or 22 September 1556 – 1643), known by her maiden name, was a Danish noblewoman and horticulturalist with knowledge of astronomy, chemistry, and medicine. She worked alongside her brother Tycho Brahe in making astronomical observations.

She was born in Knudstrup Castle, Denmark as the youngest of ten children, to Otte Brahe, the rigsråd, or advisor, to the King of Denmark; and Beate Bille Brahe, leader of the royal household for Queen Sophie. Sophia's oldest brother was astronomer Tycho Brahe. Though he was both more than a decade her senior and raised in a separate household, the pair became quite close by the time Sophia was a teenager. The brother and sister were united by their work in science, and by their family's opposition to science as an appropriate activity for members of the aristocracy. Their son was Tage Ottesen Thott til Eriksholm, born in 1580. Upon her husband's death, Sophie Thott managed his property in Eriksholm (today Trolleholm Castle), running the estate to keep it profitable until her son came of age. During this time, she also became a horticulturalist, in addition to her studies in chemistry and medicine. The gardens she created in Eriksholm were said to be exceptional. Similarly, she was devoted to the study of astrology and helped her brother with producing horoscopes. On 21 July 1587, King Frederick II of Denmark signed a document transferring to Sophia Brahe title of Årup farm in what is now Sweden. Sophia continued to be a frequent visitor at Uranienborg where she met Erik Lange, a nobleman who studied alchemy and a friend of Tycho's. In 1590, Sophie took 13 visits to Uranienborg and became engaged to Lange. Since Lange used up most of his fortune with alchemy experiments, their marriage was delayed some years while he avoided his creditors and traveled to Germany to try to find patrons for his work. Tycho Brahe wrote the Latin epic poem "Urania Titani" during the couple's separation, expressed as a letter from his sister Sophia to her fiancé in 1594. a further suggestion of his respect for her scientific endeavours. In 1599, she visited Lange in Hamburg, but they did not marry until 1602 in Eckernförde. They lived in this town for a while in extreme poverty. Sophie wrote a long letter to her sister Margrethe Brahe, describing having to wear stockings with holes in them for her wedding. Lange's wedding clothes had to be returned to the pawn shop after the wedding, because the couple could not afford to keep them. She expressed anger with her family for not accepting her science studies, and for depriving her of money owed to her. By 1608, Erik Lange was living in Prague, and he died there in 1613 (Det Kongelige Bibliotek). Sophia was often ridiculed and avoided due to her personal life and marriage. Many alienated her due to her marriage to Erik Lange which was opposed by all in her family except for her brother Tycho. She spent her last years writing up the genealogy of Danish noble families, publishing the first major version in 1626 (there were later additions). Her work is still considered a major source for early history of Danish nobility (Det Kongelige Bibliotek). She died in Helsingør in the year 1643, and was buried in the Torrlösa old church in the village of Torrlösa, east of the town of Landskrona in what was then Denmark but now is southern Sweden. That church housed a burial chapel for the Thott family that remained for some time even after the church itself was pulled down in the mid 19th century (the new Torrlösa church was built nearby). Currently, a stone setting marks the outlines of the Thott chapel, while the tombstone for Sophie Brahe is still standing on the site.

Tycho wrote that he had trained Sophia in horticulture and chemistry, but he initially discouraged her from studying astronomy. Instead, Sophia learned astronomy on her own, studying books in German, and having Latin books translated with her own money so that she could read them as well. Later in both of their careers, Tycho began to discourage her from continuing her research into astronomy because he believed it to be too complex for the talents of a woman. There, she assisted him with astronomical observations associated with his publication De nova stella, or On the New Star. Specifically, she assisted with a set of observations on 11 November 1572, which led to the discovery of the supernova that is now called SN 1572, as well as observations of the 8 December 1573 lunar eclipse. The discovery of SN 1572 was especially significant in that it added to the growing body of evidence that seemed to refute the geocentric model of the universe. Sophia's assistance was also instrumental in Tycho's work on orbits, which was foundational to the modern methods used to predict the positions of the planets. Tycho's studies of orbits involved the most precise measurements of the planets' movements made prior to the invention of the telescope, and while Tycho created many of the astronomical devices used to conduct the measurements, Sophia was among the assistants who actually made the measurements. Tycho did have other assistants, however, and while Sophia was present for each of these discoveries, the extent to which she contributed personally is unknown. Tycho did commend Sophia for her efforts, though, referring with admiration to Sophia's animus invictus, or "determined mind." After her series of contributions in the 1570s, Sophia achieved more autonomy with regards to her astronomical research than before. Despite the serious doubts Tycho had previously expressed about Sophia's ability to comprehend the nuances of horoscopes, when he was frequently away from Uranienborg between 1588 and 1597, Sophia took on much of Tycho's astrological responsibilities with their clients. As one can see Sophia was interested more in hands on experience and observations rather than experimenting. This really shines true during her marriage. Sophia remarries in 1602 to the alchemist Erik Lange. Lange, like many alchemists was striving to change different metal into gold. Meanwhile, Tycho and Sophie both rejected the idea of creating gold via the science of alchemy. In the pursuit of this goal Lange, with the support of his wife, spent all of the money that the two had saved. They lived in extreme poverty until Erik Lange passed away. This allowed Brahe to move back with her son in Denmark, who likely supported her financially. Now she could continue her works in science and write the genealogy of Danish noble families.

"Urania Titani" was a six hundred line poem written in February 1594 about a fictional love correspondence between Sophia and Erik. The poem was written in 1594 but was published in 1668 by Peder Resen. "Urania Titani" was written in an Ovidian heroid form. In an Ovidian heroid form, the poem reads as a series of letters from a female protagonist to her lover. The form's name, Ovidian heroid, comes from the Roman poet Ovid. The poem "Urania Titani" has been contested on who wrote it: some say it was Sophia, while others believe it was her brother Tycho. Peder Resen, the publisher of "Urania Titani", thought that Sophia was the author due to her role as the narrator. However, Tycho wrote a letter to Thomas Craig on 26 July 1594, in which Tycho stated he was the author. Likewise, the Ovidian heroid form had never been used in Denmark, where Sophie was from. The first poem in that form from Denmark, which we know of, was written in 1775. That would have been approximately 200 years after "Urania Titani" was written. Therefore, the likelihood that Sophia knew of this type of poem is slim compared to her brother. There is no evidence that would prove Tycho's statement to Thomas Craig as incorrect. In the poem, Tycho represents Sophia as Urania, the Muse of astronomy in Greek mythology, and Erik as a Titan, a son of Uranus (mythology). Sophia is depicted as longing for her husband while he was studying alchemy abroad. Lastly, the poem was a large indicator of Tycho publicizing his bond with his sister, establishing himself as a Renaissance man and unashamed of his work with his sister. During this time, genealogy was placed in documents called family books. These books contained many aspects of the family's life such as family members, traditions, and different family branches. In 1626 Sophie had completed a 900 page manuscript on the genealogies of 60 Danish noble families, which is held by Lund University.