Background
His father was Albrecht Giese and his brother, the Hanseatic League merchant Georg Giese. Giese was born in Danzig.
His father was Albrecht Giese and his brother, the Hanseatic League merchant Georg Giese. Giese was born in Danzig.
Another relative was Albrecht Giese. Tiedemann became Bishop of Chełmno (Culm) first canon, later Prince-Bishop of Warmia (Ermeland). Giese was supported by Chancellor Lucas David.
Bishop Giese was a close friend of the later famous astronomer and proponent of heliocentrism Nicolaus Copernicus.
He also worked on updating the Kulm law while a canon at Warmia. On 1 July 1536 he was designated by King of Poland, Sigismund I, who considered him a very valuable diplomat, as Bishop of Chełmno, which was later confirmed by the Pope.
After Mauritius Ferber"s death Giese became prince-bishop. The Giese and the Copernicus family were related.
Copernicus willed his writings to Giese and left his library to the church administration of the prince-bishopric of Warmia.
He carried out active correspondence with Erasmus of Rotterdam and Philipp Melanchthon. Among his known publications is Centum et decem assertiones, quas auctor earum Flosculos appellavit de homine interiore et exteriore, a polemic with the proponent of Luther, Johann Briesmann. Most of his other works have been lost (including a work on Aristotle and one called De Regno Christi).
Bischop Giese died in Lidzbark (Heilsberg) and was laid to rest next to Copernicus at the Frombork (Frauenburg) cathedral.