Biography of Andreas Wolfgang Koffler SJ, China mis- sionary

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Biography of Andreas Wolfgang Koffler SJ, China missionary
Name and Name Modifications:
Chinese: Qu Ande Zhawei Ti Tai
later also: Andreas Xavier
Dates of Birth and Death:
(∗) 1603 or 1612 in Krems, Austria
(†) 12 December 1651 in Guangxi, China
Family Data:
Andreas Wolfgang Koffler was born into a Lutheran family. When his father
became widower, the family moved to Regensburg. Andreas Wolfgang
became a Catholic there and took the name of Andreas Xaver an.
Koffler joined the Society of Jesus in Vienna on 16 October 1627 (Province
of Austria).
He made his four solemn vows in Canton on 24 August 1649 in Canton.
Education:
Koffler’s destination became the China mission because of his knowledge in
Mathematics and Astronomy.
Mission:
Koffler’s departure for China was in 1639, but the ship had to return because
of adverse winds. The next start was on 26 March 1640. He arrived in Goa
in January 1642.
Professional Career:
From the end of 1642 until 1644, he stayed in the Dutch Batavia (today
Jakarta, Indonesia). Koffler became the treasurer for the Portuguese auxiliary
troops for the Ming dynasty.
From 1645, Koffler stayed at the court of the Ming pretender Yongli (reg.

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1647-1663), who had his court in Southern China. In Peking in the North,
Jesuits lived at the court of the new Manchu rulers (Qing-dynasty), especially
Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1592-1666). Koffler made the calendar for
Yongli, to document his rule over time and space. With the help of the
Christian chancellor Achilles Pang Tianshou Koffler succeeded to baptize
the new-born crown prince with the name of Constantin. He also converted
three empresses and several princesses (in March or April 1648). Koffler was
less scientifically than politically active for the Ming. He provided them with
Portuguese auxiliary troops, who should help them to fight the Manchus. But
in vain: despite of the fact that his brethren Micha̷l Piotr Boym (1612-1659)
submitted a letter to pope Innocent X and to other rulers in Europe with
the supplication of the empress dowager Helena, the case of the Southern
Ming was lost. Adversaries of the Jesuits even thought the letter to be a
fraud. When he was fleeing together with the Ming Court, Koffler was killed
by Manchu troops.
Publications Wolfgang Andreas Koffler:
• “Brief aus Batavia, 3. Dezember 1642”, in: Joseph Stöcklein (ed.), Der
Neue Welt-Bott, tom. 1, Theil 1 (Augsburg 1726) # 10.
• Summa del Estado del Imperio de la China y Christianidad dèl, por la
noticias que dàn los Padres de la Compania de Jesus... (1650, 1651),
translation into Flemish: Cort Begrijp van den Staet van het groot
Rijck van China Ende van het Christendom adaer Van het Iaer 1637,
tot 1649, 1651 (with letters written by Koffler, dated 25 November 1648
and 28 December 1648).
• “Litterae Pan Achillei, Eunuchi Sinarum regis, ad S. Pontificem, 1.
Novembris 1650”, in: Athanasius Kircher, China ... illustrata (Amsterdam
1671) p. 100; Adrien Launay, Histoire des Missions de Chine:
Kouang-si (Paris 1903) pp. 10f; Gian Filippo de Marini, Delle Missioni
de’ Padri della Compagnia di Giesv nella Prouincia del Giappone, e
particolarmente die quella di Tumkino (Roma 1663) pp. 547-548.
• “Litterae Pan Achillei, Eunuchi Sinarum Regis, ad R.P. Generalem
Goswinum Nickel S.J., 1 Novembris 1650”, in: Gian Filippo de Marini,
Delle Missioni de’ Padri della Compagnia di Giesv nella Prouincia del
Giappone, e particolarmente die quella di Tumkino (Roma 1663) pp.
542-543.

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• “Litterae Helenae Tamingae, Sinarum reginae, ad S. Pontificem, 4
Novembris 1650”, in: Gian Filippo de Marini, Delle Missioni de’ Padri
della Compagnia di Giesv nella Prouincia del Giappone, e particolarmente
die quella di Tumkino (Roma 1663) pp. 545-546; Athanasius
Kircher, China ... illustrata (Amsterdam 1671) p. 101; Adrien Launay,
Histoire des Missions de Chine: Kouang-si (Paris 1903) p. 10;
Jean-Baptiste Du Halde, Description de la Chine (Paris 1735).
Scientific Honors:
Since 2008, there is an exhibition on Koffler in Krems, Austria, in the Museum
am Stein. It is entitled: “Expansion im neunten Himmel”. made by
Sylvia Eckermann, Gerald Nestler, Peter Szely.
Wolfgang Andreas Koffler Bibliography:
• Joseph Dehergne, Répertoire des Jésuites de Chine de 1552 à 1800 (Paris,
Rome 1973) p. 137.
• Ludwig Koch, Jesuiten-Lexikon: die Gesellschaft Jesu einst und jetzt (Paderborn
1934) 1003f.
• Louis Pfister, Notices biographiques et bibliographiques sur les Jésuites de
l’ancienne Mission de la Chine (Chang-hai 1932-1934) pp. 265-269.
• Robert Streit, Bibliotheca Missionum, vol. V (Freiburg 1929).
• Robert Chabrié, Michel Boym, Jésuite Polonais er la fin des Ming en
Chine (1646-1662) (Paris 1933).
• L. Carrington Goodrich, Chao-ying Fang (eds.), Dictionary of Ming Biography,
2 vols. (New York 1976) cols. 722-724.
• Gerd Kaminski, Von Österreichern und Chinesen (Wien 1980).
• J. Nadasi, “Brief, Rom, 2. Februar 1662” (about Koffler’s death), in:
Joseph Stöcklein (ed.), Der Neue Welt-Bott, tom. 2, Theil 9 (Augsburg
1726) # 219.
• Paul Pelliot, “Michel Boym”, T’oung Pao XXXI (1935) pp. 95-151.
• http://fratha.cont3xt.net/?p=177 (06 May 2009).
• http://syl-eckermann.net/imneuntenhimmel/indexD.html (06 May 2009).
Author(s) of this contribution:
Claudia von Collani

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