1592) was a Transylvanian renegade who migrated to Istanbul in 1572 alongside his friend Adam Neuser,[1] who was a Protestant preacher from Heidelberg, to work as spies for the Ottoman Empire.
[2] In a secret meeting with Italian condottiero and general Gabrio Serbelloni before Penckner traveled to Spain, he successfully tricked Serbelloni, a close friend of King Philip II, into thinking that he was an ally of the Spanish by telling him that he wanted to leave the Ottoman Empire for Spain in order to return to Christianity.
[11] Ungnad was very keen to neutralise Penckner, as characterised by his statement: "To liquidate such a harmful and godless man... would be worth all effort.
Ungnad remained unconvinced, referring to Penckner in his letter to Maximilian II by stating: "The Earth should swallow such a wicked man.
"[13]Although Penckner was unsuccessful in his task in Spain, he was known to have been the patron of renegades such as Mahmud, head of the dragomans of the Porte, and Aur (first name unknown), who was captured in Turkish Croatia in 1585.