Thomas Gallus

Born sometime in the late twelfth century (his country of origin is disputed), Thomas Gallus departed from Paris, where he lectured in the university, and went to Vercelli in the north of Italy, along with three companions, to establish a new monastery there.

This monastery was set up under the initiative of Cardinal Guala Bicchieri, once a papal legate to England and France.

As abbot, Thomas devoted himself not just to the daily administrative tasks of the monastery, but also to composing various commentaries and expositions of the Bible and the writings of the Pseudo-Dionysius.

Gallus also knew Robert Grosseteste whom he may have met in 1238 when visiting England to secure a benefice associated with the church of St. Andrew's in Chesterton.

[1] Specifically, this refers to the fact that in the contemporary debate on the relation between love and knowledge in mystical consciousness, Gallus held that affectivity tends to exclude (rather than simply subsume) human knowledge in the highest stages of the mystical itinerary.