Theodoric of Freiberg

Theodoric of Freiberg (c. 1250 – c. 1310, also known as Thierry de Fribourg, Thierry of Freburg, Dietrich of Freiberg, Theodoricus Teutonicus de Vrîberg, or simply Meister Dietrich) was a German member of the Dominican order and a theologian and physicist. He was named provincial of the Dominican Order in 1293, Albert the Great's old post.

Dietrich became a Dominican friar very early on in his life, and he studied and taught at the local convent in Freiberg around the year 1271 (Teske 2003). He lived around the time of Albert the Great (1193 to 1280) (Fuhrer 1992) and was greatly inspired by him. Though other philosophers at this time followed in Albert’s footsteps as well, Dietrich “showed the most marked tendency to Albert’s universality of interests” (Fuhrer 1992). From the dates of Albert’s life, we can assume that Dietrich was still young when Albert’s career was almost at its end, and no assumption can be made to whether or not Dietrich ever met or studied under Albert. In medieval documents he is assigned the title of “magister”, which tells us he had a great deal of university training at an advanced level (Fuhrer 1992).

After teaching in Freiberg for some time, he journeyed to Paris to study there between the years of 1272 to 1274 (Gillispie 2008), although we do not know whom he may have studied with. In a book titled “Treatise on the Intellect and the Intelligible” translated by M.L. Fuhrer, Fuhrer writes that in the second part of a treatise Dietrich talks about a “solemn master” in Paris. Fuhrer goes on to say that Henry of Ghent was known as “doctor solemnis” by his students, but ultimately states that there can be no certainty that they actually met or knew each other.

Dietrich then returned home to Germany for a while before coming back to Paris. Here he began his lectures on Sentences in 1281 (Pasnau 2010). Exactly how long Dietrich remained in Paris in not clear, but it is agreed that he was made the prior of the Dominican convent in Wurzburg around 1293 (Fuhrer 1992). Further sources indicate that he was appointed provincial of Teutonia in 1293 as well (SOMERSET, FIONA 1998). Dietrich was then “promoted”, to the Provincial Superior for the province of Germany, the position previously held by Albert the Great (Pasnau 2010, Fuhrer 1992). Around the years of 1296 and 1297 he was named “master of theology’ in Paris, where he taught up to around 1300 (Teske 2008). Dietrich was also present for the general chapter of the Dominican order at Toulouse and his name appears in the general chapter of the order in Piacenza. The last position Dietrich was appointed to was Vicar provincial of Germany in 1310 (Gillispie 2008). Dietrich’s name does not appear in any kind of document after this time.

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