The Hi, I'm Peter Adamson and you're listening to the History of Philosophy Podcast, brought to you with the support of the Philosophy Department at Kings College London and the LMU in Munich, online at

W.W. History of Philosophy.net. Today's episode, Men in Black, the German Dominicans.

Nowadays when you meet a man dressed in black, you might guess that you are confronted with

an undertaker, a chimney sweep, or a goth.

But in the 14th century, when it was about 700 years too early to meet a modern day goth and about 700 years too late to meet the original version, the men in black were the

Dominicans, whose distinctive black cloaks distinguished them from members of other orders,

such as the gray-clad Franciscans.

Hence the answer to a question I used to. such as the gray-clad Franciscans.

Hence the answer to a question I used to ponder when I lived in London,

where does the name of Blackfriars Bridge come from?

It is named after a Dominican monastery that stood nearby.

The Franciscans likewise established Greyfriars in London,

which hosted several philosophers who have featured in our history,

Occam, Wodam, and Ch Chatin were all there at the same time. Among Dominicans, the more important

city, philosophically speaking, was Cologne. The Order had established itself there in 1248, and from this center the Dominicans became a dominant force in the intellectual life of Germany.

Like a goth with a weakness for show tunes, the story of the Dominicans in this period combines a

cliche with a surprise twist.

The cliche is the story of medieval philosophy, as you might have thought of it before listening

to this podcast series.

This version of the story has a single dominant figure, Thomas Aquinas.

And he was indeed influential among 14th century Dominicans.

The Order affirmed Aquinas's special authority in 1313 and 10 years later he was canonized.

...