Born 1193 AD. Died 1280. Born of a noble family in the town of Larvigen
(Lawingen), in the Duchy of Beuburg on the
Danube. For the first 30 years of
his life, by all accounts he appeared remarkably dull-witted. He entered a
Dominican monastery but made little progress with his studies. However, in
middle age his intellect seemed to expand remarkably, so much so the other
brothers of the monastery credited divine intervention. In the year 1244,
Thomas Aquinas put himself under Magnus' instruction.
Albertus was at that
point regarded by his contemporaries as a major
alchemist and
theologian.
Although he claimed inspiration from
the Virgin Mary, and had an excellent
pupil and reputation through Thomas Aquinas, many actually suspected him of
communication with Satan. It should be kept in mind however, at that time,
"every great man who attempted to study the secrets of nature was though of
as a
magician." He did claim magical powers, including the ability to
control the weather, which he used to sway local magistrates to endow him
the land he required to establish a monastery of his own in
Cologne. He did
this apparently (according to Lenglet's
Historique de la Philosophie
Hermétique and Godwin's
Lives of the Necromancers) by hosting a feast for
the local authorities outside in the middle of winter. When the time came
to be seated, even as the gentry shivered, the piles of snow melted, the sun
emerged and the birds sang in the trees. And when the feast ended, the snow
and cold wind returned.
In the end, however, Albertus Magnus has been
viewed as one of the adepts who claimed to have discovered the
philosopher's
stone and who conducted tests on gold produced through
alchemical
process. He is also featured in Naudé's classic
Apologie des Grands
Hommes accusés de Magie, ch. xviii.
Sources :
- "The Alchymists", from Mackay's
Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds (London : 1852),
p93-221.
- Albertus, Magnus, Saint, 1193?-1280. Scriptum primum diui Alberti Magni ordinis
predicatorum Ratispone sis episcopi super primum Sententiarum. (Basle, Switzerland :
Impressum Basilee mgrm Iacobu de Pfortzen, anno domini 1506)