Thomas Aquinas had completed his first regency at the studium generale in 1259, and had left Paris so that others in his order could gain this teaching experience.

He had returned to Naples where he was appointed as general preacher by the provincial chapter of September 29, 1260.

He had been called to Orvieto in September 1261 as conventual lector responsible for the pastoral formation of the friars unable to attend a studium generale.

In Orvieto, Thomas has completed his Summa contra Gentiles, written the Catena aurea, (The Golden Chain) and had produced works for Pope Urban IV such as the liturgy for the newly created feast of Corpus Christi and the Contra errores graecorum (Against the Errors of the Greeks).