Gallus gave the city of St.Gallen its name

In the vicinity oft he abbey a settlement developed, the present-day city of St.Gallen. First written testimony about a slowly growing seculary community surrounding the abbey can be found for the 10th century.

One of these clues states, that after the year 950 the abbey and its closest surroundings were bordered by a solid wall. Abbey and city lived in a prosporous coexistence for centuries.

The increasing economical importance of the growing city of St.Gallen is supported by documents from 1170 and 1228, which testify to the right to hold a market and a marketplace. During the 13th, 14th and 15th century, the city of St.Gallen – which belonged to the core area of the abbey, along with the city of Wil, the ‘Fürstenland’ (parts of today's Canton St.Gallen) and the Appenzell – succeeded in emancipating itself from the abbey's rule.

In 1451, the Princely Abbey, and in 1454 also the town of St.Gallen became ‘Allied Countries’ to the confederation. In 1803, after the fall of the Princely Abbey, the Canton of St.Gallen in today's form with its capital, the city of St.Gallen originated.

History of the city of St.Gallen (Wikipedia)