Eustaquio Ilundáin y Esteban (20 September 1862 – 10 August 1937) was a

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who served as

Archbishop of Seville The Archdiocese of Seville is part of the Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's ol ...

Early life and priesthood

Eustaquio Ilundáin y Esteban was born in

Pamplona Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. He was educated at the

Seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

of Pamplona, and the Seminary of

Ciudad Real Ciudad Real (, ; en, "Royal City") is a municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha, capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It is the 5th most populated municipality in the region. History It was founde ...

. He was ordained in 1886 in Pamplona. He served as a faculty member of the Seminary of Pamplona from 1886 until 1891. From 1901 until 1904 he was the

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of the Seminary of

Segovia Segovia ( , , ) is a city in the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Segovia. Segovia is in the Inner Plateau (''Meseta central''), near the northern slopes of th ...

Episcopate

He was appointed as

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Ourense Ourense (; es, Orense ) is a city and capital of the province of Ourense, located in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, northwestern Spain. It is on the Camino Sanabrés path of the Way of St ...

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...

on 14 November 1904. He served as a Senator of the Spanish Kingdom for the province of

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of St ...

. He was promoted to the

metropolitan see Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a t ...

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

on 16 December 1920. While bishop of Ourense he ordered the dismantling of a baldaquino that had been built over the altar of the monastery church of Santa María la Real de Oseira. He described it as "un armatoste". This ornate baroque wooden canopy, although possibly in a poor state of repair, was much loved by the villagers of Oseira. They were upset and protested but Bishop Ilundáin refused to listen to them or retract his order. He considered that the baldaquino was an ugly monstrosity that spoiled the beauty of the magnificent church and would not be contradicted. The protests continued. Local carpenters refused to comply with the bishop's orders. Determined to be obeyed, in April 1909, a group of carpenters were sent from Ourense accompanied by an armed contingent of some sixteen or more Civil Guards, together with an officer, Lieutenant Salinas. The end result was the horrific massacre of at least seven villagers from among the crowd who had gathered to voice their objections. These included a fourteen-year-old girl, a pregnant woman and two old men of seventy. An unknown number were injured with bullet wounds, many frightened to identify themselves for fear of possible reprisals. Following the event, Bishop Ilundáin conveniently disappeared for several weeks, ostensibly on an episcopal visit to some remote corner of the province, and could not be contacted. It is known that he had discussed the matter with the Civil Governor prior to the incident. Whether he requested the presence of the Civil Guards or whether the Civil Governor gave the order independently is not known. The fact is that he was complicit and that as a direct result of his heavy-handed and arrogant intransigence, innocent lives were brutally and unnecessarily taken.

Cardinalate

He was created and proclaimed Cardinal-Priest of ''

San Lorenzo in Panisperna The church of San Lorenzo in Panisperna is a Roman Catholic church on Via Panisperna, Rome, central Italy. It was previously known as "San Lorenzo in Formoso". It was erected on the site of its dedicatee's martyrdom. It is one of several church ...

'' by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City fro ...

in the consistory of 30 March 1925. He died while still in office in 1937.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ilundain y Esteban, Eustaquio 1862 births 1937 deaths People from Pamplona 20th-century Spanish cardinals 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Spain Roman Catholic archbishops of Seville Bishops of Ourense