Juan Solano, O.P. (c. 1505 – 1580), was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

Dominican missionary and the second

Catholic bishop In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the Chu ...

of the Diocese of Cuzco, Peru (1544–1562). ''(in Latin)''

Biography

Solano was born in about 1504 in

Archidona Archidona is a town and municipality in the province of Málaga, part of the autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. It is the center of the comarca of Nororiental de Málaga and the head of the judicial district that bears its name ...

, a town in the

Province of Málaga The province of Málaga ( es, Provincia de Málaga ) is located in Andalusia, Spain. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the south and by the provinces of Cádiz to the west, Seville to the northwest, Córdoba to the north, and Granada to ...

. He studied at the Colegio de San Esteban of the

University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca ( es, Universidad de Salamanca) is a Spanish higher education institution, located in the city of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. It is th ...

. It was there that he decided to enter the Dominican Order. He began his

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

in the last months of 1524, and made his final profession on 24 December 1525. Solano then served in various positions before becoming

prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be l ...

of the Monastery of Santo Domingo in Peñafiel. In September 1543, Solano was nominated as the second

Bishop of Cuzco The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cusco ( la, Cuschen(sis)) is a Latin Metropolitan archdiocese with see in the city and old Inca imperial capital of Cusco, in Peru.Emperor Charles V Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) ...

. Without waiting for papal confirmation and still not consecrated to the episcopacy, Solano took the opportunity to embark to Peru with the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

Blasco Núñez Vela Blasco Núñez Vela (c. 1490 – January 18, 1546) was the first Spanish viceroy of South America ("Viceroyalty of Peru"). Serving from May 15, 1544 to January 18, 1546, he was charged by Charles V with the enforcement of the controversial ...

. They left

Sanlúcar de Barrameda Sanlúcar de Barrameda (), or simply Sanlúcar, is a city in the northwest of Cádiz province, part of the autonomous community of Andalucía in southern Spain. Sanlúcar is located on the left bank at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River oppos ...

on November 3, 1543 and arrived at Nombre de Dios in modern Panama on January 10 of the following year. On January 24, 1544, Solano set sail from Panama, landing at

Tumbes, Peru Tumbes is a city in northwestern Peru, on the banks of the Tumbes River. It is the capital of the Tumbes Region, as well as of Tumbes Province and Tumbes District. Located near the border with Ecuador, Tumbes has 111,595 inhabitants as of 2015. I ...

, on March 4 and continuing the journey by land to

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

. Due to the rebellion of

Gonzalo Pizarro Gonzalo Pizarro y Alonso (; 1510 – April 10, 1548) was a Spanish conquistador and younger paternal half-brother of Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of the Inca Empire. Bastard son of Captain Gonzalo Pizarro y Rodríguez de Aguilar (senior) (14 ...

, Solano was unable to enter Cusco and take possession of his

see See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...

. Instead, he joined the royal army. He was first able to enter Cusco on 3 November 1545, and was finally consecrated as bishop on October 24, 1546 by his fellow Dominican friar,

Jerónimo de Loayza Jerónimo de Loayza y González, O.P. (1498 – October 25, 1575), was a Spanish Dominican friar and missionary, who was selected as the first Archbishop of Lima. ''(in Latin)'' He established the first hospital, initiated construction of ...

, the newly elevated

Archbishop of Lima The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lima ( la, Archidioecesis Limana) is part of the Roman Catholic Church in Peru which enjoys full communion with the Holy See. The Archdiocese was founded as the Diocese of Lima on 14 May 1541. The diocese was r ...

. He was, however, forced out of the city after the

Battle of Huarina After sending away royal appointed governor of the Viceroyalty of Peru, Blasco Núñez Vela and later defeating and killing him in the battle of Añaquito, Gonzalo Pizarro assembled an army of 1,200 men to press claims for the rule over Peru, onc ...

in 1547. Because of his loyalty to the king, Solano roused the ire of the rebel

Francisco de Carvajal Francisco de Carvajal (1464 – 10 April 1548) was a Spanish military officer, conquistador, and explorer remembered as ''"the demon of the Andes"'' due to his brutality and uncanny military skill in the Peruvian civil wars of the 16th centur ...

, who commented that he, "having sat in his church and prayed for peace among Christians, walked around the camp like a field marshal". After the defeat at Huarina, Solano joined the forces of

Pedro de la Gasca Pedro de la Gasca (June 1485 – 13 November 1567) was a Spanish bishop, diplomat and the second (acting) viceroy of Peru, from 10 April 10 1547 to 27 January 1550. Biography Pedro de la Gasca studied at the University of Salamanca and the Un ...

. He was present at the

Battle of Jaquijahuana The Battle of Jaquijahuana was fought between the forces of Gonzalo Pizarro and Pedro de la Gasca, on April 9, 1548, during the Revolt of the Encomenderos by the Spanish conquistadores. After the successful Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, ...

, which decisively ended the uprising in favor of the royalist

Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...

. As bishop, Solano was an eager defender of the rights of the native Peruvians. He obtained money from the Spanish ''conquistadores'' from the booty they had gained in their victory with the purpose of relieving the suffering of the native population, with which he built the Hospital de San Lázaro. This hospital, finished in 1552, was the first of its kind in Peru. His episcopacy also saw the laying of the foundation of the current Cathedral of Cusco. He was the principal consecrator of

García Díaz Arias García Díaz Arias (died 1562) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as the first Bishop of Quito (1546–1562). ''(in Latin)'' Biography On 8 January 1546, García Díaz Arias was appointed during the papacy of Pope Paul III as Bishop of Qui ...

, the first

Bishop of Quito The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Quito is the Catholic archdiocese in the capital city of Ecuador, Quito. It was established as the Diocese of Quito on 8 January 1545, before being elevated to archdiocese level in 1849 by Pope Pius ...

(1547); and the principal co-consecrator of

Martín de Calatayud Martín de Calatayud (1501 – November 9, 1548) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Santa Marta (1543–1548). ''(in Latin)'' Biography Martín de Calatayud was born in Calatayud, Spain and ordained a priest in the Orden ...

, the third

Bishop of Santa Marta The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Marta ( la, Sanctae Marthae) is a diocese located in the city of Santa Marta in the Ecclesiastical province of Barranquilla in Colombia. History * January 10, 1534: Established as Diocese of Santa Marta from ...

(1547).Catholic Hierarchy: "Bishop Juan Solano, O.P."
retrieved January 21, 2016 Solano returned to Spain in October 1560, seeking support in his efforts to curb the behavior of the conquerors as well as the division of his diocese, which he considered too large for a single bishop. Having failed in Spain, he traveled to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, hoping to interest

Pope Pius IV Pope Pius IV ( it, Pio IV; 31 March 1499 – 9 December 1565), born Giovanni Angelo Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 December 1559 to his death in December 1565. Born in Milan, his family considered ...

in his cause. Once again he failed and resigned as bishop in 1562. Solano retired to the Dominican convent of Santa Maria sopra Minerva in

. In his later days he was instrumental in transforming the convent's ''studium'' on the model of the College of St. Gregory at Valladolid in his native SpainCarlo Longo O.P., La formazione integrale domenicana al servizio della Chiesa e della società, Edizioni Studio Domenicano, 1996, "J. Solano O.P. (1505 ca.-1580) e la fondazione del "collegium S, Thomae de Urbe (1577)": "Si andava allora imponendo come modello di formazione teologica il progetto al quale aveva dato inizio alla fine del secolo precedente il vescovo domenicano spagnolo Alonoso de Burgos (+1499), il quale, a partire dal 1487 ed effettivamente dal 1496, a Valladolid aveva fondato il Collegio di San Gregorio, redigendone statuti che, integrati successivamente, sarebbero divenuti modello di una nuova forma di esperienza formativa." https://books.google.com/books?id=gMW2uqe2MCwC&pg=PA156#v=onepage&q&f=false Accessed 21 April 2011 into the College of St. Thomas to which he left his entire estate. The college would later be transformed into the

Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas A pontifical ( la, pontificale) is a Christian liturgical book containing the Christian liturgy, liturgies that only a bishop may perform. Among the liturgies are those of the ordinal (liturgy), ordinal for the ordination and consecration of dea ...

, commonly called the ''Angelicum''. Solano died in Rome on February 19, 1580.

References

;References ;Sources * *

External links and additional sources

* (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) {{DEFAULTSORT:Solano, Juan 1500s births 1580 deaths People from Archidona University of Salamanca alumni Spanish Dominicans Roman Catholic missionaries in New Spain Dominican missionaries Dominican bishops Spanish Roman Catholic bishops in South America 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Peru Roman Catholic bishops of Cusco Burials at Santa Maria sopra Minerva