 pedro de arbuÃ©s, c.r.s.a. (c. 1441 â september 17, 1485), was an official of the spanish inquisition who was assassinated in the la seo cathedral of zaragoza in 1485 in an alleged plot by conversos and jews. he was very quickly venerated as a saint by popular acclaim, and his death greatly assisted the inquisition and its inquisitor general, tomÃ¡s de torquemada, in their campaign against heresy and crypto-judaism. arbuÃ©s was canonized in 1867. ==life== born in the region of zaragoza, his father, a nobleman, was antonio de arbuÃ©s, and his mother's name was sancia ruiz. he studied philosophy, probably at huesca, but later went to bologna, where in the spanish college of st. clement, part of the university of bologna. he was regarded as a model of learning and piety, and was graduated in theology and law. returning to spain he became a member of the cathedral chapter of canons regular at la seo, where he made his religious profession in 1474. about that time ferdinand and isabella had obtained from pope sixtus iv a papal bull to establish in their kingdom a tribunal for searching out heretics, and especially jews who after having received baptism had relapsed openly or secretly into judaism; these were known as marranos. torquemada, in 1483, was appointed grand inquisitor for castile and appointed arbuÃ©s as inquisitor provincial in the kingdom of aragon (1484). on september 14, 1485, arbuÃ©s was assassinated in the cathedral as he was praying, even though he was wearing a helmet and chain mail. this was the consequence of the bad reception that the inquisition had received in aragÃ³n, where it was seen as an attack by the crown on the fueros, the local laws and privileges. in particular, it appears that some of the most powerful families among the converted jews - such as the sÃ¡nchez, montesa, paternoy, and santÃ¡ngel families - considered themselves favorite victims of the inquisition, and were implicated in the assassination. as a consequence, there arose a popular movement against the jews; "nine were finally execut
1440s_births 1485_deaths 15th-century_Christian_saints 15th-century_Roman_Catholic_martyrs 15th-century_Roman_Catholic_priests 15th-century_Spanish_people Aragonese_people Canonical_Augustinian_saints Inquisitors Martyred_Roman_Catholic_priests Spanish_Roman_Catholic_priests Spanish_Roman_Catholic_saints University_of_Bologna_alumni