Pedro Ponce de León (bishop)

Statue of Pedro Ponce de León adorning his tomb in Plasencia.

Pedro Ponce de León (1509–1573) was a Spanish bishop.

Biography

Pedro Ponce de León was born in Córdoba, Andalusia in 1509. He was educated at the University of Salamanca and then ordained as a priest.

In 1546, Charles I of Spain appointed Ponce de León to the Supreme Council of the Spanish Inquisition. He became Bishop of Ciudad Rodrigo in 1550. In 1560, he was translated to the See of Plasencia. He attended the Council of Trent. He was appointed Grand Inquisitor of Spain in December 1572, but died before assuming office.

Ponce de León gained a reputation as a patron of ecclesiastical construction and of scholarship. He assembled a large library that came to the attention of Philip II of Spain. Many of these volumes would form the basis of the Biblioteca Laurentina in El Escorial.

Ponce de León died in Jaraicejo in 1573.

References

• This page is based on this page on Spanish Wikipedia.