Quinones, Balthasar de

Born in Noblehas , date of birth unknown. He became known as a preacher at the court of King Charles III of Spain ^[1] .

In 1777, at the next general chapter of the Order of Preachers, he was elected the 65th general master . He had to lead the order in an extremely difficult time for the Dominicans and other Catholic orders. In many European countries, under the influence of the ideas of the Enlightenment, rulers held secular views and in every way limited the influence of the Catholic Church on society and persecuted monks ^[2] . At the chapter that elected Kignones as head of the order, any discussions that might have angered secular authorities were banned ^[2] .

It soon became clear that the choice of Quinones as head was unsuccessful. The General Master silently perceived the difficult situation in the order, which was subjected to secular attacks ^[2] , and soon the situation for the Dominicans became even more complicated after the outbreak of the French Revolution , whose leaders were sharply anticlerical. Dominicans, along with other monks, were repressed, in 1789-1793 all monasteries were destroyed, most of the monks were arrested, killed or expelled ^[2] .

In total, from 1789 to 1850, as a result of anti-clerical measures of European governments, all Dominican monasteries in France, Belgium and Germany were destroyed; partially in Italy, Russia and other European countries ^[2] .

Due to the apathy of the General Master and the inability to manage the order in such a critical situation, Pope Pius VI dismissed Quinones from his duties in early 1798. He died six months after removal, June 20, 1798 in Florence ^[1]

• Benedict M. Ashley, OP "The Dominicans"
• Maestros de la orden