Andrés Quintana, O.F.M. (November 27, 1777 – October 12, 1812) was a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

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 countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

and

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

of the

Franciscan Order The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

who labored at Mission Santa Cruz in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

during the early part of the 19th century. Born in Antonossa, in the Province of Álava (Basque County),

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, Andrés Quintana joined the Franciscan Order in 1794 when he was 17 years of age. Nine years later he had completed his formation and achieved the priesthood in the province of

Cantabria Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...

(in northern Spain), as did a great many of the Spanish missionaries. In 1804 he sailed to the New World to join the missionary College of San Fernando de Mexico, a springboard for all missionaries doing work in

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...

. There he received further instruction and preparation for his assignment to Mission Santa Cruz. Sailing from San Blas in 1805, he arrived at

Monterey Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a population of 30,218 in the 2020 census. The city was fou ...

, the capital of Spanish Alta California, and became one of two missionary fathers stationed at Mission Santa Cruz. He was killed at the mission on the evening of October 12, 1812, by Native Americans under his supervision. The following notation appears on his burial record: According to another source, Brother Andrés was murdered because of his plans to use a metal-tipped whip to punish Native American converts. He is considered one of two martyr priests who served in the coastal missions of California. The publication of this oral history given by Lorenzo Asisara in 1878 by scholar and Native American Edward Castillo in 1989 was counted as proof that Spaniards treated Indians with brutality at missions.Edward Castillo (1989), “The Assassination of Padre Andrés Quintana by the Indians of Mission Santa Cruz in 1812: The Narrative of Lorenzo Asisara” in California History 68 Later, the story was immortalized in at least one novel.

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Notes

* * 1777 births Franciscan missionaries in New Spain Spanish Friars Minor Martyred Roman Catholic priests Priests of the Spanish missions in California Spanish Roman Catholic missionaries 1812 deaths 19th-century Roman Catholic martyrs 19th-century Spanish Roman Catholic priests Spanish people murdered abroad People murdered in California {{US-reli-bio-stub