José Torrubia was born in 1698 in

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 ...

, professed his vows as priest and as a

Franciscan 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 ...

in 1714. He was also a naturalist (interested in

Geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

and

palaeontology Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure geo ...

). He volunteered for missionary service in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, arriving there in 1721. He traveled to Canton. His talents were recognized early and he moved rapidly into significant positions, most notably in 1734 when he was picked to represent the Philippine Franciscans in Spain and

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. After almost a decade in Spain, he had become embroiled with the Philippine Franciscans over disputed interpretations of his instructions as their representative. He went to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

with Spanish Franciscans destined for the Philippines, but intuiting that his welcome there would be uncertain but probably hostile, he joined a Mexican group of Franciscans in 1745. The disputes engendered a small mountain of paper as the parties tried to convince the Spanish king,

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

and

the Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the pope was the sovereign or head of sta ...

Benedict XIV Pope Benedict XIV (; ; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758. Pope Benedict X (1058–1059) is now con ...

of the validity of their competing claims and charges. At one point Torrubia was jailed in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, but ultimately Spanish royal officials, ecclesiastical authorities, and even the Franciscans in Spain and Rome absolved him of all fault and dismissed the charges brought by the Philippine Franciscans. He went on to hold important positions in Rome, dying there in 1761 with a significant body of published work to his credit.

Honours

In 1825, botanist Vell. published ''Torrubia'' (a flowering plant in the family

Nyctaginaceae Nyctaginaceae, the four o'clock family, is a family of around 33 genera and 290 species of flowering plants, widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions, with a few representatives in temperate regions. The family has a distinctive fr ...

) but it was later classed as a synonym of '' Guapira''. Then in 1885

mycologist Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their taxonomy, genetics, biochemical properties, and use by humans. Fungi can be a source of tinder, food, traditional medicine, as well as entheogens, poison, and ...

Jean Louis Émile Boudier Jean Louis Émile Boudier (6 January 1828, in Garnay – 4 February 1920, in Blois) was a pharmacist who lived in Montmorency, France. He published a fair amount about the Discomycetes and other areas of mycology. He often used Émile as h ...

published '' Torrubiella'', which is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...

in the family Cordycipitaceae and also named after Jose.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Torrubia, José 1698 births 1761 deaths Spanish Franciscans Franciscan missionaries