Juan de Palafox y Mendoza (26 June 1600 – 1 October 1659) was a Spanish politician, administrator, and Catholic clergyman in 17th century Spain and a viceroy of Mexico.

He was taken in by a family of millers who gave him the name "Juan" and raised him for ten years, after which his father recognized him, and had him educated at Alcalá and Salamanca.

[2] Palafox was ordained in 1629, and became the chaplain and almoner of Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress, the sister of King Philip IV of Spain.

In 1639 based on Philip IV's nomination, Pope Urban VIII appointed him, Bishop of Puebla de los Ángeles and "visitador general" of Mexico.

That same ship brought an Irishman, William Lamport, known in New Spain as Don Guillén de Lombardo y Guzmán, who played a role in political turmoil during the 1640s.

[3] He was embroiled in a major controversy with the Jesuits over ecclesiastical jurisdiction[3] that eventually cost him his post as Bishop of Puebla de los Ángeles.

He then targeted the Jesuits as another entity that did not respect ecclesiastical jurisdiction by paying tithes, essentially a 10% tax on agricultural production, to the Church hierarchy.

Jesuits claimed that the income from their haciendas went exclusively toward support of their educational institutions (colegios) and their missionary work on the colonial frontiers.

The tithe transferred wealth from the countryside's landed estates to cities and towns, supporting the cathedral chapter, parish priests, and charitable institutions.

The move was calculated to show the crown that the situation in New Spain was grave, that the viceroy and the Jesuits were challenging the rightful place of episcopal authority.

As visitador general, Bishop Palafox had powers to inspect practices in the viceroyalty, but the viceroy himself was protected from the inspector-general's inquiries, thus undermining his ability to pursue effective reform.

Palafox wrote that the viceroy as president of the Audiencia should prudently treat the judges (oidores) with the greatest respect, but also "preserve the authority and superiority of the head" i.e., the president/viceroy.

Palafox also raised twelve companies of militia to protect the colony against the spread of revolution from Portugal and Catalonia, which was in revolt against the Spanish monarchy.

He was succeeded as viceroy by García Sarmiento de Sotomayor, 2nd Count of Salvatierra on 23 November 1642, but continued to hold the post of visitador.

In 1624 the viceroy the marquis of Gelves had ordered the expulsion of the archbishop from the viceroyalty, in clear terms the civil authority challenging the ecclesiastical.

[18][19] The conflict between Salvatierra and Palafox, who was then acting as visitador, flared over what might seem a trivial matter, whether or not the viceroy could sit on a cushion when seated with the Audiencia.

An English translation, whose full title was The History of the Conquest of China by the Tartars together with an Account of Several Remarkable things, Concerning the Religion, Manners, and Customs of Both Nation's, but especially the Latter, appeared in London in 1676.

Palafox's work, based on hearsay, was generally less informed than De bello tartarico, an eyewitness account by the Chinese-speaking Jesuit Martino Martini.

However, though the process passed through the preliminary stages, securing for Palafox the title of Servant of God, the cause was in effect blocked under Pope Pius VI through the intervention of the Jesuits.

The cause thus was suspended in 1777 and remained so until 2003, when it was restored under Pope John Paul II; the question of the heroic virtue was returned to the consideration of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

On 17 January 2009, Pope Benedict XVI approved the decree of the said Congregation recognizing Palafox's heroic virtue, thus granting him the title of Venerable.

As the long process for holy recognition of Palafox by the Vatican, stretching from the late seventeenth century to the early twenty-first, it is clear that there were authorities opposed to his cause.