Editing Antigua Guatemala (section)

==== Royal and pontifical University of San Carlos Borromeo ====
{{Main|University of San Carlos of Guatemala}}
[[File:Antigua university courtyard.JPG|thumb|upright=0.8|[[University of San Carlos of Guatemala|Royal and Pontifical University of San Carlos Borromeo]]. Picture from 1971]]

[[Francisco Marroquín]], first bishop of Guatemala, sent the Spanish King a letter in 1548, asking for a superior education institution for [[Guatemala]], but the letter went unanswered. Towards the end of his life, in 1562, Marroquín left some money in his will to establish a school -which eventually was the "Santo Tomás de Aquino school"- where grammar, arts, philosophy, and theology would be taught. Poor Spanish children would be the beneficiaries of this pious work, as they could not travel to those cities where there were universities already, such as [[México City]] in the [[New Spain]]. Historian John Tate Lanning said regarding this that, "Marroquín's testament is so famous, that many people who have not even laid eyes on it say that there are things in the document that are really not in it. Marroquín never talks about a University, much less establishing one..."{{sfn|Tate Lanning|1977|p=8}} On the other hand, there is indeed a document from Mayor Pedro Crespo Suarez, who left twenty thousand pesos after his death to set up classes in the university that "was being asked of the crown".{{sfn|Hernández de León|1928|p=}}

The [[Jesuits]] opposed a university establishment, given that they did not like the idea of having the other [[regular clergy]] orders -[[Mercedarians]], [[Franciscans]] and [[Order of Preachers]]- taking the initiative in religious and educational issues.{{sfn|Hernández de León|1928|p=}} In August 1655, the [[Church and Convent of Society of Jesus (Antigua Guatemala)|Society of Jesus]] had bought the whole lot from the Díaz del Castillo family and by then, their San Lucas School was well known in the region and it even granted two university degrees.<ref name=Roca-deLeon-2008>{{harvnb|Mozas Roca|de León|2008}}</ref>{{rp|8}} In 1653, the San Lucas School had a staff of only thirteen priests, a very small number compared to the size of the building; the Jesuits, however, made a major impact on the cultural and educational life in the [[Kingdom of Guatemala|Capitanía General of Guatemala]]. The school was the city's most prestigious, and from it graduated most of the elite members of society of the time. Most of its students were secular and went on to get the best positions in the country.<ref name=Roca-deLeon-2008/>{{rp|8}}

After several decades, petitions, and lawsuits, King [[Charles II of Spain|Carlos II]] expedited a royal decree, on January 31, 1676, allowing [[Kingdom of Guatemala|Capitanía General of Guatemala]] to establish its university or "General Study".<ref group=Note>During the Spanish colony, "General Study" was another name for the universities.</ref> After a lengthy and cumbersome organizational process that lasted five years, the university started classes on January 7, 1681, with more than sixty registered students under President Doctor José de Baños y Soto Mayor, Cathedral archdeacon, King of Spain preacher and Doctor from the University of Osuna.{{sfn|Hernández de León|1928|p=}} The university began its activities under the protection of Saint Carlos Borromeo, and its norms and regulations were copied from those of the México University which, in turn, were adapted from those of the [[Universidad de Salamanca]] in Spain.

The first classes given in the university were:
*Canonic law
*Medicine
*Scholastic theology
*Moral theology
*Languages

The Royal University of San Carlos Borromeo became pontifical via the [[papal bull]] of [[Pope Innocent XI]], issued and dated 18 June 1687.{{citation needed|date=May 2019}}