Michael Servetus

Servetus, Michael (Miguel Serveto; 1511–53), Spanish theologian and physician whose religious work Christianismi restitutio (1553) contains the earliest known description of the pulmonary circulation of blood. As a theologian, Servetus antagonized Roman Catholics and Protestants alike by denying the doctrines of the trinity (De trinitatus erroribus, 1531), transub-stantiation, and original sin. He eventually embraced pantheism, believing that a supreme intelligence orders the universe. He was tried for heresy by the Inquisition (1553) and condemned to death, but escaped from prison. Passing through Geneva, Switzerland several months later, Servetus was arrested on the orders of John Calvin, retried, and burned at the stake.

See also: Inquisition.