The Spanish Inquisition The word “inquisition” means to examine. Inquisitors would “examine” suspected Heretics, people whose ideas do not match those of the Roman Catholic Church, and punish them accordingly. This included torture and burning. The great inquisition movement that took place in Spain, or Hispania as it was called before Spain united. It was called The Spanish Inquisition. It took place for approximately five hundred years, from the late 15th century to mid 19th century. Many ironic elements were involved in the history of the Inquisition. The Spanish Inquisition lasted longer than any other preceding it, and was the most cruel, bloodthirsty, and festive of all. The objective of the inquisition, in its early state, was to convert all Jews into Christians, but later it mutated into an ugly machine who’s new objective was to rid the country of the newly converted Christians. In an age where there was such a close bond between church and state, opposition to the church was intolerable. The Inquisition caused Spain to become intellectually backward, and economically and industrially damaged. The powerful influence of the Inquisition forbade social influences, such as books from other parts of Europe, to enter Spain. Consequently, the universities remained stagnant, unable to produce graduates understanding the world around them. from the lack of information on the other civilizations in the rest of Europe. As a result of this, they came into the 20th century intellectually inferior and bankrupt. With the banished, tortured, and persecuted heretics in mind, it is possible that the Spanish Inquisition is perhaps one of the most cruel acts performed on innocent people in the name of religion. Before the Spanish Inquisition took place, several other inquisition movements appeared, but none quite so barbaric and brutal as the Spaniard’s did. Waves of opposition towards the church swept Europe in the Middle Ages. In the 12th century, it was a modern belief that a peaceful, utopian government could be obtained if all of the population of the society were “pure” and Catholic The Medieval Inquisition started in France and Italy. During this time a group of people called the Albigensies lived in northern Italy and southern France. They had established a religion called Manichaeanism, which was the belief in two gods, one for good and one for evil. Pop... ... middle of paper ... ...r of the bigotry and the persecution that took place. It is only one of many persecuting acts that are piled on top of Jewish history. Many Christians look back onto the Inquisition with shame and humidity. The Spanish Inquisition has inflicted untold amounts of damage onto the Spanish society and everyone else’s. It was one of the worst religious acts of ignorance and bigotry ever orchestrated by a group of people. Bibliography Lea, Henry Charles. [1966] A history of the Inquisition of Spain. AMD Press, New York, NY Llorente, Juan Antonio [1967] A critical history of the Inquisition of Spain, from the period of its establishment by Ferdinand V to the reign of Ferdinand VII, composed from the original documents of the Archives of the Supreme Council of the Inquisition and from those of subordinate tribunals of the Holy Office. J. Lilburne Co. Williamstown, MA. Roth, Cecil. [1964] The Spanish Inquisition. Norton Press, New York, NY. Sabatini, Rafael. [1924] Torquemada and the Spanish inquisition; a history by Rafael Sabatini. Houghton Mifflin Compan, Boston, MA/New York, NY. Turberville, Arthur Stanley. [1968] The Spanish Inquisition. Archon Books, Hamden, Conn.
"Inquisition." In New Catholic Encyclopedia, edited by Berard L. Marthaler, 485-491. Detroit: Thomson Gale, 2003.
The Inquisition founded in 1199 is a tribunal from the Christian faith of the Holy office to expose and punish religious unorthodoxy. ?From that time until its decline in the late 1600?s and the early 1700?s, the number of executions for witchcraft reached an appalling total of 100,000? (Hart, pg. 63). These executions from France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia and other parts of Europe have a record number of considerable injustice, prejudice and cruelty. The Inquisition and the witch trials were all part of a time when the panic from the Holy Church was committing a harsh extreme to the cleansings of anything unorthodox. Educated people like lawyers, doctors, bishops, and scholars all participated in witch hunt. ?Some Historians have shown that the movement as a whole was a revival of the pagan superstition and cult whose origin lay in the ancient world, which cause a rebirth of learning? (Hart, pg. 65). The witch paranoia was an old chapter in history reborn during the 12 century causing the Great Witch Panic. The Christian churc...
2) Spanish Inquisition- the Spanish inquisition term is, described as a group of people going around converting people to Christianity, the ones they couldn't convert they tortured or killed. The Spanish inquisition is important because, In Spain the inquisition was held at the request of the king of Spain who used the Inquisition to confiscate property (primarily from wealthy Jewish) to convert to Christianity who were accused of secretly remaining Jews. The Spanish Inquisition in some cases was brutal. Basically, church leaders decided to terrorize the population by torturing, deporting or burning to death anyone they didn't like on the pretext of "heresy”.
Before Columbus landed in the West Indies in 1492, The Spanish Inquisition made it known to anyone within Spain’s domain of influence that if a person was not of the Catholic religion, they were to be punished severely and sometimes even fatally. This influence would undoubtedly be brought over to the Americas a century later, as the colonization of the New World would begin by then. While it was very essential for the Spanish (as well as the Portuguese) to improve their economy by using the resources they found in Latin America, it seemed to a number of them as if that was the only reason for being there, or the main reason at the very least. During the Spanish Inquisition and from that point after, it was the Pope’s main goal, to convert everyone to Roman Catholicism; an opportune moment arrived as the Americas were found, along with the Natives who resided there who were waiting to be converted.
There are many factors leading up to the establishment of the Inquisition by the Catholic Church. One of the main factors is the beginning of the Middle Ages in Europe. A symbol of these emerging ages is Pope Gerbert of the year 1000. Although he was a Pope, he was learned in algebra, and because of his knowledge he was considered somewhat of a wizard. He once wrote to a friend in Italy asking for secular books written in Latin. He instructs the friend to make sure the books are "procured quietly." (Nickerson 12) . Nickerson feels that this makes Gerbert a symbol of his times because it is out of similar knowledge that the Medieval times arise. Around the same time, the Normans were conquering England, the Church begins to have a common purpose, and the First Crusade begins.
A Sociologist’s Perspective,” share various opinions while developing their own theories. The comparison of these observations will focus upon why the witch trials occurred when they did, why did they stop when they did, why did the witch trials occur when they did, and who was persecuted and who was responsible for the identification and punishment of witches. Concerning why the witch hunts occurred when they did the agreed upon opinion by all three author’s is the social unrest and uncertainty felt due to the Protestant Reformation and the schism it created amongst the populace, the effects of recovering from plague and war, and the enforced patriarchal structure of a society that was changing. It was during the Reformation that Christians,’ Protestant and Catholic alike, endeavored to convict all individuals guilty of heresy, with witches acting as the scapegoat.... ...
As a result of confrontations with such heresy, the Inquisition was established by a series of papal decrees between 1227 and 1235. Pope Innocent IV authorized the use of torture in 1252, and Pope Alexander IV gave the Inquisition authority over all cases of sorcery involving heresy, although local courts carried out most actual prosecution of witches. At the same time, other developments created a climate in which alle...
Preston, Paul. The Spanish Civil War: Reaction, Revolution and Revenge. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2007. Print.
Szasz, T., 1997. The Manufacture of Madness; A comparative study of the Inquisition and Mental Health Movement. 1st ed. s.l.:Syracuse University Press.
In 1492, Granada surrendered and became a Christian conquered land. The Inquisition was completed. During the Inquisition, new centers of spiritual power in Western Europe were created, which increased the unification of Catholic expression of Faith.
Isabella then desired to boost her control over Spain by establishing the Spanish Inquisition. Its role was to abolish heresy and make Spain a Christian nation (“Spain: History”). The Inquisition officially lasted from 1478 to 1808 (“Queen Isabella’s Influence in the New World”).
The inquisition was a religious institution that policed the new Christians in the Iberian Peninsula. The inquisition was a by-product of hundreds of years of negative relations towards non-catholic people in Europe. It began around 1478 and in ended in 1834; during the three hundred and fifty-six years responses to the inquisition change immensely. This was partly due to many laypeople being indoctrinated by anti-Semitic and pro- Catholic propaganda. The pre-existing anti-Semitic feeling in Europe along with previous medieval inquisitions, helped to allow the Iberian inquisition to become a part of the Spanish and Portuguese way of life. This acceptance changed later in Iberian history because of the many factors lead to the abolishment of the Inquisition.
... in witchcraft, this revisits the medieval and unfounded views on witches perpetuated by the Spanish Inquisition that we see in his earlier works.
Pollen, John Hungerford. "The Suppression of the Jesuits (1750-1773)." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 23 Mar. 2014 .
Bainvel, Jean. The New Catholic Encyclopedia. New York City: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15006b.htm (accessed September 23, 2011).