Spanish Enquiry

The Spanish Inquisition is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction founded in Spain in 1480, before the end of the Reconquista, by a bubble of Sixte IV at the request of the king and the queen Ferdinand the Catholic and Isabelle the Catholic. Directed by 3 bishops and depend on the crown, it had an absolute legal power to judge and condemn the heretics. Were aimed in first chief the Marrane S (“Spanish pigs”) conversos , i.e. the Juif S converted since the XIIIe century by the force or fear of violence in their opposition. Their number was particularly high after anti-Jewish repressions of 1391, however these converts were suspectés - rightly for the majority - not to be sincere in their new Christian faith and to continue the practice of the Judaïsme in secrecy. The queen refused the direct intervention of a Papal legate in the interior matters of the country, the Enquiry was thus installation like compromise between the royal authority and the papal authority, vis-a-vis the gravity of the charges, in the context of a country rebuilding her identity on the catholic faith, and with the pressure of bishops asking the sovereigns to be able to prove the strength of their engagement to their hierarchically superiors. The creation of this special court falls under the continuity of former persecutions, supported by the authorities, and in particular the revolt of Pedro Sarmiento (led to Tolède in 1449) having initiated the requirement of estatutos of Limpieza of sangre to reach various public office. This movement of fight against the Judaism will lead in 1492 to the Décret of Alhambra, promulgating the expulsion of the Jews of the kingdom of Spain.

Institution of the Enquiry

The Spanish ambassadors with Rome then make pressure to obtain the Inquisition. The pope accepts unwillingly, thus not being able to control this institution. The enquiry aims those of the " then; new chrétiens" whose conversion is not considered to be sincere.

The September 17th 1480, the first inquisiteurs Dominican S, Miguel de Morillo and Juan of St Martin, are named by the State. They take their functions with Seville where the community marrane threatened fails in an attempt at insurrection. Six people are burned alives. The enquiry begins its long career thus. The humiliations and ceaseless persecutions carried out against the heretics by the inquisiteurs are far from being always not involved. Indeed, at the time of the confiscations of goods, which strike not only the " coupables" but also all their family, the the Holy Office perceives an increasingly high share, being able to reach 80% of the product of the seized goods. Thus, it sometimes happens to them to unearth deaths for a lawsuit at the end which the bones are flarings and the transferred goods of late. Certain marked Jews not to have denounced conversos are killed by the enquiry. Certain members of the Clergé also fall them under the charges.

Under the direction of Torquemada

See also: Tomás de Torquemada

The February 11th 1482, the workload becoming too important for Seville, of new inquisiteurs are named, of which Tomás de Torquemada, the personal confessor of the Isabelle queen, and Pedro de Arbués, for the Aragon. In 1483, the " The Council of the Supreme Enquiry and Générale" (summary Suprema ) is created to supervise the courts of Castille and León. Torquemada becomes about it the chief of 1483 until his death in 1498, with the title of Large Inquisiteur. Its capacities extend on the Aragon, the Catalogne and Valence. The bishops of Seville and Calahorra fall under the charges from the Suprema .

It is interesting to note that the function of Large Inquisiteur was the only public office from which the authority extended to all the kingdoms composing Spain, thus constituting a useful relay to be able it of the sovereigns.

During its fifteen years as Large Inquisiteur, Torquemada shows of a frightening zeal and a determination relentless in the control of the Enquiry.

The high cost of the maintenance of the imprisoned heretics with life pushes Torquemada to create great centers penitentiaries. Those have the role to give again an activity in relation to their old profession with the prisoners. The product is used then for the Church or is resold. These prisoners with perpetuity endure in fact the sorrow of the strictus murus (or “narrow wall”) and should not in theory never leave the dungeon (cf above).

However, even if the systematic seizure of the goods of condemned produces an amazing amount, Torquemada personally does not yield to temptation richness or luxury, and remains all its life in agreement with the rigor monacale of its kind. But it uses the skins of its victims to enrich the Church and to extend its influence, by the foundation or the restoration of religious buildings, or by donations with the charity works managed by this one. Its stubbornness and its fanaticism lead it to refuse to dislocate itself, in spite of its great age. It is the inquisitor Diego Deza who succeeds to him.

Torquemada encourages highly the catholic Kings to sit their double monarchy (Castille and Aragon) on the unit and the purity of the faith. This results in a revival of the effort of Reconquista against the Moslems, and a persecution of the Jewish community. The January 2nd 1492, the fall of the Kingdom of Grenade, last bastion Moor in Spain, marks the crowning of the effort of Reconquista. The March 30th 1492, Isabelle and Ferdinand promulgate the Décret of Alhambra, demanding that the Jews convert with the Catholicisme or leave the country; a similar rule concerning the Moor S is then laid down. Many leaves Spain, losing their goods, to go to be established in Italy, in the Ottoman Empire where the sultan Bayezid II gives them refuge, and with the Portugal. Others prefer to remain and be made baptize with haste.

Successors of Torquemada

The successors of Torquemada set up, in Spain then in Portugal, a structure of monitoring systematic and generalized denouncement, not only against the converts, but also to their descendants, and all the Christians of ascent even very partially Jewish, baptized " New chrétiens". It is the golden age of the Enquiry.

As from 1525, the courts turn to the Moors who, like the marranes, practice in secrecy the Islam, the Morisque S. Then they are interested in the Protestants, and the various offenses such as the Bigamie. The Sorcery, contrary to the other countries of the XVIIe and XVIIIe centuries, mobilizes the Enquiry little. But the principal attention is always concentrated on the marked people of judaïser .

Starting from 1535, the Enquiry delivers " certificates of cleanliness of blood " with the people not having a Jewish or Moslem ancestor. These certificates are not only required for the access to the army, with the loads of Holy Office, for the entry of the universities, but so requested by the families from the marriage day before.

The Enquiry becomes so powerful and brave man sometimes so with impunity the civil justice which it attracts itself the assistance of all those which fear it. Thus it develops around it the institution of the " Friends of Inquisition". Those, far from hiding, are flattered with arrogance of this membership and ravel annually with parades, in particular at the time of the Autodafé S.

Dispersion of the marranes

Marranes are established in Americas. But the Enquiry has the long arm, and there being also established, pursues them as in Europe. However, some marranes Portuguese refugees in the area of Bordeaux end up obtaining French sovereigns the right to remain there and return finally to the religion of their ancestors.

The surest places of refuge are the Protestant countries, in particular the Holland and the England. In the first times, the new Christians, become again Jewish or not, are left in peace, within the limit of some prohibited, while in Moslem countries, they can settle, but while being struck statute of Dhimmi. In Turkey, they play a big role near Soliman in his fight against the Christian kingdoms. One of them, the Duc of Naxos is the personal adviser of Sélim wire of Soliman. When they adopt Islam, they obtain, like their descendants, the same statute as the other Moslems.

End of the Spanish Enquiry

The enquiry officially ends in Spain under Napoleon i in 1808, then is restored in 1814. The last victim is a teacher deist hung with Valence on July 26th, 1826. The Spanish enquiry is abolished definitively by the queen Marie-Christine in 1834, and the “limpieza of the sangre” (purity of blood) on May 13rd, 1865.

The Décret of Alhambra ordering the expulsion of the Jews was officially repealed in 1967 by the pro-Franco government . However, it had become dead letter for a long time: tens of thousands of descendants of expelled, persecuted in the rest of Europe during the second world war, could take refuge in Spain and be accommodated as former Spanish there.

Portuguese Enquiry

The enquiry with the Portugal is, by error, often presented like more débonnaire that of Spain.

Manual, king of Portugal, married the infante of Spain Isabelle the November 30th 1496. The December 5th a royal decree gives 10 months to the Jews and to the Moslems to leave the country. The king charms himself and, Friday March 19th 1497, it orders the baptism of all the children of the kingdom for next Sunday, which will give place to terrible scenes. In 1499, Manuel publishes a decree prohibiting the new Christians from leaving the country.

The Enquiry becomes official with the nomination of Diogo da Silva, confessor of Handbook, as general inquisitor in December 1531. But of “new the influential Christians” succeed in making it suspend. Charles Quint is of all its weight so that an enquiry with Spanish is restored. The decision is made the May 23rd 1536 under the pontificate of Paul III. But the Marrane S still succeed by multiple bounces and negociations with the Pope to restrict the capacities of the Holy Office and to even suspend it in 1544. Despite everything, in 1547, the Enquiry is formally established. The marranes fight last once on the question of the capacity of confiscation. This weapon is finally conceded with the courts and Portugal obtains a more terrible independent enquiry thus still than its Spanish model. Indeed, conversion is imposed there on all the Jews and is not matched there, contrary to Spain, of the possibility of emigrating. Consequently, all " new chrétiens" there are the descendants of a forced conversion, and the attempts at escape of marranes towards outside are proportionally more important there than in Spain.

The Enquiry is so hard in Portugal that a certain number of " new chrétiens" Portuguese goes even until trying to take refuge… in Spain.

End of the Portuguese Enquiry

The last victim will be a priest Jésuite, Gabriel Malagrida, burned in Lisbon in September 1761. In 1771, the public autos-da-fe are prohibited. In 1773, any difference between former and new Christians is abolished. The Enquiry definitively stops in 1778. It is abolished by the liberal constitution of 1822.

The Enquiry in Portugal informed 40 000 lawsuits since its foundation. More 30 000 were concluded by judgments. The sentences were carried out during nearly 750 Autodafé S; 1808 considered to be guilty have summers flarings on roughing-hew it (633 in effigy and 1 175 in person) and 29 590 were reconciled.

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