The Cause And Causes Of The Spanish Inquisition

The Spanish Inquisition started was when Pope Sixtus the IV approved it in 1478. Their early goals

They claimed that those of the Jewish faith were responsible for Jesus’ death, and therefore they were unable to be trusted. The expansion of Jewish communities infuriated the Christian society, pushing them towards their breaking point. In 1391, anti-Semitic violence broke out in Castile, and spread across many other areas in Spain such as Barcelona, Saragossa, and Valencia. Mobs entered the Jewish communities to burn synagogues, invade homes, rape the women, and kill the dominant Jewish rulers that were recognized. The Jews of Spain were given an ultimatum; evacuate, or convert to Christianity. Nearly half of them agreed to convert their faith, and they were baptized in order to show their true commitment to the Church. Those who converted were referred to as Conversos or “New Christians”. This ultimatum that those of the Jewish faith were given satisfied Christian societies, but it soon became apparent that the Conversos were not acting accordingly in respect to the Christian belief system. Although they attended church and participated in Christian traditions, behind closed doors, it was believed that they continued to practise the traditions, beliefs, and holy days outlined by the Jewish faith. They refrained from eating pork, and supposedly celebrated the Jewish Sabbath which lasted from Friday’s sundown until Saturday’s nightfall. This realization caused Christians to become furious, and those who had been deemed

Throughout history, as we study Spain we can clearly recognize high and low points in their success. In the fifteen hundreds Spain had no influence on European affairs, Spain essentially vanished out of Europe. However, within one complete century Spain had become not only a leading power but they also had a great sense of effectiveness in Europe. Spain experienced a Golden age with many social, economic, political aspects. On the other hand, within

The Inquisition were successful in their attempt to wipe out these groups that were against their practices . By the early sixteenth century, the times were best for the Reformation. There were several reasons for the widespread skepticism of the

The peace the Jews experienced during this era after the exile continued for three hundred years. After this their problems were minimal up to the time of the Crusades. Because of the conflict between Christianity and Islam Jews suffered immeasurably, leading ultimately to two long centuries of persecution and expulsion. In the year 1095 a sermon was preached telling the Christians to regain control of the holy lands. Gangs would attack the Jewish communities, destroying their cities and torturing the people who lived in them. The Jews were such a threat because they did not believe in Jesus Christ a s the Son of God and were therefore non-Christian believers. A second wave of crusades emerged in 1146 and 1189. Riots against Jews even began to emerge through England. The crusades thus lead to Jews becoming the hated religious sect and they were cast out of almost every country throughout Europe. (2) Jews thus began to move and were forced into other countries, countries where they were also not wanted.

According to Spain then and now, (2011), “In contrast to Spain’s startling growth of political power and prestige during the 16th century, the 17th century is commonly seen as one of decline.” Not merely historical hindsight, this view was already articulated in the early 17th century by a group of writers known as arbitristas. They lamented the deterioration of the country, and offered suggestions for both political and especially economic reform. Who recognised the stark contrast between the appearance of imperial greatness and the reality of social and economic problems in their country. Events of the 17th century confirm the foresight of the best of these early political economists. Since then there has been general consensus that Spain

The Counter-Reformation sought to reform four major elements; ecclesiastical reconfiguration, religious orders, spiritual movements, and political dimensions. Seminaries for proper training of priests, returning of orders to their spiritual foundations, and new spiritual movements focusing on ones devotional life and relationship with Christ. Among these reforms was the Inquisition. The Inquisition was responsible for the "purifying" of Christians. They were mostly peaceful but were also known for burning many people at the stake. At times as many as two hundred in one day were burned under accusations of witchcraft. They aimed to retake areas that had previously been converted to

In Imperial Spain, J.H. Elliot examines the history of early modern Spain from the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella and Ferdinand, to the reformation of the Spanish government by the first member of the Bourbon dynasty. According to the author, at the start of the 15th century, Spain was internally weak, hopelessly divided and isolated from the continent by the Pyrenees. Yet, by 1492, Spanish society experienced a tremendous transformation which allowed Isabella and Ferdinand to unify the country, secure the largest transoceanic empire the world has ever known, and for a

The arrival of the Inquisition was swift and powerful, the decline of the Inquisition was drawn out and pathetic. Laws slowly began to be abolished around the eighteenth century. The distinction between Old and New Christians was no longer legally binding, the Moriscos had all but been erased from Spain, and Judaism had no influence. The job was done. Over hundreds of years and a multitude of rulers hellbent on eradicating religious diversity, a mild amount of success had been achieved. As the decades rolled on, however, rulers became more and more disinterested with the inquisitorial rule. The looming French Revolution severely hurt the seemingly dormant Inquisition. The Revolution brought new condemnation for the movement, and more specifically, condemnation for the unnecessarily violent actions of the church. The Inquisition was truly crippled early in the nineteenth century as a Constitution was being constructed by Rafael Riego, an Asturian battalion commander. Through this, and various civil wars and revolts within the nineteenth century, the Spanish Inquisition was officially demolished. The movement that had thousands tortured, imprisoned, and murdered had finally

Like the Holocaust in the 1930s-1940s, Jews during this time were treated with brutality. Manchester describes it as, “Jewry was luckier - slightly luckier - than blacks. If the pogroms of the time are less infamous than the Holocaust, it is only because anti-Semites then lacked twentieth-century technology” (35). In the year 1492, the Spanish had regained control of Spain. The rule of Spain was now under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. They were not fond of Jews in their nation. The Jews in Spain were given three months to convert to christianity or to leave. After seeing what the Spanish were doing in Spain, the king of Portugal ordered the expulsion of all Portuguese Jews. Any Jews who wouldn’t leave or were slow to leave were massacred. Around four thousand Lisbon Jews were killed during a single night in 1506. Only three years later persecution of Jews in Germany began. Jews throughout history have been treated badly but during the medieval period it was especially hard if you were a Jew.

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

The Spanish Inquisition was originally an institution developed in Spain to conduct trials by the Catholic Monarchs. The Inquisition’s trial courts focused on ensuring that the Catholic Doctrine was enforced. After the conquering and colonization of indigenous groups within the New World the colony of New Spain was formed. The Spanish Crown sought to use the Inquisition to prosecute those guilty of heresy or blasphemy, which is the act of denouncing God or demeaning religious ideas. Comparing and analyzing Spanish Inquisition blasphemy trial documents demonstrate the recorded history and process by which these trials started and ended. Which presents us with the question, how did blasphemy trials effect the personal lives of indigenous groups within New Spain?

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

The Inquisition executed Jews and Muslims. However, even the ones who converted to Christianity or born Christian were tortured if they once were of another faith or if it could be traced back in their roots. The ones who had the Jewish blood, or of any other faith and were born Christian, were tortured more severely. The accused was not allowed to have a lawyer or counsel for their defense.

In the late twelfth century, the inquisitional procedure was introduced to papal legislation with the purpose of controlling those who strayed from the church, and eventually, this eventually extended to secular (nonreligious) crime as well.