By Jennifer Feeney

and Diane Pena

Burning of Algerius, a young nobleman and student from Padua, Rome, 1557

Burning of Algerius, a

young nobleman and student from Padua, Rome,

1557

Who was involved in the Spanish Inquisition?/When did it occur?

The Spanish Inquisition began in 1478.

Ferdinand and Isabella of Castile wanted to maintain Catholicism in their kingdom and it was under the direct control of the Spanish monarchy.

It lasted until 1834, during the reign of Isabel II.

Where did the Spanish Inquisition take place?

The Spanish Inquisition took place in Spain.

Why did the Spanish Inquisition Occur?/What was the Spanish Inquisition?

The Spanish Inquisition occurred because Christian rulers Isabella and Ferdinand were determined to rid Spain of any heretics or non-Christians. In previous years, other Inquisitions occurred in Spain. As a result, many Jews and Muslims, rather than leave their homes, decided to convert to Christianity to escape persecution. The main goal of the Inquisition was to inspect the genuineness of those that converted to Christianity in the previous years.

What was an inquisition?

•The inquisition was a formal court set up by the Catholic Church to try the people who were accused of not following the teaching of the Church.

•When they confirmed that a person hadn’t followed the teachings of the Church, they had the power to torture the accused and could hand over him/her to execution.

Motives for instituting the Inquisition

To establish political and religious unityTo weaken political opponents of

Ferdinand and IsabellaOut of fear of other religious groupsTo do away with power of minoritiesProfit – the property of convicted people

was taken

Methods used

Censorship

Torture

“ The historian Hernando del Pulgar,

contemporary of Ferdinand and

Isabella, estimated that the Inquisition had burned at the stake 2,000 people

and reconciled another 15,000 by

1490 (just one decade after the

Inquisition began). ”