Spanish Inquisition

The Spanish Inquisition was a church court set up in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, with the approval of Pope Sixtus IV, to ensure the orthodoxy of Catholicism in their realms. Unlike earlier medieval inquisitions it was controlled by the Crown, and it was initially aimed above all at conversos, Jews and Muslims who had converted to Christianity and were suspected of secretly practicing their old faith. Tomás de Torquemada was its first Grand Inquisitor. Over time its targets expanded to include Protestants, bigamists, blasphemers and others, and it used secret denunciations, torture and public ceremonies called autos-da-fé. Its legend is often exaggerated, but its harshness is well documented, and it was finally abolished in 1834.

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