As horrible as the Papal Inquisition was (in both of its manifestations), in modern times, the Spanish Inquisition has became almost synonymous with the excesses, violence, and cruelty, and TORTURE of the Inquisition. In 1478 Pope Sixtus IV issued a bull authorizing King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to appoint an inquisitorial board (which occurred in 1480). The express purpose of the Spanish Inquisition was to root out false Christians in Spain – especially Jews and Moslems who claimed to convert to Christianity, but were still secretly practicing their faith.

While the members of this board needed to be approved by the Pope, the fact that the sovereigns of Spain appointed them was a significant departure from the practices of the Papal Inquisition. During the Papal Inquisition, the heads of the mendicant orders typically chose inquisitors (grand inquisitors were chosen by the pope). Another difference between the Papal Inquisition and the Spanish Inquisition was that the Spanish government paid the expenses, and received the net income, of the Inquisition.

Amazingly, the Spanish Inquisition remained intact for 354 years! It wasn’t deactivated until 1834, when the Queen Mother Cristina announced “It is declared that the Tribunal of the Inquisition is definitely suppressed.” (Roth, p. 267) The last recorded death attributed to the Inquisition was in 1826, when a poor schoolmaster, Cayetano Ripoll was garroted to death for allegedly teaching Deist principles.

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