The Roman Catholic System: The Spanish Inquisition

The Spanish Inquisition was a Roman Catholic system for the punishment of heresy and forced conversion of various religious groups. It was established by Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand in 1478 when they requested permission from Pope Sixtus IV to establish it. Their intention was to unite Spain under the dominating religion of Catholicism. Conflicts of the Inquisition arose because of cruel tribunals, torture, and repression of Muslims and Jews that developed into opposition and concluded in catastrophic economic, political, and social declines in Europe. A cause for the Spanish Inquisition’s notorious reputation were the unjust tribunals. Convicts were given a grace period to confess called the Edict of Grace, and confessors had to spy

Instead, it only obviated the flaws of the monarchy to people once again leading to more opposition especially because the torture methods were incredibly cruel. Everyone was subjected to torture including women and children showing the brutality and extent to which authority would go to control people. Although spilling blood was prohibited according to Catholic law, other methods were used with water, rope, and fire that were even more painful. Catholics knew they should not have been inflicting pain upon people, but they found a loophole so they could maintain power. Many people were tortured under false pretenses and were usually innocent causing conflict to arise. The enforcement of torture and the torture of innocents proved to people that authority was only interested in helping themselves which incited even more

Muslims and Jews were forced to endure agonizing tortures and penalties when they did nothing wrong. They were either tried, tortured, or dying by the lots, so there was a significant decrease in population Spain. This reflects badly on Spain because it proves that even with these drastic and brutal measures, they were failed leaders who were incapable of managing their country. Spain also became financially drained from their conquests to convert people, and their economy was slowly declining due to a decline in trade and horrid leaders. Spain’s attempt for the prohibition of Enlightenment ideas also caused them to be lacking in technological or educational advancements, showing the unwise decisions of the leaders. Art of the time reflected on the morbidness of the time caused by these incompetent rulers. These fatalistic impacts of the Inquisition prove that it was a liability for everyone--Spain, Jews, and