The Spanish Inquisition

Origins Established by Isabella and Ferdinand in 1478 Isabella and Ferdinand got the approval of the Pope Sixtus IV to expel Jews, Protestants and non-believers from Spain Tomas de Torquemada-Grand Inquisitor Also one in Portugal and Rome

Isabella

Ferdinand

Persecution It is believed that 40,000 Jews were forced out Those that stayed in Spain had to convert to Catholicism Those Jews that became Catholics became known as “converso”

The Catholics began to target Protestants in the 16 th century The first group was the Lutherans Persecution was also directed toward the Moriscos, these were converts from Islam A lot of Jews and Muslims were expelled in 1492 after the Muslim stronghold of Granada fell

Motives for the Spanish Inquisition Political and religious unity Strengthen power of the Spanish monarchy Economic (confiscating property of those who were forced out) Fear

Sentencing People that refused to convert or leave were subject to trials There were several options when it came time to sentence someone Acquited Suspended (let go, but still under suspicion) Penance (guilty and had to pay fines and confess) Reconciled (guilty and may be tortured) Relaxation to the secular arm (burnt at the stake)

Auto De Fe A religious ceremony Came after a sentencing Had a mass, a prayer and brought the guilty in front of authorities for sentencing

Death Toll Isabella and Ferdinand saw the burning of 2,000 people and 15,000 were reconciled The total figures are as follows 341,021 people were put on trial 31,912 of them were killed

End of the Inquisition The Inquisition was abolished July 15 th, 1834 (spread to Spanish colonies) This was a Royal Decree signed by Maria Cristina de Borbon

Medieval Torture Devices

Inquisition was started to investigate heresy Heresy: going against beliefs (example worshiping false gods) or challenging Church authority Background Information

An inquisitor would arrive in a village and ask all those who want to confess to heresy and ask for forgiveness to do so within a month If a person confessed to heresy within the month they would be given a light punishment. If a person did not confess and were still found guilty: 1)they would go to trial 2)Name their enemies 3)Tortured until confession 4)Murdered if found guilty (most accused were) The Process

Facts about Torture, and Punishment. Torture was the most common method of extracting information, or confessions from people during the Middle Ages. Torture often left the victim dead, or injured for life even if he gave in early. The entrance to torture chambers was often through a series of winding passageways which muffled the screams of the victims from the normal inhabitants.

Torture was used during the Middle Ages for three reasons: To force confessions or secret information from those accused To discourage dissent and intellectual freedom To persuade Jews, Muslims, and other non-believers to accept Christianity

Iron Maiden Spikes in the Iron Maiden were strategically located to avoid major organs, thereby prolonging the inevitable death of the accused.

The Interrogation Chair This was painful from the start and only got worse. Pain could be increased by beating on the limbs.

Lockup Cell Small villages often had only a small lockup for holding criminals.There were no windows, no chamberpots and it was never cleaned. A person had to sit in their own vomit and waste, and in the person’s before them, and before them..and before them..

Public Humiliation Hunger, thirst, bad weather and jeers (along with stones and rotten fruit) of passersby made this treatment nastier than it looks. Afterwards, the victim often left town if at all possible.

Gossip’s Bridle The bridle was used to silence women who nagged, questioned authority, or gossiped. It was painful as well as humiliating, for the gag had a barbed tongue-piece.

Ducking Stool Three dips was common treatment for “socially difficult” women or habitually drunk men. How long the victim stayed under depended on public opinion.

Tying the offender to a horse, bull or wild animal and driving it away in a panic was not always fatal. But it did get rid of the fellow!

The Wheel The Wheel produced such violent disturbances in the body as it was swung around that it could kill.The only marks it produced were bruises around the eyes.

Whipping (Flagellation) Done publicly and with a variety of instruments, the most popular was whipping in front of a crowd with brambles or a tree switch with stickers.

Used to extract confessions, fire was a wonderful tool!

Quartering The criminal had each limb tied to a horse and then the horses were sent out in 4 different directions, ripping the limbs from the body. Sometimes, bets were made on which portion of the body the head would be carried away with.

Type 1: While prisoners were restrained in the dungeon, rats and vermin could crawl freely over their bodies, gnawing on fingers, toes, ears, and noses. This could be encouraged by pouring hot bacon fat over the prisoner. Rat Torture

Type 2: The victim was completely restrained and tied to the ground or any horizontal surface. A rat was then placed on his stomach covered by a metallic container. As the container was gradually heated, the rat began to look for a way out - through the victim's body. Digging a hole usually took a few hours of agonizing pain for the victim. This almost always resulted in death. Rat Torture

Pressing Weights were added to the victim’s chest a little at a time until he eventually suffocated.

The Rack Usually the shoulder joints were displaced first, followed by the knees. If the torture continued, the victim’s abdomen would tear open next.

Water Torture (Toca) Water was poured into the mouth through a funnel while the nose was clamped shut, forcing the victim to swallow to breathe. After a few quarts, one would either drown in his own vomit or his stomach would rupture.

Star-Kicking Strips of paper were placed between the victim’s toes and set afire.

Stocks A few hours in the stocks could be a death penalty for some unpopular people. Since a victim could not reach his face to wipe it, some would actually suffocate by the volume of things thrown at them by the passing crowd.

The Judas Cradle This was a torture in which the victim is placed on a pyramid shaped object with a very sharp point. The torturer would decide whether to drop the victim on the pyramid, have him sit on it, or sit on it with added weights. This torture was almost always deadly because the pyramid shaped object was very rarely, if ever, washed and either the victim would bleed to death or contract an infection.

Coffin Torture In this torture, the victim would be placed in the “coffin” and left there for a set amount of time, or death depending on the offence. When sentenced to death in the coffin, the coffin would be place in the sun where the victim would be eaten alive by animals, or stoned to death by the townspeople. A torturer may make the coffin larger than normal to make it even more uncomfortable.

The Brazen Bull It’s inventor, Perillos of Athens, was searching for a more painful way to execute criminals and he was very pleased with his invention. For this torture, a person, or multiple people would be burned alive while locked inside the device. Being burned is a slow and extremely painful way to be killed. It is believed to be like being boiled alive.

The Pear of Anguish This torture was used on women who had a miscarriage, liars, blasphemers, and homosexuals. The pear shaped object would be inserted into one of the orifices of the victim. For women it would be inserted into their vagina then the four “leaves” would spread apart and the torturer would either decide to tear the skin, or solely mutilate the victim. For liars, and blasphemers, one would be inserted into their mouth and opened to its full size, and for homosexuals it would be inserted into their rectum and opened to its full size. The “pear’s” size would vary according to which orifice it was to be used in. Death was very rare to be cause by this torture, and the victim would often be subjected to other means of torture following this.

Beheading Beheading in the Middle Ages was usually a fast and swift punishment as long as the Executioner had a sharp axe and good aim. If they did not it could take up to 11 strokes to kill the person. After the beheading the head would be shown to the crowd and then placed on the London Bridge on metal spikes to show off to the people.

Crocodile Tube and Crocodile Shears The Crocodile Tube which was not commonly used was one of the most cruel torture devices and was used to torture thieves. It was used as follows: The victim was fixed inside a tube just big enough for the victim's entrance. The tube, having crocodile teeth-like spikes, was slowly compressed leaving the victim totally immobilized. The torturer could only see his face and feet. With the help of carbon and fire underneath the tube, the torturer gradually heated the tube until he extracted a confession or killed the victim. The Crocodile Shears were very commonly used to rip off toes and fingers to have a victim confess or to punish thieves.

Garrot Sometimes if a person repented, they would strangle someone before burning them

Pillory Torture The pillory was a tall wooden or metal post which was had holes in it to secure the head and various limbs. The pillory was used to humiliate the person in it. People in the crowd would throw fruit or garbage at the person in order to humiliate them. The pillory was very uncomfortable and were similar to stocks which did the same thing as the Pillory.

The Spanish Tickler The victim was naked and tied making him or her completely defenseless. Then the torturers began the (sometimes public) act of mutilating the victim. They often began with the limbs and slowly moved into the chest, back, neck and finally the face. In short, the Spanish Tickler or Cat's Paw, is nothing but an extension to the torturer's hand. The spikes were sharp enough to tear anything in their path.

The Wheel Torture (Breaking Wheel) The device consists of a large wooden wheel with many spokes. The victim's limbs were tied to the spokes and the wheel itself was slowly revolved. Through the openings between the spokes, the torturer usually hit the victim with an iron hammer that could easily break the victim's bones. Once his bones were broken, he was left on the wheel to die, sometimes placed on a tall pole so the birds could feed from the still-living human. This device was used as a capital punishment during the Middle Ages. Reserved for hated criminals, The Wheel always killed its victim, but did so very slowly.

Thumbscrew Torture The victim's fingers were placed inside the instrument and slowly crushed as the torturer turned the handle on top. This method was primarily used to extract confessions as it was both painful and very lasting. The same instrument was also used to crush victim's toes.

Saw Torture The victim was tied to an inverted position. This had several "benefits": first, it assured sufficient blood diverted to the brain, second, it slowed down the loss of blood and third, it humiliated the victim. While some victims were cut completely in half as a symbolical gesture, most had only up to their abdomen cut, this was done to prolong the time of death.

When someone’s arms are tied behind their back and they are suspended from a ceiling. Also has weights on legs. Strappado

Cat's Paw

Ducking Stool

The End