Columbia Sanibersittp
in tfje Citp of iSehj gorfe
LIBRARY
GIVEN BY
HISTORY
OF THE
INQUISITION.
THE
HISTORY
OF THE
INQUISITION,
AS IT HAS SUBSISTED IN
FRANCE, ITALY, SPAIN, PORTUGAL, VENICE, SICILY,
SARDINIA, MILAN, POLAND, FLANDERS, &c. &c.
With a particular Description of its
Secret ^ti^on&y
MODES OF TORTUPF, STYLE OF aCLVSATION, TRIAL,
Abridged
FROM THE r,''.lBO::JATE WOKK OF
PHILIP LIMB OUCH,
Professor of Divinity at Amsterdam.
INTRODUCED BY AN HISTORICAL SURVEY OF THE
And illustrated by Extracts from various Writers, and original Manuscript.
Tnteresting Particulars of
PERSONS WHO HAVE SUFFERED
THE TERRORS OF THAT DARK AND SANGUINARY TRIBUNAL,
And
POLITICAL REFLECTIONS ON ITS REVIVAL IN SPAIN,
By the Decree of Fer dinand VII.
LONDOS:
PRINTED FOR W. SIMPKIN AND R. MARSHALL,
STATIONERS'-COUKT, LUDGATE-STREET.
1816.
y-^^
.r^\r^^ y
3
:)2>
Plummer and Brewis, Printers, Love-Lane, Eastcheap, Lmdon.
PREFACE.
■•.*/V^*'»'W*/W*
THE learned author of the following work,
Philip Limborch, was born at Amsterdam in 1633,
where he studied with great success, and at the
age of twenty-two entered on the public work of
the ministry, at Haerlem ; his sermons had in them
no affected eloquence, but were peculiarly solid,
methodical and edifying. He was first chosen
minister of Goudja, and afterwards called to
Amsterdam, where he had the professorship of
divinity, in which he acquitted himself with great
reputation, throughout the remainder of a long
andtranquil life; he died in 1712, aged seventy-
nine years.
A 3
Yl PREFACE.
This venerable man, possessed all the qualifi-
cations and virtues, which belong to the character
of a sincere minister, an admirable genius, and a
tenacious memory. He enjoyed the particular inti-
macy of many distinguished individuals, in his own
and in foreign countries, among whom was Mr.
Locke, in whose works some 'of his letters are
preserved. He wrote, " A Complete Body of Di-
vinity, according to the opinions and doctrines of
the Remonstrants," and several smaller works, be-
sides publishing those of Episcopius, who was his
relative.
His greatest undertaking was, " The History of
the Inquisition," in which, with vast labour, he
availed himself of his talents and peculiar local situ-
ation, in gaining access to, and combining the testi-
monies of, numerous authors. The general plan
pursued in the formation of this work, he thus
describes : " I have not through an attachment to
any party, written any thing contrary to truth,
I have made use of Popish authors,* yea, In-
* With the exception of archbishop Usher and R. Gonsalvius.
PREFACE. vil
quisitors themselves, and counsellors of the
Inquisition, who are so far from having written
any thing untrue, out of hatred to the Inquisition,
that they every where extol its sanctity and advan-
tages ; and therefore whatever they write, I assured
myself I might safely relate, without charge of
calumny. The reader niay perhaps wonder at one
thing, that I have always called those who differ
from the church of Rome, Heretics-, he will remem-
ber that is not my sense, and I speak chiefly the
language of Popish writers; but I sincerely believe,
that those whom the church of Rome has con-
demned for Heresy, have died and gloriously en-
dured the punishment of fire, for the testimony
of Jesus Christ, and the maintaining a good con-
science,"
When this work first appeared, it excited great
attention, and had the honour of being condemned
and prohibited by an edict of the cardinals inqui-
sitors at Rome, who forbad the reading of it under
Montanus a protestant, who gathered a church at Seville, about
the death of the Emperor Charles V. which was scattered and de-
stroyed by the Inquisition.
A 4
viii , PREFACE.
the severest penalties. It received however, the
far more positive distinction of John Locke's par-
ticular approbation, " that incomparable judge of
men and books, who gives it the highest character,
commends it for its method and perspicuity, and
pronounces it a work in its kind absolutely perfect.
In a letter addressed to Mr. Limborch, he tells
him, that he had so fully exposed their secret arts
of wickedness and cruelty, that if they had any
remains of humanity in them, they must be asham-
ed of that horrid tribunal, in which every thing
that was just and righteous was so monstrously
perverted ; and that it was fit to be translated into
the vulgar language of every nation, that all
might understand the Ante-Christian practices of
that execrable court."*
, If any apology could be necessary for presenting
a work of this kind (for a long time contemplated) to
the public, at the present moment, it might be found
in the aspect of the times, in which Popery so entirely
* Vide Preface by the translator. Dr. Chandler, who published
this work in English, 2 vols. 4to. 1732, with a long and highly
respectable list of subscribers.
PREFACE. IX
overwhelmed in the apprehension of many, is again
lifting up its head, and resorting to its usual means
of supplying deficiency of argument by force and
violence.
In forming this abridgment of Mr. Limborch's
valuable work, the editor has used his best judg-
ment, in preserving what he considered as most
interesting. The Edicts which are in the original
printed at length and which occupy much space,
he has generally omitted, retaining their spirit;
Wherever it could be done, he has preferred the
language of the author ; but if he has found
it necessary to lessen the number of words, which
relate a circumstance, he has still endeavoured
carefully to preserve the references, which are so
indispensable in the pages of authenticated history.
It appears somewhat remarkable, that few modern
writers have regarded the Inquisition, with that
pointed attention which its magnitude deserves ; the
reader of its history will find it no mean object of
contemplation. The design of affording an authentic
X PREFACE.
view of this powerful coadjutor of Romish doc-
trine, in a portable form, suggested the idea of the
present volume. For the selection of notes, (with
a trifling exception,) the Introductory Survey of the
Christian Church and the two concluding Chapters
the editor is responsible ; and if the combined
effect of his labours should be, that of promoting
just views, respecting the proper boundaries of
civil and ecclesiastical authority, and of inducing
any to believe, from the dire consequences of bigotry
and intolerance, that difference of religious opinion
is not a proper ground for personal hatred, and that
in promoting the happiness of others by every
suitable means, w^e really advance our own ; he
will feel that peculiar pleasure which arises from
the contemplation of exertions, successfully em-
ployed, and in this hope the work is now presented
to the attention of a candid and discerning public.
THE CONTENTS.
HISTORICAL Survey of the Christian Church Page 1
BOOK I.
OF THE ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF THE INQUISITION.
Chap. Page.
I The Doctrine of Jesus Christ forbids Persecution on the ac-
count of Religion *.. 59
II. . . » . . . The opinion of the primitive Christians concerning persecu-
tion CI
III The Laws of the Emperors, after the Nicene couuril against
the Arians and other heretics 64
IV The Arian persecutions of the Orthodox 70
V The opinion of some of the Fathers concerning the persecu-
tion of Dissenters 72
VI St. Aiigustine^s opinion concerning the persecution of heretics 75
VII .... The persecutions of the Popes against heretics 79
VIII.. .. Of the Albigcnses and Waldenses *.. . . 81 '
IX Of the persecutions against the Albigenses and Waldenses.. 88
X Of Dorainicus, and the first rise of the Tholouse Inquisition . 92
XI Of tlie wars against Raymond, father and son/ Earls of
Tholouse 98
XII Several councils held, and the Laws of the Emperor Frederic
II., by which the office of the inquisition was greatly pro-
moted ... 107
XIII.... The Inquisition introduced into Arragon, France,>Tholouse,
and Italy 110 -
XIV.. . . Of the first hindrances to the progress of the Inquisition .... 115 *"
XV The more speedy progress of the Inquisition 118 >■
XVI.. .. The Inquisition introduced into several places 124**
XVII... Of the Inquisition at Venice 126
XVIII.. The Inquisition against the Apostolics, Templars, and others. 130
XIX. . . . The Inquisition against the Beguins 133
XX The process against Mathew Galeacius, Viscoimt Milan, and
others 187
XXI. . . . The inquisition introduced into Poland, and restored in France 139
-xXXII. . . Of Wickliff, Huss, and the Inquisition against the Htissites. . 141
■ «XXIII.. Of the Inquisition in Valence, Flanders, and Artois 14S
CONTENTS.
Chap. P^o^'
XXIV.. Of the Spanish Inquisition l^*"**
XXV... Of the Inquisition in Portugal 154
XXVI.. Of the attempt to bring the Inquisition into the kingdom of
Naples 158
XXVII.. Of the Inquisition in Sicily, Sardinia, and Milan 160
XXVllI. The return of the Inquisition into Germany and France at the
time of the Reformation *61
XXIX. . Six Cardinals appointed at Rome Inquisitors General 164
XXX... Of the Inquisition in Spain against heretics 165
XXXI . Of the Inquisition in the Low Countries 172
BOOK II.
OF THE MINISTERS OF THE OFFICE OF THE INaUISITION.
Cmap. Pace.
I O F the Ministers of the Inquisition in general 17^1*
II. Of the Inquisitors. 177H
III ... . Of the Vicars and Assistants of the Inquisition 186
IV Of Assessors and Counsellors necessary to the office of the In-
quisition 9 1*^
V Of the Promoter Fiscal 191
VI ... . Of the Notaries of the Inquisition 19*
VII. . . Of the Judge and Receiver of the confiscated effects 196
VIII. . Of the Executor and Official of the Inquisition 199
IX. . . . Of the Familiars or Attendants 202
X Of the Cross Bearers 204
X.I Of the Visitors of the Inquisitors 207
XII ... Of the duty or power of every Magistrate 208
XIII.. Of the privileges of the Inquisitors c 21K
XIV. . . Of the amplitude of the Jurisdiction of the Inquisitors 218
XV.... Of the power of the Inquisitors 224\
XVI. . . Of the povver of the Inquisitors in prohibiting books ; 22»\
XVII.. What the Inquisitors can do themselves, and what in conjunc
tion with the Ordinaries > • • • • • • 23^
XVIIl . Of the jail of the Inquisitors, and Keepers of the jail 236
XIX.. . Of the expences requisite in the administration of the Inquisi-
tion, and confiscation of effects applied to this use 259^
XX. ... Of the salaries of the Inquisitors and other officers 264\
BOOK III.
CRIMES BELONGING TO THE TRIBUNAL OF THE INaUISITION.
Chap. Vkgz,
I OF Heretics, and their ecclesiastical puaishraents. • • • • • 26»n^
II Of thecivil punishments of Heretics ••• . 279»-^
CONTENTS.
Chap. Page.
Ill Of epen and secret Heretics >. 293**
IV. . . . Of affirmative and negative Heretics 294^
V Of Heretics impenitent and penitent SOCT*
VI.... Of Arch Heretics 30S
VH. . . Of the Believers of Heretics, and of Schismatics 304
VHI.. Of the Receivers and Defenders of Heretics 306****
IX.... Of the Favourers of Heretics 307 *
X Of the Hinderers of the Office of the Inquisition 310
XI.. .. Of Persons suspected of Heresy 314'**
XII... Of Persons defamed for Heresy 3lf^
XIII.. Of Persons relapsed 318
XIV. . Of such who read and keep prohibited Books 319*
XV. . . Of Polygamists 322
XVI.. Of those who celebrate and administer the Sacrament of Pe-
nance, not being priests 32ft
XVII.. Of soliciting Confessors 327
XVIII. Of one that is insordescent in Excommunication 331
XIX.. Of Blaspliemers 33S
XX. . . Of Diviners, Fortune-Tellers, and Astrologers 335
XXI.. OfWilches > 337
XXII . Of Jews, and such as return to Jewish rites 341 #
BOOK IV.
OF THE MANNER OF PROCEEDING BEFORE THE TRIBUNAL
OF THE INQUISITION.
Chap. Page.
I HOW the Inquisitor begins his office 349*^
II Of the promulgation of an Edict of Faith 353
III Of the obligation to denounce every Heretic to the Inqui-
sition 355
IV Of such who voluntarily appear, and the grace shewn them 358
V Of the three methods of beginning the process before th«
Tribunal of the Inquisition 359
VI How the Process begins by way of Inquisition 361
VII. How the process begins by accusation 364
VIII How the process begins by denunciation ... 366
IX Of the witnesses, and who are admitted as witnesses before
the Tribunal of the Inquisition 368
X Of the number of the witnesses » 370
XI Of the examination of the witnesses 372
XII How the criminals when informed against are sent to jail 374 ^
XIII Of the exammatiou of the prisoners 377
XIV What arts the Inquisitors iise to draw a confession from the
prisoners 379
XV.,.*t«» How the prisunera are allowed an advocate^ procurator
and guardian «.»•# t •# f t i.t t •••• 38t *"
CONTENTS.
Chap, Page.
XVI How the prisoners are interrogated by the Inquisitor, whe-
» tlier they allow the witnesses to be rightly examined^and
re heard 384
XVII .... How the piomoUr Fiscal txhibits tlic Bill of accusation.. 386
XVIlf.... How the interrogatories t?iveii in by the Ciiniinals are
torraed and exhibited 387
XIX Of the re-examining the Witritsses, and the pnni.>hiuent of
false Witnesses 389
XX How the Prisoner hath a copy of the evidence, withunt the
names of the "'^'itnesses 390
XXI How the articUs and witnesses for the Criminal are pro-
duced and examined 394
XX J I .... Cf the defence of the Criminals , 395
XXI f I.... How the Inquisitor may be rejected 396
XX » v.... Or the appeal from the Inquisitor •• 397
XXV How they pro<'eed ugainst such wJ.o make their escape. . . 399
XXVI.. . . How the p)ocess is ended in the lnquJs.Uion 400
XXVIl How the process is ended by absolution •• 403
XXVIII. .. How the process against a person defamed for heresy is
ei-ded by canonical pixgation 405
XXIX • • . . How the process is ended by torture 407
XXX How the process is ei.dcd agf.inst a person of heresy, as
also against one both suspected and defamed i..<> 426
XXXI- . . . How the process against an licretic confessed and penitent
endii, and first of abjuration 431
XXXII... Of the punishment and wholesome penances injoined such
as abjure 433
XXXIII.. When and how far any one is to be admitted to penance.. . 439
XXXIV •• How the process ends against a relapsed penitent 443
^XXV... How the process ends against an impenitent Heretic and
impenitent relapse • 446
XXXVI... How the process ends against a negative Heretic convicted 450
XXXVII. . How the process ends against a fugitive Heretic 452
XXX VIII. Of the method of proceeding against the dead***. 455
XXXIX.. . Of the manner of proceeding against houses 457
XL How the sentences are pronoimced, and the condemned
persons delivered over to the secular arm 458
XLI Of an act of Faith. 463
XLII. . • . Memoirs of Persons who have suffered the terrors of Inqui-
sitorial Persecution 493
XLIII.... On the re-establishment of the Inquisition in Spain, by the
decree of Ferdinand VII . • • • • 630
%/W%V%'V«.X^^/«.
Directions to the Binder.
The Standard of the Inquisition to face the Title.
The Table of the Inquisition to face Page 246.
The Procession of the Inquisition for the burning of Heretics to face Page 472.
J Catalogue of the Axdliors out of whose writings the history
of the INQUISITION is principally drawn.
DIRECTORIUM Inquisitorum Fr. Nicolai Eymerici Ord- Praed.
cum Commenlariis Francisci Pcgnae J V. D. Romance in aedibus populi
Romani, 1535, fol. Eymericus was born at Girona in Catalonia, was a
Predicant Monk, and flourished in the papacy of Urban V and Gregory
XL and in the reign of Peter IV. King of Aragon. He was made In-
quisitor General about the year 1358, and succeeded Nicholas Rosell^
He was made a Cardinal, An. 1356- He died Jan. 4, 1393, having
executed the ofiice of the Holy Inquisition for forty-four years
together.
Pegna was a Spaniard, of the Kingdom of Aragon, made Auditor of
the Roman Rota, in the room of Christopher Robusterius,Oct 14, 1588.
He was advanced to the Deanery of the same court, June 9, 1604, in
the room of Cardinal Jerom Pamphilii, and died in that Deanery, Aag.
21, 1612.
Francisci Pegnae Instructio, seu Praxis Inquisitorum, cum annotatio-
nibus Caesaris Carense. Lugduni 1669, post Carenas tractatum de Offi-
cio SS- Inquisitionis. fol.
Guidonis Fulcodii, qucestiones quindecim ad Inquisitores; cum anno*
tationibus Caesaris Carens, ibid. Fulcodius was a Cardinal, and after-
wards Pope, by the name of Clement IV.
Lucerna Inpuisitorum Fr. Bernardi Comensis, cum annot. Francisci
Pegnae, impressa Romas cum licentia Superiorum, ex officina Bartholo-
maei Grassi, 158 1,
Jacobus Simancas de Catholicis Inslitutionibus. Simancas was Bishop
of Badajoz in the kingdom of Portugal, and province of Estremadura.
Joannes a Royas, de haereticis corumque impia intentione et credu-
litate. Royas was a Licentiate of the Canon and Civil Law, Inquisitor
of heretical pravity at.Valence in Spain.
Zenchini Ugolini tractatus de haereticis : cum additionibus Fr. Gamilli
Campegii. Z. Ugolinus was a law) er of Rimini in Italy.
C. Campegius was a Predicant Friar, and Inquisitor General in all
the territories of Ferrara.
ConradusBrunus de haereticis and schismaticis, lib. 6.
Forma procedendi contra haereticos, seu inquisitor de haeresi, ct in
causa hajresis. Autor crcditur Joannes Calderinus.
Hi quinque autores exstant in Parte IL Tom. XI. tractatum ill ustrium
Juris consuUorum, quaeagit, de judiciis criminalibus S. Inquisitionis.
Xvi A CATALOGUE OF AUTHORS, &C.
Ludovicus a Paramo, de Origine et Progressu Officii Sanctas Inqui-
sitionis, ej usque dignilate et utilitate. Madriti,ex Typographia Regia,
CIO ID xciix. fol. Ludovicus a Paramo was archdeacon and canon of
Leon, a city in Spain, and inquisitor of the kingdom of Sicily.
Antonii de Sousa, Aphorismi Inquisitorum. Lugduni, apud Anisson.
1069, 8vo. Sousa was a Portuguese of Lisbon, a Predicant Friar, Mas-
ter of Divinity, and counsellor to the King and the tribunal of the su-
preme Inquisition.
Caesaris Carenae, tractatus de Office Sanctissimae Inquisitionis, etmodo
procedendi in causis fidei. Lugdoni apud Anisson, 1669, fol. Carena,
D. D. was auditor of Cardinal Comporeus, Judge Conservator, Counsel-
lor, and Advocate Fiscal of the Holy Office.
Reignaldi Gonsalvi Montani Sanctas Inquisitionis Hispanicae artes
aliquot detectae ac palam traductae. Heidelbergae 1597, 8vo.
Pauli Servitae Historia Inquisitionis, prassertim prout in Dominio
Veneto observatur.
Relation de I'lnquisition de Goa, 12mo. a Paris, 1687.
I Memoires de la Cour d'Espagne, 12mo. a la Haye, 1691.
Abraham! Bzovii Annalium Ecclesiasticorum Baronii Continuatio,
Antwerpiae, 1617.
Annales Ecclesia^tici ex Tomis octo ad unum pluribus auctum rc-
dacti; Autore Odorico Raynaldo. Romae ex Typographia Varesii,
1657. Raynaldus was of Treviso, Presbyter of the Congregation of the
Oratory.
Compendium Bullarii Flavii Cherubini. Lugdini apud Laurentium
Durand, 1624, 4to.
Lucae Wadding! Annales Miaorum, in quibus res onines trium Ordi-
num Franciscanorum tractanur. Lugduni, 1625, fol.
Jacobi Augusti Thuani Historia sui temporis.
Jacobus Usserius Archiepiscopus Armachanus de Successione Eccle-
siarum in Occidentis praesertim partibus-
Giber Sententiarum InpuisitionisTholosana.
Liber Catenatus, MS. inter archiva Capituli S. Salvatoris, Trajecti
ad Rhenum.
Glossariura ad Scriptores mediae et insimse Latinitatis Carol! du
Fresne Domini du Cange. Lutet. Paris, 1678, fol.
Domini Maori Hierolexicon. Romac, 1677, fol.
HISTORICAL SURVEY
OF
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH,
The history of that Ecclesiastical Court, denominated by a
strange and imposing perversion, The Holy Inquisition, the
very name of which has excited the terror of thousands and tens
of thousands, and whose existence leaves a lasting stain upon the
annals of mankind, so naturally connects itself with the history
of the church, from whose corruptions this prodigious evil
grew, that it may be proper to take a rapid survey of the progress
and corruption of Christian doctrine during the early ages, in
order more correctly to exhibit the gradual advances of that
ecclesiastical domination, which at length assumed an universal
sway ; impiouslv affecting to dispose of heaven and earth, and
in its rage and cruelty adopting, in the most sanguinary of
tribunals, a system of despotism, the most horrible that has
ever afflicted the imagination or wrung the hearts of human
kind — whose records ought never to be forgotten, but be trans-
mitted from generation to generation, as a perpetual warning
to governments and people, when surrendering those rights
which are inseparable from the well-being of man, either as an
individual, or as connected in the bonds of friendship and
society.
That gracious dispensation of mercy wliich the sacred scrip-
tures have denominated " The glorious gospel of the blessed
God,"* whilst it has claims of eternal obhgation upon tlie mind
■ 1 Tim. i, 11.
5 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
of man, being accompanied by an evidence and influence pecu-
liarly its own, having been prefigured by ancient ceremonies,
foretold by prophets, introduced by miracles, sealed by sacred
blood, and secured by the oath of an unchanging God — has
by its promulgation, gathered in the present world a church out
of every nation, " kindred, tongue, and people," ^ against
which " the gates of hell shall not prevail;"' a church which
has continued, and will continue, to the end of time, under the
guardian eye of him who will at length "present it to himself
a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such
thing,''** to abide in his presence and go no more out for ever.<=
This gospel of the grace of God, so universal in its applica-
tion, commanding, yea, entreating " all men every where to
repent"^ and "be reconciled to God,"? is in its preaching
compared unto a net cast into the sea, •» and gathering
thereout a promiscuous multitude of every sort both bad and
good. The church of Christ, therefore, in an extended sense,
comprehends all those who are thus gathered from the world,
to an external profession of its doctrines — in a restricted import
it admits only those who appear to be influenced by divine
precepts. The term is here employed in its greatest latitude,
whilst the History of the Christian Church, according to ex-
ternal profession, is briefly considered.
The history of the Christian church during the apostolic age
is happily so much within the reach of every reader, as to ren-
der it unnecessary to advert to its infant state, or to dwell at
- large upon its most early progress ; a remark or two will there-
fore suffice in rapidly passing over that instructive period which
is embraced by the sacred records.
When the divine Author of the Christian faith had accom-
plished the gracious designs of his mission on the earth, and
was about to ascend up into heaven, he commanded his disci-
ples to promulgate his doctrine in the following words : " Go
ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creok-
iurer^
,* Rev. V, 0. ^ Matt, xvi, 18. * Ephes. ▼, 27. « Rev. iii, 12.
' Act* xvii, 20. 6 2 Cor. v, 20. "» Matt, xiii, 47,
' Mark xvi, 15.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 8
Before, however, they proceeded to the execution of this
high command, the Saviour instructed his disciples to wait
certain days at Jerusalem, that they might receive the commu-
nication of "power from on high;"^ and when the day of
Penteco§t was fully come, he displayed upon them that trans-
cendant miracle The Gift of Tongues, a gift which, whilst
it filled the gazing multitude with wonder, enabled " Par-
thians and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopo-
tamia, and in Judea and Cappadocia, in Pontus and Asia,
Phrygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Lybia,
about Cyrene, and strangers at Rome, Jews and proselytes,
Cretes and Arabians, to hear them speak, in their own tongue,
the wonderful works of God." ^
This gift of the Holy Spirit, besides the communication of
language, was also productive of other great effects on the
minds of the disciples.
In consequence of that darkness which sin has introduced
into the moral world, they were Hable to mistake the nature
of their embassy, and even did enquire of the Messiah after he
had risen, if he would now restore again the Jewish poHty; "
but his answer referred them to this great event, the enlighten-
ing of this Holy Spirit — the promise of the Father — the Guide
into all Truth.
The disciples of Jesus Christ, after he had accomplished the
period of his ministry on earth, were to be deprived of his
personal protection, of his counsels, and his visible presence;
and in the view of this he consoled them in the most tender
language," whilst he assured them they should receive this
sacred Spirit, the comforter to abide with them for ever. The
disciples were also subject lo human fears, and often felt a dis-
position to compromise somewhat for their personal safety.
Hence, when the Saviour spake of his death, Peter replied," Be
it far from thee. Lord."" ° When his enemies actually laid their
hands on him, notwithstanding they had seen him walk upon
the sea, still with a word the raging storm, and raise the dead,
we behold them deserting him in his greatest danger; and
* Luke xxiv, 49, ' Acts ii. 9. "* Acts i, 6. " John xiv.
• Matt, xvi, 22.
B g
4 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
Peter, regardless of the strong assurances he had given to his
divine Master of attachment, even thrice denied the knowledge
of his person. ? But what a change is observable in their his-
tory when they are influenced by the Holy Spirit. Now, in-
stead of flying from personal danger, they can use this language
to a threatening judicature, " Whether it be right in the sight
of God to hearken unto you more than unto God judge ye :
for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and
heard." ^ Now they rejoice when counted worthy to sufi*er
for his name who endured for them the "contradiction of
sinners against himself" ■■ No longer expecting an earthly
kingdom, and a heaven below, they glory in tribulation, and
fix their eyes on an immortal crown.
As there may probably be occasion to advert to such a topic,
it may not be amiss here to enquire a httle into the manner
in which the Redeemer qualified his disciples for the exercise
of the ministry ; because it is fairly to be presumed, that only
those who follow in their footsteps can lay claim to a similarity
of character, for " by their fruits ye shall know them." In
their conduct before the world then the Saviour appears in the
whole tenour of his doctrine, as well as by his own bright ex-
ample, to have taught them to be inoffensive ; — this appears to
have been his greatest lesson — to suffer, but to do no wrong,
*« Love," said he " your enemies, bless them that curse you,
do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which des-
pitefully use you and persecute you."* " Behold I send you
forth as sheep in the midst of wolves ; be ye, therefore, wise as
serpents, and harmless as doves." * Far from being authorised
to make use of fleshly weapons in their spiritual warfare, they
were for warned " that all they that take the sword shall
perish with the sword," " and instead of indulging in furi-
ous anger against those who did not receive the doctrines they
advanced, the most serious step enjoined was, an act of the
most significant yet affectionate separation, " Go your ways
out into the streets and say. Even the very dust of your city,
which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you ; notwith-
• Luke xxii, 57. ^ Acts iv, 19. ' Heb. xii, .3. • Mat. v, 44.
* Mat. X, 16. • Mat. xxTJ, 62.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 5
Standing, be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come
nigh unto you"'
If these then were the instructions which proceeded from the
lips of Jesus Christ, relative to the spirit and temper in which
he would have the ministry of his word exercised ; by what
strange concurrence and perversion could it arise, that persecU"
tion should be adopted in the propagation of the gospel. To
employ external violence, in order to produce conviction of die
mind, must be considered an absurdity of the grossest kind : and
to assert that a religion introduced to the world by the angehc
song of, " peace on earth, good-will towards men," sanctions
the use of fire and sword for its promotion, involves a contradic-
tion as glaring as to affirm, that the sun can cause darkness, or
the showers of heaven drought : it cannot be — it is not in the
gospel of Christ, that a sanction can be found for such a prac-
tice. Every species of persecution, as well as " all the wars and
massacres, which have usually been styled religious, and with
the entire guilt of which Christianity has been very unjustly
loaded, have been altogether owing to causesof a very different
nature — to the ambition, the resentment, the avarice, the rapa-
city of princes and conquerors (or of lesser tyrants) who assum-
ed the mask of religion, in order to veil then* real purposes, and
who pretended to fight (or persecute) in the cause of God and his
church, when they had in reahty, nothing else in view, than to
advance their power and authority, or extend their dominion." ^
But to return.
The scriptures take up the history of the church and carry
it on directly or indirectly, to about the year QQ^ at which pe-
riod the doctrines of the gospel had been taught and received in
a large portion of the then known world : according to credible
records, it appears to have been preached in Idumea, Syria,
and Mesopotamia, by Jude ; in Egypt, Mamorica, Mauritania,
and other parts of Africa, by Mark, Simeon and Jude; in
Ethiopia, by the Eunuch and Matthias ; in Pontus, Galatia,
and the neighbouring parts of Asia, by Peter ; in the territories
of the seven Asiatic Churches, by John ; in Parthia, by Mat-
thew ; in Scy thia, by Philip and Andrew ; in the northern
" Luke X. 11. f Poiteus' Lectures, vol. 1. 375.
6 HISTORICAL SPRVEY OF
and western parts of Asia, by Bartholomew ; in Persia, bj
Simeon and Jude; in Media, Carmania, &c. by Thomas;
from Jerusalem and round about unto Illyricum, by Paul ; as
also in Italy, and probably in Spain, Gaul, and Britain, and we
are told, that the disciples, upon the persecution which arose
about Stephen were scattered abroad, and " went every where
preaching the word/'*
This extension of doctrine, however, was unattended by
•popularity, by the applause, or even the approbation of the
world ; the profession of Christianity, at this early period, being
pure and scriptural, caused, as it will ever do, offence; the
Christians were, in consequence, a sect every where spoken
against, and the time also soon arrived, when, according to their
Lord's prediction, those who killed them thought that they did
God service*. The Apostle Paul viewed the approach of this
event, in reference to hunself, with that steady confidence which
truth alone can inspire, when, addressing his son Timothy, he
said, " I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my
departure is at hand ; I have fought a good fight, I have finish-
ed my course, I have kept the faith ; henceforth there is laid up
for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous
judge shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but unto
all them also that love his appearing^. The apostle's death
took place, according to the most credible records, shortly after;
he having been condemned in the 12th year of the reign of
Nero, the same year in which Peter, according to Jerome,
was sacrificed.
In the year 64, Nero, whose infamous conduct was too gross
here to admit of a description, and who had exhausted all
the sources of criminal pleasure, at length sought his gratifi-
cation in the sufferings of others, and let loose his fury upon
the Christians. Tacitus acquaints us with the pretended causes
of the hatred which he displayed against them, and which
produced the first general persecution. — That inhuman empe-
ror, having, as was supposed, set fire to the city of Rome ; to
avoid the imputation of this wickedness, transferred it to the
' AcU viii, 4. * John xvi, 2. ► 2 Tim. iv, 6.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. (
Ciiristians ; and after informing us that they were ah-eady and
justly abhorred on account of their " many and enormous
crimes,'' «= Tacitus thus proceeds. " The author of this name
(Christians) was Christ, who in the reign of Tiberius, was exe-
cuted under Pontius Pilate procurator of Judea. The pestilent
superstition was for a while suppressed, but it revived again and
spread not only over Judea, where this evil was first broached, but
reached Rome, whither from every quarter of the earth is con-
stantly flowing whatever is hideous and abominable amongst
men, which is there readily embraced ^nd practised. First, there-
fore, Mere apprehended such as openly avowed themselves to be
of that sect; then by themAvere discovered an immense multitude,
and all were convicted, not of the crime of burning Rome, but
of hatred and enmity to mankind. Their death and tortures
were aggravated by cruel derision and sport ; for they were
either covered with the skins of wild beasts, and torn in pieces
by devouring dogs, or fastened to crosses, or wrapped up in
combustible garments, that when the day light failed, they
might, hke torches, serve to dispel the darkness of the night.
Hence towards the miserable sufferers, however guilty and
deserving the most exemplary punishment, compassion arose,
seeing they were doomed to perish, not with a view to the pub-
lic good, but to gratify the cruelty of one man."'^ Shortly
after, however, the period we are now contemplating, the wretch-
ed emperor Nero, unable to bear the load of disgrace which
popular opinion heaped on his existence, destroyed himself,
* How frequently has this early pattern of ignorant intolerance, been
imitated by those who sustain a far different character, and how often has
an nndiscriminating zeal represented as odious those opinions which a
little attention would have shewn in a very different point of light ;
enquiring a little further into these heavy charges, we find these " many and
enormous crimes," consisted in their being called Christians and refusing to
offer sacrifice to idols.
* Learned men are not altogether agreed concerning the persecution of
Nero, some confining it to the city of Rome, while others represent it as hav-
ing raged throughout the whole empire. The latter opinion, which is also
the most ancient, is undoubtedly to be preferred, as it is certain that the
laws enacted against the Christians, were enacted against the whole body,
and not against particular churches
B 4
S HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
A. D. 68, — which put an . end to this horrid and destructive
butchery.
In the mean time, the Jews at Jerusalem were filling up the
measure of their iniquities, and preparing themselves for that
heavy vengeance which fell on them, in the utter destruction of
their city and temple, and the slaughter and dispersion of their
nation, described at large, by Josephus, when nearly one million
and a half of that devoted people, perished by famine and the
sword.
The persecution of Nero was succeeded by another under
Domitian, when the apostle John was banished to Patmos,
where he wrote the book called his Revelation, A. D. 96.
During this century of the church, though doubtless the most
pure, several corruptions of doctrine were introduced, the
principal of which was that of those Judaising teachers, who,
desirous of uniting the Jewish with the Christian dispensation,
asserted that unless the believers in Jesus were circumcised,
and observed the law of Moses, they could not be saved. These
notions, so entirely subversive of the very basis of the Gospel,
received the pointed attention of the apostles, and on another
occasion drew forth the invaluable epistle of Paul to the
Galatian churches. Some misguided persons also were desirous
of uniting the eastern philosophy with the gospel; whilst
many, in a spirit of pride and vain glory, endeavoured to ele-
vate themselves even above the apostles^ as alluded to in the
epistles of Paul and of John; and from hence arose the
several sects of the Gnostics, Cerinthians, Nicolaitans, Naza-
renes, Ebeonites, &c. to the disturbance of the church and its
unity. With regard to modes of worship and ceremonies,
during this century, it is impossible to speak with certainty :
the Scriptures alone are the authentic record.
The second century commences with the third year of the
emperor Trajan. He ascended the throne of the Caesars in
the year 98, and conferred the government of the province of
Bithynia upon Pliny, whose character has been styled one of
the most amiable in all pagan antiquity. The persecuting
laws against the Christians were still in force ; but Phny hesi-
tated in applying them, until he had consulted Trajan on the
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 9
subject, which he did by a letter' written about the year
106 or 107. This letter, is a very valuable fragment of anti-
quity, because it affords authentic information respecting the
conduct of the early Chiistians and their judges. It is as fol-
lows:
C Pliny to the Emperor Trajan, wishes health.
Sire, It is customary with me to consult you upon
every doubtful occasion; for where my own judgment hesitates,
who is more competent to direct me than yourself, or to in-
struct me where uninformed? I never had occasion to be
present at any examination of the Christians before I came
into this province : I am therefore ignorant to what extent it
is usual to inflict punishment, or urge prosecution. I have
also hesitated whether there should not be some distinction
made between the young and the old, the tender and the
robust; whether pardon should not be offered to penitence, or
whether the guilt of an avowed profession of Christianity can
be expiated by the most unequivocal retraction; whether the
profession itself is to be regarded as a crime, however innocent in
other respects the professor may be ; or whether the crimes
attached to name must be proved, before they are made liable
to punishment.
In the mean tmie, the method I have hitherto observed with
the Christians, who have been accused as such, has been as
follows. I interrogated them — Are you Christians.-^ If they
avowed it, I put the same question a second and a third time,
threatening them with the punishment decreed by the law ;
if they stiU persisted, / ordered them to be immediately exe-
cuted; for of this I had no doubt, whatever was the nature
of their religion, that such perverseness and inflexible obsti-
nacy certainly deserved punishment. Some that were infected
with this madness, on account of their privilege as Roman
citizens, I reserved to be sent to Rome, to be referred to your
tribunal.
In the discussioa*? of this matter, accusations multiplying, a
diversity of cases occurred. A schedule of names was sent
10 ^ HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
me, by an unknown accuser ; but when I cited the persons
before me, many denied the fact, that they were or ever had
been Christians, and they repeated after me an invocation of
the Gods, and of your image, which for this purpose 1 had
ordered to be brought, with the statues of the other deities.
They performed sacred rites with wine and frankincense, and
execrated Christ; none of which things, I am assured, a real
Christian can ever be compelled to do. These, therefore, I
thought proper to discharge. Others named by an informer, at
first acknowledged themselves Christians, and then denied ic ;
declaring that though they had been Christians, they had re-
nounced their profession, some years ago, others still longer,
and some even twenty years ago- All these worshipped your
imao-e, and the statues of the Gods, and at the same time
execrated Christ.
And this was the account which they gave me of the na-
ture of the religion they once had professed, whether it
deserves the name of crime or error ; namely, that they were
accustomed, on a stated day, to assemble before sun-rise, and
to join together in singing hymns to Christ as to a Deity,
binding themselves as v/ith a solemn oath, not to commit any
kind of wickedness, to be guilty neither of theft, robbery, nor
adultery ; never to break a promise, or to keep back a deposit
when called upon. Their ^ worship being concluded, it was
their custom to separate, and meet together again for a repast,
promiscuous indeed, mthout any distinction of rank or sex,
but perfectly harmless ; and even from this they desisted, since
the publication of my edict, in which, agreeably to your orders,
I forbad any societies of that sort.
For further information, I diought it necessary, in order to
come at the truth, to put to the torture two females who were
called deaconesses. But 1 could extort from them nothing,
except the acknowledgement of an excessive and depraved
superstition, and therefore, desisting from further investigation,
I determined to consult you, for the number of culprits is so
great, as to call for the most serious deliberation. Informations
are pouring in against multitudes of every age, of all orders,
and of both sexes ; and more will be impeached, for the con-
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 11
tagion of this superstition hath spread, not only through cities,
but villao-es also, and even reached the farm-houses.
I am of opinion, nevertheless, that it may be checked, and
the success of my endeavours hitherto forbids despondency ;
for the temples, once almost desolate, begin to be again fre-
quented; the sacred solemnities, which had for some time
been intermitted, are now attended afresh ; and the sacrificial
victims, which once could scarcely find a purchaser, now ob-
tain a brisk sale. Whence I infer, that many might be re-
claimed, were the hope of pardon on their repentance abso-
lutely confirmed."
Trajan to Pliny.
" My dear Pliny,
" You have done perfectly right in managing as you
have the matters which relate to the impeachment of the
Christians. No one general rule can be laid down, which will
apply to all cases; these people are not to be hunted up by
informers; but if accused and convicted let them be exe-
cuted: yet with this restriction, that if any renounce the pro-
fession of Christianity, and give proof of it, by offering sup-
phcations to our Gods, however suspicious their past conduct
may have been, they shall be pardoned on their repentance.
\But anonymous accusations should never be attended to,
since it would be establishing a precedent of the worst kind,
and altogether inconsistent with the maxims of mj govern-
These letters, whilst they afford a very pleasing view of
the exemplary conduct displayed by the first Christians, at the
same time shew the futihty of mere human accomplishments,
when a chief magistrate, an emperor, of a refined people, could
establish, as an act of justice, the taking away of hfe
for the profession of a name unconnected with any personal
impropriety.
Before proceeding further in this part of the subject, a
rery ivatursj curiosity demands, how it happened that the
12 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
Romans, who were troublesome to no nation on account of
their rrligion, and who suffered even the Jews to hve un-
der their own method of worship, treated the Christians alone
with such severity? This important question seems still more
difficult to be solved when re is considered, that the excel-
lent nature of the Christian religion, and its admirable
tendency to promote the public welfare of the state, from the
private fehcity of the individual, entitled it in a singular man-
ner to the favour and protection of the reigning powers. One of
the principal reasons of the severity with which the Romans
persecuted the Christians, notwithstanding these considerations,
seems to have been the abhorrence and contempt with which
the latter regarded the religion of the empire; which was so
intimately connected with the form, and indeed with the very
essence of its political constitution. For though the Romans
gave an unlimited toleration to all religions, which had nothing
in their tenets dangerous to the commonwealth, yet they
would not permit that of their ancestors, which was estabhshed
by the laws of the state, to be turned into derision, nor the
people to be drawn away from their attachment to it. ® In
the doctrines of the gospel, the axe was laid to the root of
the tree, and the» destruction of every false way was both
unavoidably and intentionally the consequence. Besides,
whilst the introduction of the Gospel had this effect, it supplied
no gaudy objects in the service it enjoined ; its followers were
instructed to worship the one supreme God of heaven, distin-
guished from idols, in spirit and in truth; to be ready to the
endurance of any temporal evil; to maintain a constant war-
fare with unholy and corrupt propensities; and to fix their
final hopes in steady confidence beyond the grave. Such a
religion was as httle attractive to the hcentious Roman as it
was to the Jew, involved in misunderstood ceremonies, and
therefore both its professors and its teachers were alike the
objects of disgust to each; and hence it is no wonder that
they loaded them with the grossest imputations, which
were too readily received by the unthinking multitude. They
.* Mosheim's Eccles. Hist. vol. i. 74. '
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 1$
even ciiarged them with Atheism, and asserted that all the
wars, tempests, and diseases which the nation suffered, were
judgments from the angry Gods upon them, because they
permitted the Christians to live. Hence under one reign,
upon being proved Christians, or confessing themselves such,
they were immediately dragged away to execution; unless
they gave up their profession, execrated the sacred name of
Chi'ist, and fell down to stocks and stones, to which they
were also instigated by inliuman tortures.
Among the persons who suffered under Trajan, was Igna-
tius, pastor of the church at Antioch. Trajan, making a short
stay at that place, and about to enter on the Parthian war,
the occurrence of an earthquake, which then took place, and
which was very destructive in its consequences, appears to have
roused his hatred against the Christians, and he ordered Igna-
tius to be seized, and sent to Rome, where he was exposed in
the theatre, and devoured by mid beasts.
The persecution under Trajan, commonly called the third,
appears to have continued during his whole reign, and to have
been temiinated only by his death, an event which took
place, A. D. 117.
Adrian, who succeeded Trajan, manifested a degree of
mildness compared with what his predecessors had done ; and,
in consequence, the church enjoyed a sort of interval in suffer-
ing: yet, notwithstanding, there did continue a persecution
denominated the fourth. After a reign of twenty-one years,
Adi-ian was succeeded by x\ntoninus Pius and Marcus Aurehus
Antoninus; the former of whom denounced capital punish-
raent against those who should in future accuse the Christians
without being able to prove them guilty of any crime; but
the latter issued edicts, in consequence of which the vilest
rabble were allowed to be adduced as evidence against the
followers of Jesus ; and the Christians were put to the most
barbarous tortures, and condemned to meet death in the most
cruel forms, notwithstanding their perfect innocence and per-
severing solenm denial of those horrid crimes laid to their
chai'ge. ' This, which is called the fifth persecution, induced
f Mosheim Ecc. Hist. vol.«i. ICO-l.
14 HISTORrcAL SURVEY 6T
Justin Martyr to write his first Apology, which he presented
to the emperor.
That distinguished man, Poly carp, bishop of Smyrna, whom
Usher has laboured to shew, was the angel of the church of
Smyrna, addressed by Jesus Christ, Rev. ii. 8. was martyred
in, or about the year 167. The account of his death is pre-
served by Eusebius, and, omitting some extravagancies, is in
substance as follows. The popular fury which never stays to en-
quire or to discriminate, imputed to the Christians the crime of
Atheism, because they refused to worship and sacrifice to idols.
Hence the usual cry among the disorderly multitude became,
" take away the Atheists," and after the destruction of many
lesser persons, to this was joined, *' let Polycarp be sought
for." Polycarp, far from imitating the rashness of those who
threw themselves into the hands of their persecutors, took every
lawful means for his personal safety, and retired, first to one
village, and from thence unto another ; but the place of his
retreat having been obtained by torture, from one of his
domestics, he was taken. Eusebius relates that he might even
then have escaped but he would not, saying, " the will of the
Lord be done." Hearing that the officers were come to seize
him, he came down from his chamber and conversed w^ith them,
and all present admired his firmness, some saying, " is it worth
while to apprehend so aged a person .?" Polycarp immediately
ordered meat and drink to be set before the officers, as much as
they pleased,. and having obtained one uninterrupted hour for
prayer ; he mentioned and commended all whom he had ever
known to God ; he was then set on an ass and led unto the
City.— The Irenarch Herod and his father Nifcetes, meeting him,
took him up into their chariot, and began to advise him, saying,
" what harm is it to cry. Lord Caesar ! and to sacrifice and be
safe ?" Polycarp was at first silent, but when they pressed him,
he said, "I v'ill not follow your advice .?" finding, therefore,
that they could not persuade him, they abused him, and thrust
him out of the chariot, so that in faUing he bruised his thigh.
But he still unmoved, went on cheerfully under the conduct of
his guards to the stadium.
When he was brought to the tribunal there was a great
THE CHRISTIAK CHURCH. 15
tumult, as soon as it was generally understood that Polycarp
was apprehended. The proconsul asked hhn if lie was Poly-
cai-p, to which he assented. The former then began to exhort
him. " Have pity on thy own great age !— Swear by the
fortune of Caesar !— repent!— say. Take away the Atheists !" —
Polycarp, with a grave aspect, beholding all the multitude,
waving his hands to them, and looking up to heaven, said,
" Take away the Atheists.'' The proconsul urging him, and
saying, " Swear, and I will release thee J'— reproach Christ!"
Polyciu-p said, *' Eighty and six years have I served him, and
he hath never wronged me ; and how can I blaspheme my king
who hath saved me? The proconsul still urging him, he
declared himself a Christian, and ready to instruct the pro-
consul, if he would hear. The proconsul then said, " I have
wild beasts, and will expose you to them, unless you repent.*"
" Call them !" said Polycarp, " our minds are not to be
changed." " I will tame your spirit by fire," said the former,
" since you despise the fury of beasts.'' Polycarp rephed,
" you threaten me Avith fire, which burns but for a moment,
but are ignorant of that eternal fire which is reserved for the
ungodly. But why do you delay .? — Do what you please."
The proconsul was visibly embarrassed ; he sent, however,
the herald to proclaim thrice in the vast assembly, " Polycarp
hath professed himself a Christian!" upon which all the multi-
tude, both Jews and Gentiles, demanded his blood. They im-
mediately gathered fuel from the workshops and baths, and
the fire being prepared, Polycarp laid aside his clothes, and
said to those who would have secured him in the usual
manner, " Let me remain as I am ; for he who giveth me
strength to sustain the fire, will enable me to remain unmoved."
After this, being put in the place appointed, he uttered a
prayer, and remaining sometime alive in the midst of tlie
flames, the confector was ordered to approach, and plunge
his sword through his body. «
The year 180 closed this persecution; for in the reign
of Commodus, who succeeded, and of Pertinax, who fol-
'« Blilner's Cli. Hist. vol. i. 209.
16 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
lowed in the government, a considerable degree of mildness
prevailed. Pertinax, however, having been basely assassinated,
was succeeded by Severus, who soon pursued the Christians
with the same malignity as some of his predecessors had done,
which caused great bloodshed in Asia, Eg)rpt, and the other
provinces, as related by TertuUian and others, to the close of
this century.
The corruption introduced in the first, continued and in-
creased during the second century. A great and unwarranta-
ble stress was laid on ceremonies, in order to gratify the mul-
titude; but as in every age, to the injury of truth, by with-
drawing the mind from an attentive observance of the pre-
cepts of the Gospel, under a vain idea, that the observance of
the former could supply the place of the latter. In addition to
this, there appears to have been a great account of mysteries; by
which it was insinuated, that the forms of worship had a hidden
and peculiar power, considered in themselves, and apart from
their apparent meaning ; a doctrine well calculated to inspire an
ignorant veneration for forms as well as ministers, and which evi-
dently might contribute to render Christianity, if not accepta-
ble, at least not so disgusting, to the heathen, whose religion,
if it may be so called, consisted in a multitude of mysterious
observances. By means such as these, the Christian Pastors
gradually obtained a power, which, as it may be supposed,
they did not always rightly employ: hence arose dictation
of creeds on one hand, and blind obedience on the other.
While some, who acted in the character of ministers, suc-
ceeded in persuading the people that the Christians had suc-
ceeded to the rights and immunities of the Jewish priesthood,
and that Christian bishops should be regarded as the high
priests of that dispensation, as well as others in inferior grada-
tions of authority ; a notion which produced for them both ho-
nour and profit.
In this century also, the form of church government was
adopted, which appeared to give a regularity and dependance
to the whole body. Before this period, every church had its
officers, and considered itself bound to no other, except by the
ties of aifection ; but it was now established, that distinction
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 17
in dignity and authority was to be maintained ; and all the
churches in a district or province, were to be confederated and
assembled at intenals, to discuss the concerns of the whole;
an arrangement which conveyed a large increase of power to
the clergy, which, although it did not instantly, yet finally,
produced immense mischiefs ; as in process of time, they lost
sight of their original designation, and no longer considering
themselves the delegates of the churches, asserted an authority
to prescribe laws and issue commands. Ecclesiastical councils
had, besides, the effect of destroying the equality of the
churches, and their Bishops or Pastors ; and whilst in these
public assemblies, degrees in dignity began to be observed,
a spirit of domination was gradually introduced; a new order
of Ecclesiastics, invented under the title of Patriarchs ; and
finally, when ambition and the love of power had gained its
height, the catalogue was rendered complete, by investing the
bishop of Rome with supreme dignity, in the denomination of
the Prince of the Patriarchs.
Of the peculiarities of doctrine in the second century,
the tenets of the Ascetics form the distinguishing feature. —
The doctrines of this sect consisted principally in austerities,
which, in some cases, went near to the extinction of life ; for
they considered themselves bound to practise fastings, watch-
ings, labour, and self-denial, even to the exclusion of the most
necessary comforts, and, by a perv^ersion the most destructive,
sought happiness in solitary meditation, which, if it promoted
in them the love of God, and that may be fairly doubted,
can hardly be supposed conducive to the love of man, which
is only to be expressed in a state of society, not of solitude.
Hence arose, in after times, a multitude of puerile observ-
ances, which first beclouded, and afterwards almost extin-
guished, every Christian doctrine, among the diversified orders
of Monks, Nuns, &c. &c.
The reign of Severus terminated in the early part of the
third century. He was succeeded by his son Caracalla ; who,
during his government, which lasted six years, exercised great
lenity towards the Christians: a feeling which appears to have
existed until the government devolved on Maximin, who
18 ^HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
commenced the seventh persecution, and whose cruelty was of
the darkest land. But he reigned only three years, and from
h\s death to the succession of Decius, the church enjoyed com-
parative quietness ; though in that outward peace she lost much
of her internal purity, and exhibited tokens of degeneracy both
in faith and practice. No sooner, however, had Decius as-
cended the throne, than he caused persecution to fall on them
with redoubled fury. He issued edicts, commanding the prae-
tors, on pain of death, either to extirpate the whole of the
Christians, or to compel them, by torment, to renounce their
rehgion, and return to the pagan worship; and, in consequence,
during the space of two years, multitudes of Christians were
put to death in all the provinces. The eighth and ninth per-
secutions bring down the history of the church to the close of
the third century ; during which many of its brightest oma-
naments sealed its doctrines with their blood.
In those intervals of peace which the church enjoyed in the
course of this centmy, large additions were made to the number
of converts, though, as has been already hinted with little ad-
vantage to her purity, for an increase of ceremonies prevailed ;
alterations were made in the manner of celebrating the Lord's
Supper, by the introduction of a great degree of external ap-
pearance and of splendour. Vessels of gold and of silver being
used, whilst it was in itself considered so essential to salvation
as even to be administered to infants. The doctrine of posses-
sion by evil spirits was also maintained, and they were supposed
to be expelled by baptism, on which account persons baptized
were arrayed in white. Fasting also attained a particular credit
in this period, and the sign of the cross in token of protection.
At the commencement of the fourth century, the church en-
joyed toleration, but the Pagan priests, foreseeing probably the
destruction of their emoluments, instigated Dioclesian and Ga-
lerius Cassar, by whom a sanguinary persecution was begun in
303, which lasted eight years ; at length, however, Galerius
being afflicted with a di'eadful disease, ordered these severities
to cease, which closed the tenth persecution. The period now
approaches when the civil authority united with the church
under Constantine, and when matters of faith became the object
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 19
of civil government ; how far such an alliance comports with
the declaration of Jesus Christ, respecting the nature of his
kingdom,'' the reader may determine for himself; but its ill
effects on the rights and habits of men, will, be amply apparent
in the following pages.
When Constantine ascended the throne, he not only relieved
the Christians from the anxieties of suffering, but he afterwards
turned the stream of persecution, and issued edicts, forbidding
every religion but the Christian.
- The first effect, resulting from the union of the church and
the state under Constantine, appears to have been, that of
producing a great degree of pride among the Clergy, who
noAV knew no bounds to theii' ambition. Thus exhibiting the
striking difference Avhich exists between a rehgion every where
spoken against ; a profession of which must be made at the
hazard of hfe, and one patronised by the civil power, and con-
nected wdth fixed emoluments and splendid dignity. For ex-
perience ever shews, that Christians become corrupt, in pro-
portion as they become secular, and wherever the apostohcal
inj unction i is exceeded, and the spirit of the world admitted in
an eager pursuit of present objects, all the graces which adorn
the Christian character become proportionally sullied.
The bishop of Rome, the superior city, soon began, by a
very natural consequence, to claim ecclesiastical pre-eminence,
and, as external authority had now become the adjunct of
spiritual power, he exceeded all others in the splendour of the
church over which he presided ; in the riches of his revenue and
possessions ; in the number and variety of his ministers ; in
his credit with the people, and in his sumptuous and splendid
manner of living; and therefore when a vacancy occurred in this
office it became the object of contention, and frequently of dis-
turbance, in the city of Rome; a remarkable instance of which
occurred in the year 366, when upon the death of Liberius,
an election took place, and when two persons were chosen by
opposite parties to the same office, a choice which each endea-
voured to enforce by open violence, and the most hateful
means. The splendour, which at this period attended the
* John x\iii. 36. ' I Tim. vi. 8
c a
20 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
bishop of Rome, therefore, was considerable, though nothing
in compai'ison of that which belonged to the office in after times;
for though they claimed, they liad not actually attained, supre-
macy.
The arrangements made by Constantine respecting the civil
and ecclesiastical government were of the following kind. To
the four bishops of Rome, Constantinople, Antioch, and Alex-
andria was given a pre-eminence, probably under the title 'patri-
arch ; answering to these in the civil government, he created
four praetorian prefects ; next to these in dignity were the exarchs;
then followed the metropolitans, having authority over a single
province, after these were the archbishops, and beneath these
the bishops : to these latter were at first added the cJiorepiscopi,
or superintendants of country churches, an order however, soon
after discontinued by the bishops, who found it to infringe on
their power and authority. Constantine divided the adminis-
tration into external and internal, — the internal relating to
the forms of worship, the offices of priests, the conduct of the
ecclesiastics, &c. he committed to the esclesiastical officers be-
fore enumerated, and the decision of counsels, — the external
administration embracing whatever related to the outward state
of the church, he reserved to himself — In consequence of this
arrangem-ent Constantine and his successors, convened councils
in which they presided, appointed the judges in religious contro-
versies, decided on the differences which arose between ministers
and people, arranged the extent of ecclesiastical possessions, and
punished crimes against the civil laws, by the ordinary judges.
It is not intended here to enter on the wide question of
national estabhshments ; if it were, the present period would
afford a powerful argument, on the impolicy and impiety of at-
tempting to blend those things, which are ordained to be kept
asunder; iron and clay, though they may be mingled, they can-
not be united. Every thing is beautiful in its own order. If
the civil magistrate bear rule without intrusion, he will protect
those whom he governs, 'n\ the quiet enjoyment of then- rights,
as men ; taking proper care for the punishment of such " evil
doers" as infringe on those rights, according to the provisions of
civil law. Like a wise physician, he will consider at large tlie
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 21
political body, and from time to time, apply those remedies which
incidental derangements require. If he be himself a Christian,
lie will rejoice in the privilege, and exhibit as an individual in
his exalted station, the influence of Christian principles ; in the
wisdom of his decisions, and the brightness of his example.
From consistent views, studiously avoiding the assumption of
an authority not his own, he will fear to touch the conscience,
knowing that it is sacred, and accountable to one Being only
in the universe, whose prerogative alone it is, " to search the
heart and ti-y the reins of the children of men."
Constantine who probably had no apprehension of the irre-
concileable nature of spiritual and temporal power, found how-
ever the difficulty of drawing the line of separation, so that
both in the fourth and fifth centuries, there are frequent instances
of the emperors determining matters purely ecclesiastical, and
likewise of bishops and councils, determining matters which re-
late to civil government.
The emperor having now established his mixed government,
soon felt his own dignity connected with that of the superior
ecclesiastical officers, and having removed the seat of empire to
Constantinople, a city which he had named after himself, and
which he intended should become a second Rome ; permitted
the bishop of Constantinople to advance in precedence, and in a
council held at that city in 381, his pretensions were estabhshed,
and he was placed by the third canon of that council, in the first
rank after the bishop of Rome, a preference which not only
occasioned the bitter hatred of the bishops of Alexandria, but at
length produced those contentions between the bishops of Rome
and Constantinople, which being carried on for many ages,
ended at length in the separation of the Greek and Latin
churches.
Wealth and power present the same strong temptations in
every age. — If the way to these at one period lie through the
field of war, we read of heroes and conquerors. If at another,
through the shady paths of intellect, scholastic speculations
become the subject of history ; but if only through the sacred
portal of religion, the most disgusting objects are presented to
our view, the pure principles of truth, are either distorted or
22 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
suppressed, and the temple of God becomes a den of thieves.
As long, indeed, as man continues what he is, a compound of
flesh and spirit, lie will always be subject to an overweening at-
tachment to the things of the present life ; this is an infirmity
which attends the Christian in every age. But there is a
striking difference between a man who, from the operation of
heavenly principles, keeps the world beneath him, using but not
abusing it, and he who makes it the object of his worship.
When by the union now contemplated, religion became the high
road to state favour and worldly grandeur; the votaries of
these began to crowd the court, and to study, with all their
efforts, the external appearances of sanctity. Religion be-
came the fashionable pursuit ; and all the powers of invention
were soon pressed into service. Hence under one period one,
and under another, a new species of puerility became substituted
in the room of solid virtue : not indeed entirely to the exclusion
of every good, because under the most utter wretchedness and
debasiement God hath ever taken care to preserve unto him-
self a seed to serve him.
After Constantine had arranged his state officers and church
officers, a task of easy accomplishment among men accustomed
to feel the terrors of heathen government, and who were elated
with the hope of better times, he soon found a difficulty arise,
for v/hich he had omitted to provide, and which has attended
every similar institution; namely, that of producing Uniform-
ity of Faith. "In an assembly of the Presbyters of Alex-
andria, the bishop of that city, whose name was Alexander,
expressing his sentiments respecting the nature of Jesus Christ,
maintained, among other things, that he was not only of the
same nature and dignity, but also of the same essence with
the Father. This assertion was opposed by Arius, one of
the Presbyters, a man of a subtle turn, and remarkable for
his eloquence ; whether his zeal for his own opinions, or per-
sonal resentment against his bishop, was the motive that influ-
enced him is not very certain ; be this as it will, he first treated
as false the assertion of Alexander, on account of its affinity
to the Sabellian errors which had been condemned by the churchy
and then running himself into the opposite extreme, he main-
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 23
tained that the Son was totally and essentially distinct from
the Fatlier, — that he was the first and noblest of these beings,
whom God the Father had created out of nothing, the instru-
ment by whose subordinate operation the Almighty Father
formed the universe, and therefore inferior to the Father both in
nature aud dignity.''"^ These opinions, by the talent with
which their author supported them, soon gained a number of
adherents and produced a separation between Arius and Alex-
ander. Constantine, who beheld the growing evil with anxious
solicitude, finding the breach become wider and wider, he himself
interposed, in the hope of re-uniting the dispXitants, and addres-
sed letters to them at Alexaudria, exhorting them to lay aside
their differences and be reconciled to each other; he declared,
that after having examined the rise and progress of the dispute,
he found that the differences between them, were not by any
means such, as to justify furious contention ; he tells Alexander,
that he had required a declaration of their sentiments respecting
a silly empty question; — and Arius, that he had imprudently
uttered what he should not even have thought of, or what at
least, he should have kept secret in his own bosom, — that
questions about such things ought not to have been asked ; if
asked, should not have been answered: that they proceeded
from an idle fondness for disputation, and were in themselves of
so high and difficult a nature as that they could not be exactly
comprehended, or suitably explained : and that to insist on such
points before the people, could produce no other effect, than to
make some of them talk blasphemy, and others turn schismatics.
These efforts of the Emperor, however prudently directed, fail-
ed of their desired effect; he found the evil too deeply rooted
to be eradicated, and therefore, determined on calling in the
assistance of the bishops in assembly ; — accordingly he issued
letters to the bishops of all the provinces, and assembled the
first general council of Nice, in Bithynia, A. D. 325 ; ' the
total number of persons who sat in this council was about two
thousand and fifty, tluree hundred and eighteen of whom were
bishops ; — on the day appointed, this assembly met in a large
^ Mosheira Ecc. Hist. vol. i. 412.
' Euscbius Life of Con»tantiue, B. i. Ch 63. in Jones's Walden»e».
^M HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
room of the palace. The bishops ai\d clergy having taken then
places, they remained standing, waiting the arrival of the em-
peror. At length Constantine appeared, surrounded by his
friends, (says Eusebius), like an angel of God, exceeding all
his attendants, in size, gracefulness, and strength, dazzling all
eyes with the splendour of his dress, but shewing the greatest
humility in his manner of walking, gesture and behaviour, and
having placed himself in the midst of the upper part of the
loom near a low chair, covered with gold, did not sit down, till
desired to do so by the fatliers. — When the assembly had taken
their seats, Eustathius, patriarch of Antioch, rose and addres-
sed the emperor, giving thanks to God on his account, and
congratulating the church, on the prosperity brought about
through him, and particularly on the subversion of the heathen
worship. — The emperor then rose, and addressed the assembly
in Latin, expressing his happiness at seeing them all met on so
glorious an occasion, as that of amicably settHng their differences,
which he said, had given him more concern than all his wars ;
but having ended these, he desired nothing more than the
setthng the peace of the church, and concluded, by recommend-
ing it to them, to remove every cause of future distention.
That which now followed, however, could not have been
very consonant to the pacific views of Constantine, for some of
the bishops present, thinking this a favourable opportunity for
promoting their separate interests, delivered into his hands
letters of complaint against each other ; — these complaints were
at first made by word, personally : but Constantine, requested
they would put them into writing, and when they delivered
them to him, he put the whole of them unopened into the fire,
telling them, that it did not belong to him to decide on the dif-
ferences of Christian bishops, and that the hearing of them,
must be deferred until the day of judgment. Having thus
been softened, in regard to their personal animosities, the
assembly began to turn their attention to the object of their
meeting together, and after a deliberation of more than two
months, agreed upon a summary of matters to be believed, and
which was thence denominated the Nicene Creed. As soon as
this formulary had been assented to, it was transmitted to Rome,
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 25
>vhere it was confirmed in a council of two hundred and seventy-
five bishops, in these words : "We confirm with oui* mouth, that
whicli has been decreed at Nice, a city of Bithynia, by the
three hundred and eighteen holy bishops, for tlie good of the ,
CuthoUc and Apostolic church, mother of the faithful; we
anathematize all those, who shall dare to contradict the
decrees of the great and holy council, which was assembled at
Nice, in the presence of that most pious and venerable prince,
the emperor Constantine :"" — to this all the bishops answered,
" We consent to it." Thus was the authority of councils
exalted above that of him from whom it was profissedly
derived, a foundation laid for the unbounded influence of the
clergy, the riglit of private judgment violated, and the world
at large commanded to believe any thing, and at any time
which the church ordained should be believed, a doctrine, it is
true, without which no union of spiritual and temporal power
can be supposed to exist, but which, when once established
and FULLY acted upon, could not possibly fail to produce all
that superstition, idolatry, grossness of mind, and cruelty,
which characterizes so large a portion of ecclesiastical history,
until the man of sin became fully revealed, exalting himself
above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, so that at
length he, as God, sat in the temple of God. ^
When Constantine and his clergy had, according to their
own ideas, overcome this radical difficulty in their mixed go-
vernment, by the formation of a creed, which should produce
unifonnity in this new and complex body, the next step before
them was to procure its universal reception, and as argument
cannot be supposed to have any place with dictation, the most
obvious, and indeed the only method by which this end could
be obtained was that of civil penalty, that those who refused
to believe might be compelled to suffer. Constantine at first
wrote letters enjoining the people to believe the creed now
established, which he asserted was by the command of God,
and framed by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. These let-
ters were mild and gentle at the first ; but he was soon per-
suaded by the bishops to exhibit great zeal for the extinction
•• 2 Tim. iii.
Og HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
of heresy, and issued edicts against those whom they repre-
sented as its abettors, denominating them " enemies of truth,
destructive counsellors, Sec." forbidding their public meetmgs,
and giving their places of assembly to the church. He banished
Arius, and decreed that his books should be burnt; and that if
any should dare to keep any one of them, as soon as this was
proved he should suifer death !
Such were the difficulties, and such the conduct, of the first
ruler who governed under the profession of Christianity,
Constantine the Great ; " "a prince, whose character,'' says Gib-
bon, " has fixed the attention and divided the opinions of
mankind : his person as well as mind had been enriched by
nature with her choicest endowments. His stature was lofty,
his countenance majestic, his deportment graceful: in the
dispatch of business his diligence was indefatigable ; and the
active powers of liis mind were almost continually exercised in
reading, writing, or meditating, in giving audience to ambassa-
dors, or in examining the complaints of his subjects. The
general peace which he maintained during the last foui'teen
years of his life, was a period of apparent splendour rather
than of real prosperity, and the old age of Constantine was
sullied by the opposite yet reconcileable vices of rapaciousness
and prodigality."^
l^he History of what is called the Chiistian Church from this
time forward becomes a pretty uniform record of superstition,
ambition, and fanaticism. After the time of Constantine many
additions were made by the emperors and others, to the wealth
and honours of the clergy ; and these additions were followed
by a proportional increase of their vices and luxury, particu-
larly among those who lived in great and opulent cities. The
bishops opposing each other in the most disgraceful manner re-
" Constantine was chosen to the government, whilst in England with the
Roman army. — It appears, he entertained a favourable opinion of Christia-
nity, whether from a sincere conviction of its truth, or from political motives
is doubtful.
The authenticity of the story of his conversion, by the vision of a lumi-
nous cross appearing in the firmament bearing the inscription, *' In this
conquer," has been much controverted and much doubted.
* Gibbon's Rome, chap, xviii.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 27
specting the extent of their jurisdictions ; at the same time dis-
regarding the rights of their inferiors, and imitating, in their
manners and luxurious mode of hfe, the quahty of magistrates
and princes. This conduct of the higher clergy soon infected
the inferior classes ; and the ^mters of this period repeatedly
censure and complain of the effeminacy of the deacons. The
Presbyters and Deacons of the first orders began to aim at
superior honours, and were offended at being on a level with
others ; hence arose the invention of the titles Arch-Preshyter
and Arch-Deacon.
The rivalry introduced between the bishops of Rome and
Constantinople, in consequence of the attachment of the Emperor
Constantine to the latter, has been before alluded to. In the
5th century the bishops of Constantinople having extended
their authority over all the provinces of Asia, endeavoured to
obtain still further dignities ; and in the council held at Chal-
cedon, a. d. 451, it was resolved. That the same rights and
honours conferred on the bishop of Rome were due to the
bishop of Constantinople, on account of the equal dignity of
the cities in which they presided ; and at the same time they con-
firmed to the bishop of Constantinople the j urisdiction of the
Asiatic provinces which he had assumed. These decisions
considerably alarmed the bishop of Rome, who used every
effort to establish his supremacy. The royal influence, how-
ever, preponderated against him, and the bishops of Rome and
Constantinople were declared equals.
Whilst the principal persons among the clergy were thus
contending in the spirit of proud ambition, veiled indeed by the
appearances of sanctity, the inferior orders did not fail to follow
their example; and as religion now became the popular pursuit,
a spirit of envy and emulation soon prevailed, which incUned
men to endeavour to outrun each other in zeal and pious prac-
tices ; hence inventions and austerities were introduced, which
were well calculated to excite that vacant feeling in all ages,
predominating in the multitude, which produces veneration
in proportion as it ridicules the intellect. The most striking
and the most lasting of these, or rather the vortex of all others.
28 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
is that which, about this period, made rapid progress in tlic
monastic life, a style of existence disgraceful to religion and
destructive to man.
" In the reign of Constantine, the Ascetics fled from a profana
and degenerate world, to perpetual solitude or religious society,
they resigned the use or the property of their temporal pos-
sessions, established regular communities of the same sex and
a similar disposition, and assumed the names of Hermits,
Monhs, and Jfwhorites, expressive of their lonely retreat in a
natural or artificial desert. They soon acquired the respect
of the world which they despised, and the loudest applause was
bestowed on this Divine Philosophy, which surpassed, with-
out the aid of science or reason, the laborious virtues of the
Grecian schools. The monks might indeed contend with the
Stoics, in the contempt of fortune, of pain, and of death. The
Pythagorean silence and submission were revived in their ser-
vile discipline, and they disdained, as firmly as the Cynics
themselves, all the forms and. decencies of civil society. The
lives of the primitive monks were consumed in penance and
solitude, undisturbed by the various occupations which fill the
time, and exercise the faculties of reasonable, active, and social
beings ; whenever they were permitted to step beyond the pre-
cincts of the monastery, two jealous companions were the mutual
guards and spies of each other's actions ; and after their return
they were condemned to forget, or at least to suppress whatever
they had seen or heard in the world : strangers who professed
the orthodox faith were hospitably entertained in a separate
apartment; but their dangerous conversation was restricted
to some chosen elders of approved discretion and fidelity.
Except in their presence the monastic slave might not receive
the visits of his friends or kindred ; and it was deemed highly
meritorious if he afflicted a tender sister by the obstinate refu-
sal of a word or look. The monks themselves passed their
lives without personal attachments, among a crowd which had
been formed by accident, and was detained in the same prison
by force or prejudice : a special licence of the abbot regulated
the time and duration of their familiar visits ; and at their
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 39
silent meals they were enveloped in their cowls, inaccessible and
almost invisible to each other. According to their faith and zeal
they might employ the day which they passed in their cells,
either in vocal or mental prayer , they assembled in the evening,
and they were awakened in the night for the public worship of
the monastery : the precise moment was determined by the
stars, which are seldom clouded in the serene sky of Egypt,
and a rustic horn or trumpet the signal of devotion, twice in-
terrupted the vast silence of the desert.
The most devout or the most ambitious of the spiritual bre-
thren renounced the convent as they had renounced the world.
The fervent monasteries of Egypt, Palestine, and Syria, were sur-
rounded by a Laura^ a distant circle of solitary cells ; and the
extravagant penance of the Hermits was stimulated by applause
and emulation. They sunk under the painful weight of crosses
and chains, and their emaciated hmbs were confined by collars,
bracelets, gauntlets, and greaves, of massy and rigid iron : all
superfluous encumbrance of dress they contemptuously cast
away, and some savage saints of both sexes have been admired,
whose naked bodies were only covered by their long hair.
Tliey aspired to reduce themselves to the rude and miserable
state in which the human brute is scarcely distingi'fshed above
his kindred animals, and a numerous sect of Anchorites,
derived their name from their humble practice of grazing in
the fields of Mesopotamia with the common herd. They often
usurped the den of some wild beasts, whom they aifected to
resemble; they buried themselves in some gloomy cavern,
which ai't or nature had scooped out of the rock, and the
marble quarries of Thebais are still inscribed with the monu-
ments of their penance. The mostjperfect hermits are supposed
to have passed many days without food, many nights without
sleep, and many years without speaking ; and glorious was he
who contrived any cell or seat of a pecuhar construction which
might expose him in the most inconvenient posture to the
inclemency of the seasons. Among these heroes of the mo-
nastic life the name and genius of Simeon Stylites have been
immortalized by the singular invention of an aerial penance.
30 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
At the age of thirteen the young Syrian deserted the profes-
sion of a shepherd, and threw himself into an austere monas-
tery. After a long and painful noviciate, in which Simeon was
repeatedly saved from pious suicide, he established his residence
on a mountain, about thirty or forty miles to the east of
Antioch. Within the space of a mandin or circle of stones, to
which he had attached himself by a ponderous cliain, he
ascended a column, which was successively raised from the
height of nine to that of sixty feet from the ground. In this
last and lofty station the Syrian anchorite resisted the heat of
thirty summers, and the cold of as many winters. Habit and
exercise instructed him to maintain his dangerous situation
without fear or giddiness, and successively to assume the dif-
ferent postures of devotion. He sometimes prayed in an erect
attitude, with his outstretched arms in the figure of a cross,
but his most familiar practice was, that of bending his meagre
skeleton from the forehead to the feet; and a curious spectator
after numbering twelve hundred and forty-four repetitions at
length desisted from the endless count. The progress of an
ulcer in his thigh might shorten, but it could not disturb, this
celestial life ; and the patient hermit expired without descend-
ing froiTi 1 's column.
A prince who should capriciously inflict such tortures would
be deemed a tyrant ; but it would surpass the power of a tyrant
to impose a long and miserable existence on the reluctant
victims of his cruelty. This voluntary martyrdom must have
gradually destroyed the sensibihty, both of mind and body;
nor can it be presumed, that the fanatics who torment them-
selves are sensible of any lively affection for the rest of man-
kind. A cruel unfeeling temper has distinguished the monks
of every age and country ; their stern indifference, which is
seldom mollified by personal friendship, is inflamed by reli-
gious hatred and their merciless zeal, has strenuously admi-
nistered the Holy Office of the Inquisition.
The monastic saints were respected and ahnost adored by
the pnnce and people. Successive crowds of pilgrims from
Gaul and India saluted the divine pillar of Simeon : the tribes
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 31
of Sai-acens disputed in arms the honour of his benediction ;
the queens of Arabia and Persia confessed his supernatural
virtue, and the angchc hermit was consulted by the younger
Theodosius in the most miportant concerns of the church and
state. His remains were transported from the mountain of
Telenissa, by a solemn procession of the patriarch, the master-
general of the east, six bishops, twenty- one counts or tribunes,
and six thousand soldiers ; and Antioch revered his bones as
her glorious ornament and impregnable defence. The fame of
the apostles and martyrs was gradually eclipsed by these recent
and popular anchorites. The Christian world fell prostrate
before their shrines, and the miracles ascribed to their relics
exceeded, at least in number and duration, the spiritual ex-
ploits of their lives. But the golden legend of their lives was
embellished by the artful credulity of their interested brethren,
and a believing age was easily persuaded, that the slightest
caprice of an Egyptian or a Syrian monk had been sufficient to
interrupt the eternal laws of the universe. The favourites of
heaven were accustomed to cure inveterate diseases with a
touch, a word, or a distant message, and to expel the most
obstinate daemons from the souls or bodies which tliey possessed.
They familiarly accosted oj: imperiously commanded the . Jons
and serpents of the desert, infused vegetation into a sapless
trunk, suspended iron on the surface of the water, passed the
Nile on the back of a crocodile, and refreshed themselves in a
fiery furnace. These extravagant tales which display the
faction without the genius of poetry, seriously affected the
reason, the faith, and the morals of the people. Their credu-
lity debased and vitiated the faculties of the mind, they cor-
rupted the evidence of history and superstition, gradually ex-
tinguished the hostile light of philosophy and science, p
The increase of the monks soon became prodigions to the
south of Alexandria; the mountain and adjacent desert of
Nitria were peopled by five thousand anchorites, and the tra-
veller may still investigate the ruins of fifty monasteries, which
were planted in that barren soil. In the Upper Theba is the
* Gibbon's Decline and Fall, chap. 27.
32 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
vacant island of Tabenne was occupied by Pachomius and four-
teen hundred of liis brethren. That holy abbot successively
founded nine monasteries of men, and one of women, and the
festival of Easter sometimes collected fifty thousand religious
persons, who followed his angelic rule of discipline. The
stately and populous city of Oxyrinchus, the seat of Christian
orthodoxy had devoted the temples, the public edifices, and
even the ramparts, to pious and charitable uses, and the
bishop who might preach in twelve churches, computed ten
thousand females and twenty thousand males of the monastic
profcssicni.
The Egyptians who gloried in this marvellous revolution,
were disposed to hope and to believe, that the number of the
monks was equal to the remainder of the people. Athanasius^
introduced into Rome, the knowledge and practice of the mo-
nastic life, and a school of this new philosophy, was opened by
the disciples of Antony, a Syrian youth, whose name was Hila-
rion, and who fixed his dreary abode on a sandy beach, bet wen
the sea and a morass, about seven miles from Gaza. The
austere penance, in which he persisted forty eight years, diffused
a similar enthusiasm, and he was followed by a train of two or
\hrnQ thousand Anchorets, whenever he visited the innumer-
able monasteries of Palestine. The fame of Basil was celebrated
in the East, and of Martin of Tours, in the West ; the former,
having estabhshed monasteries along the borders of the black
sea, and the latter in Gaul, two thousand of whose followers,
attended his body to the grave. Every province, and at last
every city,*^ was filled by these ignorant devotees, whose
absurdities are scarcely to be equalled in the records of the
grossest idolaters. — The admiration v/hich attended these de
luded and deluding misanthropes, ended not with their extenu-
ated existence ; — the multitude who gazed in silent wonder at
their federal automaton, whilst in motion, felt this awe increased
toward^t, when it had ceased to act; and hence, by means of
the infatuated, or the designing, the relics of the saints attained
enormous popularity.
Hence daily miracles were attributed to these Jioly reliqueSy
•J Gibbon's Decline and Fall, ch, 37.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 33
and all the powers of eloquence resorted to, to shew the vast
advantages of attending at their sepulchres. " With ardour,"
says Chrysostom, " let us fall down before their rehques, let
us embrace their coffins — for these may have some power,
since their bones have so great an one : and not only on their
festivals, but on other days also, let us fix ourselves, as it were,
to them, and intreat them to be our patrons.'' Again, " Let
us dwell in their sepulchres, and fix ourselves to their coffins ;
for not only their bones, but theii* tombs and their urns overflow
with blessings." Basil also asserts, " That all who were
pressed with any difficulty or distress, were wont to fly to the
tombs of the martyrs, and whosoever did but touch their re-
liques, acquii'ed some share of their sanctity." The connection
between this veneration of sainted dust, and the emoluments
of the church, was too obvious to escape regard. One hun-
dred and fifty years after the glorious deaths of St. Peter and
St. Paul, the Vatican and the Ostian road were distinguished by
their tombs, or rather by their trophies.
In the age which followed the conversion of Constantine, the
emperor, the consuls and the generals of armies, devoutly
visited the sepulchres of a tent-maker and a fisherman, and
their venerable bones were deposited under the altars of
Christ, on which the bishops of the royal city continually of-
fered the unbloody sacrifice. The new capital of the eastern
world, unable to produce any ancient and domestic trophies,
was enriched by the spoils of dependent provinces. The bodies
of St. Andrew, St. Luke, and St. Timothy, had reposed near
three hundred years, in the obscure graves from whence they
were transported, in solemn pomp, to the church of the apostles,
which the magnificence of Constantine had founded on the
banks of the Thracian Bosphorus. About fifty years after-
wards, the same banks \tere honoured by the presence of
Samuel, the judge and prophet of the people of Israel. His
ashes, deposited in a golden vase, and covered with a silken
veil, were delivered by the bishops into each others hands. The
reliques of Samuel were received by the people, with the
same joy and reverence which they would have shewn to the
living prophet. The highways from Palestine to the gates of
o
54 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
Constantinople, were filled with an uninterrupted procession,
and tlie emperor Arcadius himself, at the head of the most il-
lustrious members of the clergy and senate, advanced to meet
his extraordinary guest, who had always deserved and claimed
the homage of kings. The example of Rome and Constanti-
nople confirmed the faith and discipline of the catholic world.
The honours of the saints and martyrs, after a feeble and inef-
fectual murmur of profane reason, were universally established ;
and in the age of Ambrose and Jerome, something was still
deemed wanting to the sanctity of a Christian church, till it
had been consecrated by some portion of holy reliques, which
fixed and inflamed the devotion of the faithful.
In the long period of twelve hundred years, which elapsed
between the reign of Constantine and the reformation of Lu-
es
ther, the worship of saints and reliques corrupted the pure
and perfect simphcity of the Christian model, and some symp-
toms of degeneracy may be observed even in the first genera-
tion, which adopted and cherished this pernicious innovation. ''
In external government, Rome, who had sat mistress of the
world, at length exhibited the symptoms of decay. Her em-
perors had degenerated ; and the event declared, that a domi-
nion obtained by the cruelties of the sword, was not to be upheld
among a warlike people, by the trifling puerilities of superstition.
An inscrutable Providence had permitted a few victorious men
to satiate their ambition by the conquest of the world ; an event
by which the whole was, in some degree, reduced to an ac-
quaintance with the Greek and Roman tongues, and so pre-
pared to understand a revelation, which was not to be made
known by immediate communications among the separate na-
tions severally, but through one people, by the ordinary mode
of human language. Hence the decline of the Roman em-
pire has been dated from the introduction of Christianity;
for thus it was, and ever will be, that men, whether in
defiance of the natural laws of society, by invasion and
slaughter, or by the guileful insinuations of superstitious trea-
chery, they depopulate the world, they are still subject to the
' Gibbon's Decliue and Fall, 27 Ch.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 35
controul of him wlio wliilst lie preserveth, in every nation, those
who are actuated by his fear, causeth the wrath of man to
praise him.
In the beginning of the fifth century, Rome was itself be-
sieged by the Goths, who obtained possession of that centre of
refinement ; overthrowing its stately edifices, and with a savage
fury destroying those monuments of genius, the very wreck of
which has been the admiration of posterity. This event took
place during the reign of Honorius, who governed, at that time,
the western part of the divided empire, and whose subjects, after
a series of ineffectual contests, had the mortification to see
nearly stript of his territories, and continuing the title, without
the power of royalty. The capital was taken by the Goths. —
The Huns were possessed of Pannonia ; the Alamani, Suevi,
and Vandals were established in Spain ; and the Burgundians
settled in Gaul. The feeble powers of Valentinian the Third,
the successor of Honorius, were not calculated to restore to the
Roman monarchs the empire they had lost. Eudocia, his wi-
dow, and the daughter of Theodosius, married Maximus,
and soon discovered that the present partner of her throne and
bed, was the brutal murderer of the last. Incensed at his per-
fidy, and resolved to revenge the death of Valentinian and lier
own dishonour, she implored assistance from Genseric, king of
the Vandals in Africa, who entered Rome, and plundered the
whole of the city, except three churches. After the rapid
and turbulent reigns of several of the emperors of the West,
that part of the empire was finally subjugated in the year 476, by
the abdication of Augustulus. The name of emperor sunk
with the ruin of the em.pire; for the conquering Odoacer,
general of the Heruli, assumed only the title of king of Italy.
The calamities, which in this century arose from the intolerant
zeal of ecclesiastics were not less severe than the persecuting
terrors of heathen idolaters ; and the sincere professors of the
gospel were hence induced to look back, almost with regret, to
a season, which, however unfavourable and perilous, found
them united in one common cause, generally understood, in-
stead of being divided into factions, disagreeing about points
36 HISTORICAL SUETEr OF
difficult to be conceived, and respecting which the difference
frequently consisted not in the circumstance itseli', but in the
terms used to define it. Alarmed at the ecclesiastical censure?
which assailed all that presumed to differ in opinion, or even
in expression, from the leaders of the church, the timid Christ-
iaT» must have been afraid of conversing upon the subject of
his faith; and the edict obtained from Honorius, by four bi-
shops, deputed from Carthage, in 410, which doomed to death
whoever differed from the Catholic faith, must have closed, in
terror and silence, the trembling hps. During this century, the
authority of the bishops of Rome made some remarkable pro-
gress, and tlie appointment of their legates doubtless originated
from motives extremely opposite from those wliich were avowed,
the faith and peace of the church.*
An increasing reneration for the Virgin Mary, had taken
place in the preceding century, and very early in this, an
opinion was industriously propagated, that she had mani-
fested herself to several persons, and had wrought consider-
able miracles. Images, bearing her name, holding in her arms
another, denominated the Infant Jesus, together with many
others, were placed in a distinguished situation in the church,
and, in many places, invoked with a pecuhar species of wor-
ship, which was supposed to draw down into the images,
the propitious presence of the persons whom they were de-
signed to represent. A superstitious respect began also to
take place, with respect to the bread consecrated at the Lord's
Supper. Its efficacy was supposed to extend to the body, as
well as to the soul; and it was apphed as a medicine in sick-
ness, and as a preservative against every danger in travelling,
either 1^ land or by sea. Private confession to a priest alone,
was substituted in the room of pubhc penance. The method
of singing anthems, one part of which was performed by the
clergy, and the other by the congregation, which had been in-
troduced into the churches of Antioch in the preceding century,
was in this practised at Rome ; and in many churches it was
the custom to perform these responses night and day, with-
• Gregory's Ch. Hist. toI. i. 2S4, 236,251.
THE CHRISTIAN' CHTECH. 37
out any interruption: different choirs of singers continually
relieving each other.
Every splendid appendage, which had graced the heathen
ceremonies, was now interwoven into the fabric of public wcx--
ship. During the extended period of Paganism, superstition
had entirely exhausted her talents for invention ; so that, when
the same spirit pervaded the minds of Christian professtM^
they were necessarily compelled to adopt the practices of theai
predecessors, and to imitate their idolatry. That which had
been formerly the test of Christianity, and the practice of
which, when avoided, exposed the primitive believer to the
utmost vengeance of his enemies, was now imposed as a
Christian rite; and incense, no longer considered an abomi-
nation, smoked upon every altar. The services of religkai
were even in the day-time, performed by the light of tapers
and flambeaux, and the most eminent fathers of the church,
were not ashamed to propagate anv idle miraculous story, in
their endeavours to estabhsh the faith of the multitude.
During the sixth century, the bishops of Rome, who had
so often used the most strenuous efforts for pre-eminence, be-
gan boldly to advance the claim of supremacy. They now
insisted upon superiority, as a divine right attached to their
see, which had been founded by St. Peter; and this doctrine,
which had appeared to influence the conduct of some of the
Romish bishops of the preceding century, was no longer con-
cealed, or cautiously promulgated by those who possessed the
see during the present period; and such was the extensive
influence of their intrigues, that there were few among the
potentates of the western empire, who were not, before the close
of the succeeding centurv, subjected to the authority of the
bishops of Rome.
The corrupted doctrines of religion received, if no improve-
ment, no very considerable alteration in the sixth century.—
The torments of an intermediate state were, indeed, loudly in-
sisted on, to the ignorant multitude at this time, by the su-
perstitious Gregorv, whom the Romish church has chosen to
distinguish bv the appellation of Great. This prelate is sup-
posed by some to have laid the foundation of the modem doc-
D 8
58 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
trine of purgatory. The folly and fanaticism of Monkeiy
reigned unabated ; the account of which would be tedious and
unprofitable. A monk, in imitation of Symeon Stylites, lived
sixty -eight years upon different pillars; and a number of the
austere penitents, whose madness had probably occasioned their
severities, and whose fanaticism in return heightened their men-
tal imbecility, obtained a safe retreat from the world, in an hos-
pital, estabhshed in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, for the
reception of those monks who Avere supposed to have lost their
reason in the pursuit, of this pharisaical frenzy.
The Roman Mass-book, or Missal, was composed by Gre-
gory the Great, the steady friend and patron of superstition;
he strongl}^ insisted on the efficacy of relics, and encouraged the
use of pictures and images in the churches. Vigilius ordered
that those who celebrated mass, should direct their faces to
the east. The Lord's Supper was also at this period held in
such dread and reverence, as to be in danger of total disconti-
nuance. The use of salt and water for sprinkhng those who
entered or departed from the church, was established by an
edict of Vigilius, in 538; a custom, hke many others, adopted
from the heathen worship.
When once men lose sight of the principal end and design of
sacred truth, there is no folly too gross for them to adopt. In
this century violent disputes took place among the priests, re-
lative to the shaving of the head; and the question agitated
was, whether the hair of the priests and monks should be sha-
ven on the fore part of the head, from ear to ear, or on the top
of the head, in the form of a circle, as an emblem of the crown
of thorns, worn by Jesus Christ. In the serAaces of the church
a greater degree of splendour was continually introduced; and
as this increased, men wandered farther and farther from the
semblance of Christianity. The dreary night of ignorance began
to gloom, and the road to truth, no longer pleasant and cheerful,
was pursued only thi'ough dismal and inextricable labyrinths."
In the seventh century, the bishops of Rome succeeded in
greatly extending their authority. *' The most learned writers,
" Gregory's Ch, Hist. vol. i.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 89
and those who are most remarkable for their knowledge of an-
tiquity, are generally agreed thai Boniface III. engaged Pho-
cas, that abominable tyrant, who waded to the imperial crown,
through the blood of the emperor Mauritius, to take from the
bishop of Constantinople, the title o^ (Ecumenical^ or Universal
Bishop, and to confer it upon the Roman pontiff;^ and the title
of Pope, by way of eminence, was first also in this century,
appUed to the bishop of Rome ; a title which, meaning merely
Father, had been hitherto used to the principal bishops in
common. The bishops of Rome, having obtained the long
contested pre-eminence, and having set their eyes on no-
thing short of universal sway, now laid claim to infallibility,
and accordingly Agatho asserted, that the church of Rome
never had erred, nor could err, in any point; and that all its
constitutions ought to be as implicitly received, as if they had
been delivered by the divine voice of St. Peter.*
The progress of vice among the subordinate rulers and mi-
nisters of the church, was, at this time, truly deplorable; dis-
sensions, fraud, pride, and domination, appeared on every
hand; and it is highl)^ probable, that the Waldenses, or Vaudois,
had already, in this century, retired into the vallies of Piedmont,
that they might be more at liberty to oppose the tyranny of
imperious prelates. The monks were held in great estimation ;
and by making common cause with the bishops of Rome, the
hands of each were materially strengthened. The bishops of
Rome commended the rules of monastic life; and the monks,
in their turn, extolled the Pope of Rome, whom they repre-
sented as a sort of Deity. Hence it became common for the
heads of families to dedicate their children to the monastic life,
by shutting them up in convents ; devoting them to a sohtary
life, which they looked upon as the highest felicity : at the
same time conveying to the convents large portions of worldly
treasure. And numerous are the instances in which the most
profligate and abandoned persons were comforted, in the pros-
pect of death, by the delusive hope, that in bequeathing a
w Moslieim's Eccles. Hist. vol. ii.
" Hist, of Popery, vol. ii. p. 5.
D 4
40 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
large portion of property to some monastic order, they should
make atonement for a mis-spent hfe.
If the inhabitants of the western world were thus miserably
ingulphed in ignorance, it can scarcely be a matter of surprise,
that those of the eastern world, under very inferior circumstances,
should become the easy prey of imposture, and the dupes of
creduhty.
In every age, such is the hbel we are compelled to suffer
on our species, the applauses and concurrence of the multitude
are more certainly obtained by audacity than by prudence ; and
those notions which possess no title to respect, unless it be for
their absurdity , have ever succeeded in proportion to the impunity
by which they have been advanced and defended. The present
century gave birth to those doctrines of Mahomet, which have
since become the faith of so large a portion of the eastern world.
Descended from the most illustrious tribe of the Arabians,
and from the most illustrious family of that tribe, Mahomet was,
notwithstanding, reduced, by the early death of his father, to
the poor inheritance of five camels, and an Ethiopian maid ser-
vant. In his 25th year, he entered into the service of Cadijah,
an opulent widow of Mecca, his native city. By selling her
merchandise in the countries of Syria, Egypt, and Palestine,
Mahomet acquired a considerable part of that knowledge of
the world, which facihtated his imposture and his conquests,
and at length the gratitude or affection of Cadijah, which re-
stored him to the station of his ancestors, by bestowing upon
him her hand and her fortune. Having thus acquired advan-
tages unkno^vn to his early years, in the spirit of that ambition
which filled the western world, he resolved to become a public
teacher; and to this end gave out, that he had been visited by
the angel Gabriel, and was appointed the Prophet and Apostle of
God. In a cave, to which he was accustomed to retire, he pro-
fessed to have received, at successive intei-vals, the doctrines
which he taught ; the nature of which were always suited to
the convenience of his own conduct, and had this accommodating
authority, that no present revelation could be affected by those
which were previous : and hence, when he chose to transgress,
he soon after asserted, he had received a revelation, which
sanctioned the practice himself had adopted.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 41
The progress of die doctrines of Mahomet were at the first
slow. Cadi) ah was the first whom he entrusted with the secret
of liis mission, who received tlie intelhgence with great joy,
and expressed her expectation, that he would become the pro-
phet of his nation. After this he resorted to other branches of
his family, and his friends, from whom also he met a favourable
reception. These first steps were taken in his fortieth year. —
The sun had, nevertheless, thrice performed liis annual circuit,
without material addition to the followers of iVIahomet. At
length, however, he determined to become the public champion
of his doctrines, and "began to try the strength of his adhe-
rents; and having endured many difficulties, and surmounted
many obstacles, he succeeded, at the point of the sword, in es-
tabHshing his doctrines throughout the greater part of Arabia ;
and dying at the age of sixty- three^ was interred in that simple
tomb, which misguided multitudes still continue to visit with
profound reverence.
In the formation of his doctrines, he is supposed to have been
assisted by the Jew, the Persian, and the Syrian monks, who
are said to have lent secret aid to the composition of the Koran;
An opinion, which the heterogeneous contents of that volume
appears to justify. The faith which, under the name of Islaiiiy
he preached to his family and nation, is compounded of an
eternal truth, and a necessary fiction. That there is only one
God^ and that Mahomet is the Apostle of God J
The doctrines of Mahomet were artfully adapted to the
prejudices of the Jew^s, the several heresies of the eastern
church, and the pagan rites of the Arabs. To a large pro-
portion of mankind, also, they were rendered still more agreea-
ble, by the full permission of sensual gratifications, both in this
life and in that of the paradise he describes. Of the issue of
his twelve wives, one daughter alone survived; and his sceptre
was transferred to the hand of his friend Abubekir.
During this century, but few alterations were made in the
doctrines of the church. In the fourth council of Toledo, held
in the year 633, an alteration was made in the creed, asserting
tliat the Holy Ghost proceeded from the Father and the Son ;
' Gibbon's' l^ecline and Fall.
42 IIISTOillCAL SURVEY OF
an opinion long maintained by the Qreeks, and during this
age introduced into the West. This Creed which has been
distinguished by the appellation of the Nicene, is that which is
used in the English Liturgy, but is in fact, the confession of
faith drawn up at Constantinople. ^
In the eighth century, the power of the bishop of Rome and
the clergy was much increased, either by secret intrigue, or
open violence ; for though the persons who succeeded to that
office differed in name, they were animated by one spirit, and
therefore, each adopted the conduct of his predecessor in the
one design of obtaining, under the specious garb of Christian
professions, a larger extension of temporal authority. A very
principal occurrence, which now favoiu'ed them in their views
of advancement, arose from the dissentions which subsisted
between the European princes, together with the blind submis-
sion of the barbarous nations, who had assumed the profession
of Christianity. — The sovereigns of Europe, had introduced
the practice of distributing large possessions to those persons,
who, from their talents or situation, might contribute to the
stability of the empire, and as the clergy had attained, by the
seductive arts of superstitious folly, a great degree of rever-
ence among the people, the princes bestowed on them those
honours and rewards, which had usually devolved on the mi-
htary ; — this no doubt might be considered an act of temporary
prudence, but it was unaccompanied by judicious foresight,
for in the end, the power, thus conferred on the ecclesiastical au-
thorities, was turned against that from whence it had originated.
The barbarous 'nations, who embraced the profession of the
reigning faith, which had now become so transformed by human
inventions, as to have nearly lost all resemblance to that whose
name it bore ; dazzled by the splendour of its services, and the
apparent sanctity of its ministers, very naturally transferred the
veneration they had been accustomed to feel for their native in-
stitutions, to those of the Roman church ; and filled with the
most profound reverence, they considered the bishops of Rome
in the same light in which they had been accustomed to view
their dxuidical high priest ; — ^lience they had a supreme dread
* Bingham Ecc. Aiitiq, B. x. C. 4.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 43
of their displeasure, and reckoned excommunication the greatest
evil that could befal them. — The bishops of Rome, who assidu-
ously embraced every means in their power for aggrandizement,
soon seized those which the present opportunity afforded : and
hence they propagated the adopted opinion, that excommunica-
tion not only deprived the individual of his claims, and advan-
tages in the church, but also of his civil rights, and even of the
common benefits of humanity ; a doctrine the most horrible in
its consequences, and well calculated to introduce tliat pre-
ponderance which soon arose, between the prostituted spiritual,
and the temporal authority. Persons excommunicated, were
henceforward considered the most miserable of men ; their con
nections were released from the obligations of humanity towards
them; and those unhappy individuals, were regarded only,
as objects of the hatred, both of God and man.
The history of France, at this period, furnishes a remarkable
example of the power of the Roman pontiff. Pepin, who was
mayor of the palace to Childeric III. king of France, and who
in the exercise of that high office, really possessed the royal
authority, aspired also to the titles of the sovereign, and having
ascertained the friendship of the states, he assembled them in
751, for the advancement of his views of dethroning the sove-
reign. — The states delivered the opinion, that it should be
enquired at the Roman see if such a deed would receive its sanc-
tion, and ambassadors were in consequence dispatched by Pepin
to Zachary the reigning pontiff, with the following question,
" whether the divine law did not permit a valiant and warlike
people, to dethrone a pusillanimous and indolent prince, who
was incapable of discharging any of the functions of royalty,
and to substitute in his place, one more worthy to rule, and who
had already rendered most important services to the state?*"
Zachary, who wanted the assistance of France, against the
Greeks and Lombards, gladly availed himself of the opportunity,
and returned a reply, confirming the validity of such a proceed-
ing. — The pontifical decision removed every difficulty, and the
unhappy Childeric was compelled to yield, without resistance,
liis throne and government.
In those days of vassalage, the custom of kissing the feet of
tlie popc; was quite established ; a practice derived from the
44 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
sovereigns of Rome, in whose dignities they claimed a succesiion,
which practice appears to have been first introduced by the
emperor CaUgula, from the vanity of exhibiting his golden
slipper studded with precious stones; — in addition to this, the
bishop of Rome Avas to be approached only, with the reverence
and adulation common to the most potent monarchs.
Looking around at this period, what a mass of confusion
does the world appear ; from the effects of the spirit
of antichrist, all things seem out of place, and the va-
pours of desolation darken and confound every object; —
doctrines take the place of duties, and duties that of doctrines :
here appears nothing but aspiring ambition, deprived by a
superstitious alliance of its natural grandeur, and there nothing
but tame obedience, rendered worthless by a gross ignorance.
In the gloom of this cloudy day, religion and absui'dity, truth
and falsehood, became entirely amalgamated ; and such was the
triumph of monastic folly, over the plainest dictates of the
understanding, that it was found necessary, in the council of
Frankfort, to restrain the exercise of cruelty in the guardians
of those miserable devotees, who had embraced that order, and
the abbots were prohibited from putting out the eyes, or cutting
off the limbs of their inferior brethren.
The nintfi century, presents a continuation of the efforts used
by the bishops of Rome, for establishing their dominion.
Having obtained in the last the grant of the Grecian territories
in Italy, as their patrimony ,'^they had the audacity to assert, that
the bishop of Rome was constituted and appointed by Jesus
Christ, supreme legislator and judge of the universal church,
and that, therefore, the bishops derived all their authority from
the Roman pontiff; nor could the councils determine any thing
without his permission and consent. These pretensions were
not without their effect, for if it was not at this period thought
absolutely necessary, it was considered extremely proper, that
the acts of bishops and councils, should be confirmed by the
Roman pontiff. In this century, the question of authority,
between tlie bishops of Rome and Constantinople, was finally
decided, after a furious contest, by a separation. — The worship
of images, and the doctrine of the real presence in the eucharist,
now also obtained gTeat attention. The worship of saints
THE CHUISTIAN CHURCH. 45
acquired considerable popularity, and such was the rage among
the vulgar for this delusion, that it was found necessary to limit
their number, by ordaining, that no departed Christian should be
considered as a member of the order of Saints^ until the bishop
had, in a provincial council, and in presence of the people,
pronounce J. him worthy of that distinguished honour.
The impiety and licentiousness of the greatest part of the
clergy arose, at this time, to an enormous height, and stand
upvin record in the unanimous complaints of the most candid
and impartial writers of this century. In the east, tumult, dis-
cord, conspiracies, and treason, reigned uncontrolled, and all
things were carried by violence and force. These abuses ap-
peared in many things, but particularly in the election of the
patriarchs of Constantinople. The favour of the court was be-
come the only step to that high and important situation, and, as
the patriarch's continuance, in that eminent post, depended upon
such an uncertain and precarious foundation, nothing was
more usual than to see a prelate pulled down, from his episcopal
throne, by an imperial decree. In the western provinces the
bishops were become voluptuous, and effeminate, to a very high
degree ; they passed their lives amidst the splendour of courts,
and the pleasures of a luxurious indolence, which corrupted their
taste, extinguished their zeal, and rendered them incapable of
performing the solemn duties of their function; while the in-
ferior clergy, who were sunk in licentiousness, minded nothing
but sensual gratifications, and infected with the most heinous
vices, the flock whom it was the very business of their ministry
to preserve, or to deliver from the contagion of iniquity. Be-
sides, the ignorance of the sacred order was in many places so
deplorable, that few of them could either read or write ! and
still fewer were capable of expressing their wretched notions,
with any degree of method or perspicuity. Hence it happened,
that when letters were to be penned, or any matter of conse-
quence was to be committed to writing, they had commonly
recourse to some person who was supposed to be endowed with
superior abihties. *
• Mosheini Ecc. Hist. Cent. 9. p. J.
46 HISTOmCAL SURVEY OF
In the tenth century, the night of ignorance, wliich had been
so long advancing, totally enveloped mankind. The only
emulation which appears to have existed, was that of increasing
members to the Catholic faith, and the work of conversion, such
as it was, brought into that profession the Norwegians, Poles,
Russians, Hungarians, Danes, Swedes, and Normans, some of
whom, so very imperfectly understood the nature of their pro-
fession, that they continued to sacrifice according to their
ancient idolatry.
The conduct of the clergy at this period became grossly vile.
We may form some idea of the Grecian patriarchs, from the
single example of Theophylact, who, according to the testimony
of the most respectable writers, made the most impious traffic of
ecclesiastical promotions ; and expressed no sort of care about
any thing, but his dogs and horses. Degenerate and licen-
tious, however, as these patriarchs might be, they were, ge-
nerally speaking, less profligate and indecent than the Roman
pontiffs.
The history of the Roman pontiffs, (says Dr. Mosheim,) in
this century, is a history of so many monsters, and not of men ;
and exhibits a most horrible series of the most flagitious,'^tremen-
dous, and complicated crimes, as all writers, even those of the
Romish communion, unanimously confess. A slight glance at
some of the characters who now filled that office, will amply
prove, that intrigue and villainy, were the surest requisites for
attaining that appointment.— In the year 903, Benedict IV.
was raised to the pontificate, which he enjoyed no longer than
forty days, being dethroned by Christopher, and cast into
prison ; Christopher, in his turn, was deprived of the pontifical
dignity the year following, by Sergius III., a Roman Presbyter,
seconded by the protection and influence of Adalbert, a most
powerful Tuscan prince, who had a supreme and unlimited
direction, in all the affairs that were transacted at Rome.
Anastatius III. and Lando, who upon the death of Sargius m
the year 911, were raised successively to the papal dignity,
enjoyed it but for a short time; after the death of Lando 914,
Alberic, marquis, or count of Tuscany, whose opulence was
prodigious, and whose authority in Rome was despotic and
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 47
unlimited, obtained the pontificate for John X., archbishop of
Ilavenna, in comphance with the sohcitation of Theodora, his
mother-in-law, whose licentiousness was the principle that
interested her in this promotion. The laws of Rome were at
this time absolutely silent. — The dictates of justice and equity
were overpowered and suspended, and all things were carried
on by interest or corruption, by violence or fraud. ^
Pope John X., though in other respects a scandalous example
of iniquity and licentiousness, acquired a certain degree of
reputation, by his campaign against the Saracens, whom he
expelled from their settlements upon the banks of the Garig-
nialo; he did not, however, long enjoy his elevation, the enmity
of Marozia, daughter of Theodora, and wife of Albert, proved
fatal to him. That intriguing woman, having espoused Guy,
Marquis of Tuscany, engaged him to seize the licentious pon-
tiff, who was her mother's lover, and to put him to death. To
John X. succeeded Leo VI. who presided but seven months in
the apostolic chair, which was filled after him by Stephen VII.
The death of the latter -(931) presented, to the ambition of
Marozia, an object worthy of its attention ; and accordingly
she raised to the papal dignity, John XI. who was the fruit
of her lawless amours, with one of the pretended successors of
St. Peter, Sergius III. whose adulterous commerce with that
infamous woman, gave an infallible guide to the Roman church.
John XT. who was placed at the head of the church, by the
credit and influence of his mother, was precipitated from the
summit of spiritual grandeur 933, by Alberic, his half brother,
who had conceived the utmost aversion against him. Upon
the death of her husband, Marozia, by her splendid offers,
induced Hugo, king of Italy, to accept her hand. But the
unhappy monarch did not long enjoy the promised honour of
being made master of Rome ; Alberic, his son-in-law, stimulat-
ed by an affront which he had received from him, excited the
Romans to revolt, and expelled from the city, not only the
offending king, but his mother Marozia, and her son, the reign-
ing pontiff, all of whom he confined in prison, where John
* Mosheim Ecc. Hist. Cent. 10.
48 - HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
ended his days 936. — The four pontiffs who succeeded, were
somewhat superior, at least their government was not attended
with those tumults, which had become so frequent, from con-
tention for the priestly dignity. Upon the death of Agupet the
last of these, Alberic II. who to the dignity of Roman consul,
joined a degree of authority and opulence which nothing
could resist, raised to the pontificate Octavius, who was yet in
the early bloom of youth, and destitute of every quality which
might be supposed requisite for the discharge of that office.
This pontiff* took the name of John XII. and thus introduced
the custom, which has since been adopted by all his successors,
of assuming a new appellation upon their accession to the pon-
tificate.
The death of John XII. was as unhappy as his promotion
had been scandalous. Unable to bear the oppressive yoke of
Berenger II. king of Italy, he betrayed the city of Rome to
Otho, to whom he also* swore allegiance ; he soon, however,
repented of the step he had taken, and, revolting from him,
joined Adelbert. This revolt was not left unpunished, for
Otho returned to Rome, charging him with his flagitious
crimes, and degraded him from his office. As soon as Otho
had again quitted Rome, John returned, and soon after died,
in consequence of a blow on the temples. Inflicted hy the hand
of a gentleman whose wife he had seduced. Of the manners
of this age it is difficult to form a competent idea ; they appear
to have been a compound of the grossest . voluptuousness, and
the most abject superstition. The power which the clergy
had attained was prodigious ; they were considered as possess-
ing the keys of purgatory at least, if not of hell — the dying
profligate considered no price too dear for the redemption of his
soul ; and thus to use the expression of an ingenious writer —
" having found what Archimedes wanted, another world to
rest on, they moved this world as they pleased.'' «
The eleventh century witnessed the continued increase of
Papal power. All the records of this century loudly complain
of the vices that reigned among the rulers of the church, and
* Gregory's Ch. Hist. Cent. x.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 49
in general among all the clergy. No sooner had the western
bishops obtained elevation than they gave themselves up en-
tirely to the dominion of pleasure and ambition. The inferior
orders of the clergy were also licentious in their own way ; few
among them preserved any remains of piety and virtue, or
even of decency and discretion. While their rulers were wal-
lowing in luxury, and basking in the beams of worldly pomp
and splendour, they were indulging themselves, without the
least sense of shame, in fraudulent practices, in impure and
lascivious gratifications, and even in the commission of the
most flagitious crimes.
The authority and lustre of the Latin church, or to speak
more properly, the power and dominion of the Roman pontiffs,
arose in this century to the highest pitch, though they arose
by degrees, and had much opposition and many difficulties
to conquer. In the preceding age the pontiffs had acquired a
great degree of authority in religious matters, and in every
thing that related to the government of the church; and
then- credit and influence increased prodigiously towards the
commencement of this century. For then they received the
pompous titles q£ Masters of the World and Popes^ i. e. UnU
versal Fathers^ Hitherto the struggle between temporal and
the prostituted spiritual power had been clandestine. The
popes indeed had often shewn their inclination to seize the reigns
of civil government, a disposition which roused the opposition
of princes, and particularly of WiUiam the Conqueror, now
seated on the throne of England, the boldest assertor of the
rights of royalty against the popish claims. The contentions
and tumults also, which Avere usual in obtaining the papal
chair were continued in a manner equally remarkable and
disgi-acefid ; and at this period the world witnessed two popes
elected by opposite factions, contending for the mastery. —
Hence an alteration was effected, confining the election for the
papal dignity to the Cardinals, a title conferred on a number
of the superior clergy.
The popes now not only aspired td the character of supreme
legislators in the church, to an unlimited jurisdiction over all
" Moshcim Ecc. Hist. Cent, xi,
E
50 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
synods and councils, and to the sole distribution of all ecclesias-
tical honours, as divinely authorised and appointed for that pur-
pose, but they carried their pretensions so far as to give themselves
out for lords of the universe, arbiters of the fate of kingdoms and
empires, and supreme rulers over the kings and princes of the
earth. Nothing can be more insolent than the language in which
Hildibrand, Pope Gregory VII. addressed himself to Philip I.
kino- of France, to whom he recommends an humble and
obHging carriage, from this consideration, that hoth his Jcing-
dam and Ids soul were under the dominion of St. Peter (i. e.
his vicar, the Roman pontiiF) who had the 'power to hind and
to loose him, hoth in heaven and upon earth. Nothing escaped
the all-grasping ambition of Gregory, — he pretended that
Saxony was a feudal tenure, held in subjection to the see of
Rome, to which it had been formerly yielded by Charlemagne,
as a pious oiTering to St. Peter. He extended also his preten-
sions to the kingdom of Spain, maintaining that it was the
'property of the apostolic see from the earhest times of the
church ; these usurping assertions prevailed so far in Spain as
to procure for the pope the acknowledgment of an annual
tribute ; but in England, when Gregory wrote to William the
Conqueror, demanaing the an-ears of the Peter Pence (a penny
from every house) and requiring him to do homage for the
kingdom of England, as a fiief of the apostolic see, William
granted the former, but refused the latter, with a noble obsti-
nacy, declaring, that lie held the kingdom from God only,
and by his own sword.*
Gregory, hov/ever, succeeded by his familiarity with Ma-
tilda, the daughter of Boniface, duke of Tuscany, and the
most powerful and opulent princess in that country, who
settled all her possessions in Italy and elsewhere upon the
church of Rome, and the successors of St. Peter.
In the year 1074, it was decreed in a council held at' Rome,
that the sacerdotal order should abstain from njarriage, and
that such of them as had already wives or concubines should
immediately dismiss them, or quit the priestly office, a decree
which was enforced in the most rigid manner.
The eleventh century, although remarkable for the exten-
• Moshcim Ecc. Hist. Cent, xi.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 51
sion of pontifical authority, is also more nobly so on account
of the dawnings of truth, and the revival of learning. The
close of this century witnessed the novelty of an army march-
mg under the banner of the cross, in a war against the Holy
Land, thence denominated the first Crusade. The land of
Palestine had become the object of veneration, both to the Ma-
hometan and Christian professors. The popes had for a long
time viewed it with an anxious eye ; and Gregory VII. actu-
ally resolved to undertake in person a holy war, and instigated
upwards of fifty thousand men to embark in the design, but
his quarrels and other occurrences frustrated his views.
The project, however, was renewed towards tlie close of tliis
century, by the enthusiastic zeal of an inhabitant of Amiens,
called Peter the Hermit, who having visited Palestine, displayed,
in the most affecting manner, the sufferings of the natives and
pilgi'ims. — Peter supphed the deficiency of reason by loud and
frequent appeals to Christ and his mother, to the saints and
angels of paradise, with whom he had personally conversed,
and, it is said, carried about with him a letter which, he
affirmed, was written in heaven, addressed to all true Chris-
tians, to animate their zeal for the dehverance of their brethren,
who groaned under the burthen of a Mahometan yoke.^ So
flattering an opportunity as this for exhibiting the pious zeal
of the faithful was not to be lightly regarded, and therefore
Pope Urban assembled a council at Placentia and at Cler-
mont ; at the latter of which his eloquence prevailed ; and an
incredible number devoted themselves to the service of the
cross, which was made the symbol of the expedition, and
which, worked in red worsted, was worn on the breasts or
shoulders of the adventurers. The court of Rome used every
exertion to encrease the number of these devotees, and pro-
claimed a plenaiy indulgence to those who should enlist under
the cross, and a full absolution of all their sins.
The 15th of August, 1096, had been fixed in the council of
Clermont, for the departure of the pilgrims, but tlie day was
anticipated by a thoughtless and needy crowd of ]>Iebeians.
Early in the spring, from tlie confines of France and Lor-
* Gibbon's Decline and Fall, cLap. 27,
E 9,
52 HISTORICAL SURVEY OF
raine, above sixty tliousand of the populace of both sexeS
flocked round the missionary of the crusade, and pressed him
with clamorous importunity to lead them to the holy sepulchre.
The Hermit obeyed, and led forward the motley group, which
was soon followed by fifteen or twenty thousand from Germany,
whose rear was again pressed by an herd of two hundred thou-
sand, the most stupid and savage refuse of the people, who
mingled with their de^'otion a brutal licence of rapine, prosti-
tution, and ch'unkenness. Some counts and gentlemen, at the
head of three thousand horse, attended the motions of the
multitude to partake in the spoil, but their genuine leaders
(may we credit such folly ?) were a goose and a goat, who
were carried in the front, and to whom was ascribed, by the
ignorant multitude, an infusion of the Divine Spirit.? This
rabble, after being wasted by the Hungarians, and the natural
evils attending their disorderly progress, were overwhelmed in
the plains of Nice, by the Turkish arrows ; and from the be-
ginning to the end of this expedition 300,000 perished before a
single city was rescued from the infidels, and before their
graver and more noble brethren had completed their prepara-
tions. The regular armies which embarked in this undertaking
proceeded in due order: that commanded by Godfrey of
Bouillon, Duke of Lorraine, was composed of eighty thousand
well chosen troops, horse and foot, and directed its march
through Germany and Hungary. Another which was headed
by Raymond, Earl of Toulouse, passed through the Sclavonian
territories. Robert, Earl of Flanders, Robert, Duke of Nor-
mandy, Hugo, brother to Philip I., King of France, embarked
their respective forces in a fleet ; and these armies were follow-
ed by Boemond, Duke of Apulia and Calabria, at the head of a
chosen and numerous body of valiant Normans.
This army was the greatest, and, in outward appearance, the
most formidable that had been known in the memory of man.
It obtained the possession of the city of Nice, in Bithynia, 1097,
and after a siege of five weeks, that of Jerusalem, the cro^v^l-
ing point of their ambition; at the head of which was placed the
celebrated Godfrey, whom the army saluted King of Jerusa-
s Gibbon's Decline and Fall, ch. 37.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
lem, with an unanimous voice, and leaving a small foiv
his support, returned each to his njitive territory.
This lioli) war, as it was stiled, proved highly productive to
the Romish church, since those who embarked in it disposed
of their property as if they had died, and made large donations
to the papal power ; and this circumstance, with those before
enumerated, gave to the church a title to earthly possessions
and temporal government.
In the commencement of the twelfth century, Boleslaus,
Duke of Poland, having conquered the Pomeranians, offered
them peace upon condition that they would receive the Chris-
tian teachers, and permit them to exercise their ministry among
them, a condition which they accepted, and by which the pro-
fession of Christianity was established among them. Hence
it became allowable to make war on nations, for no other reason
than because they adhered to their antient superstitions in
preference to those of the Romish people ; and the most horri-
ble scenes of cruelty and bloodshed were carried on against
the Livonians in a holy war, for then* conversion.
In 1146, a second crusade was undertaken, rendered necessary
by the hostile measures adopted by the Mahometans, who obtain-
ed possession of Edessa, and threatened Antioch. The second
crusade was followed by a third, which obtained support from
Richard I. King of England, and which exhausted the armies
of England, France, and Germany. At this period were in-
troduced several orders, designed to confer honour on the
adventurers — as the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, the
Knights of Malta, and the Knights Templars, from a palace
appropriated to them adjoining the temple at Jerusalem.
This century also witnessed a contention between Pope Pascal
and Henry IV., in which the former, after exhausting the
force of excommunications, finally obtained victory through the
rebellion of an unnatural son, afterwards Henry V., who seized
upon his father, and compelled him to abdicate his throne.
The dormant struggle for power between the popes and
emperors, was revived diu'ing the pontificate of Alexander III,
who attained the papal chair 1169. The elevation of this
prelate was warmly opposed by several of the cardinals, who
E 3
illSTORICAL SURVEY OF
^^idther of their body, under the name of Victor III.,
^k^c\\ they obtained the sanction and assistance of the Em-
peror Frederick I. The terrified pontiff fled precipitately into
Sicily, whence he procured a passage into France ; and such
was the pitch which superstitious folly had attained, that the
Kings of France and England, led the horse of this pretended
successor of St. Peter, themselves on foot holding his horse''s
bridle. After a series of contentions during eighteen years,
tranquillity was once more restored by the submission of the
emperor, who condescended to prostrate himself at the feet
of the haughty pontiff, in the great church of St. Mark, at
Venice, and to receive from him the Kiss of Peace.
In this century also the celebrated Thomas a Becket, of
sainted memory, was assassinated. This haughty prelate,
who was Archbishop of Canterbury, by his zeal in behalf of
the court of Rome, gave great offence to his sovereign,
Hem-y II. of England, the consequences of which at length
proved fatal. After repeated affronts, the king one day, in
an unguarded moment, when particularly exasperated, ex-
pressed himself thus ; " Am I not unhappy, that among the
numbers who are attached to my interests, and employed
in my service, there is none possessed of spirit enough to
resent the 'affronts, which I am constantly receiving from a
miserable priest .^" These words were indeed not pronounced
in vain— four gentlemen of the court immediately set forward
to Canterbury, where they found Becket in his chapel, per-
forming the evening service, and slew him. Henry reflecting
on his words, and having reason to suspect their design, dis-
patched a messenger after them, charging them to attempt no-
thing against the person of the primate. But these orders
arrived too late> Such, however, was the power of the reign-
ing superstition, that the reluctant Henry was compelled to do
severe penance, as the instigator, whilst the prelate was enrolled
among the saints and martyrs, and such miracles attributed to
his bones as obtained whole hosts of pilgrims from most parts
of the world, and a shrine of immense value.
Pope Alexander III., who, hke most of his predecessors,
*• Hume's England, Vol. I. 394.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
55
knew much more of secular policy than of religion, enacted, in
tlie third council of the Lateran, tliat the persson, in whose
favour two-thirds of the college of cardinals voted, should be
the duly elected pope ; a law which will probably last as long
as popery, because it excludes the people, and even the inferior
clergy, from any share in the choice of their holy father. In
this council also a spiritual war was declared against heretics.
The appearance of some champions of truth in the last century
has been before alluded to, and if great attention has not been
paid to them, it is because the subject leads m the rugged
steps of haughty prelates and aspiring pontiffs, gradually
ascending to the very pinnacle of power, until the deluded
world fell down beneath them, a mighty ruin. In this place,
however, let those exalted worthies receive homage, who,
from age to age, kept up the dying embers of expiring truth,
until at length it poured its sacred rays in a full tide on the
benighted world.
The increase of opposition which the Popish faith expe-
rienced, and the fact that some were to be found who would
dare to think, though it should cost their blood, determined
the project of a spiritual war; a very natural precursor to
that crying abomination, the Holy Liquisitio7i, at once the
scourge, disgrace, and terror, of the human race.
This century is also remarkable for the sale of indulgences,
by which the church was supposed to forego its power of
punishing offenders, in consequence of a certain fine. In
these times of dotage every sort of mummery was accounted
holy, and the monks introduced the practice of carrying the
dead bodies of their saints in solemn procession through the
land, which the abject multitude were permitted to approach,
to touch, or to embrace, at certain established prices. The
inferior clergy had accustomed the people to the purchasing
of pardons, and the popes, considering the value of the appen-
dage, laid claim to the benefit, and annexed the sale of indul-
gences to the prerogatives of the holy see. It is not, how-
ever, designed to extend this rapid Survey of Ecclesiasti-
cal History beyond the close of this twelfth century. The
E-4
56 HISTOEICAL SURVEY OF
History of the Inquisition naturally, in some degree resuming,
or alluding to that subject.
In conclusion, therefore, what an argument does the vast
period, now hastily glanced over, afford, on the mischievous ef-
fects of error and of superstition. The world has been con-
quered by force of arms, but her inhabitants were held in sub-
jection, by the continued efforts of that power, which first re-
duced them. Superstition obtains a victory, and maintains a
conquest, by a far different operation — she gains possession of
the heart. Warriors have indeed prevailed over physical force,
but they could never controul the will. Superstition has done
this; — she has seated herself in the throne of judgment, and
commanded all human affections. Reviewing the past, may it
not then be said, what a deadly poison is that which she instills !
Sufficiently allied to truth to obtain its sacred sanction, and yet
so contaminated by error, as wholly to destroy the efficacy of
that alliance ; her influence descends upon the mind of man like
an overshadowing cloud, which, from a transparent vapour,
becomes a solid gloom, leaving the wretched wanderer in the
mazes of the grossest darkness. Superstition, indeed, appears to
be the human mind^s most natural disease, in its present fallen
state; cut off by transgression from that love and contempla-
iton of the Divine excellency, for which it was originally
created, the soul betrays its sacred instinct, by an awful and
perverted action ; for when men knew God from the displays
of his eternal power in the visible world, they glorified him
not as God, but became vain in their imagination, and their
foolish hearts were darkened. Hence the histories of all na-
tions abound with the records of idol worship, but whilst the
abominations of a system professedly established on Christian
principles are in view, it is unnecessary to turn for scenes of
horror to the plains of Juggernaut.
It is truth, scriptural truth alone which can emancipate the
soul — not by assisting men''s natural notions, but by dictating
evejy idea, which is proper or even allowable in the service of
God : where this is the case, there the kingdom of God is
estabhshed in the heart of man ; where it is not, but where
the scriptures are either partially or wholly laid aside— where
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 57
men reject the commandments of God, that they may keep
their own traditions, all things are out of place, there is con-
fusion, and more or less every evil work. Hence the great
enemy of man and his emissaries, have either forbad the read-
ing of the scriptures, or sophistically perverted their ail-iiupor-
tant declarations. They have however been confounded
whenever and by whomsoever the sacred volume has been
duly honoured — taught by its prophetic voice, and assured of
final victory. Christians have in every age been animated to use
this weapon alone, in the face of every danger, whilst in the
same loving spirit which it breathes— (not by fire and sword)
they have endeavoured to persuade all human kind to love the
sacred Author of their being in the way his wisdom and
mercy have appointed.
HISTORY
OF THE
Itnt^tl^lMuM^
CHAP. I.
The Doctrine of Jesus Christ forbids Persecution on the
Account of Religion.
Although the inquisition was not so much as
heard of m the Christian church before the thirteenth cen-
tury, yet since it has spread itself ahnost throughout the whole
world and become every where notorious, it is not to be won-
dered at, that there should be a general curiosity in marikind
of more thoroughly understanding it, and knowing by what
laws it is conducted, and what are the methods of proceeding
therein. The doctors of the Romish church give it the highest
commendations, as the only and most certain means of extir-
pating heresies, and an impregnable support of the faith ; not
invented by human wisdom and council, but given to men by
the immediate influence of heaven, whose tribunal breathes
nothing but holiness, and to which they give such titles, as
denote the most perfect sanctity. The Inquisition itself is called
the Holy Office, the prison of the Inquisition the Holy House;
so that the very name confers upon it respect and veneration: yea,
they go so far as to compare it with the sun, and affirm, that
as it would be accounted ridiculous to commend and extol the
sun, it would be equally so to pretend to praise the Inquisition.
60 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITIOy.
The Protestants, on the other hand, represent it, not only as
a cruel and bloody, but most unjust tribunal ; where, as the
laws by which other tribunals are governed are disregarded, so
many things which every where else would be esteemed un-
righteous, are commended as holy. And they are so far from
thinking that it is a proper means of restraining or punishing
the guilty (which is the principal thing to be aimed at by every
tribunal) that, on the contrary, they believe it was invented for
the oppression of truth, and the defence of superstition and
tyranny : where persons, let their innocency appear as bright as
the sun at noon-day, are treated as the most vile and perfidious
wretches, and cruelly put to death by the severest tortures.
I therefore thought it might be of service to the world, to de-
scribe the origin of this tribunal; and against whom, and by
what methods, they generally proceed in it. In order to this,
it is necessary to look back, and deduce this whole affair from
its very origin.
The Christian religion, taught by the Apostles, made its
progress in the world, and shewed itself to be of divine original,
by the holiness of its precepts, the exceeding gi'eatness of its
promises, and the many miracles, wrought in confirmation of
it ; and, at last, brought the whole world into its obedience,
without the assistance of carnal weapons, or temporal power.
Our Saviour sent his disciples into the world, as a blessing :
they were to preach the Gospel to every creature — to publish
those glad tidings of gTeat joy, which concern all people— to
proclaim his character and office, according to that prophecy,
which he himself adopted as his own, in the synagogue at
Nazareth, and by which he is declared, anointed to preach
the gospel to the poor — sent to heal the broken-hearted —
to preach dehverance to the captives — recovering of sight to
the bhnd — and to set at hberty the bruised.
A character like this, stands at an infinite distance from
cruelty of every kind. Its perfection consists in being Iholy^
harmless^ and undefiled ; it never sanctioned the doing of evil
that good may come. Nor will any act of such a kind fail to
meet with disapproval in that day, when God shall judge the
secrets of men by his well-beloved Son, the Author and the Fi-
nisher of Faith.
HISTORY OF THE IN^QUISITION. 61
CHAP. II.
The opinion of the Primitive Christians concerning Perse-
cution.
THE primitive Christians opposed with the greatest vigour,
all cruelty and persecution for the sake of religion. It is true,
indeed, that^they condemned the Heathen for their barbarities;
and argued wholly for this, that Christians should have the free
exercise of their rehgion granted them; but they used such
arguments, and topics of reasoning, and even sometimes when
treating of different subjects, expressed themselves in such a
manner, as plainly declares that they do equally condemn all
sort of violence for the sake of rehgion, against all persons what-
soever. Thus Tertullian, in his Apology, * says : " Take
heed that this be not made use of to the praise of impiety, viz.
to take away from men the liberty of religion, and forbid them
the choice of their deity ; so that it should be criminal for them
to worship whom they would, and they should be compelled to
worship whom they would not ; no one would accept of an
involuntary service, no not a man.*" And again, J " It
plainly appears unjust, that men possessed of liberty and
choice, should be compelled against their will to sacrifice. For
in other cases a willing mind is required in the performance of
divine worship; and it may justly be accounted ridiculous to
force any person to honour the Gods, whom he ought wiUingly
for his own sake to endeavour to appease." And again, in his
book to Scapula. ^ " Every one hath a natural right and
power to worship according to his persuasion, for no man's reli-
gion can be either hurtful or profitable to his neighbour : nor
can it be a part of religion to compel men to religion, which
ought to be voluntarily embraced, and not through constraint ;
since 'tis expected, that even your sacrifices should be offered
with a willing mind ; so that if you compel us to sacrifice, think
not to please your Gods ; for unless they dehght in strife, they
will not desire unwilling sacrifices: but God is not a lover of
contention."" Cyprian also agrees with Tertullian his master,
in liis 62d letter to Pomponius, concerning virgins, where,
! Cap. 21. j Cap. 28. ^ Cap, 2.
(Ja HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
treating of the excommunication of offenders, he thus speaks :
*' God commanded, that those who would not obey his priests,
and those judges, which time after time he appointed, should be
slain. Such were cut off with the sword during the dispensa-
tion of the circumcision in the flesh. But now, since the spiritual
circumcision takes place in all the faithful servants of God, the
proud and obstinate are to be slain with the sphitual sword, by
being cast out of the church.'' The Apostle, in his Epistle to
the Corintliians, says. That in a large house there are not only
vessels of gold and silver, but of wood and earth, some to honour,
and some to dishonour. '' Let us endeavour, as much as we
can, to be found amongst those of gold and silver. 'Tis the
sole prerogative of the Lord to break the earthen ones, to whom
the iron rod is committed. The servant cannot be greater than
his Lord ; nor should any one arrogate to himself what the
Father hath committed to the Son only, viz. to winnow and
purge the flour, and separate, by any human judgment, the
chaff from the wheat." And in his 55th to Cornelius : " Nor
let any one wonder that some should forsake tlie serv^ant ap-
pointed over them, when the disciples left the Lord himself,
though he wrought the greatest signs and wonders ; and proved
by the testimony of his works, that he acted by the power of his
Father. And yet he did not reproach or grievously threaten
them when they forsook him, but gently turned to his A|X)stles
and said, What, will you forsake me also ? Observing that
sacred law, of every one's being left to his own liberty and will,
and making for himself his own choice, whether of life or death."'
Now since from these passages, it plainly appears, that Cyprian
taught, that all force in matters of religion, is contrary to the
nature of Christianity, I cannot but take notice of the disho-
nesty of Bellarmine,^ who in his 3d book of Controversies,*"
brings in Cyprian as a defender of the murder of Heretics ;
who having in his book concerning martyrdom, cited that
passage out of Deut. xiii. " That the false prophet shall be
slain, adds. If this was to be done under the Old Testament,
much more under the New." But if we look to the words
immediately following, we shall find that Cyprian's opinion was
1 De Laicig. "" cap. 21.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 6S
quite the reverse : for these are the words of Cyprian : "If
before the coming of Christ, the commands of worshipping God,
and forsaking idols, were to be observed, how much rather are
they to be observed since his appearance ? who not only exhort-
ed us by words, but by his own actions ; and who, after having
endured all manner of injuries and reproaches, was crucified,
that he might leave us an example how to suffer and die. So
that he hath no excuse who will not suffer on his own account ;
for as he suffered for the sins of all, how much more ought
every one to suffer for his own sins ?" If this passage be read
entire, it will appear, how^ very falsly Bellarmine hath applied it
to the defence of the murder of Heretics, which was only
intended as an exhortation to the patient suffering of mar-
tyrdom.
Lactantius defends the same doctrine in a nobler and plainer
manner," " There is no need of compulsion and violence,
because religion cannot be forced, and men must be made
■willing, not by stripes, but arguments. Let them draw
the sword of their reason ; if their reasons are good, let them
produce them ; we are ready to hear, if they can teach ; if they
are silent, we cannot believe them : if they pretend to force us,
we cannot yield to them: let them imitate us, or fairly debate
the case with us. It is not our manner, as they object, to entice
men; we teach, prove, and demonstrate; no one is kept
amongst us against his will ; and he must be unacceptable to
God, who wants devotion and faith ; and yet none forsake us,
being preserved by the sole evidence and force of truth." And
a little after : " Let them leai'n from this what difference there
is between truth and falsehood ; in that they, though boasting
of their eloquence, cannot persuade; yet Christians, though
unskilful and ignorant, can ; for the thing itself, and truth
pleads in their behalf To what purpose then is their rage,
but to expose more that folly which they strive to conceal ?
Slaughter and piety ai'e quite opposite to each other; nor can
truth consist witli violence, or justice Avith cruelty." And a
httle after: " They are convinced that there is nothing more
excellent than religion, and therefore think that it ought to be
defended with force ; but they are mistaken both in the nature
° Lib. 5. c. 20.
64 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
of religion, and in the proper methods to support it; for
rehgion is to be defended, not by murder, but persuasion ; not
by cruelty, but patience; not by wickedness, but faith.
Those are the metliods of bad men, these of good ; and 'tis
necessary that a religious man should be good, and not evil ;
for if 3^ou attempt to defend religion by blood, and torments,
and evil, this is not to defend but to violate and pollute it:
for there is nothing should be more free than the choice of our
religion, in which, if the consent of the worshipper be wanting,
it becomes entirely void and ineffectual. The true way there-
fore of defending religion is by faith, a patient suffering, and
dying for it : this renders it acceptable to God, and strengthens
its authority and influence." This was that most harmless
persuasion of the Primitive Chi'istians, before the world had
yet entered into the church, and by its pomp and pride had
perverted the minds, and corrupted the manners of professors.
CHAP. III.
The Laws of the Emperors, after the Nicene Council, against
the Arians and other Heretics.
AFTER the conversion of Constantine to the Christian
religion, the civil power became vested in the hands of Chris-
tians. This change in their circumstances produced as great a
change in their doctrine and manners ; and they introduced
into the church methods of cruelty, not only equal to those of
the Heathen, but even greater than were ever practised by
them. What gave thc^ first rise to it was, the dispute between
Alexander, bishop of Alexandria, and Arius, a Presbyter of
the same cliurch : when the news of this was brought to Con-
stantine, he first by letter sharply reproved them. But after-
wards, witli the persuasion of the bisliops, or out of some
political view, he called the Nicene coic7icil, that by their
authority the opinions of Arius might be condemned. Euse-
bius, who was present at that council, was able to give the
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 65
best account of it; but he chose rather that their actions
should be for ever forgotten, and contented himself in a very
few words to declare the issue of it: and if we add to the
account given by him, the somewhat larger one given by
Socrates, it appears plain, that all who would not subscribe to
their decrees, were condemned to banishment, and there is no
room to doubt, such are the frailties of human nature, but that
many through fear were compelled to subscribe. Some few
indeed there were, who not at all terrified with the fear of
banishment, went into exile with Arius, whom the Synod had
condemned, because they would not consent to his condemna-
tion. The emperor himself put forth an edict, by which he
ordained, that all the books written by Arius should be burnt,
" condemning to death every one that should conceal any of
Arius's books, and not commit them to the flames.'' » He
afterwards put forth a fresh law against the Recusants, by
wliich he took from them their places of worship, and prohi-
bited their meeting not only in public, but even in any private
houses whatsoever.''
After they had thus proceeded to methods of severity, and
civil punishments were decreed against those, whose opinions
the council were pleased to condemn, whom they exposed
under the infamous name of Heretics, and rendered odious to
the people, their cruelty was not satisfied with one degree of
punishment only ; they went from one to another, that so the
doctrine condemned by the council might find none that should
dare to defend it, and might at last be totally extirpated.
From pecuniary mulcts, they proceeded to the forfeiture of
goods, banishment, and at length to slaughter and blood;
for such is the nature of cruelty, that it seldom confines itself
to the first beginnings, but when it is once let loose, like an
impetuous torrent, it spreads itself every where, and from every
occasion grows more outrageous and furious. This will
appear most plainly in the account I am now giving of the
methods for the restraining and punishment of Heretics.
For in the first place, laws were made against Heretics,
whereby they were prohibited from having churches, holding
* Socrat. 1, I. r. 9. ♦• Eiiseb. Life of Coustan. I. 3. c 65.
66 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
assemblies, the enjoying any ecclesiastical preferments, the
consecration of bishops, the ordination of priests, the making
of wills, the succeeding to inheritances, the sharing in any
charities, the advancement to public offices, and ordaining
severe punishments against those who did not observe these
prescriptions.
And first, it was determined who should be accounted
Heretics. " They are comprehended under the name of
Heretics, and are adjudged to the punishments pronounced
against such, who shall be discovered to differ, even in the
least point, from the judgment and practice of the Catholic
rehgion."^ By the same law it is ordained, " That no one
should dare, either to teach or learn those things that shall
have been decreed to be profane.""'* By the law following,
their churches are taken from them, and they are prohibited
from performing holy offices, either in private houses or churches,
under the forfeiture of one hundred pounds of gold upon
all contraveners. '^ The following law is yet more severe,
which takes from them the power of giving, buying, selling,
making contracts or wills, or inheriting their parents estates,
unless they renounce their heretical pravity. There are many
laws extant concerning the banishment of Heretics. Theodo-
sius II. and Valentinian III. counting up thirty-two sects, and
their followers, decree, " let not these and the Manicheans,
who are arisen to the height of impiety, have the hberty of
dwelling any where within the dominions of the Roman empire :
let the Manicheans be expelled from every city, and punished
^vith death; for they are not to be suffered to have any dwelling
on the earth, lest they should infect the very elements them-
selves.'' '^
See also L. Quicunque, where -the foremen tioned penalties
are not only repeated, but other kinds of punishments ordained
against them ; which are all extant in the law of the emperor
Martian, who renews the punishments ordained by the preced-
ing emperors, against the Eutichians, and which is recorded at
the end of the council of Chalcedon, and which will suffice in-
* L. Omnes, c. de Hafriet. *> Cuncti. ^ Manichaeoi.
J L. Ariani, c. de Haeret.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 67
Stead of all other instances. By this law the emperor ordained,
" That they should not have power of disposing of their estates,
and making a will, nor of inheriting what others should leave
them by will. Neither let them receive advantage by any deed
of gift, but let whatsoever is given them, either by the bounty
of the living, or the will of the dead, be immediately forfeited
to our treasury ; nor let them have the power, by any title or
deed of gift, to transfer any part of their own estates to others.
Neither shall it be lawful for them to have or ordain bishops or
presbyters, or any other of the clergy whatsoever ; as knowing
that the Eutichians and Apolhnarists, who shall presume to confer
the names of bishop or presbyter, or any other sacred office upon
any one, as well as those who shall dare to retain them, shall be
condemned to banishment, and the forfeiture of theu' goods.
And as to those who have been formerly ministers in the Catho-
lic church, or monks of the orthodox faith, and forsaking the
true and orthodox worship of the Almighty God, have, or shall
embrace, the heresies and abominable opinions of ApoUinarius,
or Eutyches^ let them be subject to all the penalties ordained
by this, or any foregoing laws whatsoever, against hereticks, and
banished from the Roman dominions, according as former laws
have decreed against the Manicheans. Farther, let not any of
the Apolhnarists, or Eutychians, build churches or monasteries,
or have assemblies and conventicles, either by day or night ;
nor let the followers of this accursed sect meet in any one's
house or tenement, or in a monastery, nor in any other place
whatsoever : but if they do, and it shall appear to be with the
consent of the owners of such places, after a due examination,
let such place or tenement in which they meet, be immediately
forfeited to us ; or if it be a monastery, let it be given to the
orthodox church of that city in whose territory it is. But if
so be, they hold these unlawful assemblies and conventicles,
without the knowledge 6f the owner, but with the privity of
him who receives the rents of it, the tenant, agent, or steward
of the estate, let such tenant, agent, or steward, or whoever
shall receive them into any house or tenement, or monastery,
and suffer them to hold such unlawful assemblies and conven-
ticles, if he be of low and mean condition, be publicly bastina-
F 2
68 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
doed, as a punishment to himself, and as a warning to others;
but if they are persons of repute, let them forfeit ten pounds
of gold to our treasury. Farther, let no ApolUnarist or Euty-
chian ever hope for any miUtary preferment, except to be listed
in the foot soldiers, or garrisons : but if any of them shall be
found in any other military service, let them be immediately
broke, and forbid all access to the palace, and not suffered to
dwell in any other city, town, or country, but that wherein they
were born.
" But if any of them are born in this august city, let them be
banished from this most sacred society, and from every metro-
politan city of our provinces. Farther, let no ApoUinarist. or
Eutychian, have the power of calling assembhes, public or pri-
vate, or gathering together any companies, or disputing in any
heretical manner; or of defending their perverse aud wicked
opinions ; nor let it be lawful for any one to speak or write,
or pubhsh any thing of their own, or the writings of any others,
contrary to the decrees of the venerable synod of Chalcedon. —
Let no one have any such books, nor dare to keep any of the
impious performances of such writers. And if any are found
guilty of these crimes, let them be condemned to perpetual ba-
nishment ; and as for those, who, through a desire of learning,
shall hear others disputing of this wi'etched heresy, it is our
pleasure, that they forfeit ten pounds of gold to our treasury,
and let the teacher of these unlawful tenets be punished with
death. Let all such books and papers, as contain any of the
damnable opinions of Eutyches or Apollinarius, be burnt, that
all the remains of their impious perverseness may perish with
the flames ; for it is but just, that there should be a proportion-
able punishment, to deter men from these most outrageous im-
pieties. And let all the governors of our provinces, and their
deputies, and the magistrates of our cities, know, that if, through
neglect or presumption, they shall suffer any part of this most
religious edict to be violated, they shall be condemned to a fine
of ten pounds of gold, to be paid into our treasury ; and shall
incur the further penalty of being declared infamous.
" Given at Constantinople, in the Ides
" of August, and the Consulate of
" Constantius and Rufus."
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 69
At the same time that they pubhshed these cruel laws, the
authors of them would fain be thought, to offer no violence to
conscience. This same emperor Martian, in another epistle to
the Archimandrites of Jerusalem, at the end of the acts of the
synod of Chalcedon, says, " Such, therefore, is our clemency,
that we use no force with any one, to compel him to subscribe
or agree with us, if he be unwilling : for we would not, by
terrors and violence, drive men even into the paths of truth."
Who would not wonder that they should thus seek to colour
over their cruelties ? A doctrine is forbidden to be learnt or
taught, under the severest penalties, which those ought to think
themselves obliged to profess, who are persuaded of the truth
of it ; and those who do profess it, are, for that reason, exposed
to many punishments ; and yet the authors of such punish-
ments would still be thought to offer no violence to conscience.
But I would • fain know, for what end are all these penalties
against heretics ordained ? For no other surely, but that men
may be deterred, by the fear of them, from meeting together,
and openly professing themselves, or teaching others those doc-
trines, which they think themselves obliged, in conscience, both
to profess and propagate; and that, being at length quite
tired out by these evils, they may join themselves to the esta-
blished churches, and at least profess to believe their received
opinions. But this is to offer violence to conscience, or to force
men, by the fear of punishments, not to profess what they be-
lieve, or to pretend to belieye what they do not; neither of which
can be done, but in opposition to the voice and dictates of
conscience.
r The constitution of Theodosius was in rnuch severer terms,
which is extant in the code of Theodosius,* in which we
read thus: " Farther, we ordain, that whosoever shall
persuade or force a slave, or freeman, to forsake the
worship of the Christian religion, and join himself to
any accursed sect or rite, let him. be punished with loss
of fortune and life." And a little after, " Let him first
incur the forfeiture of his goods, and afterwards be condemned
* Tit. de Judaeis, 1. 1. and lib. 16. tit. 6. 1. 75.
70 HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITIOX.
to the loss of life, who, by false doctrine, shall pervert any one
from the faith/'^
This law so pleases Simanca, that he congratulates himself
on its being made by an emperor that was a Spaniard ; for,
after having recited it, he adds : " A law truly worthy of an
emperor that was a Spaniard V as though it was the glory of
Spain to exceed all nations in cruelty; audits honour, even in
former ages, to have been as remarkable for using severer me-
thods of punishments in this world to miserable heretics than
others, as they have been since for the barbarities practiced by ^
the bloody tribunal of the Inquisition. The emperors Honorius
and Theodosius also,^ '' If any one shall be discovered to have
rebaptized any of the ministers of the Catholic party, let him
be put to death ; both the person guilty of this execrable im-
piety, (if he be of an age capable of guilt) and the party se-
duced by liim.""
It is true, these were laws made by the civil magistrate, but
that they were pubhshed with the approbation, and at the insti-
gation of the bishops, no one can doubt, who compares our
times with the ancient. The bishops could not bear that their
decrees and anathemas should be slighted as insignificant and
harmless flashes. They would fain have all condemned by
their sentence, appear to be justly condemned ; and ea'gerly
thirsted after the mitres and churches of those whose doctrines
they were pleased to anathematize.
•V«%/WVV^V%'V«>
CHAP. IV.
The AniAN Persecutions of the Orthodox.
BUT neither did the Arians, when they had an emperor of
their own party, refrain from any sort of cruelty, but persecuted
* Simanc. Tit. 46, $ 48. ^ Cod. de Sanct. Baptisma iteratur, 1. 2.
HISTOKY OF THE INQUISITION. 71
those, by whom they had been deprived, with a more implaca-
ble and bloody hatred. The persecutions against Athanasius,
their principal adversary, are notorious to all. Athanasius him-
self, in his letter to the hermits, gives us many instances of their
cruelty, wliich is the burthen of his epistle; and aggravated,
as far as words can do it, viz. that they scourged the bishops
in Egypt, and bound them \nth cruel chains ; that they sent
Sarapammo into banishment, and beat Potammo in so barba-
rous a manner on his back, that he was left for dead, and died
soon after of his bruises and pain;* that they would not suflPer
a dead woman to be buried;^ that they ejected many bishops
from their sees, and sent them into banishment ; and that they
obtained an edict from the emperor, that the bishops should
not only be banished from the cities and churches, but even
punished wdth death wherever they could be found. And he
adds: " That so dreadfully were men terrified by them, that
some pretended to beUeve their heresies; and others, t|irough
fear, chose rather to fly into de^i'ts than fall into their hands.''^
In another place he says : " How many bishops were brought
before governors and kings, and heard this sentence from their
judges, ' Either subscribe, or depart from your churches ^ —
for the emperor hath commanded you shall be banished from
your churches.' How many, in every city, scattered themselves
up and down, for fear of being accused as the bishop's friends/
For the magistrates were written to, and commanded, upon
penalty of a fine, to compel the bishops of their respective cities
to subscribe. In fine, all places and cities were filled with ter-
rors and tumults; for violence was offered to the bishops, and
the judges saw the mournings and sighs of the people." And
at length, after a tragical account of the various cruelties and
persecutions of the Arians, he adds: " That they would not
suffer the friends of those they had slain, to bury their dead
bodies, but hid them in private places, that thereby they might
conceal their murders.''^ There are other passages to the same
purpose, in the same epistle.
« Simanca, tit. 49. $ 14- p. 814. " Ibid, p. 821. ^ Ibid, p. 829.
" Ibid, p. 859.
F 4
72 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
Victor also relates several kinds of cruelty practised by Hu-
nerick, the Arian king of the Vandals, in Africa ; but it would
be too tedious to recount them all. It is enough to add, that
some had their tongues cut out, others their hands, others their
feet chopt off, others their eyes dug out, and others were mise-
rably slain through the extremity of their tortures ;» and Am-
mianus MarcelHnus, an heathen writer, describing those times,
relates of Juhan the emperor,^ " That he ordered the Christian
bishops and people that were at variance with each other, to
come into his palace, and there admonished them, that they
should every one profess his own religion, without hindrance or
fear, whilst they did not disturb the public peace by their di-
visions; which he did for this reason, because as he knew their
liberty would increase their divisions, he might now have
nothing to fear from their being an united people; having
found by experience, that even beasts are not so cruel to men,
as the generality of Cliristians are to each other.
CHAP. V.
Tlie Opinion of some of the Fathers concerning the Persecu-
tion o^ Dissenters.
WHAT the opinions of those ancient doctors of the church,
called Fathers, was, we may learn from their writings.
Athanasius, in his epistle to the hermits, speaks in this manner
of the Arians, and thus points out their persecutions against
the orthodox -." " That Jewish heresy hath not only learnt to
deny Christ, but also to dehght in slaughters. But even this
was not sufficient to satisfy them. For as the father of their
heresy goes about as a roaring hon, seeking whom to devour,
so these, having liberty to go up and down, run about, and
whomsoever they happen to meet with, who either blame their
• See also Hist. Tripart. b. 6. c 32, and b. 4. c. 39.
b B. 22. *= Hist. Eccles. 1. 7. c 2. p. 821.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 73
flight, or abhor their heresy, inhumanly tear them with scourges,
or bind them with chains, or banish them from their native
country.""
In this and the Uke manner, Athanasius, whilst persecuted
by the Arians, largely and pathetically argues, condemning
persecution of every sort, upon the score of religion, and freely
pronouncing it the invention of the devil. And yet we do not
find, that this same Athanasius made the least intercession with
the emperor Con stan tine, when the Nicene Synod was ended, to
prevent the banishment of Arius and his followers; no, nor one
single word to shew that he even disapproved of Arius's banish-
ment; through a too common weakness of mind, whereby men ai*e
apt to think, that the same thing done to them by others would
be most unjust, that would not be unjust in them to do to
others.
Hilarius, against Auxentius the Arian, shews, with equal
eloquence, his detestation of cruelty towards men differing in
their religious sentiments. " And first, I cannot help pitying
the misfortune of our age, and lamenting the absurd opinions
of the present times ; according to which, human arts must
support the cause of God, and the church of Christ be defended
by methods of secular ambition. I beseech you, O ye bishops,
who believe yourselves to be such, what helps did the apostles
make use of in propagating the gospel ? What powers assisted
them ir preaching Christ, and converting all nations from idols
to Goc,!.^ Had they any of the nobles from the palaces joined
\rith jthem, when they sang hymns to God in prison and in
chain^u and after they had been cruelly scourged.? Did Paul
gathe I the church of Christ by virtue of the royal edict, when
he [. Ipself was made a spectacle in the public theatre ? Was
the;f i^jlcaching of the divine truth protected by Nero, Vespa-
^He lab* Decius, which flourished by means of their very hatred
t*favoi^"S.?^'
not ho\^^^^^ ^^s^ taught the same doctrine. " The apostles are
nations ^^^^^^^<^ to take rods in their hands, as Matthew writes,
atrainst^ a rod', but an ensign of power, and an instrument of
the inwH^ ^^ instrument of vengeance, to inflict pain ? And,
t, the disciples of an humble master, I say of an humble
[for in his humility/ his Judgment was taken from him^
74 HISTORY OF THE INaUlSITION.
can only perform the duty he hath enjoined them by offices of
humility : for he sent persons forth to sow the faith, who should
not force men but teach them; not exercise power, but exalt
the doctrine of humility.""^ And a little after he adds : " When
the apostles would have had fire from heaven, to consume the
Samaritans, who would not receive our Lord Jesus into their
city, he turned about and rebuked them, saying, ' Ye know
not what spirit ye are of; for the son of man is not come to
destroy men's hves, but to save them.' "
Gregory Narianzen evidently shews himself to be of the same
sentiment, although he hath not handled this argument pro-
fessedly : for having observed, that men were not easily and at
once, but slowly and gradually, brought off from idolatry to the
law, and from the law to the gospel ; and having considered
the reason of it, he thus speaks : " And why is it thus ? Be-
cause we are to know, that men are not to be driven by force, but
to be drawn by persuasion. For that which is forced is not last-
ing; this even the waves teach us, when they are repelled by vio-
lence; and the very plants, when bent contrary to their na-
ture. That which is voluntary is both more lasting and safe.
This is agreeable to the divine equity ; the other an in&tance of
tyranny." So that he did not think it just even to do good to
men against their will, or without their consent.
Optatus Milevitanus, writing against Parmenianus, th»e Dona-
tist, vindicates the church from the charge of persecut/ing dis-
senters from it. \
What was Chrysostom's sentiment in this affair, he iVimself
sufficiently declares in his sermon about excommunicatiorJSvhere
he thus inveighs against those, who pronounced otg^^^s ac-
cursed : — " I see men, who understand not the geni^j^^^ense,
nor indeed any thing of the sacred writings, who,, p/^^ by
other things, I am not ashamed to own, are furi^^ ^i^ ^"^:;rs,
quarrelsome, who know not what they say, nor ;ward ^^"^y
affirm; bold and peremptory in this one thing, ev Am^ ^"^'"^^
articles of faith, and declaring accursed, diings inot coj^' ^". ^
not. Upon this account we have become the What ij ^
mies of our faith, who look upon us as perso power, J
regard to virtue, and never learnt to do good tlierefoj
* Comment, in Luc. 1. 7^ in c. 10 ^^^
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 75
flicted and grieved for these things!" And afterwards, citing
that place of St. Paul, *' The servant of the Lord must not strive,
but be gentle,"'' &c. he goes on : " Entice him with the bait of
compassion, and thus endeavour to draw him out from destruc-
tion, that being thus delivered from the infection of his former
eiTor, he may live, and thou mayest delivei' thy soul. But if
he obstinately refuses to hear, witness against him, lest thou be-
come guilty; only let it be with long-suffering and gentleness,
lest the Judge require his soul at thy hand. Let him not be
hated, shunned, or persecuted, but exercise towards him a
sincere and fervent cliarity."
St Jerome is of the same mind, who, in his sixty-second letter
to Theophilus, against John of Jerusalem, thus speaks :— " The
church of Christ was founded on the bloody sufferings and pa-
tience of its first professors, and not on their abusing and injur-
ing others ; it grew by persecutions, and triumphed by martyr-
doms."
■v^w^^^^-wv^
CHAP. VI.
St. Augustine's Opinion concerning the Persecution of
Heretics.
AUGUSTINE, in his former writings, condemned all vio-
lence upon the account of rehgion; for, writing against the
fundamental epistle of Manichaeus, he begins with this address
to the Manichaeans: — " The servant of the Lord ought not to
strive, &c. It is, therefore, our business willingly to act this
part. God gives that which is good to those who willingly ask
it of him. They only rage against you, who know nothing of
the labour that is necessary to find out truth, or the difficulty
of avoiding errors. It is they who rage against you, whg know
not how uncommon and difficult it is to overcome carnal imagi-
nations by the calmness of a pious mind. It is they who rage
against you, who are ignorant hoAv liard it is to heal the eye of
the inward man, so that it can behold its Sun ; not that sun whose
a 2 Tim. it. 24,25, 20.
76 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
celestial body you Avorship, and which iiTadiates the fleshly
eyes of men and beasts, but that of which the prophet writes,
* The sun of righteousness is risen on me ;' and of which we
read in the Evangehst, * He was the true light which enlightens
every man that cometh into the world.' Th.ey rage against
you, who know not that it is by many sighs and groans we must
attain to a small portion of the knowledge of God. Lastly,
they rage against you, who are not deceived with that error,
into which they see you are fallen. But as for myself, I, who
after long and great fluctuation, can at last perceive, what is
that sincerity which is free from all mixture of vain fable,
cannot by any means rage against you, whom I ought to bear
with, as I was once borne with myself, and to treat you with
the same patience that my friends exercised tow^ards me, when
I was a zealous and bhnd espouser of your error.
But afterwards, upon his sharp and long disputes with the
Donatists; such is the fluctuation of the human mind, and
with so much inconstancy, sometimes have the best feelings
been associated, that he &o far altered his opinion, as that he
did not disapprove of, but was actually for inflicting all punish-
ments, which did not cut off the hopes of repentance, i. e. all
manner, death only excepted; that being terrified by them,
they mjght be compelled to embrace the orthodox faith ; which
he hath shewn in a few words, in his second book of Retrac-
tations.^ " I have two books entitled, Against the Donatists :
In the first I declared, that I did not approve that schismatical
persons should be compelled to communion by any secular
power. The reason was, because I had not then experienced
what great mischief would ai'ise from their impunity, or how
much good disciphne would conduce to their conversion.
From some further passages it appears clear, that Austin
approved of the punishment ordained by civil laws against the
erroneous, as that they ought not to make wills, nor buy and
seE, nor receive legacies, but that they should be sent into
banishment. And to shew that he thought this punishment
just upon the Donatists and Rogatians, he adds : " The terror
of temporal powers, when it opposes the truth, is a glorious
» Cap. 5.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 77
trial to the good and resolute, but a dangerous temptation to
the weak. But when it inculcates tlie truth upon the errone-
ous and schismatical, to ingenuous minds it is an useful admo-
nition, but to the foolish it proves an unprofitable affliction."
There is no power but what is of God, and he that resisteHi
the power, resisteth the ordinance of God : for princes are not
a terror to them that do well, but to those who do ill. Wilt
thou not therefore fear the power ? Do well, and thou shalt
have praise from it, " For if the power favouring the truth
corrects any one, he w^ho is made better by it hath praise
from it: or if, in opposition to the truth, it rages against
any one, he who is crowned conqueror hath praise from it.
But as for thee, thou dost not well that thou shouldest not fear
the power." And to make this appear, he largely refutes theii*
opinions, and then thinks he hath evinced the justice of the per-
secution raised against them.
The only punishment he would have Heretics exempted
from is death. Hence in his epistle to Cresconius the Gram-
marian,^ he saith: '' No good men in the Catholic church are
pleased, that any one, even an Heretic, should be punished
with death." But as to all other methods of persecution,
Austin is so far from being against them, that he recommends
them, as a remedy proper for the extirpation of Heresies,
Hence in his first book agahist Gaudentius,^ he says : " G^ for-
bid that this should be called persecuting men, when it is only
a persecuting their vices, in order to dehver them from the power
of them; just as the physician treats his distempered patient.
This then is the so much admired clemency of Austin, that
he interceded with the proconsuls, that the Donatists should
not be punished with death ; whilst at the same time he not
only approved of all other penalties except deatli, such as
banishment, the denying them power to make wills, to in-
herit their patrimony, or to receive what was left them by
others, of making contracts, buyhig and seUing, and the
like ; but he himself accused them to the proconsuls, that if
they persisted in these opinions, they might suffer these pu-
nishments.
• B. 3 cap. 50. *• Cup. s.
78 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
If any one will compare these things with the former opinion
of Austin, he may justly cry out, Oh how much is Austin
changed from himself, who mindful of his own former error,
from which he was not recovered, but by the great patience of
his friends, was against using methods of cruelty, even towards
the Manichaeans. But now he approves of all punishments
against the Donatists, death only excepted, that they may be
compelled into the Catholic church, even against their wills,
under a pretence that at last they may voluntarily remain in
her communion.
And indeed, all who since Austin have taught that Heretics
are to be persecuted, and even punished with death, have made
use of no authority more than Austin's; and to shew how
highly they esteem his authority, they use his argmnents as
the very strongest, though in themselves absurd, and mani-
festly contrary to Scripture, to defend a doctrine so absolutely
repugnant to the nature of Christianitv\ From him they have
borrowed the distinction, that it is unlawful for Heretics to
persecute the church, but the duty of the church to persecute
Heretics. This is now become the common exception of all
the murderers of Heretics, with which every one armed with
the secular power, under a specious pretence, persecutes and
oppresses those who differ from him: this is the principal
argument by which the Papists defend themselves, when they
would justify their own persecution of Heretics, and condemn
all others that persecute them.
Thus we see, that Christians by this idle doctrine, have
departed from their original simplicity and meekness ; and that
in the room of mutual love, by which all the faithful were of
one heart and one soul, there have succeeded in the church of
Christ, not only discords, contentions, hatreds and enmities, but
slaughters, and the worst of cruel butcheries.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 79
CHAP. VII.
The Persecutions of the Popes against Heretics.
IN the following ages the affairs of the church were so
managed under the government of the Popes, and all persons
so strictly curbed by the severity of the laws, that they durst
not even so much as whisper against the received opinions of
the church. Besides this, so deep was the ignorance that
had spread itself over the world, that men, Avithout the least
regard to knowledge and learning, received with a blind obe-
dience every thing that the ecclesiastics ordered them, however
stupid and superstitious, without any examination ; and if any
one dared in the least to contradict them, he was sure immedi-
ately to be punished ; whereby the most absurd opinions came
to be established by the violence of the Popes. It was at this
time that the doctrine of transubstantiation was introduced into
the church, now, in every thmg, subject to the Pope's controul ;
and how dangerous it was to oppose it, we may learn from the
instance of Berengarius of Tours, archdeacon of Angiers, who,
teaching that the bread and wine in the supper, was only the
figure of the body and blood of the Lord, was condemned as an
Heretic, by Leo IX. in a synod at Rome and Vercellae, in the
year 1050, and five years after, viz. 1055, was forced to recant,
and to subscribe with his own hand to the faith of the Roman
church, and confirm it with an oath, by Victor II. in the council
of Tours. But as Berengarius's recantation was forced ; and
as he afterwards defended that opinion, which in his heart he
believed, Nicolaus II. called a council at the Lateran, A. D.
1059, and there again condemned Berengarius, and compelled
him to make "a solemn abjuration, which Berengarius publicly
read, and signed with his own hand. This was the famous ab-
juration, which begins, " Ego Berengarius.'" Thus was the
truth suppressed by the papal violence. In the East also, A. D.
1118, one Basilius, the author of the sect of the Bongomili, was
publicly burnt for Heresy by the command of Alexius Com-
tienus the emperor, as Baronius relates, A. D. 1118.='
* Sec. 27.
80 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
In the mean time the power of the Roman pontiff grew to a
prodigious height, and began to be very troublesome, even to
the emperors themselves , for not content with the ecclesiastical
power, they clai)ned also the subjection of the seculai'. But in
the midst of this thick darkness, some glimmerings of light
broke forth through the great mercy of God.
For after the year of Christ, 1100, there arose various dis-
putes between the emperors and popes, about the Papal power
in secular affairs, which, as they were managed with great
warmth, gave occasion to many more strictly to examine that
unbounded power which the popes of Rome claimed to them-
selves. Some of the emperors bravely maintained their rights
against the Papal encroachments, and were supported, not
only by the arms and forces of generals and princes, but by
bishops and divines, who strenuously wrote in their defence.
This encouraged many others to oppose that unbounded au-
thority, which the popes assumed in matters of faith, who not
only argued that they were capable of erring, as well as the
other bishops, but actually pointed out and censured their
many errors and abuses of their unhmited power: all these
the court of Rome branded with the infamous name of Here-
tics, and would have sacrificed to the public hatred.
They appeared first in some parts of Italy, but principally
in Milan and Lombardy: and because they dwelt in dif-
ferent cities, and had their particular instructors, the Papists,
to render them the more odious, have represented them as
different sects, and ascribed to them as different opinions,
though others affirm they all held the same opinions, and were
entirely of the same sect. The truth is, that from the oldest
accounts of them we shall find, that they did not all hold the
same tenets, and were not of the same sect ; though neither
their opinions nor sects were so many and different as the
Papists represent. The principal of them were Tanchelinus,
Petrus de Bruis, Petrus Abailardus, Amaldus Brixianus,
whose opinion Earonius calls the heresy of the pohticians, Hen-
dricus, and others, who preached partly in Italy, and partly in
France, about the country of Thoulouse ; and because after-
Wards the greater number of them propagated their opinions
HISTORY OF TIJE INQUISITION. 81
in the province of Albigeois, in Langiiedoc, and gathered
there large and numerous churches, who openly professed their
faith ; they were stiled Albigenses.
CHAP. VIII.
Of the Albigenses and Waldenses.
ABOUT the same time the Waldenses,^ or the poor men
of Lyons,^ appeared at Lyons, whose original hath been
largely shewn by the most reverend and learned Usher,
Archbishop of Armagh, in his book De Successione, &c. I
shall therefore only enquire, whether the Waldenses and Al-
bigenses were the same people, according to the common
opinion of Protestants, or different from one another. It can-
not be doubted but that they had some opinions in common.
But there is nothing more evident, than that there was amongst
them a great variety of doctrines, and difference of rites and
customs, as appears from the book of the sentences of the In-
quisition at Tholouse, which I have published, in which are
to be found many of the sentences pronounced against the
Albigenses and Waldenses, which discover some very curious
and uncommon things, concerning their doctrines and rites ;
and which are such evident proofs of their difference in opi-
nions and customs, that from the reading of a few lines, one
may easily know whether the sentence pronounced was against
the Albigenses or Waldenses ; which manifest difference hath
induced me to believe that they were two distinct sects ; though
I have hitherto been in the common opinion, that they were
but one.
However, it is not to be doubted, but that oftentimes then-
enemies gave very vile and odious accounts of the doctrines
they held; as will appear by comparing the several places in
a An ecclesiastical term, signifying the iohabitants of the vallies.
b Being stripped of all their property, and reduced by persecution, to ex-
treme poverty.
82 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
wliicli they describe them. For the same opinion, which in
one place appears extremely erroneous ; in another, when it is
more fully explained, and Avithout spite, is harmless enough ;
of which the single instance of the resurrection of the dead is
full proof For sometimes the Albigenses are accused, that
" they deny the resurrection of human bodies ;" as though they
quite denied the resurrection of the dead ; which yet in another
place is more distinctly explained thus, that " the dead shall
rise with spiritual bodies.'' And that their opinions have
been misrepresented elsewhere, there can be no doubt, and it
will appear upon a comparison of the several places, wherein
they are recorded. But that the opinions of the Albigenses
and Waldenses were very different, cannot be denied. For if
they had held the same, no reason can be assigned, why differ-
ent ones should have been ascribed to them. One would
rather be inchned to believe, that as their persecutors greedily
sought after every occasion to punish them, they would have
fastened on every one of them all the heretical opinions of the
Waldenses and Albigenses; that so, being burdened with
numerous crimes, the inquisitors might seem to have the more
just pretence for condemning them.
The popish writers, indeed, charge these people with many
of the grossest crimes. It may however, be justly con-
cluded, that many of those impious tenets that are ascribed
by Baronius, Bzovius, and others, to the Albigenses and
Waldenses, were invented out of mere hatred to them, and
to render them detestable to the people; especially that im-
pious opinion, which Eymericus^ imputes to the Waldenses :
" That it is better to satisfy a man's lust by any act of
uncleanness whatsoever, than to be perpetually burning;
and that (as they say and practice) it is lawful in the
dark for men and women to lie promiscuously with one an-
other, whensoever, and as often as they have the inclination
and desire." ^ For if this had been their tenet, would there
* Direct. Inqnis. par. 2 quaes. 14.
b The extreme injustice of this imputation is evident from the apology of
those oppressed people, in which they deliver their sentiments on this subject
in the following striking words : " It was this vice that led David to procure the
death of his faithful servant, that he might enjoy his wife j — and Amnon to
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 83
not have been one of that vast number of prisoners, that they
condemned to such various punishments, to be found, that
was infected with it ? Or, if it could have been proved upon
them, was the equity, Iiumanity, and compassion of the inqui-
sitors so very great, as to have concealed a crime, that would
have been condemned by the common voice of mankind, and
exposed those that were guilty of it to the most severe punish-
ment and death ? Would they, by such a method of acting,
have given the world occasion to censure them for persecuting,
and cruelly punishing men merely for the sake of holding
opinions different from the Roman faith, though consistent with
a due regard to a good conscience, when at the same time they
might have accused them of so horrid an impiety ? If they had
been really such execrable persons, their crimes ought to have
been publicly exposed ; and thus they themselves would have
sunk under the weight of infamy, and their prosecutors would
liave been so far from being charged as bloody inquisitors, that
they would have deserved universal applause.
Hence we may learn what credit is to be given to popish
writers, when they give us an account of the opinions and
practices of those they call Heretics. It is then- way to charge
all that separate from their communion with impurity and lust,
as though the only cause of their leaving the communion of the
church of Rome, \)vas a dishonourable and vile love of women ;
and they have most impudently dared to reproach with this vice,
persons who have been remarkable for their chastity and conti-
nence. In the mean while, nothing is more notorious, than that
their monks and priests, who are forjbid the remedy of a chaste
and honourable matrimony, abandon themselves without shame
to the most impure embraces, and infamously wallow in carnal
defile his sister Tamar. This vice consumes the estates of many, as it is
said of the prodigal son, \vho wasted his substance in riotous living. Balaam
made choice of this vice to provoke the children of Israel tosiu, which occa-
sioned the death of twenty-four thousand persons. This sin was the occasion
of Samson's losing his sight — it perverted Solomon, — and many havr pewshed
through tlio beauty of a woman. The remedies for tliis sin are fasting,
prayer, and keeping at a distance from it; otlier vices may be subdued by
fighting, in this we conquer by flight, of wiiicli vre have an example in Jo-
seph.— Perrins Hist. Ch. IV. in Jones's Waldcnscs.
Q 2
84 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
pleasures. Erasmus,* says ; " There is a certain German
bishop, who declared publicly at a feast, that in one year he
had brought to him 11000 priests that openly kept women:"
for they pay annually a certain sum to the bishop. This was
one of the hundred grievances that the German nation proposed
to the Pope's nuncio at the convention at Nuremberg, in the
years 15^2 and 1523. Grievance 91. " That the bishops in
most places, and their officials, not only suffer the priests to
keep women, so they pay a certain sum of money, but even
force the chaster priests, who live without women, to pay the
price of those that keep them; alledging, that the bishop wants
money, and that those priests who pay it may either remain
single, or keep women as they please. How wicked a thing
this is, every one understands."/ The same Erasmus, in his
account of the errors of Bedda, ^ hath the following passage ;
" What wonder if some nuns in the age of St. Austin are said
to have married, when in this age, there are said to be so many
monasteries that are nothing better than public stews, and more
that are private ones. Even in those where the rules are more
strict, there are many instances of impurity. This I re-
late with grief, and I wish it was not true." And a Httle
after; " I know some, that have buried in the monasteries
the girls they have seduced, that the affair might be
hushed up. And= Bedda," says he, " cries out gloriously,
God forbid, God forbid, that any man should be admitted to
the dignity of the priesthood, who doth not wholly deny him-
self carnal embraces, though at this day there are some to be
found who keep fifty women, not to add any thing worse."
And** concerning the prohibition of flesh: " amongst the priests,
how scarce is the number that live chaste ? I speak of those
who keep pubhcly at home their women, instead of wives ; for
I will not mention the mysteries of their more secret crimes: I
speak of those things only that are well known to every one."
But the instance he gives,"^ is yet more execrable : That a cer-
tain Dominican professor of divinity, whose name was John,
* Tom. 9. page 401.
•^^Toni. 9. page 484. " Page 569. " Page 985. ' Page 1380.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 85
mentioned to him at Antwerp, in the house of Nicholas of
Middlebourge, a physician, a divine of Lovain, who told him,
that he refused to give absolution to a certain confessor of the
Nuns, because he had acknowledged he had had criminal
famiharity with 200 of them. But what need is there of pro- .
ducing testimonies out of particular authors ? The very laws
of the Inquisition, which ordain punishments for those priests,
who solicit not only women, but, what is much more horrid
ble, even boys, in the sacrament of confession, are an unc deni-
able proof that these crimes are too frequent and common in
that state of impure celibacy.^ So that, having theii' own
minds insnared with the lusts of the flesh, and their eyes,
a If those who prescribe celibacy mean to consider that as chastity which
consists merely in not supporting a wife, and not contributing to the popula-
tion of the state, by becoming fathers and instructors of children; if they
call that chastity, which has prescribed celibacy to them, in order that they
may be free from the troubles and cares of a family, which impel most men
to greater assiduity and economy in their domestic affairs, and, of course,
constitntes a kind of life more active, regular, and virtuous, we may, in
these cases, certainly allow that they practise chastity. But if we are to
understand the word chastity in the same sense as the ecclesiastics consider
it in their pulpits, then the justice of their claim to chastity may very easily
be decided, by the experience and knowledge almost every one must have of
ecclesiastical virtues. I should be ashamed to relate the proofs which I could
produce from history, on this point, without going further than the lives of
the popes, who, it might be presumed, should have been equally exalted in
virtue as in dignity. Alexander VI. alone would furnihh me with supera-
bundant particulars.
But least it might be said, that the corruption of the ecclesiastics in our
times has nothing to do with the purity of those fathers who established the
celibacy of the clergy, it will be proper to observe, that when the general
council of Constance was celebrated, in 1444, no picture of the virtuous pa-
radise of Jesus Christ was to be observed in that city ; on the contrary, the
city of Constance presented a perfect image of Mahomet's paradise. Spa-
nenberg says,* that the city of Constance was then honoured by the presence
of 34^ aichbishops and bishops, 564 abbots and doctors, and 7000 prosti-
tutes ! who followed the fathers of the council ; without reckoning the con-
cubines, whom the same holy fathers had about their persons. It is clear,
that if these tenacious defenders of celibacy had been married, these prosti-
tutes would not have followed them. But— oh inconsistency '.—in this very
council the cehbacy of the clergy was definitively decreed.
Da Costa's Narrative, v. i. 116.
♦ Epist. ad. Cor. p. 252.
«3
86 HISTORY 6r THE INaUISITION.
as the scripture expresses it, fidl of adultery^ like the gene-
rality of mankind, they judge of others by tliemselves, and
insinuate that the only, at least the chief cause of forsak-
ing the church of Rome, is the immoderate love of women :
whereas, if they were not actuated by the principles of a good
conscience, but from impure inclination, they might with much
more safety abide in the communion of the church of Rome,
where they have daily occasions offered to them of fulfilling
the lusts of the flesh : and where they have nothing to fear,
even from the bloody tribunals of the Inquisition. This
for once to refute the calumnies of the Papists, who, when-
ever they are giving an account of the rise of any of those they
call Heretics, are perpetually repeating this chai-ge against
them. But to return to our purpose :
As to the question whether the Albigenses and Waldenses,
were one or two different sects. To speak my own mind
freely, they appear to me to have been two distinct ones ;
and that they were entirely ignorant of many tenets, that are
now ascribed to them. Particularly the Waldenses* seem to
* Omitting the fables of the Popish writers respecting this, persecuted
people, it may be acceptable to extract a confession of their faith, from a
late publication, intitled, " The History of the Waldenses," by W. Jones, — a
work of much curious research, and well worthy the attention of the reader. —
This confession is better than a thousand arguments, and whilst it proves
that God has his jewels in every age of the world, shews, with the evidence
of a sun beam, that the Inquisition, whatever its pretences, persecuted
nothing so cruelly, as that which most resembled true religion ; it reads
thus:
1. We believe and firmly maintain all that is contained in the twelve
articles of the symbol, commonly called the apostles' creed, and we regard
as heretical whatever is inconsistent with the said twelve articles.
2. We believe that there is one God,— Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3 We acknowledge for sacred canonical scriptures the books of the holy
Bible. QHere follows the title of each, exactly conformable to onr received
canon, but which it is deemed, on that account, unnecessary to parti-
cularize.)
4. The books above mentioned teach us— That there is one God, almighty,
unbounded in wisdom, and infiuite in goodness, and who, in his goodness,
has made all things. For he created Adam after his own image and
likeness. But through the enmity of the devil and his own disobedience,
Adam fell, sin entered into the world, and we became transgressors in and
by Adam. ^
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 87
have been plain men, of mean capacities, unskilful and unex-
perienced; and if their opinions and customs were to be
examined without prejudice, it would appear, that amongst all
5. That Christ had been promised to the fathers who received the law,
to the end, that, knowing their sin by the law, and their nnrigliteousness,
and insufficiency, they might desire the coming of Christ to make satisfac-
tion for their sins, and to accomplish the law by himself.
C. That at the time appointed of the Father, Christ was born — a time
when iniquity every where abounded, to make it manifest that it was not for
the sake of any good in ourselves, for all were sinners, but that He, who is
true, might display his grace and mercy towards us.
7. That Christ is our life, and truth, and peace, and righteousness — our
shepherd and advocate, our sacrifice and priest, who died for the salvation
of all who should believe, and rose again for our justification.
8. And we also firmly believe, that there is no other mediator, or advo-
cate with God the Father, but Jesus Christ. And as to the virgin Mary,
she was holy, humble, and full of grace ; and this we also believe concern-
ing all other saints, namely, that they are waiting in heaven for the resur-
rection of their bodies at the day of judgment,
9. We also believe, that, after this life, there are but two places — one for
those that are saved, the other for the damned, which [two] we call paradise
and hell, wholly denying that imaginary purgatory o/" antichrist, invented in
opposition to the truth.
10. iMoreover, we have ever regarded all the inventions of men (in the
affairs of religion) as an unspeakable abomination before God; such a« the
festival days and vigils of saints, and what is called holy-water, the abstain-
ing from flesh on certain days, and such like things, but above all, the
masses.
11 • We hold in abhorrence all human inventions as proceeding from
antichrist, which produce distress,* and are prejudicial to the liberty of the
mind.
12. We consider the sacraments as signs of holy tilings, or as the visible
emblems of invisible blessings. We regard it as proper and even necessary
that believers use these symbols or visible forms when it can be done
Notwithstanding which, we maintain that believers may be saved without
these signs, when they have neither place nor opportunity of observing
them.
13. We acknowledge no sacraments (as of divuie appointment) but
baptism and the Lord's supper.
14|. We honour the secular powers, with subjection, obedience, prompti-
tude, and payment, t
' Alluding probably to the voluntary penances and mortifications imposed
by the catholics on themselves.
t Perrin, Hist, des Vaudois, chap. xii. in Jones's Waldenses, second edit.
V. 2. 46.
C4 •
88 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
the modern sects of Christians, they bare the greatest resem
blance to that of the Memnonites.
CHAP. IX.
Of the Persecutions against the Albigenses ^wcZWaldenses.
IT was the entire study and endeavour of the popes, to crush,
in its infancy, every doctrine that any way opposed their exor-
bitant power." In the year 1163, at the synod of Tours, all
the bishops and priests in the country of Tholouse, were com-
manded " to take care, and to forbid, under the pain of excom-
munication, every person from presuming to give reception, or
the least assistance to the followers of this heresy, which first
began in the country of Tholouse^ whenever they shall be dis-
covered. Neither were they to have any dealings with them in
buying or selling ; that by being thus deprived of the common
assistances of life, they might be compelled to repent of the
evil of their way. Whosoever shall dare to contravene this
order, let them be excommunicated, as a partner with them in
their guilt. As many of them as can be found, let them be im-
prisoned by the Catholic princes, and punished with the forfei-
ture of all their substance.""
Some of the Waldenses, coming into the neighbouring king-
dom of Arragon, king Ildefonsus, in the year 1194, put forth,
against them, a very severe and bloody edict, by which " he ba-
nished them from his kingdom, and all his dominions, as ene-
mies of the cross of Christ, prophaners of the Christian religion,
and pubhc enemies to himself and kingdom.'"* He adds : " if
any, from this day forwards, shall presume to receive into their
houses, the aforesaid Waldenses and Inzabbatati, or other here-
tics, of whatsoever profession they be, or to hear, in any place,
their abominable preachings, or to give them food, or to do
» Baron, sec. 18. N. 4.
* PegDa iu Eymeric. p. 2. com. 39. Bzovius, a. 1199. sec* 38.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 89
them any kind office wliatsoever; let him know, that he shall
incur the indignation of Almighty God and ours ; that he shall
forfeit all his goods, without the benefit of appeal, and be
pun?.shed as though guilty of high treason, &c. Let it be
farther observed, that if any person, of high or low condition,
shall find any of the before-mentioned accursed wretches, in
any part of our dominions, who hath had three days notice of
this our edict, and who either intends not to depart at all, or
not immediately, but who contumaciously stays, or travels
about ; every evil, disgrace, and suffering that he shall inflict
on such person, except death or maiming, will be very grateful
and acceptable to us; and he shall be so far from incurring any
punishment upon this account, that he shall be rather entitled
to our favour. However, we give these wicked wretches hberty
till the day after All Saints (though it may seem contrary to
justice and reason) by which they must be either gone from our
dominions, or upon their depariure out of them : but afterwards
they shall be plundered, whipped, and beat, and treated with
all manner of disgrace and severity.'"
Nor did they act with less severity against heretics in Orvieto.
Peter Parentius, the prefect, declared, and that pubhcly, to a
large assembly,^ " That whosoever, within an appointed day,
would come back to the church, which never shuts her bosom
to those Avho return, and obey the commands of the bishops,
should obtain pardon and favour ; but that whosoever should
refuse to return by the appointed day, should be subject to the
punishment enacted by the laws and canons." But what
this favour was, is described in the pubhc records of that
church, in these words : *' But the bishop, inflamed against
the Manichaeans, received, with a pastoral concern, the confes-
sion of the heretics, returning from their heresy to the Catho-
lic unity, and presented them to the praefect. Some of these
he bound in ii-on chains, others he caused to be publicly whip-
ped, others he miserably banished out of the city, others he
fined, who were true penitents on account of the money they
lost ; from others he took large securities, and pulled down the
' Raynald. a. 1199, sec, 23. 24.
90 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
houses of many more : so that the governor of the city, walking
after the royal pattern, turned aside neither to the left hand
nor to the right." To this account Raynaldus adds : " These
things did this new Phineas, burning with an holy zeal, for the '
Catholic faith, this year in the time of Lent."^ But he was
a little after killed by the heretics.
About the year ISOO, Pope Innocent III. wrote to several
archbishops and bishops in Guienne, and other provinces of
France, that they should banish the Waldenses, Puritans, and
Paterines,'' from their territories ; and sent thither the friars
Reyner and Guido, the founder of the order of Hospitallers, to
convert heretics; commanding the bishops, that those who
would not be converted, should be banished ; that they should
humbly receive, and inviolably observe, whatever friar Reyner
should ordain against hereticks, their favourers and defenders.'^
He commanded also the princes, earls, &c. that those heretics,
who should be excommunicated as impenitent, by friar Reyner,
should be adjudged to forfeiture of their estates, and banish-
ment ; that if, after this interdict, they should be found in
their dominions, they should proceed more severely against
them, as became Christian princes. He gave, moreover, full
power to Reyner, to compel the princes to this work, under
pain of excommunication, and interdict of their dominions,
without appeal; and commanded him not to delay to publish the
sentence of excommunication against the receivers of excommu-
nicated heretics. And to conclude, he exhorts the people to
give all assistance, when required, against heretics, to the friars
Reyner and Guido, and grants to all who should stand by
them faithfully and zealously, the same indulgence of sins,
which is used to be granted to those who visited the threshold
of St. Peter or St. James. The next year following, he com-
manded the archbishops of Aix and Metz, and others, with some
abbots, that they should examine the poor men of Lyons, and
a Raynald. a. 1199, sec. 23.
* Some of the sectaries of the Waldenses ; they called themselves PaterineSf
after the example of the martyrs, who suffered martyrdom for the Catholic .
Faitb J because they, like them, were expositos passionibus, exposed to suifer-
ings. Du Fresne Glossar. Med. ct inf. Lat, in voce.
« Bzovius, a, 1198. sec. 6. Raynald. sec. 37.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 91
others, concerning the orthodox faith ;' and as they found the
matter, should give him full information by messenger or let-
ters, that being thus more fully informed by them, he might
know the better how to proceed against them. He made also
the most severe laws for the extirpation of heresy,^ which are
contained in his letters to the citizens of Viterbo, some of whom
had been infected with heresy.*^
a Bzovius, 1199, sec. 21. b Raynald. a. 1199, sec. 27.
This oppressed and iinofFending people were continually the objects of
papal cruelty, The following affecting account of the persecution in 1655, is
one out of many instances which might be adduced j it is from the pen of
the sufferers, addressed to their Christian friends.
Brethren and Fathers,
OUR tears are no more tears of water but of blood, which not only
obscure our sight, but oppress our very hearts. Our pen is guided by a
trembling hand, and our minds distracted by such unexpected alarms, that
we are incapable of framing a letter which shall correspond with our wishes,
or the strangeness of our desolations. In this respect, therefore, we plead
your excuse, and that you would endeavour to collect our meaning from what
we would impart to you.
Whatever reports may have been circulated concerning our obstinacy, in
refusing to have recourse to his royal highness for a redress of our heavy
grievances and molestations, you cannot but know that we have never de-
sisted from writing supplicatory letters, or presenting our humble requests,
by the hands of our deputies, and that they were sent and referred, some-
times to the council de propaganda fide^ at other times to the Marquis de Pio-
nessa; and that the three last times they were positively rejected, and re-
fused so much as an audience, under the pretext, that they had no creden-
tials nor instructions which should authorise them to promise or accept, on
the behalf of their respective churches, whatever it might please his highness
to grant or bestow upon them. And by the instigation and contrivance of
the Roman clergy, there was secretly placed in ambush an army of six thou-
sand men, who, animated and encouraged thereto, by the personal presence
and active exertions of the IMarquis of Pionessa, fell suddenly, and in the
most violent manner, upon the inhabitants of S. Giovanni and La Torre.
This army having once entered and got a footing, was soon augmented by
a multitude of the neighbouring inhabitants throughout all Piedmont, who,
hearing that we were given up as a prey to the plunderers, fell upon the poor
people with impetuous fury. To all those were added, an incalculable num-
ber of persons that bad been outlawed, prisoners, and other oflfenders, who
expected thereby to have saved their souls and filled their purses. And the
better to effect their purposes, the inhabitants were compelled to receive^re
•r six regiments of the French armyy besides some Irish, to whom, it is reported,
92 HISTORY OF THfi INQUISITION.
CHAP. X.
(yDoMiNicus, ajid the first Rise of the Thoulouse iNauisiTiON.
THE office of proceeding against heretics, was at first
committed to the bishops, to whom the government and
care of the chiu'ches was entrusted, according to the received
our country was promised, with several troops of vagabond persons, under
the pretext of coming into the vallies for fresh quarters.
The great multitude, by virtue of a license from the Marquis of Pionessa,
instigated by the monks, and enticed and conducted by our wicked and un-
natural neighbours, attacked us with such violence on every side, especially
in Angrofrne, Villaro, and Bobio ; and in a manner so horribly treacherous,
that in an instant all was one entire scene of confusion, and the inhabitants,
after a fruitless skirmish to defend themselves, were compelled to fl«-e for
their lives, with their wives and children ; and that not merely the inhabi-
tants of the plain, but those of the mountains also. Nor was all their dili-
gence sufficient to prevent the destruction of a very considerable number of
them. For, in many places, such as Villaro and Bobio, they were so hemmed
in on every side, the army having seized on the fort of Mareburg, and by
that means blocked up the avenue, that there remained no possibility of es-
cape, and nothing remained for them but to be massacred and put to death.
In one place, they mercilessly tortured not less than an hundred and fifty
women and their children, chopping off the heads of some, and dashing the
brains of others against the rocks. And in regard to those whom they took
prisoners, from fifteen years old and upwards, who refused to go to mass,
they hanged some, and nailed others to the trees by the feet, with their heads
downwards. It is reported, that they carried some persons of note prisoners
to Turin, viz. our poor brother and pastor, Mr. Gros, with some part of his
family. In short, there is neither cattle nor provisions of any kind left in
the valley of Lucerne \ — it is but too evident that all is lost, since there are
some whole districts, especially S. Giovanni and La Torre, where the busi-
ness of setting fire to our houses and churches was so dexterously managed,
by a Franciscan friar and a certain priest, that they left not so much as
one of either unburnt. In these desolations, the mother has been bereft of
her dear child — the husband of his affectionate wife ! Those who were once
the richest amongst us, are reduced to the necessity of begging their bread ;
while others still remain weltering in their own blood, and deprived of all the
comforts of life. And as to the churches of S. Martino and other places
who, on all foimer occasions, have been a sanctuary to the persecuted, they
have thtmselves now been summoned to quit their dwellings, and every soul
of them to depart, and that instantaneously, and without respite, under pain
of being put to death. Nor is there any mercy to be expected by any of
them, who are found wlthiu the dominions of his royal highness.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITIOIN. 93
decrees of the church of Rome. But inasmuch as their
number did not seem sufficient to that court, or because
they were too neghgent in the affair, and did not proceed
with that fury against heretics as the pope would have had
them; therefore, that he might put a stop to the increasing
progress of heresies, and more effectually extinguish them, about
the year of our Lord, 1200, he founded the order of the Domi-
nicans and Franciscans, that they might preach against heresies.
Dominic and his followers were to this end sent into the country
of Tholouse, where he preached, with great vehemence, against
the heretics that were arisen there ; from whence his order hath
obtained the name of preachers, or predicants. Father Francis,
with his disciples, battled it with the heretics of Italy. They
were both commanded by the pope, to excite the Catholic
princes and people to extirpate heretics ; and in all places to
inquire out their number and quality, and also the zeal of the
Catholics and bishops in their extirpation ; and to transmit a
The pretext which is alleged for justifying these horrid proceedings is,
that we are rebels against the orders of his highness, for not having brought
the whole city of Geneva within the walls of Mary Magdalene church ; or
in plainer terms, for not having performed an utter impovssibility, in depart-
ing, in a moment, from our houses and homes in Bubbiana, Lucerne, Fenile,
Bricheras, La Torre, S- Giovanni, and S Seeondo j and also, for having re-
newed our repeated supplications to his royal highness, to coramisserate our
situation, who, while on the one hand he promised us permission to depart
peaceably out of his dominions, which we have often entreated him for, in
case he would not allow us to continue and enjoy the liberty of our con-
sciences, as his predecessors had always done. True it is, that the Marquis
of Pionessa adduced another reason, and we have the original copy of his
writing in our possession, which is, that it was his royal highness's pleasure
to abase us and humble our pride, for endeavouring to shroud ourselves,
and take sanctuary, under the protection of foreign princes and states.
To conclude, our beautiful and flourishing churches are utterly lost, and
that without remedy, unless our God work miracles for us. Their time is
come, and our measure is full ? O have pity upon the desolations of Jerusa-
lem, and be grieved for the afflictions of Joseph! Shew forth your compas-
sions, and let your bowels yearn in behalf of so many thousands of poor
souls, who are reduced to a morsel of bread, for following the Lamb whi-
thersoever be goeth. We recommend our pastors, with their scattered and
dispersed flocks, to your fervent christian prayers, and rest in haste,
Your brethreo in the Lord.
Jpril 27, 1655. •
Jonea's Waldenses, vol. 2. 127.
94 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
faithful account to Rome. Hence they were called Inqui
sitors.
It is evident that the first Inquisitors were Dominican friars,
or of the order of Predicants ; but it is not so certain what
year the Inquisition itself was first introduced. Dominic, as
hath been said, was sent into the country of Tholouse, or
Gallia Narbonensis;^ he, as Bertrand relates,^ in his account
of the affairs of Tholouse, whom Usher cites, first lodged in the
house of a certain nobleman, to whom belonged the house of
the Inquisition at Tholouse, near the castle of Narbonne ; and
finding him sadly infested with heresy. Father Dominic, In-
quisitor of the Faith, reduced him to the path of truth ; upon
which, he devoted himself and his house, to St Dominic and
his order : which house hath ever since belonged to the In-
quisition, md the Dominican order. From hence we may ga
ther, that Dominic was the first Inquisitor; and that the
Inquisition was first introduced into Tholouse: but as to the
year when, writers differ; some referring it to the year of
Christ, 1212, others to 1208, and others to 1215. This is
certain, and agreed to by all, that it began under the papacy of
Innocent III. and that Dominic was appointed the first In-
quisitor in Gallia Narbonensis : but whether he received his
office of Inquisitor from Arnaldus, abbot of Cisteaux, legate
of the apostolic see, in France, or immediately from the pope,
is disputed by the popish writers. Those who endeavour to
reconcile the difference say, that Dominic was first appointed
Inquisitor by the legate, and afterwards confirmed by the pope
himself Ludovicus a Paramo*^ seems to be of the same opinion ;
for he says, that father Dominic first discoursed of his design,
to introduce the Inquisition, to the abbot of Cisteaux, at that
time apostohc legate in France ; and that the abbot appointed
him Inquisitor, at the same time referring the affair to the pope.
After this he was confirmed in the office by a cardinal legate in
* De Sncces. Eccles. in Occidente, cap. 9. sec 9.
to That part of France, which anciently contained the provinces of Savoy,
Dauphine, Province, and Languedoc.
«= De Succes. Ecclee. in Occidente, lib. 2. tit. 1. cap. 1, n. 13.
\
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 95
that kingdom ; and at length, after the conclusion of the Late-
ran council, Ann. 1216, he was made Inquisitor by authority
of the pope's letters, a copy of which some authors affirm they
have actually seen.
" When Dominic had received these letters,* upon a certain
day, in the midst of a great concourse of people, he declared
openly in his sermon, in the church of St. Prullian, that he
was raised to a new office by the pope ; adding, that he was
resolved to defend, with his utmost vigour, the doctrines of the
faith ; and that if the spiritual and ecclesiastical arms were not
sufficient for this end, it was his fixed purpose to call in the
assistance of the secular arm, to excite and compel the catholic
princes to take arms against heretics, that the very memory of
them might be entirely destroyed." It evidently appears that
Dominic was a bloody and cruel man. This is more than
obscurely intimated by the Dominican, Camillus Campegius,
Inquisitor General of Ferrara, who, after having recited the
letters of Dominic, in which he declares the penances he en-
joined to Pontius Rogerii, adds : " I have the more willingly
annexed to this treatise of punishments these letters of St.
Dominic our father, who first exercised the office of inquisitor,
that all may be able to make a comparison between the ancient
severity made use of to stop the progress of these crimes, and
the present moderation and tenderness of this holy tribunal."
These letters he wrote, as Ludovicus a Paramo observes, whea
as yet he acted as inquisitor only by the authority of the abbot
of Cisteaux, and these letters Paramus produces to prove,
that Dominic assumed this office, from a resolution to punish
heretics with such severity, as that, by the fear of punishment,
he might deter others from the like wickedness. He was
born in Spain in the village Calaroga, in the diocese of Osma.
His mother, before she conceived him, is said to have dreamed,
that she was with child of a whelp, carrying in his mouth a
lighted torch ; and that after he was bom, he put the world
in an uproar by his fierce barkings, and set it on fire by the
b Ibid. cap. 2. n. 4.
a De Succes. Eccles. in Occidente, lib. lib. 2. tit. 1. cap. 2w.
*> Zanchini. « Ibid. lib. 2. tit. 1. cap. 2. n, 5.
96 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
torch that he carried in his mouth. His followers interpret
this dream of his doctrine, by which he enhghtened the whole
world; whereas others, if dreams presage any thing, think
that the torch was an emblem of that fire and faggot, by
which an infinite multitude of men were burnt to ashes.
In the beginning the inquisitors had no proper tribunal ;
they only enquired after heretics, theii* number, strength, and
riches. After they had detected them, they informed the
bishops, who then had the sole power of judging in ecclesias-
tical affairs, and sometimes urged them, that they should
anathematize, and otherwise punish the heretics they had
discovered to them. Sometimes they stirred up princes to
take arms against heretics; sometimes the people. Such of
them as engaged in this work they signed with the cross, and
encouraged them in their expeditions against heretics. Far-
ther than this, Dominic, who was of a bloody fierce temper,
that he might the more effectually extirpate all heresy, invent-
ed a method, how, under the appearance of mercy and ten-
derness, he might exercise the most outrageous cruelty, viz.
the laying some certain punishments, by way of wholesome
penance, upon such as were converted to the Roman faith,
that being thus converted, they might be freed from excom-
munication.* For what could carry a greater appearance of
a The following is a curious specimen of this priestly domination.
Brothei- Doiiiii.ic, the least cf preaohers to nil Christ's faithful people,
to whom these presents shall come, f.reeting, in the Lord :
By the authority of the Cistertian abbot, who liath appointed us this
office, vre have reconcilod the bearer of these presents, Pontius Rogerius,
conrerted by God's blessing from his heretical sect, charging and requiring
him, by the cat)» which he hath taken, that three Sundays, or three festival
days, he be led by a priest, naked from his shoulders down to his drawers,
from the coming into the town unto the church doors, being whipt all the
way. We iiiso enjoin him, that he abstain at all times from meat, eggs,
cheese, and all things that proceed from flesh, except on the days of Easter,
Whitsuntide, and Christmas, on which days we command him t© eat flesh
for a denial of his foimev error. We will thai he keep three lents in one
year, abstaining even from fibh : and that he fast hree days every week
always, refraining from fish, oil, and wine, except bodily infirmity, or hard
labour in harvest time require a dispensation. We will have him wear
friar's coats, with two small crosses sewn on his two breasts. Let him
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 97
mercy, than to absolve and receive into communion, those
heretics that returned to the church, and voluntarily subjected
themselves to a wholesome penance ? But the truth is, that
this was the height of cruelty: for they submitted to such
penances, not from, conviction and choice, but for fear of
a more terrible punishment. For the fire and faggot and
other punishments were ready prepared for such as were not
converted ; and all that refused to submit to these penances,
were pronounced excommunicate, convict, and obstinate he-
retics, and as such turned over to be punished by the secular
court. Besides, these wholesome penances were attended with
the greatest miseries to the penitents ; for either they were
condemned to perpetual imprisonment, there to wear out a
wretched life with the bread and water of affliction, or were
marked on theu- back and breast with crosses, that by these
signs of infamy, they might be exposed to the reproaches and
abuses c»f all men ; and were withal pubhcly whipped before
the people, either in the open street, or in the church, and
commanded many other things, under the specious name of
penance ; that by this severity, which the penitents were
forced voluntarily to submit to, there might be an appearance
of mercy in their case, and that all others might be deterred
from heresy.
every day hear mass if opportuuity may serve, and on all holidays let him
go to vespers to church. He shall observe all the other canoDical hours by
day and by night, wherever he be, and shall then say his orisons, that is,
seven times a day he shall say ten paternosters together, and twenty at
midnight. Let him altogether abstain from bis wife, and every first day of
the month let liim shew these our letters to the curate of the town of Cer-
vium, whom we command diligently to observe what kind of life this bearer
leads; whom, if he should neglect to observe these our injunctions, we
declare to be perjured and cxcommuoicaited, and w^l have him taken for
such.
HISTORY OF THE IlNaUISITION.
CHAP. XI.
Of the Wars against the Raymonds, Father and Son^ Earls of
Tholouse.
IN the mean while the pope, being intent on the extirpation
of heretics, excited all the princes, that they should not yield
them any refuge in their dominions, but oppress them with all
their force. His principal care was to expel them from the
country of Tholouse, where the Albigenses were very numer-
ous. He was perpetually pressing Raymond, Earl of Tholouse,
to banish them from his dominions ; and when he could not
prevail with him, either to drive out so large a number of men,
or to persecute them, he ordered him to be excommunicated
as a favourer of heretics. He also sent his legate, with letters
to many of the prelates, commanding them to make inquisi-
tion against the heretical Albigenses in France, and to destroy
them, and convert their favourers. He also wrote to Philip,
king of France, commanding him to take arms against them,
and use his utmost efforts to suppi-ess them, that by his obe-
dience he might prove, that he himself was not l^inted by
their errors.
With the pope^s legate there came also twelve abbots of the
Cistercean order, preaching the cross against the Albigenses,
and promising, by the authority of Innocent, a plenary re-
mission of all sins, to those who took on them the crusade.
These abbots were joined by Dominic.
But because even these cross-bearers did not fight against
the heretics with that continued zeal and fury, that the pope
and Dominic woidd have had them, the Dominicans excited
larger numbers to engage in this warfare, by the hopes of a
plenary indulgence. The text which their preachers used to
choose for this purpose, was from Psal. xciv. 16.* " Who
will rise up for me against the evil doers.? Or, who will stand
up for me against the workers of iniquity ?" And as they
* Usser. de Sue. cap. 9, § 5.
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION. 99
directed their whole sermons to their own cruel purpose, they
generally thus concluded : " You see, most dear brethren,
how great the wickedness of the heretics is, and how much
mischief they do in the world. You see also how tenderly,
and hy how many pious methods the church labours to reclaim
them. But with them they all prove ineffectual, and they fly
to the secular power for their defence. Therefore our holy
mother the church, though with reluctance and grief, calls
together against them the Christian army. If then you have
any zeal for the faith, if you are touched with any concern for
the honour of God, if you would reap the benefit of this great
indulgence, come and receive the sign of the cross, and join
yourselves to the army of 'the crucified Saviour." There was
indeed this difference between those who took up the cross
against the Saracens, and those who did it against the heretics,
that the former wore it on their backs, and the latter on their
breasts. And that their zeal might by no means grow cool,
there were certain Synodical decrees made by the authority
of the pope, by which the presbyters were enjoined continually
to excite and warm it.^ " Let the presbyters continually and
affectionately exhort their parishioners that they arm them-
selves against the heretical Albigenses. Let them also enjoin,
under the pain of excommunication, those who have taken the
cross, and not prosecuted their vow, that they retake the cross
and wear it."
Raymond, Earl of Tholouse,^ not being in the least diverted
from his purpose by the sentence of the legate, who having
consulted ^vith Dominic, had forbid him," as a favourer of
heretics, the communion of holy things, and of the faithful,
was excommunicated by a bull of Innocent himself, as a de-
fender of heretics, and all his subjects absolved from their
oath of allegiance ; "and power was given to any catholic man,
though without prejudice to the right of the supreme lord,
not only to act against his person, but to seize and detain his
country ; under this pretence chiefly, that it might be effec-
tually purged from heresy by the prudence of the one, as it
i* Usser. ibid. cap. 10. § 23-
b Raynold, A. 1208. § 15, itc. c Bzovius, A. 1208. ^ », 4
H 2
100 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
had been grievously wounded and defiled by the wickedness
of the other.
The earlj'J frightened by this sentence, and especially by the
terrible expedition of the cross bearers against him, promised
obedience, and sought to be reconciled to the church ; but
could not obtain it without delivering up to the legate seven
castles in his territories for security of performance, and unless
the magistrates of Avignon, Nismes, and Agde, had interceded
for him, and bound themselves by an oath, that if the earl
should disobey the commands of the legate, they would re-
nounce their allegiance to him. It was farther added, that
the country ot Venaiscin should return to the obedience of the
church of Rome.^ The manner of the reconciliation of the
Earl of Tholouse, was, according to Bzovius, thus: ''The
earl was brought before the gates of the church of St. Agde,
m the town of that name. There were present more than
twenty archbishops and bishops, who were met for this pur-
pose. The earl swore upon the holy body of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and the relics of the saints, which were exposed with
great reverence before the gates of the church, and held by
several prelates, that he would obey the commands of the holy
Roman church. When he had thus bound himself by an
oath, the legate ordered one of the sacred vestments to be
thrown over his neck, and drawing him thereby, brought him
into the church, and having scourged him with a whip, ab-
solved him. Nor must it be omitted, that when the said earl
was brought into the church, and received his absolution as he
was scourging, he was so grievously torn by the stripes, that
he could not go out by the same place through which he en-
tered, but was forced to pass quite naked as he was through
the lower gate of the church. He was also served in the
same manner at the sepulchre of Peter the martyr at New
Castres, whom the earl had caused to be slain."
However, the vast army of the cross-bearers was not idle
after the reconciliation of the Earl of Tholouse, but every
where attacked the Heretics, took their cities, filled all places
with slaughter and blood, and burnt many whom they had
* Bzovius, A. 1208. § 95. ^ Ibid. § 6.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 101
taken captives. For in the year 1209-^ Biterre was taken by
them, and all, without any regard uF age, cruelly put to the
sword, and the city itself destroyed by the flames. ^ Caesarius
tells us, that when the city was taken, the cross-bearers knew
there were several Catholics mixed with the Heretics; and
when they were in doubt how to act, lest the Catholics should
be slain, or the Heretics feign themselves Catliolics, Arnold
Abbot of Cisteaux made answer, " slay them all, for the Lord
knows who are his;'"* whereupon the soldiers slew them all
without exception.
Carcassone also was destroyed, and by the common consent
of the prelates and barons,' Simon Earl of Montfort, of the
bastard race of Robert king of France, (whom Petavius in his
Ration. Temp, calls a man as truly religious as valiant,) was
made governor of the whole country, both of what was already
conquered, and what was to be conquered for the future. The
same year he took several cities, and reduced them to his own
obedience. He cruelly treated his captive Heretics, and put
them to death by the most horrible punishments.** " In the
city Castres two were condemned to the flames, and when a
certain person declared he would abjure his heresy, the cross-
bearers were divided amongst themselves. Some contended
that he ought not to be put to death ; others said it was plain
he had been an Heretic, and that his abjuration was not sincere,
but proceeded only from his fear of immediate death. Earl
Montfort, however, consented that he should be burnt ; alledging,
that if his conversion was real, the fire would expiate his sins ; if
otherwise, that he would receive a just reward of his perfidious-
ness. " ^ In other places also they raged with the like cruelty. One
Robert, who had been of the sect of the Albigenses, and after-
wards joined himself to the Dominicans, supported by the
authority of the princes and magistrates, burnt all who persist-
ed in their heresy; so that within two or three months he
caused fifty persons, without distinction of sex, either to be
buried alive or burnt ; from whence he gained the name of the
* Bzovius, A. 1209. sect. 1. '' Kaynaldus, A. 120U. sect, 22.
\ Ibid. seel. 23, 24. - Ibid, sect, 25.
' Ibid. A. 1207. sect. 3.
u 3
102 HISTORY OF THE IVaUlSITION.
hammer of the Heretics. Raynold affirms, that it ought not to
be doubted but that Pope Innocent appointed him to this
officee.^ At Paris, one Bernard, with nine others, of whom
four were priests, the followers of Almeric, were apprehended ; ^
and being all had into a field, were degraded before the
whole clergy and people, and burnt in the presence of the
king.*^
The year following there was undertaken a new expedition
of the cross-bearers against the Albigenses. They seized on
Alby, and there put many to death. They took la Vaur by
force, and burnt in it great numbers of the Albigenses. They
hanged Aymeric the governor of the city, who was of a very
noble family. They beheaded eighty of lesser degree, and did
not spare the very women. They threw Girarda, Aymeric's
sister, and the chief lady of that people, into an open pit, and
covered her with stones. Afterv/ards they conquered Carcum,
and put to death sixty men. They also seized on Pulchra
ValHs, a large city near Tholouse, and burnt in it 400 Albi-
genses, and hanged 50 more. They took Castris de Termis,
and in it Raymond de Termis, whom they put in prison, where
he died, and burnt in one large fire his wife, sister, and virgin
daughter, with some other noble ladies, when they could not
persuade them, by promises or threats, to embrace the faith of
the church of Rome.
The Earl of Tholouse, terrified with these successes of Simon
Montfort, and fearing for himself and country, raised a great
army, and had forces sent him from the kings of England and
Aragon, to whom he was related. For he married Joan, sister
of the king of England, who had been formerly queen of Sicily,
and had by her a son nsumed Raymond. After her death he
married Eleanor, the sister of Peter king of Aragon. But this
army was defeated with a great slaughter by the cross-bearers
under the command of Earl Montfort, and the Earl of Tho-
louse driven from his dominions. About the beginning of the
year 1215, in a council of certain archbishops and bishops near
Montpellier, held by the Pope's legate, Montfort was declared
» Raynaldus, A. 1210. sect. 10. *> Bzovius, A. 1209. sect. 11.
' Ibid. A. 1211. sect. 9.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 103
lord of all the countries he had conquered, and the archbishop of
Ambrun was sent to the Pope, to get him to ratify the council's
sentence, and Lewis, eldest son of Philip the French king, con-
firmed him in the loossession.
During these transactions Pope Innocent III. in the year of
our Lord 1215, called the famous Lateran council, where Do-
minic was present, in which there were many decrees against
Heretics, which were afterwards inserted in the decretals of
Gregory.* To this council fled the Earl of Tholouse, with his
son Raymond, being dispossessed of his dominions by Montfort.
Guido, the brother of Earl Montfort, appeared against him,
and after many debates, Earl Raymond was declared, " to be
for ever excluded from his dominions, which he had governed
ill, and commanded to remain in some convenient place out of his
own lands, in order to his giving suitable proofs of his repent-
ance. Four hundred marks of silver were assigned him yearly
out of his revenues, as long as he behaved himself with an hum-
ble obedience. But as all bore testimony to his wife, that she
was a good CathoHc lady, she was left in possession of the lands
of her dowry, provided she caused the commands of the church
to be observed, and suffered none to disturb the affairs of peace
or faith." However, all that the cross-bearers had taken was
adjudged to Montfort; "and as to the rest, which they had
not seized on, the church decreed it should be kept by proper
persons, to preserve the peace, and the faith, that there might
be some provision for the only son of the Earl of Tholouse,
according as he should deserve it in part or whole, after his
coming to age.
Upon this decree of the synod Raymond went into Spain,
and his son Raymond into Provence, where, with the help of
many auxiliary forces, he made war on Montfort. He recover-
ed some part of his dominions, and even the city of Tholouse
itself. Whilst Montfort was endeavouring to retake it with a
large army, he was killed by the blow of a stone, and thereby
the city delivered from the siege. Thus Raymond recovered
by arms his father's Earldom, who died in the year 1221, and
» Tit. de Haeret. cap. 13.
H 4
104 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
was succeeded by this his son, who could not obtain, with all
his endeavours, a Christian burial for his father.
As things thus took a different turn, sometimes according to
the Pope'*s wish, at other times contrary to it, he pressed the
Inquisition as the most effectual remedy for the extirpation of
Heretics. Bzovius* relates, that at this time many Heretics
were burnt in Germany, France, and Italy, and that in this
year no less than 80 persons were apprehended at once in the
city of Strasbourg, of whom but a very few were declared inno-
cent. " If any of these denied their heresy, Friar Conrade of
Marpug, an Apostolical Inquisitor of the order of Predicants,
put them to the trial of the Fire Ordeal, and as many of them
as were burnt by the iron, he delivered over to the secular
power to be burnt as Heretics ; so that all who were accused,
and put to this trial, a few excepted, were condemned to the
flames.
About that time Pope Honorius sent a rescript to the bishop
of Boulogne,^ anathematizing all Heretics, and violaters of the
ecclesiastical immunity, in these words : " we excommunicate
all Heretics of both sexes, of whatsoever sect, with their
favourers, receivers, and defenders ; and moreover, all those
who cause any edicts or customs, contrary to the liberty of the
church, to be observed, unless they remove them from their
public records within two months after the publication of this
sentence. Also we excommunicate the makers, and the writers
of those statutes, and moreover all governors, consuls, rulers,
and counsellors of places, where such statutes and customs shall
be published or kept, and all those who shall presume to pass
judgment, or to publish such judgments, as shall be made ac-
cording to them.*=
In the mean while, after Raymond had recovered his father's
dominions, the Inquisition was banished from the country of
Tholouse. But Pope Honorius III. left no stone unturned to
render the Earl obnoxious. He took care to let him know by
his legate, that he should be stripped of his dominions as his
father was, unless he returned to his duty ; and by letters
a Bzovius, A. 1215. sect. 7. ^ Ibid. A. 1218. sect. 11.
« Raynald. A. 1221. sect. 41.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 105
bearing date the 8th of the calends of November, he confirmed
the sentence of the Ic^i^ate, by wliich lie deprived him of all his
right in every country that had ever been subject to his father ;■
and to give this sentence its full force, he commanded the Do-
minicans, and gave them full power to proclaim an holy war, to
be called thc^ Penance war, against the Heretics. A vast
number met together at the sound of this horrid trumpet, and
entered into this holy society, as they believed it, wearing over
a white garment a black cloak, and receiving the sacrament for
the defence of the Cathohc faith.
And that tlie Pope might more efTectually subdue the Earl
of Tholouse, he sent his letters to king Louis, who had suc-
ceeded his father Philip, in which he exhorts him to take arms
against the Albigenses in this manner.*^ " It is the command
of God, ' If thou shall hear say in one of thy cities, which the
Lord thy God hath given thee to dwell there, saying. Let us
go and serve other Gods, which ye have not known, thou shalt
smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword,
and shalt burn with fire the city.' Although you are under
many obligations already to God, for the great benefits received
from him, from whom comes every good gift, and every perfect
gift, yet you ought to reckon yourself more especially obHged
courageously to exert yourself for him against the subverters of
the faith, by whom he is blasphemed, and manfully to defend
the Catholic puritv, which many in those parts, adliering to the
doctrine of devils, are known to have thrown out.*^
The affairs of the Albigenses also engaged the attention of
a synod, which was held at Paris, by the Pope's command, where
Amalric son of Simon Montfort, demanded the restitution of
the lands of Raymond. Raymond endeavoured to defend
himself against the threatening danger, by declaring the purity
of his faith, and offering to yield to any enquiry, for the satisfac-
tion of the holy church.
But this the legate contemned, nor could the Catholic Earl
(they are the words of IVIatthew Paris) find any favour, unless
he would abjure his patrimony, and renounce it for himself and
a Bzovius, A. 1221. sect. 8. b De pocuitentia. c Raynald. A. 1223. sect. 41.
d Usser. de succes. c. 10. sect. 46. and seq.
106 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
his heirs. So that anoJier oxpedi'iDn of tiie cross-bearers was
resolved on against Ectri Ra3-Tjond.
In pursuance of this resciji ion, the Pope sent to the king of
England, commanding him not to saccour Raymond, and to
the king of France, requiving ihe assistance of his forces.
Louis accordingly uViderrook the ia.>.k of subduing Raymond,
and with a large army sat down first bciore Avi.rnon. — The
city was valiantly defended, by which the besiegers suffered
gi-eat losses ; but the greatest disaster the French encountered
was the Dysentery^, a disease which prevailed so far as to
destroy a considerable part of tlie ai-my, as well as the king
himself. This together with the determined br?very of the
besieged, alarmed the Popes legate, who, finding '^orce of so
little avail, and dreading the disgrace of abandoning the design,
scrupled not to adopt the vilest treachery and to practice the
basest hypocrisy. — He offered to suspend hostilities, and to
pave the way for peace, if the besieged would admit a few
priests, only to enquire concerning the faith of the inhabitants:
and these tenns being agreed upon and sealed by mutual oaths;
the priests entered, but in direct violation of their solemn en-
gagement, brought the French army with them, who thus
fraudulently triumphed over the unexpecting citizens; they
plundered the city, killed or bound in chains the inhabitants,
and overthrowing the towers and walls, passed on to the siege
of Tholouse.
The city of Tholouse^ sustained a long siege, and Raymond
omitted no means of defence ; he was at length, however, over-
come, and compelled, in order to reconciliation with the church,
to resign the far greater part of his dominions : and in the pre-
sence of two cardinals of the church of Rome, was led to the
high altar in a linen garment, with naked feet, and absolved
from the sentence of excommunication.
' Raynald. A. 1228. sect. 3. Bzovius, sect. 28.
HISTOKY OF THE INatTISITION. 107
CHAP. XII.
Several Councils held, and Laws enacted hy the Empei'or
Frederick II. bi/ which the Office of the Inquisition was
greatly promoted,
THE Earl of Tholouse being thus subdued, severer laws were
enacted against heretics.^ Raymond himself made many laws
against them ; ordered all the heretics in his country to be ap-
prehended ; and that the inhabitants of every city or castle
should pay one mark for every heretic, to the person who took
him. Louis also, the Erench king, put forth a constitution
against heretics, in which he commands the immediate punish-
ment of all who should be adjudged heretics by the bishop, or
any other ecclesiastical person. He deprives all their favourers
of the benefit of the laws; commands their goods to be con-
fiscated, and never to be restored to them or their posterity ;
and that the Ballive should pay two marks of silver to any one
that apprehended an heretic.
And now the pope laboured, with all his might, to confer a
greater power on the inquisitors, and to estabhsh for them a
tribunal, in which they might sit, and pronounce sentence of
heresy and heretics, as judges delegated from himself, and re-
presenting his person. But to this there were in the begin-
ning great obstacles, the people not easily admitting that new
tribunal, rightly judging that great numbers would be destroyed
by the informations of the inquisitors. So that they were very
ill looked on by all, even before they had obtained the power
of judging: for the magistrates and wiser part of the people,
foresaw wliat must happen, upon their being invested with
such an authority ; and were far from thinking it safe, that
then- fortunes and lives, and those of their fellow citizens, should
be exposed to the pleasure of the pope's emissaries, and that
tiiey should be made entirely obnoxious to their tyranny.
* Bzovius, a, 1228, sec. 6.
108 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
But upon the conquest of the Albigenses, and the taking their
countries and cities, the pope caused the inquisition to proceed
with greater success. For in France, as Pegna observes, in
John Calderin's treatise about the form of proceeding against
heretics — " There were held several councils, at divers times
and places, of the French archbishops, about the method of
proceeding against and punishing heretics. In the year of our
Lord, 1229, there was a council at T'holouse, where many sta-
tutes were made; which were published there by Romanus,
cardinal deacon of St. Angelus, legate of the apostolic see. In
the year 1235, another council was held at Narbonne, of the
French prelates, in which this affair was more fully discussed
than at Tholouse. Afterwards* there was another provincial
council at Biterre, when these things were more particularly
settled than in the two former. The acts of these councils
were not discovered for a long while, but found, some time
since, in the Vatican Library, and in an old MSS. parchment,
which was brought to Rome from the inquisition of Florence.*'
Pegna adds, that he would soon pubhsh these councils, with his
comments on them ; and says they are very useful, and suited
to the office of the inquisitors of heretical pravity. But I could
never yet learn whether they have seen the light.
These were the transactions in France. In Rome, about
the year 1230, Raymand of Pegnaforte, who was a Dominican,
compiled, by the command of Pope Gregory IX. the books of
Decretals, into which he collected all the laws of the councils
and popes against heretics. Afterwards Boniface VIII. ordered
a sixth book of the Decretals to be wrote. After this were
added the Clementines and the Extravagantes, made on various
occasions, that the inquisitors might want nothing for the full
exercise of their office : and as the Waldenses had -stolen into
Arragon and Navarre, chiefly from the neighbouring Langue-
doc, there was a synod held at Tarracona, about the year 1240^^
in which there Avere many things enacted concerning heretics,
and their punishments.
Even the emperor Frederick II. himself, put forth many
laws against heretics, their accompKces and favourers, at Padua,
a Anno. 1246.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 109
by which he greatly promoted the inquisition. In the first,
which begins Commissi nobis, he ordains, that those heretics,
who were committed by the church to the secular court, should
be put to death without mercy : that converts through fear of
death, should be imprisoned : that heretics, with their abettors,
wherever they were found, should be kept in custody till they
were punished according to the sentence of the church: that
persons convicted of heresy, who had fled to other places,
should be taken up ; that such as were relapsed, should be
punished with death: that heretics and their favourers,
should be deprived of the benefit of appeal ; that their poste-
rity, to the second generations, should be incapable of all bene-
fices and offices ; but that their heirs should be indemnified if
they discovered their parent's wickedness. And lastly, he takes
under his imperial and special protection, the predicant friars,
deputed for the faith against heretics, in all the parts of the
empire, and all others who were sent for, and should come for
the judgment of heretics, commanding the magistrates severely
to punish all convicted heretics, after condemnation, by the
ecclesiastical sentence. In his second edict, which begins. In-
consutilem tunicam, after expressing great abhorrence of the
crime of heresy, he commands all impenitent heretics to be
burned with fire, and the favourers of the Paterenes to be ba-
nished. In his third, beginning Patarenorum receptatores, he
deprives the children of heretics of their honours, unless any
of them should discover one of tlie sect of the Paterenes ; and
put heretics themselves under the ban, confiscating their estates.
In his fourth, beginning Catharos, he condemns all suspected
persons as heretics, if they do not purge themselves within a
year; commands his officials to exterminate heretics from all
places subject to them; orders that the lands of the barons shall
be seized by the Catholics, if they do not purge them from hej
retics, within a year after proper admonition, and ordains many
punishments against the favourers of heretics, and the most se-
vere ones against all who apostatise from the faith.
Paulus Servita teUs us, in his history of the Venetian Inqui-
sition, that these laws were made in the year of our Lord 1244,
Bzovious and Raynald refer them to the year 1225. But
110 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
whatever was the year of their publication, it is certain that
the Inquisition was greatly promoted by them ; and that they
were approved and confirmed by some of the pope's bulls, in
which they were inserted.
CHAP. XIII.
The iNaursiTioN introduced into Arragon, France, Tholouse,
and Italy.
IN the year of our Lord 1231/ in the month of February,
some of the Paterenes were discovered in the city of Rome :
some of them who were impenitent were burnt alive ; others
were sent to the church of Monte Casino, and to Cava, to be
there kept till they recanted. The pope and Roman senate
made also severe laws against heretics ; and because the Mi-
laneze were most infected with heresy, Frederick, by an impe-
rial edict, commanded " all convicted of that crime to be deli-
vered over to the flames, or their blasphemous tongues to be
cutout, if the keeping them alive would prove a terror to
others;'' which Raynald affirms '' tobe a severe, but most just
edict."
This very year Pope Gregory IX. gave a famous instance
of his tyranny and injustice. Ezehnus, Lord of Padua, and
vassal of the emperor Frederick, constantly adhered to his mas-
ter, and faithfully took the emperor's part against the faction of
the pope. On this the pope endeavoured to render him infa-
mous by the charge of heresy; that under this specious pre-
tence he might expel him his dominions : but as he failed in
this, he stirred up his children against him this very year, that
being delivered by them into his poAver, he might punish him
as he pleased. In order to this, he sent letters to Ezeline, be-
seeching him to take better measures, and admonished him to
renounce his errors.^ A copy of these letters he sent to his two
» Raynald, a. 1231, sec. 13, 14, 15, 16.
»> Ibid. sec. 20, &c.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. Ill
sons, young Ezeline and Alteric, who pretended to abhor their
father's wickedness, and promised Gregory, of their own ac-
cord, as, RaynakI relates, that they would deliver their mise-
rable father into the hands of the censors of the faith, if he per-
sisted obstinately in his wickedness, that they might not lose
the inheritance of their ancestors. Upon this, the pope gave
them to understand, that he had deferred coming to extremities
against their father for their sake, whom he believed still to
continue in the true worship of God, that they might not be
involved in his misfortune ; " for,'" says he, " the crime of he-
resy, like that of high treason, disinherits the children." Then
he beseeches and commands them, that they would use all pos-
sible means to deter their father from heresy, and the protection
of heretics, and that if he despised their admonitions, they
would consult their own safety, by sending him, as they had
promised, before the pope's tribunal. " Nor is it to be won-
dered at,"" adds Raynald, " that this advice should be given
to the sons against their own father, since the cause of the di-
vine Being, of whom all paternity is named, is to be preferred
to all human affections."
The year following, 1232, the Inquisition was brought into
Aragon.^ The bishop of Hyesca, in Aragon, was reported to
err in matters of faith. Upon this Gregory committed the of-
fice of making Inquisition against him to friar Peter Caderite,
of tlie Predicant order, and commanded James, king of the
Aragons, that he should not suffer him, or those whose advice
or counsel he should think fit to make use of, to be injured by
any means whatsoever. And that he might entirely extirpate
heresy out of the province of Tarracon, he gave commission,
by a bull, to the archbishop of Tarracon and his suffragans, to
constitute inquisitors against heretical pravity, of the order of
Predicants.^
a Bzovius, a. 1232, sect. 8, 9.
b The bulls read thus:—" Since the evening of the world is now declining,
&c. we admonish and beseech your brotherhood, and strictly command you
by our written apostolic words, as you regard the divine judgment, that with
diligent care you make enquiry against heretics, and render tliem infamous,
by the assistance of the friars Predicants, and others, whom you shall judge
At for this business ; aod that you proceed against all who are culpable and
112 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
Amongst the inquisitors appointed by them, friar Raymond
Peciafortius Barninonensis was particularly famous ; who wrote
a formulary of the manner of proceeding against heretics, be-
ginning, " I believe that heretics,*' &c. which was of so great
authority, that Gregory enjoined William, archbishop elect of
Tarracon, to follow it in every thing. Bzovius gives us this
formulary entire, in his annals, under the year 1235, sec. 5.
In France there was not wanting some, who stirred up the
remains of the Albigenscs;' " so that,"' as Bzovius says, ^' they
very grievously oppressed the inquisitors and other persons,
appointed by the apostolic see, for the direction and defence of
the Catholic faith.*"^ Gregory IX. excited Louis, the king,
against them, and advised him to join with the archbishop of
Vienne, some person famous for his wisdom and justice, who
might know what pertained to the ecclesiastical right, what to
the royal, and what to the rights of others. He also exhorted
Blanche, the queen, to persuade her son to perfect so righteous
a work. The same author tells us,*^ that the same year, after
great struggling, the Inquisition was brought into Tholouse,
upon the first day of the festival of Dominic, but not without a
great tumult of the people, raised by a seditious sermon of a
silly monk, upon occasion of the death of a certain matron of
Tholouse, who lived near the convent of the Predicants, and
had been hereticated before she died. *^
infamons, according to our statutes lately published, against heretics, unless
they will from the heart absolutely obey the commands of the church ; which
Statutes we send you inclosed in our bull; and that ye also proceed against
the receivers, abettors, and favourers of heretics, according to the same sta-
tutes. But if any will quite abjure the heretical plague, aud return to th«
ecclesiastical unity, grant them the benefit of absolution, according to the
form of the church, and enjoin thera the usual penance."
^ Bzovius, a. 1234, sect 8.
to i. e. Perhaps they strove to prevent so intolerable a yoke being put on
their necks.
c Bzovius, a. 1234, sect. 24.
«* ** When this came to be public, friar William Arnaldi, an inquisitor, con-
demned her for an heretic, and left her to the secular court. After this, the
prior of the friars Predicants, Fu Pontus, of Agde, explaining those words
of Ecclesiastic, xlviii, * Elias the prophet rose as fire, and his sword burnt
like a torch," to a vast company that had met together about nine, and,
adapting his words to the festival and the present business, turned himself
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 113
However, the inquisitors were the year following ejected
from Tholouse. But that they were restored there again, we
learn from Luke Wadding,* who, in his History of the Friars
Minors, relates, tliat in the year 1238, there were at Tholouse,
Friar William Arnaldi, of the Predicant Order, and Seraphinus
de S. Tiberio, of the Minors, inquisitors of heretics. The
same author gives us also the Epistle of Gregory IX. to the
Deacon of the Order of Friars Minors, in Navarre, and to
Master Peter de Leedegaria, a predicant friar, living at Pam-
pilona.^
It cannot be doubted that the office of the delegated inqui-
sition was in these times introduced into Italy,<= because the
inhabitants of Placentia drove out from their city Friar Row-
land,'* the inquisitor, in the year 1234. The year following the
pope committed the office of the inquisition to the prior of
St. Mary ad Gradus, and to Friar Radulph, a predicant at
s
to the east and west, to the north and south, and cried out towards every
part iu as loud a voice as he could, repeating it oftentimes, * In the name of
God, and his servant St. Dominic, I do from tliis hour renounce all faith
with heretics, their favourers, and believers.' Then be bawled out again,—
* I adjure the Catholics, in the name of God, that laying aside all fear, they
would give their testimony to the truth :' and thus left off. About seven
days after this meeting many came in, by whose means the inquisitors found
out a way to the recesses of darkness. Many of them abjured their heresy,
some discovered others, and promised that, at a proper opportunity, they
would detect more.
* Bzovius, A. 1235. § 4.
b It begins Rumor, Ac. in which, amongst other things, there is this : " Since
therefore, according to the office enjoined us, we are bound to root out all
ofFencea from the khigdom of God, and as much as in us lies to oppose auch
beasts, we deliver into your hands the sword of the word of God, which, ac-
cording to the words of the prophet,' ye ought not to keep back from
blood ; but, inspired with a zeal for the Catholic faith, IHte Phineas.f make
diligent inquisition concerning these pestilent wretches, their believers, re-
ceivers, and abettors, and proceed against those who, by such inquisition,
shall be found guilty, according to the canonical sanctions, and our statutes,
which we have lately published to confound heretical pravity, calling in
against them, if need be, the assistance of the secular arm. — Given at the
Lateran, 8 Cal. Maii, An. 12.
' Ibid. A. 1234. §25. " Ibid. 1285. § 2
* Jer. xlviii. 10. f Exod. xxxii. 33.
114 HISTOllY OF THE INaUISITIOK.
Viterbo, commissioning them to enquire out all heretics com-
ing from other cities, and to absolve from censures such who
abjured their heresy, and reconciled themselves to the church.
Upon this affair iie gave letters to both of them at Perouse,
the second of the ides of August, and ninth year of his pontifi-
cate. But two years after,* and the eleventh of his pontificate,
at Viterbo, he sent letters to the provincial of Lombardy, a
predicant, by which he invested him with the power of making
inquisitors. The letters begin thus: Ille humani, &c. and
very distinctly represent the office given to the inquisitors.'*
s 13 Cal. of June.
•» After the nsual complaint of the rise of heresy, he enjoins the inquisitors
their office in these words : *' Wc, therefore, being willing to prevent the dan-
ger of so many souls, entreat, admonish, and beseech your wisdom, and strictly
command you by these apostolic writings, us you have any regard for the
Divine judgment, that you appoint some of the brethren committed to your
care, men learned in the law of the Lord, and such as you know to be fit
for this purpose, according to the limitations of your order, to be preachers
general to the clergy and people assembled, where they can conveniently
do it 5 and in order the more effectually to execute their office, let them take
into their assistance some discreet person?, and carefully enquire out here-
tics, and such as are defamed for heresy. And if they find out either any
really culpable, or such who are defamed, let them proceed against them ac-
cording to our statutes, lately published against heretics, unless upon exami-
nation they will absolutely obey the commands of the church. Let them
also proceed against the receivers, defenders, and abettors of heretics, ac-
cording to the same statutes. But if any will abjure their heretical defile-
ment, and return to the ecclesiastical unity, let them have the favour of
absolution according to the form of the church, and be enjoined the usual pe-
nance. But let them be more especially careful, that such who appear to
return, do not commit impiety under the specious pretence of piety, and the
angel of Satan thus transform himself into an angel of Light. Therefore let
them peruse the statutes which we have thought fit to publish concerning
this affair, that they may beware of their subtlety, according to the discre-
tion given them of the Lord. And that they may more freely and effectually
execute the office committed to them in all the premises, we, confiding in
the mercy of Almighty God, and the authority of the blessed apostles, Peter
and Paul, remit for three years the penance enjoined them, to all who shall
attend their preaching for twenty days in their several stations, and likewise
to those who shall give them assistance, counsel or favour, in their endea-
vours to subdue heretics, their abettors, receivers, and defenders, in their
fortified places and castles. And as for those who shall happen to die in the
prosecution of this affair, wc grant a plenary pardon of all their sins for
which they are contrite in their hearts, and which they confess with their
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 115
In the same year 1235,* Pope Gregory commanded the
bishop of Huesca, the prior of Barcelona, and Friar WiUiam
Barbarano, a predicant, that they should not suffer the office
by any means to relax, but should make inquisition against
heretics in the province of Tarracon, and proceed according to
the canons. He also appointed Friar Robert, a predicant,
inquisitor-general against heretics in the whole kingdom of
France, and commanded him so to proceed in the causes com-
mitted to liim, as that the innocent should not perish, and
that iniquity should not remain unpunished. The bull of this
commission is extant, dated at Perousc,^ and ninth year of his
pontificate; in which he prescribed the form of penance to
such as abjured their heresy, and ordained many other things
against heretics, and commanded the provincial of the Teuto-
nic Order of Predicants, that he should chuse fit persons out
of all Germany, to preach in every place the word of the cross
against the heretics and Saracens.
■V«.*^'V\-V^'WV^
CHAP. XIV.
Concerning the first Hindrances to the Progress of the
IxauisiTioN.
ALTHOUGH the pope perpetually pressed the inquisition
it was not every where received, the struggles and jealousies
which are always apparent between civil and ecclesiastical au-
moBths. And that nothing may be wanting to the said friars in their pro-
secutLng the foresaid business, we grant them, by the tenour of these pie
sents, full power of involving, under the ecclesiastical censure, all who con-
tradict and rebel against them. We also grant them the power to restrain,
under the same censure, from the office of preaching, which by uo means
belong to them, the questuary predicants, whose busijicss it is simply to ask
only charitable supports, and to sell an indulgence, if they should happ^-n to
have one." •
- 17 Cal. of June. b 10 Cal. of September
• Bzovius, A. 1235. sect. 8.
1 ^
116 HISTOUY OF THE INaUISITION.
thority engendered animosities ; nor could the former permit
the latter so far to domineer as to extinguish its most essential
functions.
Among others Louis, king of France, made a law, for-
bidding the appearance of his subjects before the ecclesiastica>
tribunals, and inflicting punishment on those who should com-
pel them. This law drew forth the remonstrances of the pope,
who endeavoured to win over the king, by the splendid and
pious examples of Charles the Great, Theodosius and Valen-
tine, nor did he fail to hint at anathemas as the reward of ob-
stinacy. Louis, who was then soliciting the title of the obe-
dient son of the church, thought it prudent to yield to the
papal severity ; he was also entreated by Gregory to compel
Earl Raymond to perform his vows made on his reconciliation,
namely, to destroy all heretics, and lead an army into the Holy
Land ; this request was made in consequence of a tumult
among the people, at Tholouse, opposing the inquisitors.
The inquisition was indeed not only hateful to the people
on account of its novelty, but from its excessive cruelty. The
conduct of the inquisitors was of the most sanguinary kind.
Among these one Friar Robert was not the least ; he was sur-
named Bulgarius, because he had cruelly persecuted and deli-
vered over to the flames the Waldenses, then called Bulgarians,
or according to others because he himself had formerly pro-
fessed himself to be one of their sect. This man's furious and
bloody conduct was so terrific that even the pope could not
sanction his injustice, but was compelled to deprive him of his
office, and shut him up in perpetual imprisonment.
The excesses of Robert and of Fulio, who scattered death
and terror in Languedoc, induced in 1301 an inquiry into
abuses, when it was ordered, that in future persons charged
with heresy should not be detained by a single inquisitor, but
be transferred to the royal prisons at Tholouse ; and to mo-
derate the fury of the Dominicans, in order to preserve appear-
ances with the exasperated people, some friars minors were
added to the predicants, whose gentleness might be supposed
to check their ardour.
The tribunal of the inquisition was found a very convenient
HIStORY OF THE INQUISITIOlSl. 117
mode of revenging any real or supposed injury, since it was
only necessary to the destruction of an individual, that he
should be charged with heresy : it is not surprising, tlierefore,
that ihii Emperor Frederic urged by personal hatred procured
the death of a great number of individuals, who were notwith-
standing known to be rigid catholics. Gregory admonished
Frederic on this subject, thougli no conduct of Frederic's
could equal that of the Roman pontiff's, either for ambition or
cruelty. For although Frederic had materially assisted the
inquisition, made very severe laws against heresy, and branded
several on the face with red hot irons, yet he could not escape
tlie papal thunder ; for, in the year 1239, Pope Gregory ex-
communicated him, and absolved his subjects from their oaths
of allegiance. Frederic gave an abundant answer, and cleared
himself of the crimes charged upon him ; but the pope sent
letters to all the prelates, Christian kings, and princes, charging
him with heresy, and with having asserted, that the power of
binding and loosing was not in the church deUvered by our
Lord to Peter and his successors. Formally deprived by Inno-
cent of his empire, Frederic was compelled to take arms ; but
the papal power prevailed, by its instigation of others, and
Frederic, as a last resort, was compelled to seek reconciliation
with the church, which he was required to do without the
noise and terror of arms — attended only by a small retinue,
under the promise, that proper security should be given, that
no injury should be done to him or his.
After the imperial power had been thus insulted, it is no
wonder that the same process should be carried on against
Ezeline, Lord of Padua, who was zealously attached to the
emperor. Ezeline was accordingly charged with heresy : and
a day being appointed for him to clear himself, and he not
appearing, the pope, in 1251, appointed the bishop of Treviso
to let him know, that unless he came forward it should be pub
hcly declared, that he was infected with heresy— to be avoided
of all, that his body might be seized on, his goods plundered,
and that an army of cross-bearers should be sent against him
and his adherents. In the year 1254, these sentences were,
I 3
118 HISTORY or THE INQUISITION.
after long delay, published against Ezeline, whereby he is
charged with the most horrid crimes.
Raymond also, Earl of Tholouse, oppressed by the dis-
asters already related, submitted his neck to the papal yoke ;
and signified to the pope, that he desired that heretical pravity
might be wholly extirpated out of his dominions, upon which
the pope, to oblige him, as he says, and in approbation of his
pious zeal, sent the bishop of Agen, to make inquisition in
Tholouse ; and Raymond- ordered eighty persons to be burnt
with fire in the city of Agen, who either confessed or were
convicted. But he did not himself long survive — dying in the
year 1249, and was the last Earl of Tholouse in that line,
that earldom devolving to the Earl of Poictiers, his son-in-law,
and from him to the kings of France.
The office of the inquisition was introduced into Burgundy
1223— into Aragon 1232 — into ?Lombardy 1247, chiefly on
account of the spreading of the Waldensian doctrines, whose
poor faithful professors sustained tremendous cruelties.
<*'W%*%-»/WV»'«.
CHAP. XV.
The more speedy Progress of the Inquisition,
THUS far the pope had laboured hard in promoting the
aifair of the inquisition. But as there were perpetual quarrels
between the popes and the emperor, the pope's success was
not answerable to his wishes, as being more intent upon pro-
moting war, than enquiring into, and judging of heresies.
But after the death of the Emperor Frederic, the affairs of
Germany being in great disorder, and Italy without any prince ;
Pope Innocent IV. seeing all things become subject to his
power, in Milan and other parts of Italy, determined to
extirpate all heresies, which had greatly increased in the pre-
ceding w ar : and because the Dominican and Franciscan friars
had greatly assisted the pope against heretics, and were aui-
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 119
mated with a iiery zeal, he committed this affair to them,
rather than to any others whatsoever. He therefore erected a
tribunal, solely for the business of the faith ; and gave to the
inquisitors perpetual power to administer judgment in his
name in this cause.
His first and principal care was to purge Italy from heresy,
which was nearest to himself, and mostly subject^ to his power ;
and therefore he erected several tribunals of the inquisition
therein. In the year 1251, he created Vivianus Bergomensis,
and Peter of Verona, both friars predicant, inquisitors of the
faith in Milan, and gave them letters, in which he taxes even
the Emperor Frederic as a favourer of heresy.*
This Peter of Verona appointed, that amongst other statutes
of the republic of Milan,'' many also should be made and ob-
served against heretical pravity. But as he was going from
Como to Milan, A. D. 1252, to extirpate heresy, a certain
believer of heretics attacked him in his journey, and dis-
patched him with many wounds. He was canonized after his
death by Alexander IV., and is worshipped as a martyr by
* " Innocent, &c. Whilst that perfidious tyrant lived, we could not so freely
proceed against this plague, especially in Italy, through his opposition; wlio,
instead of putting any check to it, rather encouraged it. When he became
evidently suspected of this, he was condemned by us in the council of Lyons,
as well as on account of his many other enormous excesses : and, therefore,
we strictly commaMd and enjoin your discretion, by these our apostolic writ-
ings, as you expect the remission of your sins, that ye prosecute this affair
of the faith, which lies principally upon our heart, with all your powers and
with fervent minds; and that ye go personally to Cremona ; since we have
thought proper to depute for the same business other discreet persons in the
other cities and places of Lombardy j and that after having called a council
in that diocese, ye do carefully and effectually labour to extirpate heretical
pravity out of that city and its district; and that if you find any persons
culpable upon this account, or infected, or defamed, unless upon exaraina'
tion they will absolutely obey the commands of the church, yo proceed
against them, their receivers, abettors and favourers, by the apostolic au-
thority, according to the canonical sanctions, laying aside all fear of men;
and that if tliere be need, ye call into your assistance the secular arm." * —
Dated the Ides of June, and 8th Year ot our Pontificate.
b Pegna in Eymeric. p. 2. com. 38.
• Raynald. A. 1251. sect. 34, S.-j.
I 4
120 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
the Dominicans, whom, next to Dominic, they esteem as the
patron dnd prince of the holy office of the inquisition ; since
he was the first who consecrated it by his biood. The minis-
ters also of the inquisition, which they call in Italy, Cross-
Bearers, are from him called Co-Brothers of Peter the Martyr ;
and in the very ensigns of this office he is painted as a martyr,
and protector ©f this sacred tribunal, with a silken cross, of a
red colour, interwoven with gold, as the emblem of his mar-
tyrdom.
But le^st the pope should seem wholly to deprive the bishops
of the power of judging, concerning the faith^ which hitherto
had been wholly lodged with them, he appointed that a bishop,
with the inquisitor, should be judges in this tribunal : but the
bishop was admitted only for form's sake. The whole power
of judging lay wholly in the inquisitor. And that there might
be some shew of authority left to the civil magistrates, who,
by the last laws of Frederic, had the power of pronouncing
sentence upon heretics, he allowed them to appoint ministers
of the inquisition, but such only as were nominated by the
inquisitors; and to depute one of their number, nominated
also by the inquisitor, to visit with him the territory commit-
ted to him ; and of claiming the third part of the confiscated
goods ; together witb some other things of the like nature, by
which the secular magistrate seemed indeed to be admitted as
a companion of the inquisitors, but was in reality rendered
their slave and tool : for he was obhged, at the command of
the inquisitor, to apprehend any one, and to imprison him,
wherever the inquisitors pleased. He was also under an oath
to expel from his family, and not to admit into any office, any
that should be adjudged heretics by the inquisitor's sentence;
and if any of his number assisted the inquisitors, they were
put under an oath of secrecy. From all which it is manifest,
that the magistrates were not the companions of the inquisitors
in that tribunal, but only their slaves and tools. The pope also
ordained, that all persons should pay towards the charges of
the goals, imprisonments, and support of those who were
confined.
By this means the office of making inquisition against here-
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 121
tics,* was in divers places of Italy committed both to the minors
and predicant friars. But lefst their mutual power, and the
neighbouring jurisdiction of the places should create confusion,
or raise disputes about their respective bounds, the pope re-
called all the commissions that liad bean granted in the affair
of the faith ; and divided, in an exact proportion, to each order,
the several parts of Italy. The friars minors he appointed in
the city of Rome, throughout Tuscany, in the patrimony of
St. Peter, the duchy of Spoletto, Campania, -Maretamo and
Romania. To the predicants he assigned Lombardy, Roma-
niola, the marquisate of Tarvisino, and Genova. The bull in
which he commits the office of the inquisition to the predicants,
is in Bzovius, A. D. 1254,^ and that to the minors, in Luke
Wadding, A. D. 1254.'^ After this, the pope prescribed thirty-
one articles to the magistrates, judges, and people of the three
countries, which he had subjected to the jurisdiction of the
predicants, which he commanded to be exactly observed, and
registered amongst the public records ; and gave power to the
inquisitors to put under excommunication and interdict, all
who refused to observe them. Armed with this power, they
sometimes very insolently abused it, and attempted to intro-
duce into other countries what the pope had ordered only for
those that he had put under their pai'ticular jurisdiction.
Upon this account, in the year 1255,** there was a great quarrel
between Anselm, a predicant friar in Milan and the ma-
gistrate of Genova. The friar endeavoured, that some con-
stitutions made against heretics, both by the apostolic see, and
the imperial power, should be published, and reposited amongst
the laws of the city. But Philip Turrianus, prefect of the
city, refused it, either because he favoured heretics, or despised
the commands of the inquisitor. Upon this the friar, support-
ed by the apostolic authority, proceeded against Philip as sus-
pected of heresy ; and because he refused to obey and appeal',
excommunicated him, and all his companions in the government,
as accomplices in the crime ; and interdicted the city from all
holy services. Phihp, under that censure, appealed to the
« Wadding, A. 1254. sect. 7.
* Sect. 4. c Sect. 7. " Bzoviiis, A. 1256. sect. 7.
122 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
apostolic see ; and sent ambassadors to the pope, to entreat a
suspension of the censures, and lb wait for the determination
of the whole affair. The pope suspended the curses Anselm
had pronounced to a certain day ; * but before that day came,
Philip obeyed the commands of Anselm, registered according
to his order all those constitutions amongst the city laws, and
proceeded as they directed against all contraveners.
Thus the civil magistrate was sometime forced to yield to
the papal authority : and this undoubtedly was the reason, that
the laws of Frederic against heretics, were, as friar Bernard of
Como relates, in his Light-of the Inquisitors, printed at Rome,
A. D. 1584, registered in the records of the city Como, and
accepted by the whole council of that city.^ Nevertheless,
upon account of the excessive Cruelty of the inquisitors, and
the greatness of the expence, the people were violently set
against this tribunal ; and some of the popes could scarce ex-
tricate themselves out of these difficulties, till at length the
people admitted it more easily, being eased of the expenses
they had born^ to support the inquisition, and because the epis-
copal authority in that tribunal was greatly enlarged.
Sometimes however they broke out into open violence, which
was with great difficulty appeased. Thus it happened in the
country of Parma, as Honorius IV.*^ relates it, in his letter to
the bishop of that city,"^ extant in Bzovius. These difficulties
were indeed overcome by the authority of the pope, and rigour
of punishments; but contrary to the inclinations and endea-
vours of the people, who cursed the cruelty of the inquisitors.
From some countries where the inquisition had been brought
in, it was driven out again ; ^ because it assumed the cognizance
of those affairs which did not belong to it ; so that the people
could no longer bear the intolerable yoke. In these latter
ages, viz. A. D. 1518, the most violent tumvilts were raised in
Brescia, against the inquisitors, who exercised the most outra-
geous cruelties against some persons accused of magic, which
were with great difficulty appeased, and not till the ecclesiastical
tribunal and processes were abolished, and other judges ap-
* Hist. Concil. Trid. p. 485.
b Sept. 10, 1255. *= Hist. Concil. Trid. A. 1285. sect. 12.
* See Hist. Inquisit. book iii, cap. 10. * Ibid. Venet. cap. 8.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 123
pointed in their room. Upon the death of Paul IV. the prisons
of the inquisition were broke open by the mob at Rome ; and
the whole building, with all its records, burnt to the ground.
At Mantua, A. D. 1568, there was, on the same account, a
violent sedition, which brought the city itself into the greatest
danger.
As there occurred to these new judges man 3^ cases, not de-
termined by the laws, so that sometimes they were in doubt
how to proceed ; they referred them to the pope, by whom
they were deputed, who by his rescripts, gave them proper di-
rections, and declared how they were to pronounce in like
cases. There are extant many such answers of Innocent IV.,
Alexander IV., Urban IV., and Clement IV., to the inquisi-
tors, instructing them in the affair of their office against here-
tics. And although these rescripts were sent only to the Ita-
lian inquisitors, yet we must not think, as Pegna remarks,
that these decrees were to be observed in Italy only : * " For the
Roman pontiffs transmitted their rescripts to the inquisitors of
Italy ; because at that time there were many of them against
the prevailing heresies of the Patarenes, Puritans, Leonists,
and other heretics, who chiefly infected the parts of Italy ; the
heresies of the Waldenses, or poor men of Lyons, being almost
buried and extinguished, the apostolic see having a little before
suppressed them in Languedoc, Dauphiny, and Provence, by
the preaching of many famous men, and especially of St. Do-
minic. And therefore the rescripts sent by the popes to those
inquisitors, they ordered to be observed by the inquisitors of
other provinces, where there were any. They were sent first
to those of Italy, because they especially needed that provision,
and those constitutions."" One may also read in the bulls the
same laws often repeated, ^vithout any alteration, by different
popes. For, as the same Pegna observes,** " it seems to have
been an nntient custom, when the matter required it, that every
pope, in the beginning of his pontificate, should publish laws re-
lating to heretics, and rebels against the church, to deter them
from sogi-eat a crime by the severity of punishments and penalties,
^ In Eymer. Direct. Inq. p. 3. com. 158.
^ Direct. In^uii. Par. 2. Comment. 22.
124 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
and thus reduce them to the bosom of the church. Some-
times they published the laws received by their predecessors,
without altering a word, unless the occasion required other-
wise.'"'
This tribunal was purely ecclesiastical, the civil magistrate
having no share in the judgment. The inquisitor, with the
bishop, pronounced sentence of heresy against the person appre-
hended. They appointed wholesome penances to the penitent,
and delivered over the impenitent and obstinate to the secular
court, who without any farther deliberation condemned them to
the fire.
CHAP. XVI.
The Inquisition introduced into several Places,
AFTER this manner, tribunals of the Inquisition were
erected in other places besides Itctly. First in the country
of Tholouse.'* For Innocent IV. commanded the provincial of
the Predicant order in Provence, to endeavour, with all his
might, to extirpate heretics from that country, and the country
of Poicteau, and gave him plenary power to excommunicate,
absolve, and reconcile.
In the year 1255, Alexander IV, at the request of Louis,
appointed inquisitors of the faith in France,'' and constituted
the prior of the Predicant friars at Paris, inquisitor over all
that kingdom, and county of Tholouse, with the most ample
powers, and exhorted him to advise with grave and prudent
men in pronouncing sentences.
When the Inquisition was once brought into France, the
pope carefully endeavoured to cherish and enlarge it, and
many, who had excited the fury of the inquisitiors, having fled
to the churches, for the benefit of ecclesiastical immunity. The
a Bzovius, a. 1251, sect. 8. n. 9.
^ Raynald. a. 1255, sect. 33. 34. Bzovius, a. 1255, sect. 8. n. 15.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 125
pope abolished that privilege; and as the increase of the Wal-
dehses became alarming, he republished the seven laws of the
emperor Frederick, empowering the magistrates and prefects
to proceed against heretics.
About this time, also, the office of the Inquisition was
brought into the kingdoms of Castile and Leon.
The pope also commanded,^ that the minister of Provence
should, by the apostolic authority, appoint one of his brethren,
a wise and learned man, inquisitor in the county of Vespasin,
in Dauphiny.
In the year 1290, the Inquisition was erected in Syria and
Palestine ; because some heretics and Jews had crept in there,
promising themselves security on account of the wars.
In the year 1291, the Inquisition was brought into Servia,
when the pope wrote letters to Stephen, king of that country.
The following year, 1292, the Inquisition was erected in the
cities of Vienne and Albona,"^ after the same manner as it had
been appointed in those of Aries, Aix, and Ambrun. The same
year, James, king of Aragon, greatly promoted the Inquisition
in all his kingdoms. For by a law, made the 10th of the
cal. of May, he commands all the officials of all his kingdoms,
already made, or hereafter to be made, that at the notification
of or injunction of the friars Predicants, who now are, or here-
after shall be, inquisitors of heretical pravity, they do fulfil,
and execute, whatsoever they shall command to be done, by
themselves or their deputies, on the part of the pope, or the
king himself, whether it be to apprehend, or imprison men's
persons, or any other thing relating to the affair of the Inqui-
sition. And he commands them to do this as often as,
and wheresoever they shall be, required by them, or any one
of them.
And that there might be no place of refuge left for here-
tics, tribunals of the Inquisition were erected up and down in
various countries; in Germany, Austria, Hungary, Poland,
Dalmatia, Bosnia, Ragusia, Croatia, Istria, Walachia in Lower
Germany, and other places, to which the power of the pope
. An. 1288.
^ Wadding, a. 1292, sect. 3. Bzovins, a. 1292, sect. 5.
126 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
could extend itself. The Austrian Inquisition was at first very
terrible; for Paramus relates from Trithernius, that in the city
of Crema, many thousand heretics were apprehended and
burnt by the inquisitors.'
CHAP. XVII.
Of the Inquisition at Venice.
THE Inquisition at Venice was under a different manage-
ment. The greatest part of the Christian world being in arms,
upon account of the fierce contentions between the pope and
Frederick the emperor, Lombardy being torn in pieces by its
own quarrels, and the marquisate of Treviso and Romaniola
divided between the followers of the pope and emperor, there
arose amongst them various opinions, different from the Roman
faith. And because ^nany persons had fled to Venice, to live
there securely and quietly, the magistrates of that city, to pre-
vent it from being polluted with foreign doctrines, as many
cities of Italy were, chose certain men, honest, prudent, and
zealous for the Catholic faith, who should observe and enquire
out heretics. FuU power was also given to the patriarch of
Grado, and other Venetian bishops, to judge of those opinions;
and it was decreed, that whosoever was pronounced an heretic,
by any one of the bishops, should be condemned to the fire,
by the duke and senators, or at least the major part of them.**
And leS^st there should be any hindrance to this affair, by the
death of a single bishop, it was afterwards decreed, that such
also should be condemned to the fire, who were pronounced
heretics by the bishop's vicars, upon the decease of the bishop. *=
In this process, the secular judges, appointed by the common -
.wealth, made Inquisition against heretics. The bishop judged
concerning their faith, whether it was agreeable to the Roman
a Bzovins, a, 1292. sect. 5. 1. 2. t. 3. c. 4. n. 17.
b This happened A. D. 1249, Father Paul Hist. Inqais.
«= A. D. 1275. Ibid.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOX. 127
faith, or heretical. Then the duke and senators pronounced
sentence, not as mere executors of the bishop's, but as judges,
properly so called : but Nicholas IV. a minor friar, being ex-
alted to the pontificate, in order to execute the purposes of his
predecessors, and exalt the friars of his own order, did not
ceast his endeavours, till he got the office of tlie Inquisition re-
ceived by a public decree at Venice ; but under this limita-
tion, to prevent scandal, that the Duke alone should have
power to assist the inquisitors in the execution of their office ;
that a treasury should be appointed, and an administrator set
over it, who should disburse the necessary sums for the office,
and should receive and keep all the profits accruing from it,
to the treasury. This was done in the year 1289. The pope
acquiesced in this decree; and thus the office of the Inquisition
at Venice consisted of secular and ecclesiastical persons, and
doth to* this day; three inquisitors assisting at it in the name
of the prince. The ecclesiastics have been, indeed, endeavour-
ing to bring it entirely into their own hands, but could never
prevail with the Venetian senate to agree to it. In the year
1301, friar Anthony, an inquisitor, would fain have persuaded
duke Peter Gradengo, to have bound himself by an oath, to
observe the pontifical and imperial laws against heretics. But
the Duke answered, by a public rescript, that he was no ways
obliged to take a new oath ; because, when he was raised to the
high office of Duke, he confirmed, by an oath, the Concordate
with Nicholas IV. and therefore insisted that he was no ways
bound, by any pontifical, or imperial laws, not agreeing \nth
this concordate. Upon this answer, the inquisitor desisted from
his attempt.
From these things, it is evident, that the Venetian Inquisition
is very different from what it is in other countries, where eccle-
siastics, entirely devoted to the pope at Rome, have the whole
management of it. For whereas, in other places, the cogni-
zance of heresy belongs only to the ecclesiastics; and whereas,
all who bear any part in that judgment, as assessors, counsel-
lors, notaries, or witnesses, take an oath of secrecy to the in-
quisitors, whereby the magistrate is no more than the bhnd ex-
ecutor of the inquisitor's sentence ; the Venetian senate, by a
128 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
wise distinction, considers three things separately in this affair :
— the judgment concerning the doctrine for which any person
is to be pronounced an heretic ; — the judgment of the fact,
viz. who embraces and professes the doctrine ! — and, lastly,
the pronouncing that sentence. The first is acknowledged to be-
long to the ecclesiastical court; the two latter, they contend,
belong to the secular, and was always formerly administered by-
seculars, during the Roman empire. And though sometimes,
by the indulgence of princes, the two last were allowed to the
ecclesiastics, yet the senate of Venice never gave up that autho-
rity, but always ordered their deputies, and in other cities of
their territories, the magistrate, to be present at all actions of
the inquisitors. And so great is their caution, that if any one
hath any commerce with the court of Rome, he cannot assist at
forming the processes. The proper business of these assistants
is, only to be present; and if any thing doubtful occurs, to in-
form the prince ; and therefore they make no promise of secrecy
to the inquisitors, but are obliged to let the prince know what
is done in the Inquisition. Yea, although one of the clergy,
of the same order with the inquisitor himself, be accused before
the inquisition, the civil magistrate must be present, nor suffer
the inquisitor to proceed, unless he be with him, even after the
injunction made. And although the inquisitor will communi-
cate the ^hole process to him, he must nevertheless be present
at it: and if the ecclesiastics should form the process whilst the
civil magistrate is absent, he will command it to be resumed
before him, even although the process be carried on without
the Venetian territories. The senate hath especially taken care
that neither the process, nor the persons taken up, shall be sent
out of their dominions, unless by the advice and consent of
the prince. That this method is observed in the Inquisition at
Venice, Father Paul proves, by a plain example, in his history
of the Venetian Inquisition, A. D. 1596. One Lewis Petruccius
Senensis, was thrown into prison at Padua. And whereas, ac-
cording to the usual custom of the Inquisition, the Roman in-
quisitor ought to have sent to Padua, the facts and proofs which
he had against him, he, on the contrary, demanded that the pri-
soner should be sent to him, and urged this matter at Rome to the
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 129
Venetian ambassador, and at Venice to the pope's nuncio : but
the senate made answer, that it was not proper that that lauda-
ble institution of the republic should be altered, which orders
the prisoners to be tried in those places where they are taken
up and confined; but that it was just, and agreeable to the
received custom, that whatever crimes the prisoner was accused
of, should be transmitted to the inquisitor at Padua, that so he
might suffer the just punishment of his crime. And they
thought this so evident and manifest a piece of justice, that no
body could oppose it. This affair was controverted on both
sides, by many, letters, for five whole years, Petruccius being all
the while kept in prison. But at length the Romans, finding
they could not get the prisoner into their possession, wrote
(A. D. 1601,) to the inquisitor at Padua, to dismiss his prisoner
Petruccius; which created no small suspicion what sort of
crime it must be, which they had rather should go unpunished
than discover it to the inquisitor at Padua.
The Venetian senate hath also been particularly careful that
the Inquisitors shall not have the power of prohibiting books,
because they may easily abuse it to the detriment of the com-
monwealth ; for they oftentimes forbid, or adulterate good
books, and useful to the public ; sometimes they prohibit books
which have no relation to their affairs; and sometimes because
they arrogate to themselves the censure of all books, they hin-
der the civil magistrate from prohibiting and condemning books
highly injurious to the government.
From these things and others, which might be mentioned
from father Paul, but which for brevity I omit, it is evident
that the Venetian Inquisition is not so absolutely subject to the
Pope as the other Itahan Inquisitions are ; and that it is not
entirely committed to ecclesiastics, but that the civil magistrate
hath a principal share in the management of it.
130 HISTOEY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. XVIII.
Tlic iNauisiTioN against the Apostolics, Templars, and
others, ^-c.
ABOUT the year of our Lord 1300, there was great cruelty
exercised upon certain persons called apostolics, in Italy. They
seem to have been the offspring of the Albigenses : their rise is
thus described by Eymericus.^ In the times of Honorius IV.
Boniface VIII. Nicholas IV. and Clement V. about the year of
our Lord 1260, there appeared Geraldus Sagarelli, in the
bishopric of Parma, and Dulcinus in that of Novara. They
gathered a congregration, which they called apostles, who lived
in subjection to none ; but affirmed that they pecuharly imitat
ed the apostles, and took on them a certain new habit of reli-
gion, A. D. 1285,^ they were condemned by the letters patent
of Honorius IV. beginning, " Olim felicis recordationis," and
afterwards by Nicholas IV. A. D. 1290.
At length, after their doctrine had prevailed near forty years
in Lombardy, Sagarelli was condemned as an arch-heretic by
the bishop of Parma, and Friar Manfred the Inquisitor, a
predicant, in the time of Boniface VIII. and burnt July the
18th, A. D. 1300. Dulcinus, with six thousand of his fol-
lowers of both sexes, inhabited the Alps, w ho run into all man-
ner of luxury, as Pegna sa}^,*^ and gained many proselytes for
the space of two or three 3'ears ; and that with such success, as
determined Clement V. to send amongst them inquisitors of the
predicant order, to put a stop to so great an evil, either by
recovering Dulcinus and his accomplices from their error, or by
acquainting liim whether these things were so or not, as he had
been credibly informed, after they had made a strict and
dUigent enquiry. Upon their return they reported to the
pontiff what they had seen and heard, who upon being acquaint-
ed with their horrid wickednesses and impurities, pubhshed a
'=* Direct. Inqiiis. p. 2, qu. 12. ^ March, Ides. 5.
c Direct, p. 2. Comm. 37.
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION. 131
crusado against so heinous an impiety, and promised large and
liberal indulgences to all who should engage in so pious a war
against such wicked men. An army was accordingly gathered,
and sent against them with an apostolic legate ; who coming
into the places where these false apostles dwelt, and unexpect-
edly attacking them, they were wholly oppressed by this
Catholic army of cross-bearers, partly by hunger and cold, and
partly by arms. Dulcinus himself was taken, and eight years
after the punishment of Geraldus, was, as an arch-heretic, with
Margaret his heretical wife, his partner in wickedness and
error, publicly torn in pieces, and afterwards burnt. The
opinions which Eymeric attributes to them agree for the most
part with those which are ascribed to Peter Lucensis, a
Spaniard, excepting that abominable principle of promiscuous
lust, of which there is not the least mention in the sentence of
the said Peter. From whence we may certainly conclude, that
this is a mere calumny upon these apostolics, as well as upon
the Waldenses.
In the mean while, the Inquisition raged with no less cruelty
against the Albigenses and Waldenses, in France, especially in
the county of Tholouse. The most severe methods were
employed, in order to bring them back into the church of Rome,
those who were not to be prevailed upon, by suifering to
renounce their tenets, were burnt without mercy, — and those
who from the extremity of torture, were induced to yield, were
condemned either to wear crosses, or to perpetual imprison-
ment.
At the same time the order of the templars was suppressed,
by the command of Clement V.
Philip of France, had accused the order of heresies and
wickedness, whether on sufficient grounds, or because he envied
them their immense riches, it may not be easy to determine.
After several councils held on the subject, they were formally
condemned in that at Vienna, for their abominable crimes, and
all who were in France of that order were seized, as it were by
one signal. Most of them either from a love of life, or con-
sciousness of guilt, confessed the crimes they were charged
with. Many were condemned and burnt alive, among whom
K 2
132 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
was John Mola, a Burgundian, chief master of the order, who
was barbarously executed, notwithstanding the most pathetic
declaration of his own and his order's innocence.
The fury of the Inquisition against the templars, beginning
in France, was afterwards extended to all Christian provinces,
and after much debate, they were finally condemned, suppres-
sed and dissolved, by an apostohc ordination, and the disposal
of their whole property vested in the Roman see. — In conse-
quence of this decree, their effects were every where seized, and
they themselves severely punished.
In the same council large power was given to the inquisitors
of heretical pravity and the bishops, of proceeding against
heretics.* One Walter, a Lollard in the city of Crema, and
dutchy of Austria, had many followers, who, according to some,
had their rise from Dulcinus, who at the command of pope
Clement were burnt by the inquisitors, in that city and other
places. Their number was large in Bohemia, Austria, and the
neighbouring countries. Some affirm they were 80,000. Many
of them were burnt in several places of Austria, who all of
them persevered in their opinions with great cheerfulness to
their death. And therefore, to extinguish both the old here-
tics, and the new ones that might possibly arise, ample power
was given by the Vienna council to the inquisitors and bishops,
to proceed against those who were defiled with that impu-
rity, and prisons were ordered to be built to secure them in
chains.''
In Bohemia the office of the Inquisition was committed to
Peregrine Oppohensis and Nicholas Hippodines, predicants ;
and to Coldas and Herman, minorites; who were commanded
to manifest an holy ardour against the guilty. The pope
exhorted John king of Bohemia, Uladislaus duke of Cracow,
Boleslaus duke of Wratislaw, and the marquis of 'Misnia, that
they should not suffer reUgion to decay and be obscured by new
errors, but that they should assist the censors of the holy faith.
Fourteen men and women were burnt in Bohemia. Walter,
a Raynald. A. 1812, sect. 21. Bzoviui, A. 1307, sect. 9. A. 1315. sect. 11
•• Raynald. A. 131». seel. 43. Bzovius, A. 1317. sect. 37.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 133
the principal of the sect of the Lollards, was burnt at Colonne,
A. D. 1322.^
About the same time Pope John, by a letter, No. 190,
renewed the constitutions of Clement IV. and other his prede-
cessors, against the Jews, and confirmed by several laws the
power given to the inquisitors against them, and commanded
the book of the Talmud to be burnt, and such who were con-
victed of their execrable blasphemies to be punished.''
Nor did he shew less severity against the Waldenses, reviving
about that time in France : for he ordered that many of them,
who were convicted of errors by the inquisitors, who were pre-
dicant friars, should be delivered to the princes to be punished
according to the ecclesiastical law. There is extant in the
Vatican library a large volume of the transactions of these pre-
dicant friars against heretics in the kingdom of France, this
year of our Lord 1319.
■V-W%V^'V^-fc-»-W
CHAP. XIX.
The Inquisition against ^^^.Beguin^.
THE same John XXII. condemned the Beguins of heresy,
and commanded the inquisitors of heretical pravity to proceed
against them, and to deliver over to the secular court all who
continued obstinate in their error, to be punished with death.
These Beguins were monks of the order of St. Francis. They
are several times called of the thii'd rule of St. Francis. His
rule was, that the friars of his order should have no particular
property erf their own, neither house, nor place, nor any thing,
but should live by begging : this he called evangelic poverty.
I'his rule was confirmed and approved by several popes. But
as many believed the obseiTance of it to be above all human
strength, many doubts arose concerning it ; some contending
that they were to renounce the property of all things in particu-
lar, but not in common, and that it was no ways contrary to the
» Bzovius, A. 1319, sect. 9. " Ibid. sect. 10.
K 3
134 HISTORY OF THE INQ,UISITION.
Franciscan poverty to have the possession of things in common,
so that they possessed nothing in particular. But Nicholas III.
condemned this opinion by a constitution, beginning, " Exiit
qui seminat.^'* However, though all property was taken from
these friars, as well in common as in special, yet were they not
deprived of the use of what they had. For Martin IV. pub-
lished a bull,^ by which he ordained that the property, the right
and dominion of every thing which the friars had by donation
or legacy, should be in the church of Rome ; but that the friars
should have the use. He also allowed the ministers and keepers
of the order, the faculty of naming administrators, stewards,
syndics, who in the name of the church of RomCj and for the
advantage of the friars, may receive and demand aims and
legacies, and sue for the recovery and preservation of them.
Clement V. confirmed the same in the council of Vienna, by a
constitution, beginning, " Exivi de paradizo,"' extant among
the Clementines. However, Clement allowed, that when it
appeared very likely, even from experience, that they could
not otherwise secure the necessaries of life, they might have
granaries or storehouses, in which they might reposit and keep
whatever they could get by begging. He left, indeed, the
ministers and keepers to judge of such necessity, and gave it in
special charge to their consciences.
Against this, those who were called Beguins protested,
declaring they were of the third rule of St. Francis. They
contended that the Franciscans ought in no case to have grana-
ries or storehouses, because this was contrary to the perfection
of the Franciscan poverty ; that the Pope had not authority to
dispense with the rule of Francis, and that if he did, his decrees
were of no force, and might justly be disregarded. One of
them who lived at this time, Peter John Olivus, who wrote a
postill on the Apocalypse, applied to the Pope and church of
Rome the things spoken of the beast, and the whore of Ba-
bylon, of which frequent mention is made in the collection of
the sentences of the Tholouse Inquisition.
John XXII. succeeded Clement, who, by several constitu-
tions, condemned the tenet of the Beguins, and allowed the
» Sext. Decrel. de verb. sign. cap. 3. »• Feb. Cal. 10. 1282.
HISTOllY OF THE INQUISITION.
135
Franciscans, that by the judgment of the heads of the order
they might lay up and preserve corn, bread and wine in grana-
ries and storehouses. The Beguins beheved that such a con-
cession derogated from the subhmity and perfection of their
rule and poverty, and therefore warmly opposed it; and in
order to defend their own rule, dared to deny the authority of
the Pope : upon this account they were declared heretics, and
commanthiient was given to the inquisitors of heretical pravity,
to bring them before their tribunal, and to proceed against
them as heretics.
This decree was dated from Avignon.^ Soon after four
friars minors,'' about the year 1318, were condemned and burnt
as heretics at Marseilles by the inquisitor of heretical pravity,
who was himself a friar minor, because, as they say, they werfe
resolved to adhere and keep to the purity, truth and poverty
of the rule of St. Francis, and because they would not consent
to make the rule less strict, nor receive the dispensation of the
lord Pope John XXII. made concerning it, nor obey him nor
others in this affair. Others of the same order assert, that these
four were unjustly condemned, and affirm them to be glorious
martyrs, and that the Pope, if he consented to their condemna-
tion, was an heretic, and forfeited his power. Upon this, the
three next years, viz. from the year 1318, or thereabouts, they
were all condemned for heretics by the judgment of the prelates
and inquisitors of heretical pravity in the province of Narbonne,
Beziers, Lodun in the diocese of Agde, and at Lunelle, and
the diocese of Magalone, who believed that the aforesaid four
friars minors were holy martyrs, and who believed and held
and thought as they did concerning evangelical poverty, and
the power of the Pope, viz. that he l9st it, aiid was become an
heretic. Many however privately gathered up the burnt
bones and ashes of these four friars, who had been condemned
as heretics, and kept them for reliques, and kissed and wor-
shipped them as the reliques of saints; yea, some marked
their names and the days in which they suffered in the ca-
lendars.
a Feb. Cal. 10. 1318. ^ Eymer. Direct. Iiiq. Par. 2. Qiiffist. 15.
k4
136 HISTORY or THE INaUlSITtOK.
Thus, from a controversy originally of no moment, rose up
at length, through the warmth of men's minds, a dismal tra-
gedy ; and after the Pope's authority began to be called in
question, a severe persecution was raised against the Beguins.
In the book of sentences of the Tholouse Inquisition there are
several sentences pronounced against the Beguins, by wliich
they are declared heretics, and delivered over as such to the
secular court.
But the affair did not end here, friar Berengarius, in a coun-
cil of many divines and lawyers, summoned by the bishops and
inquisitors of Narbonne, defended the cause of the Beguins. —
This conduct of Berengarius was considered heretical, and
occasioned a controversy, in which all the academies and
learned men throughout the world, were commanded to take
part, in the discussion of this question. — Whether it was not to
be esteemed heretical to affirm, that our Lord Jesus Christ and
Tiis Apostles, had nothing in special or in common. — At
Perouse this was declared to be lawful and not heretical.
When this opinion was given, the Pope published an edict
concerning the use of things distinct from property ; — but
when the procurator of the order, dissatisfied with this edict,
protested against it. — They were pronounced heretical, and
some of their favourers, among whom was William Ockam an
Englishman, were in the year 1329 pronounced heretics, arch-
heretics and schismatics, incapable of any ecclesiastical office or
privilege, and subject to all the punishments, spiritual and
temporal which are due to such.
Cassenas, general of the order, was not however, terrified by
these denunciations : he hved in safety under the protection of
Louis of Bavaria, — upon which the Pope renewed the curses
he had pronounced against them, and enjoined that his sen-
tences against them should be repeated, every week, in every
convent on pain of excommunication.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 187
CHAP. XX.
The Process against Matthew Galeacius, Viscount Milan, and
others.
■ DURING this quarrel with the Beguins, sentence of excom-
munication was pronounced against Matthew Galeacius, vis-
count Milan, and against his sons and followers.^ Hereby all
the cities and lands, subject to their government (as is declared
in the sentence against Castruccius Gerius) and of his party
were put under an ecclesiastical interdict,^ and many heavy
sentences published against all persons who adhered to them,
favoured, obeyed or assisted them ; and that solemn indulgence,
which was always granted to those who assisted in the recovery
of the holy land, was openly preached against them. The city
itself was deprived of its charter and all its privileges and
immunities whatsoever; and all the citizens and inhabitants
favouring the said condemned Matthew, given up to be seized
by the faithful, to be made their slaves by full right, their
effects granted to any one that could lay hold of them, and
their debtors upon any account freed from all their debts,
whatever instrument or oath they were bound by. Farther,
all who sent or bought, or carried provisions, or any other
things useful in life, to the city of Milan, or who received pay
from them, were sententially excommunicated. Matthew de-
spised these papal censures, and continued more than three
years under excommunication. To revenge this contempt of
his censures, John XXII. prosecuted him for heresy, as con-
temning the audiority of the church, and her sacred rites ; and
commanded Aycard, archbishop of Milan, and the inquisitors
of heretical pravity in Lombardy, to proceed with all vigour
upon the said crime of heresy ; who after several citations, at
last pronounced the definitive sentence against him.
The Pope also commanded the archbishop and inquisitors,
a Raynald, A. 1320. sect. 13.-«-A 1322. sect. 5, &c.
138 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
that they should proceed against all who adhered to viscount
Matthew and his sons, as against favourers of heretics con-
demned by the church, and punish according to the ecclesiasti-
cal law, all who were convicted of being of his party, and of
the other crimes. The bishop of Parma and two abbots
published these sentences, and commanded the Anathemas to
be every where proclaimed ; and ordered Raymond Cardonus
to gather an army to chastise the rebels. Several cities were
taken, and the viscount routed. The senate and people of
Milan not enduring thus every day to be condemned, and
forbid divine services, sent twelve men to the legate, to beg
peace and absolution. Matthew quite broke by these evils
and others that threatened him, resigned the principality to his
son Galeacius, and ordered himself to be carried into the prin-
cipal church, where he complained that he v/as unjustly
accused of heresy; and protesting by an oath that he was
without any crime deprived of divine services, he appealed to
God, the righteous judge, that he was condemned most
unrighteously by the factious legate, and forced to abandon his
country. Thus departing from the city, and making the same
profession the day after in the church of St. John Baptist at
Monza, he fell into a fever, and died some days after with grief
and sorrow. His sons buried him in a private mean place,
conceahng for some time his death, least his body should have
been burned, according to the order of the cardinal legate and
inquisitors, October 30. ' They used the most exquisite dili-
gence to find it out, but could not discover it, though they
pronounced many anathemas against those who knew where it
was laid, and would not reveal it.^
The like sentence was pronounced not many years after by
the same Pope, against Marsilius Paduanus, and John Jandu-
nus, assertors of the imperial authority against the unjust
usurpations of the Pope, who pronounced them heretics, and
manifest arch-heretics, and commanded all who followed their
doctrine, to be universally accounted as heretics. He farther
enjoined all the faithful that they should not presume to
a Bzovius, A. 1327. sect. 7.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 139
receive, defend, maintain, or afford, by themselves, or any
other or others, publicly or privately, directly or indirectly,
any assistance, counsel or favour to them, or any of them, but
that they should rather avoid them as manifest heretics.
Finally, he orders the, faithful to seize on them, that they
might prosecute them with a zeal becoming the faith ; and to
take them wherever they could find them; and when taken, to
dehver them to the church, that they might undergo the
deserved punishment.
CHAP. XXI.
The Inquisition introduced into Poland, and restored in
France.
AS nothing was more serviceable to enlarge the papal
jurisdiction than the office of the Inquisition, the popes were
continually endeavouring to promote it ; and to estabhsh it in
those kingdoms and countries, that hitherto had been free from
so grievous a yoke, that there miglit not be any place of shelter
or refuge in the whole Christian world to such as should in the
least contradict their decrees.^ A. D. 1327. Pope John XXII.
by letters to the king and prelates of Poland, and to the pro\dn-
cial of the predicant friars of the same kingdom, appointed the
Inquisition in Poland, which in the year following, 1436,
Uladislaus Jagello, king of Poland, confirmed and enlarged, by
a royal edict, granting them the most ample power, and com-
manding all tlie magistrates to give them all manner of assistance
in the execution of their office.^
At this time the Inquisition began to decline in France;
but as there was a pretty large number of the Waldenses
remaining in Dauphiny, and their religion began to spread
wider, Gregory applied himself to Charles king of France,
* Bzoviiis, A. 1327. sect. 18, &c.
b Raynald, A. 1375. sect. 2G, 27.
140 HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION.
He put him in mind of the examples of his predecessors in de*
stroying heretics, and admonished him to suppress the nobles
of Dauphiny, who took the heretics under their protection ;
and that he should support the authority of the inquisitors, not
only by severe edicts, but by sending some royal officer to their
assistance. King Charles yielded to the Pope's desires ; and
after the manner of his ancestors, by a royal edict, commanded
that heretics should suffer the severest punishments ; and that
the magistrates in Dauphiny should assist and aid the officers
of the Holy Inquisition. Antonius Massanus, apostolic inter-
nuncio, acted in this affair with such zeal, that the prisons were
scarce sufficient to hold the criminals ; nor was their provision
enough for their support. Gregory having been consulted in
this matter, ordered, that as the great number of heretics was
owing to the negligence of the prelates, the revenues of the
churches should be applied to that use ; and commanded new
and stronger jails to be built at Aries, Ambrune, Vienne, and
Avignon, and granted indulgences to the faithful who should
contribute to the work.
From France, those who were called^ Turelupini, weilt into
Savoy : and therefore the Pope commanded Amedaeus, count
of Savoy, to condemn them to the flames, and assist the inquisi-
tors. Bzovius adds,^ " It came to pass, that this savage and
brutal sect was condemned, burned, and wholly extirpated this
year." And again : " many of these heretics were burned in
France at the Pope's command. ' But this horrid cruelty could
not last long, and proved at last fatal to the judges themselves.
For in Savoy the inquisitors were killed, by those unquestion-
ably who were afraid that the like cruelty would be practised
towards themselves; which when the Pope heard of, he endea-
voured to render the murderers hateful to count Amedaeus,
putting him in mind, that he had given a most excellent example
of defending the faith by his victories over the Turks, and
recovering Callipoli from them ; and that therefore he hoped
' Some of the followers of the Waldenses ; so called, according to Popish
writers, because they inhabited only those places which were exposed to
wolves. Da Fresne in Voce.
b Bzovius, A. 1372. sect. 7. Raynald. A. 1375. sect. 27.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 141
he would not suffer the blood of those orthodox prelates, who
were slain out of a real hatred to piety, to be shed with
impunity.
CHAP. XXII.
Qf WiCKLiFF, Huss, and the iNauisiTiON against the
Hussites.
ABOUT this time John Wickhff arose in England, and
not only opposed the eiTors but the power of the Roman
pontiffs.
His conduct aroused the Papal anger, and the Pope addres-
sed letters to the university of Oxford, requiring them to
suppress his doctrines, and send him in custody to the arch-
bishop of Canterbury or bishop of London. — He then addres-
sed those prelates, requiring them to have Wickliff apprehended
and put in irons till they received his further orders. — The
Pope also wrote to Edward king of England, requiring him to
aid the bishops in the execution of his commands.
After the death of Wickliff, king Richard commanded all
his writings to be burned, and urged on by the Pope, sanction-
ed the proceedings of a synod, held in London by the Pope's
legate, in which were condemned eighteen articles from his
writings, and by which many were condemned to the flames.—
The archbishop of Canterbury also appointed this penance to
those who abjured. That in the time of public prayer in the
open market, they should go in procession only with their
shoes on them, carrying in one hand a burning taper, and in
the other a crucifix, and that they should fall thrice on their
knees, and each time devoutly kiss it.
Soon after arose John Huss, in Bohemia, and began pub-
licly to reprove the dissolute lives of all the orders.
Whilst he enveighed only against the seculars, all the divines
applauded him ; but when once he began openly to reproach
142 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
them for their corrupt manners and vices, they abhorred and
detested him, and used their utmost endeavours to destroy
him.
At that time, A. D. 1400, Jerome of Prague returned from
England, and brought with him WickhfF's writings, which
Huss approved. Hence the articles of WicklifF found many
adlierents, and were again examined and condemned by the
papal partizans, and above ^00 volumes fairly written out and
adorned in curious bindings were burned.
Not long after this, Huss offered certain things to be disput-
ed publicly, in which he opposed the granting of indulgences. —
Jerome of Prague also shewed their vanity. — At length after
many processes, the council of Constance was assembled, at
which Huss was ordered to appear and give account of his
doctrines ; and that Huss might not be in fear for his personal
safety, the emperor Sigismund pledged himself for his protec-
tion. The result of the deliberations in this council, was
that 45 articles in AVicklifF, and 30 in Huss, were declared
heretical. The books of Wickliff were condemned, and his
bones if they could be found, were ordered to be burnt.
But this holy synod did not stop here, for notwithstanding
the safe conduct of Sigismund, they violated that solemn
pledge to John Huss ; and not satisfied with condemning his
doctrines, they laid their hands upon his person and burned
him ahve; an act, which the wretched emperor Sigismund
could sanction^ on the plea that he had promised, what it was
not in his power to perform, because as dutiful children of the
church, emperors and kings must give way to her authority,
and because it is unlawful to maintain, good faith with
heretics.
Afterwards Jerome of Prague, terrified with the dreadful
fate of Huss, renounced through human infirmity these doc-
trines; but soon recovering his courage, he boldly asserted
and defended them before the whole council, and was in con-
sequence condemned as a relapsed heretic and burned.
Wickhff, Huss, and Jerome, with their doctrines, being
thus condemned, the same punishments were, by the Ltters of
Martin V., extended to all their followers; by these letters it
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 143
was enjoined, that aH wlio approved their doctrines, and were
their abettors, should be' deHvered over to the secular power ;
by his decrees the inquisition was restored and established in
the kingdom of Bohemia, whereby many were condemned of
heresy and put to death, by various punishments some being
burned alive, others thrown into the river tied hands and feet
and so drowned, and others destroyed by different methods of
cruelty.
CHAP. XXIII.
Of the iNauisiTiON in Valence, Flandeks, and Artois.
HITHERTO the kingdom of Valence had no particular
inquisitor of the faith.'* The inquisitor at Roses in Catalonia
exercised the holy office in that kingdom by his vicars and
commissaries, so that they could not make so large a progress
in converting the Jews and Moors, of whom great numbers
li\'ed there. And therefore Pope Martin, at the request of
King Alphonsus, by letters dated at Florence,^ decreed, that
the office of the inquisition in the kingdom of Valence, should,
for the future, be governed and administered, without any
impediment, not by commissaries and vicars, but by an inqui-
sitor deputed by the prior, to whom that affair belongs, who is
to reside there personally himself, and act as principal.
About the year 1460, the inquisition raged cruelly in Flan-
ders and Artois,^ against certain persons, who were falsely ac-
cused of magic, and being in league with the devil, who, to
render the \^^aldenses odious, were called Waldenses, and the
place in which they were said to have their nightly meetings,
AValdesia. At Do way. Arras, and other places, many of them
were thrown into prison at several times, at the demand of
Peter Brussard, inquisitor, where being overcome with tor-
* Bzovius, A. 1419. sect. 20. b April Cal. C, 1419.
<• Boxhorm. Hist. Bcls:. p. 42, Ac. J. Le (it re Dom. de Beauvoir,
144 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOX.
ments, they confessed every thing they were charged with, and,
amongst other things, that they had given themselves to the
devil, adored him, and known him carnally, and other incredi-
ble things of the same kind. When they were condemned to
the fire, they protested themselves innocent, and publicly de-
clared with a loud voice that they never were in Waldesia, as
they called the place of this nightly meeting of witches and
devils ; but that they were deceived by their judges, who by
fair promises of saving their lives and estates, if they would
confess the crimes objected to them, drew from them a false
confession of crimes they were never guilty of Others said,
that they extorted a false confession from them by torments,
finally beseeching the by-standers to pray for them to God, to
whom they committed their souls in the midst of the flames.
But their innocence afterwards appeared ; for in the year 1491,
these miserable creatures, with others thrown into prison on
the same account, were declared innocent by the sentence of
the parliament of Paris, and had their effects restored to them,
and their unrighteous judges were severely fined.
CHAP. XXIV.
Of the Spanish Inquisition.
IN the preceding chapters we have seen how the inquisition
was brought into several parts of Spain, but as yet it had not
been estabhshed in Castile and Leon. But after Ferdinand
and Isabel had united their several kingdoms by their mar-
riage, and had subjected the Moors, they ordered tribunals of
the inquisition to be erected throughout their dominions.
The motives which they avowed for these measures were,
that the promiscuous intercourse of Moors, Jews, and Chris-
tians, rendered it needful to watch over the faith.* It is highly
probable, however, that they were not ignorant of the support
a Bzovius, A. 14T8. sect. 14.
HISTORY OF THE INQUTSITION. 145
which their government might derive from this court, besides
which they had views towards obtaining the sovereignty of
Europe, which rendered the favour of the popes very im-
portant.
Seville obtained the credit of being most infected with heresy,
and here many were tortured and destroyed. A maa named
Gusman,^ who had imbibed the spirit of Hojeda, prior of the
convent of St. Paul, and a furious zealot, contrived to secrete
himself in the house of a Jew, where several Jews had accus-
tomed themselves to assemble for the practice of religious
ceremonies; Gusman having placed himself so as to be an
eye-witness of these things, immediately communicated the
account to the prior, who represented it to the king and queen,
and having obtained command to proceed against them, put
six persons in irons ; and afterwards added many more, some
of whom, after long imprisonment and torture, were con-
demned to the flames; others had their estates confiscated,
and were condemned to eternal darkness and chains, while
the families of others were branded with infemy. Human
nature could not but revolt a httle, notwithstanding the
power of superstition, at such outrages. Many of the pro-
vincials were staggered when they saw children suffering for
the crimes of the parents, and the accused condemned at the
suggestion of any private enemy, without being confronted with
the accuser.
But most of all the inquisition was feared on account of its
spies, who were scattered in all the cities, towns, and villages,
and thus created perpetual alarm. However, the iron hand of
power soon silenced all objections, and the tribunal of the
inquisition obtained a most complete establishment all over
Spain.
Ferdinand and Elizabeth, out of their pious zeal, besought
the pope to confer on them the power of creating inquisitors
in the kingdom of Castile and Leon, a favour which the pope
granted, as applied to Seville, and by which vigorous mea-
sures were adopted.
« Piram. 1. 2. ti c. 3. n> 2.
^4^6 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
Within the time limited for persons voluntarily to confess
their sins, with the hope of pardon, about 17,000 of both
sexes appeared. Many who refused were afterwards compelled,
by the violence of their torments, to confess, and were thrown
into the iire. Some were condemned to perpetual imprison-
ment, some to wear crosses ; the bones of others were taken
from the graves— burnt to ashes, their property confiscated,
and their children deprived of their honours and offices. In
consequence of these proceedings an immense spoil fell into
the hands of the persecutors ; for most of the Jews fled, upon
the whole of whose property their Catholic majesties laid
hands, and employed it for the purposes of the war against
the Moors.
In Andalusia and Granada alone, those who fled with their
wives and children, left five thousand empty houses : and in
the city and diocese of Seville, there were above one hundred
thousand persons, alive or dead, present or absent, who were
either condemned or reconciled to the church.
Different opinions have existed respecting the time when
the inquisition was introduced into Spain; the most agreed
place this event in the year 1483 or 1484, when the supreme
council was arranged, and the first inquisitor-general chosen.
The mode of proceeding, with regard to the Spanish inqui-
sition, is as follows : the King, chooses the first, or Supreme
Inquisitor, whom the pope confirms ; this inquisitor is invested
with full power in all cases of heresy, and is chief of the inqui-
sition in the whole kingdom. He appoints the subordinate
inquisitors (subject to the king's approval) deputes visitors to
the different provinces, and grants dispensations to penitents.
In the royal city the king appoints the supreme council of
the inquisition, over which the supreme inquisitor of the king-
dom presides. He hath joined with him five counsellors, who
have the title of Apostolical Inquisitors, who are chosen by the
inquisitor-general upon the king'*s nomination. One of these
must always be a Dominican,* according to the constitution of
* Carena, tit. 3.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 147
Philip III.* Besides these, there is an advocate fiscal, two
secretaries, and one of the king's, one receiver, two relators,
several qualificators, and counsellors. There are also officials
deputed by the president, with the king's advice. The su-
preme authority is in this council of the inquisition. They
deliberate upon all affairs w^th the inquisitor-general, deter-
mine the greater cases, make new laws according to the exi-
gency of affairs, determine differences amongst particular in-
quisitors, punish the offences of the servants, receive appeals
from inferior tribunals, and from them there is no appeal but
to the king. In other tribunals there are two or three inquisi-
tors : they have particular places assigned them, Toledo, Cu-
enca, Valladolid, Calahorre, Seville, Cordoue, Granada,
EUerena, and in the Aragons, Valencia, Saragossa, and Bar-
celona.
These are called Provincial Inquisitors.'' They cannot im-
prison any priest, knight, or nobleman, nor hold any public
acts of faith, without consulting the supreme council of the in-
quisition. Sometimes this supreme council deputes one of
their own counsellors to them, in order to give the greater
solemnity to the acts of faith.
These provincial inquisitors give all of them an account of
their provincial tribunal, once every year, to the supreme
council ; and especially of the causes that have been determined
within that year, and of the state and number of their prisoners
in actual custod}^ They give also, every month, an account
of all monies which they have received, either from the reve-
nues of the holy office, or pecuniary punishments and fines.
This council meets every day, except holy days, in the palace
royal, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, in the morning,
and on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, after vespers : in
these three last days, two counsellors of the supreme council of
Castile meet with them, who are also counsellors of the supreme
council of the Inquisition.
This tribunal is now arisen to such a height in Spain,^ that
» Dated Dec. 16, 1C18. ^ Caiena, tit. 3. sect. 8, &c.
= Carena, tit. 3. sect. 12.
L 2
14S HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
the king of Castile, before his coronation, subjects himself and
all his dominions, by a special oath, to the most holy tribunal
of this most severe Inquisition.
This office is not, as formerly, committed to the Predicant or
' Dominican friars.* They began to employ in it the secular
clergy, who were skilful in the decrees and laws, till at last the
whole power gradually devolved on them, so that now the Do-
minican friars have no part in it; though the inquisitors often-
times use their assistance, in judging of propositions, and they
are employed as counsellors in the holy office.
The first inquisitor general in the kingdoms of Spain, was
friar Thomas Turrecremata, a Predicant, prior of the monastery
of the Holy Cross at Segovia, who was in high esteem with
their majesties, as having often expiated their sins by penance.
Paramus relates, that he was created inquisitor general of the
kingdoms of Castile and Leon, by Sixtus IV> A.D, 1483, and
that the pope gave him power, by his letters, of making such
inquisitors as he thought proper, and of recalling those who
had been inquisitors there before ; and ordered him to make
use of the new method appointed in managing causes of the
faith, which was much more proper than the old one. After-
wards, the same pope made the provinces of Aragon, Valencia,
Catalonia, and Sicily, subject to the supreme inquisitor of Cas-
tile and Leon, by his bull, expedited the same year, 148S.—
This bull Innocent VIII. who succeeded Sixtus in the pontifi-
cate, confirmed, as far as it related to Castile and Leon, A. D.
1485, and the next year, as it related to Aragon, Valencia, and
Catalonia. Alexander VI. did the same.
In the year 1485, the Inquisitors acted with great seve-
rity in the town of Guadaloupe. They held several acts
in a pulpit, and on a scaffiold erected in the church-yard. Here
friar Dedachus Marchena, an heretical monk, and fifty -two for
judaizing, of both sexes, were delivered over to the fire ; forty-
six bodies of heretics were dug out of their graves, and ad-
judged to the flames ; the images of twenty-five absent persons
* Pegna in Direct, par. 3. coram. 32.
HISTORY OF THE IINQUISITION. 149
burnt; sixteen condemned to perpetual punishment; besides
an immense number sentenced to the gaUies, and others con-
demned to wear consecrated coarse garments, as a mark of per-
petual penance and infamy. And when the Fathers, inquisi-
tors, were leaving Guadaloupe, they published an order, re-
quiring, that all Jews, of every age, should quit that place
within one month, on pain of death.
Though many miracles were reported to have been wrought
by the Virgin IVIary, in confirmation of the holy office, such
were its tremendous effects, tliat the people dreaded its intro-
duction; and upon its extension to Castile, Aragon, Catalonia,
Valencia, and Sicily, it experienced great opposition. In Ara-
gon, powerful arguments were employed, in addition to which,
large sums of money were sent to the pope, and to the king ;
which producing nothing, the people broke into open tumult,"
and killed Peter Arbuesius, the inquisitor at Saragossa, as he
was saying his prayers, before the high altar. The principal
persons, however, were soon taken, and suffered the most dread-
ful punishments; whilst the Inquisition triumphed under the
fostering care of Ferdinand and Isabel, who gave the royal
palace at Saragossa to the judges of the faith.
The Inquisition had always a firm friend in Ferdinand, who,
after he had conquered the Moors,^ introduced this tribunal
into the city of Granada, for the purpose of exterminating the
Jews.
These unhappy persons were allowed four years, within
which they were either to embrace the Catholic faith, or de-
part the kingdom ; and after that time, all others were forbid
intercourse with them^ or to afford them any assistance or pro-
visions, under a severe penalty.
Thus circumstanced, the oppressed Jews sought, by the pay-
ment of a large sum, to avert the pending calauiity ; but being
defeated in their object, by the zeal of Thomas Turrecremata,^
the inquisitor general, who rudely entered the presence of the
king and queen, and compared such a deed to that of Judas.
The laws were enforced, and the Jews expelled.
* Rayualdus, A. 1485. sect. 21. 22. " Sinianc. tit. 35, sect. 7.
•^ Bzovius, A. 1494. sect. 39.
L 3
15$ HISTORY OF THE INatJISITION.
The number of those who were banished from Spain were,
according to some, four hundred thousand. Mariana says, it
is not easy to reduce them to any certain number : but most
writers affirm, there were 170,000 famiHes^ that departed, and
a few who staid behind were sold for slaves; it was further
also provided, that in future, no Jew should ever again enter
Spain, on pain of death and confiscation.
The Jews being thus driven from Spain,^ fled into Portu-
gal, and obtained from king John, under certain conditions,
that they might live there for a season. The conditions were
chiefly, that every one should pay to the king, eight pieces of
gold, and leave Portugal within a limited time ; forfeiting their
liberty if they exceeded it ; they were promised free liberty to
sail away ; but the extortion and horrible abuses, which they
experienced from the captains and others of the ships, struck
them with such terror, that they preferred incurring the pe-
nalty of over-staying their time, to getting into their power.
Thus they lost their liberty ; and it became usual for any who
wanted a Jew servant, to beg him of the king. On the death
of king John, however, his successor, Emanuel,^ granted them
their liberty ; but was some time after advised, by the king
and queen of Castile, not to suffer that wicked nation, hated of
God and man, to abide in Portugal. After mature delibera-
tion, he commanded all the Jews and Moors in Portugal, who
would not profess the Cathohc faith, to depart by a certain
day, or lose theu- liberty.''
The Moors immediately obeyed the king's decree, and passed
over into Africa.^ But as the Jews were preparing to do so,
the king commanded, that all their children, who were not
more than fourteen years old, should be taken from their pa-
rents, and educated in the Christian religion. It was a most
afflicting thing to see children snatched from the embraces of
their mothers, and fathers embracing their children, torn
from them, and even beat with clubs ; to hear the dreadful
cries they made, and every place filled with the lamentations
» Raynaldus, A. 1492. sect. 7. 8. '' Bzovius, A. 1496. sect. 15. 16.
« Raynald. A. 1496. sect. 26, &c. * Ibid.
^ Brovius, A. 1497, sect. 27.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 151
and yells of women. INlany, through indignation, threw their
sons into pits, and others killed them with their own hands. —
Oppressed in this way on one hand, and by the difficulty of ob-
taining shipping on the other, many cliose rather to make pro-
fession of Christianity, than live in such misery, and being bap-
tized, recovered their rights and privileges.
In the year 1500, Francis Ximenes, archbishop of Toledo,^
by the pope's persuasion, took great pains to convert the Moors-
of Granada to the Christian faith. He first of all gained over
their chief priests, which they call Alfaquins, by gifts and fa-
vours. A great number followed their example. However,
others vigorously opposed Ximenes, and endeavoured to deter
the Moors from Christianity. Ximenes ordered these to be
put in irons in prison, and to be very cruelly used. Of this
number was one Zegri, who was the most powerful amongst
them, upon account of the nobility of his birth, and his excel-
lent qualifications of mind and body. Ximenes, laying aside
almost all humanity, determined to punish him most severely.
He dehvered him to one Peter Lyon, his chaplain, a man of a
truly lionJike mind, who soon brought him to Ximenes's
beck, and made him in a few days desire to be carried before
the Alfaquin of the Christians. Bound and dirty as he was,
he came before Ximenes, and declared he would be a Christian,
for that he had had a vision from Ala (as the Moors caU God)
that night, admonishing him to it. " But truly," says he, laugh-
ing, " I am a fool to seek for arguments any where- else, but
from thy fierce Lyon, to whose keeping, if any of us are com-
mitted, they will immediately become Christians." Upon this
he declared himself a Christian, and was baptized, and expe-
rienced Ximene's bounty. He was afterwards of great service,
not only in promoting Christianity amongst his countrymen, but
to the commonwealth. Ximenes, glorying in this success, com-
manded all the'Alcorans, and all other books whatsoever, that
had any thing in them of the Mahometan superstition, to be
brought publicly together. There were about 5000 volumes,
which were all openly burnt in one heap to a single book, ex-
» Bzovius, A, 1600, sect. 16.
L 4
15^ HISTORY OP THE INaUISITIOK.
cept some few relating to medicine, which, for the honour of
SO useful an art, were saved from the flames, and laid up in
the Complutensian library.^
One of Ximenes''s family, called Salzedus, came with two
servants to the Albaizinum. This is a place in the city of
Granada, craggy, and hanging over the rest of the city, and
separated from it by its own walls. When they were come
here, first there arose reproachful words between them and the
inhabitants, at last they came to blows, and the two companions
of Salzedus were killed by the multitude. Salzedus fled for
it, and with great difficulty escaped. However, the tumult in-
creased, so that the whole city was in an uproar. Their design
was to pull down the house of Ximenes. The tumult lasted
ten days, and was at last suppressed by the garrison. The
Albaizinenses were condemned for high treason, and had the
choice given them of death or baptism, upon which, to a man,
they embraced Christianity. The Archbishop of Granada took
care to have them daily instructed in the Christian mysteries.
He also ordered some lessons out of the Old and New Testa-
ment to be read to the new converts, in the Moorish language,
a^ad permitted the printing of some books, in which some^parts
of the service of the mass, and some passages of the gospel,
were translated into Arabic. But Ximenes would not suffer
it, saying, " it was a sin to throw pearl before swine." He al-
lowed, indeed, the use of some books written by pious men in
the vulgar tongue ; but said, " That the Old and New Testa-
ment, in which there were many things that required a learned
* Bzovius adds :—" There were, however, many who thought it unjust,
and altogether contrary to the nature of Christianity, to compel any one by
force, and suchlike arts, to profess the faith of Christ, the entire tendency of
which is gentleness, and which requires especially a ready and sincere mind. -
Besides that in the councils of Toledo, which are reckoned sacred by all
Christians, it is determined, in the most solemn manner, that no one should
be forced to believe in Christ. But he followed his own judgment, and in
the midst of danger, shewed the constancy of his mind, and declared in this
important case the invincible resolution of his soul. For in all human affairs
every great undertaking is sure to raise envy, which oftentimes overthrows
the noblest designs, and, by a thousand difficulties, renders them impractica-
ble."
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION- 158
and attentive reader, and a chaste and pious mind, should be
kept in those three languages only, which God, not without
the greatest mystery, ordered to be placed over his dear Son's
head, when he suffered the death of the cross ;" and affirm-
ed, " That then Christianity would suffer the greatest mis-
chief, when the Bible should be translated into the vulgar
tongues/''
This tumult spread beyond the kingdom of Granada. Xi-
menes, by the permission of the inquisitors, endeavoured to
force certain Moors, called Elches, who had embraced Christ-
ianity, and afterwards rejected it, to become Chnstians again,
and commanded their children to be violently taken from them,
and baptized. This was the beginning of troubles, which af-
terwards grew to such an height, that the Moors formed a con-
spiracy, and rebelled in many places. But as their forces were
inferior to the Spaniards, they were subdued, and compelled to
turn Christians. The king granted, that as many as would,
should go over to Africa, and provided them with ships to
transport them at the port of Astopa, demanding from every
one that went over, ten pieces of gold only, as the price of
their liberty. They who would not leave their country, he
ordered to become sincere Christians. 1 his agreement being
made, many went into Africa, though most of them remained
in Spain, pretending themselves to be Christians, but not a jot
the better than those who left it, being of a very obstinate and
wicked disposition.
A. D. 1501, Ferdinand, king of Castile, at the instigation of
Pope Alexander, took great pains in catechising the IMoors,
and preventing their apostacy. He published an edict in Cas-
tile, against the Moors in that province, and especially against
those of Andalusia, Granada, and Aragon, commonly called
Mudegiares, who lived and traded promiscuously with the
pious,°that unless they would become Christians, they should
depart his dominions within a certain day.
Upon the death of Ferdinand, Charles succeeded him.^ The
new converts offered him 800,000 pieces of gold, if he would
a Bzovius, A. 1501, sect. 13.
154 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
command, that the witnesses at tlie tribunal of the inquisition
should be always made pubhc. The young king, who was
about eighteen yeais old, had a great mind to the money.
But Cardinal Ximenes, inquisitor-general, shewed Jiim the
great danger of such a method, and that the church would re-
ceive great injury by it, and by putting him in mind of his
grandfather Ferdinand, prevailed with the king to refuse the
offer.
•V».'»'».*^'V«-»/*%^
CHAP. XXV.
Of the Inquisition m Portugal.
WE have related in the former chapter, how that the Jews
being driven out of Spain, were received under certain condi-
tions by the king of Portugal. However, not many years
after, he erected the tribunal of the inquisition in his kingdom,
after the model of that in Spain. Bzovius speaks of this affair,
describing the death of King John 1 11.^ "How great his
zeal was to maintain the faith in its ancient splendour, his in-
troducing the sacred tribunal of the inquivsitors of heresy into
Portugal, is an abundant proof, bravely overcoming those dif-
ficulties and obstructions, which the devil had cunningly raised
in the city, to prevent or retard his majesty"'s endeavours.
For he learned experience from others, and grew wise by the
misfortunes of many kingdoms, which, from the most flourish-
ing state, were brought to ruin and destruction by monstrous
and deadly heresies. And it is very worthy observation, that
the year in which the tribunal of the holy inquisition against
heretical pravity was brought into Portugal, the kingdom la-
boured under the most dreadful barrenness and famine. But
when the tribunal was once erected, the follov/ing year was re-
*Ibid. A. 1557. sect. 56,57.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 155
markable for an incredible plenty, conimonly called The Year
of St. Blase, because, before his festival, which was on the
3d of the Nones of February, the seed could not be sown in
the ground for want of rain, whereas afterwards provision was
so very cheap, that a bushel of corn sold for two- pence."
Tribunals of the inquisition were erected in the several cities
of the kingdom of Portugal. The inquisition at Evora was
erected by Didacus de Silva, first inquisitor general, A. D. 1537,
of which the first inquisitor was John de Mello, doctor of the
Papal law, and afterwards bishop of Algarva, and at last arch-
bishop of Evora, appointed by Didacus, the former year one
of the four counsellors of the supreme general inquisition.
The Lisbon inquisition was erected by Cardinal Henry, second
inquisitor-general, A. D. 1539, over which he appointed for
first inquisitor, John de Mello, who had been made first in-
quisitor at Evora, by Didacus de Sylva. The same cardinal
also fixed the inquisition at Coimbra, A. D 1541, and placed
in it two commissary inquisitors, viz. Friar Bernard of the
cross, a predicant, bishop of St. Thomas, and rector of the
university of Coimbra, and Gomezius Alphonsus, batchelor of
the canon law, and prior of the collegiate church of Aveiro.
And finally, the inquisition was set up at Goa, in the Indies.
Francis Xaverius, signified by letters to King John III.*
" That the Jewish wickedness spread every day more and
more in the parts of the East Indies, subject to the kingdom
of Portugal; and therefore he earnestly besought the said
king, that to cure so great an evil he would take care to send
the office of the inquisition into those countries. Upon this
Cardinal Henry, then inquisitor-general in the kingdom of
Portugal, erected the tribunal of the holy inquisition in the
city of Goa, the metropolis of that province, and sent into
those parts inquisitors, officials, and other necessary ministers,
who should take diligent care of the affairs of the faith. The
first inquisitor was Alexius Diaz Falcano, sent by Cardinal
Henry,^ who came to Goa the end of that year, and began to
execute the office of inquisitor.'^
a November 10, 1545. ^ March 15, A. 1560.
' [John Peter Maffeius, Hist, Indie. I. 10. p. 758, 759, gives a more dis-
156 HISTORY OF THE INGIUISITIOX.
After the inquisition had been introduced into Portugal,*
three general indulgences were granted to the whole nation of
the descendants from the Hebrew converts, in the whole
kingdom and dominions, subject to it, and which were pub-
lished all over the kingdom. The first was granted by Cle-
ment VII.,^ by a bull, which had not its effect. Afterwards
Paul III., who succeeded Clement in the popedom, confirmed
the general indulgence which he had given, and granted it
anew,= and afterwards, A. D. 1536, sent letters to erect the
holy tribunal of the inquisition. The second was given by
the same Paul III.'* For whereas the inquisitors, as they
say, had before proceeded with great moderation in favour of
the new converts, the good of the church required that they
should proceed against Judaisers, according to the rigour of
the law. And therefore the pope reduced the method of pro-
cess in the inquisition, according to the form of law. But
least the new converts and their children should become sub-
. ject to a rigorous inquisition for their past errors, he granted a
tinct account of the original of tlse inquisition at Goa. About the same time
there was an horrible wickedness committed at Lorinum. In the principal
church of that city, there was put up a chest, to receive the charity of pious
persons: they who had the keeping of it, found in it some vile papers, con-
taining horrible curses aud reproaches against Christ, the Author of the sal-
vation of mankind. Besides, Consalvus Sylveria, a Jesuit, a man noble by
his birth, but much nobler for his virtue and learning, who then preached
in the same city, and afterwards was slain for the cause of Christ, at Mono-
motapa in jEthiopia, was reviled. This most impious, wicked, and auda-
cious crime was suspected by many plain tokens, to be committed by the
false brethren of the circumcision, of which dregs several from Europe were
by stealth admitted for money, by the wardens of the ports, or masters of
ships, and brought into the Indies, under the disguise of merchants. There
they conspired the prejudice and destruction of the Christian name, with the
Jigyptians who were generally Jews^ and of whom there was a great num-
ber in those places, and with persons of other nations and sects. Upon this
occasion tlie king began to introduce the sacred inquisition into those coun-
tries, which is there exercised to this day at Goa, by proper and approved
persons, skilful in the Divine law, to the great advantage of the Christian
religion. All these things are taken word for word out of Maffeius, by
Paramus, 1. 2. t. 2. c. xviii.]
* Sousa, Aphor. Inquis. I. 4. cap. 16. *• Expedited April 7, A. 1533.
^ October 12, 1535. > ^ May 11, 1547.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 157
general pardon.^ The third was granted by Clement VIII.'*
The causes of it, as we may gather from the bull itself, were
three. First, That the inquisitors ordered the punishments
against heretics to be executed without remission. Secondly,
Least the descendants of the Hebrews, finding themselves pre-
cluded from obtaining pardon, should grow worse, and add sins
to sins. Thirdly, Because upon the grant of such a general par-
don, it was undoubtedly to be hoped, that in a little while,
they who had departed the kingdom, would return to it, and
retain the Cathohc worship and faith under obedience to King
Philip, who, as Sousa says, greatly desu-es it, and earnestly
seeks it.
Besides these three, no other indulgences have been granted
to the Jewish converts, or new Christians in Portugal, and the
Portuguese divines use many arguments to prove that no other
ought liereafter to be given them.
Sebastian, king of Portugal,'^ upon occasion of his unfortu-
nate and fatal expedition into Africa, granted to the descen-
dants of the Jews, for a large sum of money, that theii'
effects should not be confiscated for ten years, much against
the advice of his uncle, Philip II. king of Spain : this in-
dulgence he granted them by the authority of Gregory
XI 11.'^ But afterwards upon the rout of the king's army
by the Saracens, Cardinal Henry, the king's great uncle, suc-
ceeded him in the royal dignity, who immediately,* in the
same year, recalled the said grant, with the pope's consent,
alledging this reason in the decree of revocation, " That after
the most mature consultation of learned men, they all agreed
that he was bound to make such revocation, because the good
of the faith greatly required it." After Philip, king of Portu-
gal, obtained the crown, the new Christians offered him a large
sum of money, and besought him, that he would procure in
their favour a general indulgence from the pope. But he con-
demned their prayers, though he was at that time at war with
a This was published June 10, 1518.
»> Aaguat 23, 1C04. and published in Fortugul Jan. 16, 1605,
c Aphor. Inquis. cap. 22. n. 4, 5.
i By hii bull expedited October 6, 1579. * December Itt.
158 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
France and England, his divines suggesting to him, " That
God was greatly offended with such money, and that he could
expect no prosperous success from it."
The following years the new Christians in Portugal endea-
voured by many entreaties to procure the abolition, or a't least
mitigation of the inquisition.
But they were only deluded with empty words and flattering
promises : for they still groan as before, under the cruel yoke
of the inquisition, without any mitigation of their punishments ;
and to this day are liable to all the penalties ordained against
heretics.
CHAP. XXVI.
Of the Attempt to bring the Inquisition into the Kingdom
of Naples.
AFTER Ferdinand and Elizabeth had brought the inqui-
sition into all the kingdoms of Spain,* they would fain have
introduced it into others, that were under their dominion.
For as many of the Jewish race had fled out of Spain for fear
of the inquisition, into the kingdom of Naples, and as that
kingdom had been again brought into subjection to Ferdinand,
Didacus Deza, at that time general-inquisitor of Spain, sent
thither in the year 1504, Peter Balforatus, archbishop of
Messina, v/ith the power of inquisitor. Ferdinand gave him
letters to the governor, nobles, and university of Naples, that
they should give him all assistance and favour. He tells them
that a great number of heretics, having fled from the kingdoms
of Spain, through fear of the holy oflSce of the inquisition, had
sheltered themselves there as in a place of safety, who had been
burned in effigy because of their absence ; and that therefore,
to purge that kingdom from the crime of heresy, he had ap-
pointed Peter Balforatus, inquisitor of heretical pravity: he
» Param. 1. 2. tit. 2, cap. 10.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITIOX. 159
therefore commands them to receive him as such, to give him
in all things the assistance of the secular arm, and not to suffer
him, or any of his family to be molested. But as there arose
many difficulties and discouragements, he could not finish
his undertaking.
In the year 1547, Charles V., being emperor, Peter of To-
ledo, viceroy of Naples, endeavoured to introduce the inquisi-
tion there, by the command of Cliarles. But as he apprehend-
ed this would be a difficult thing, he put those into the pubhc
offices, who he thought would be most forward to promote it.
After this he publicly declared,* that it would greatly tend to
the establishment of divine worship, would be serviceable to
the commonwealth, and be highly grateful to the en:peror ; if
after the example of the Spaniards and Sicilians they would
receive the holy office.*' But the Neapolitans were so moved
with the novelty of the thing, that they publicly declared that
they would rather lose their lives than submit to the Inquisi-
tion ; and cried out, that the extirpation of heresies belonged
to the pope and the ecclesiastical judges, and not to the tem-
poral prince. When Pope Paul III. understood this, he
declared by his apostolic bull, that the Inquisition against
heretics belonged to him and his judges, and not to any other.
The king indeed would have had the Inquisition at Naples
to be subject to the supreme council of the Spanish In-
quisition, as were those of Sicily, Sardinia, and the Indies ;
whereas the court of Rome would have had it subject to them,
because not only the ecclesiastical but secular government of
the kingdom of Naples is under the Pope. However the
Viceroy, that he might not seem to yield to popular fury,
appointed inquisitors and officials of the holy office; with
which the Neapolitans were so enraged, that on a certain day,
when two persons were leading to prison, and crying out they
were taken up by the Inquisition, they broke into open sedi-
tion, ran immediately to arms, and bound themselves by
mutual oaths, insomuch that there was a civil war, between the
citizens of Naples, and the Spanish garrison, in which many on
* Hist. Cod. Trid. 1. 3, p. .113, 314. »> Thuan. Hist, lib. J.
160 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
both sides were slain. At length the Spaniards, who held the
fortresses, prevaihng, and beating down their houses with their
great guns, the tumult was appeased, and the principal were
punished, part ^vith death, and part with banishment. How-
ever,* the Viceroy gave over the attempt of introducing the
Inquisition, not so much for fear of a new tumult, as at the
intercession of the Pope and Cardinals, who opposed the In-
quisition, as not being subject to their court. And because the
Spaniards have been determined to bring in the Inquisition to
Naples subject to their supreme council, and the court of Rome
equally determined to oppose these attempts of the Spaniards;
hence it is that the kingdom of Naples is to this day free from
this intolerable yoke : and therefore, if any matters of faith are
to be judged there, it is done either by the bishop, or some
other prelate appointed by the court of Rome, who neverthe-
less dares not begin the affair without leave first obtained from
the Viceroy.
^-^V^V^'WW^^
CHAP. XXVII.
Of the Inciuisition in Sicily, Sardinia and Milan.
THE Inquisition had been long before brought into Sicily.*
Paramus gives us a privilege of king Alphonsus, in the year
1452, in which mention is made of Friar Henry Lugardi, a
predicant of Palermo, and inquisitor of heretical pravity in
that kingdom ; by which he confirmed the privilege given to
him by the aforesaid inquisitor, which Frederic the emperor had
granted to the Inquisition in Sicily, at Palermo, in the year
1224. By this privilege Frederic is said to have ordained,
'' That one third part only of the confiscated goods should be
appropriated to the treasury ; a third part reserved to the
apostolic see, and the other third, without any contradiction,
assigned to the inquisitors, that the spiritual husbandman may
* Paulus Serv. de Inquis. Venet. '' Lib. 2. t. 2. cap. 11. n= 8
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 161
not be defrauded of his reward, nor so wholesome an Inquisi-'
tion come to nothing through want of necessaries to support it.
This privilege v.as afterwards confirmed by Ferdinand and
Elizabeth, A. D. 1477, at Seville, wlio took the title of king
and queen of Sicily, though John, king of Aragon, and father
of Ferdinand, was yet alive. This Inquisition the emperor
Charles V. favoured with many privileges; the patents for
which, Paramus gives us in a long catalogue.
The Inquisition was much opposed in its first introduction,
as at the town of St. Mark, and at Palermo, where it was
resisted by force and tumult. At length however, it prevailed
so far, that the most noble persons considered it an honour
to execute its office ; and it was introduced into Majorca, Mi-
norca, Sardinia, and Milan, where its power surmounted the
strenuous opposition of the oppressed inhabitants.
CHAP. XXVIII.
The return of the Inquisition into Germany and France, at the
time of the Reformation.
WHEN Luther courageously attempted the reformation of
the church, and severely censured the various and intolerable
abuses of the church of Rome, persevering with great constancy
in the work he had undertaken, in spite of threatnings, anathe-
ma''s, and the papal thunders ; and when Zuinglius Oecolam-
padius, and others in Switserland, and elsewhere, opposed the
growing superstition, and propagated the reformation with
great success in many places and countries ; the Pope, to put a
stop to the course of their preaching did not only continually
stir up the emperor, the kings and princes against Luther, and
all who opposed the doctrines of the church of Rome, but
restored also the Inquisition in many places, which had grown
into decay in several countries, either through the cruelty of
the inquisitors, or the want of heretics to proceed against, and
commanded it to proceed with great severity and rigour against
162 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
what they called the new heresies. So that now the authority
of the inquisitors was increased in Germany, and many were
condemned for heresy by the sentence of that holy tribunal,
and being delivered over to the secular magistrate, were burned
to death.*
From Germany that bloody tribunal was soon brought into
the neighbouring kingdom of France, where it had dropped of
itself, for want of heresies to proceed against. Antonius a
Prato, Presbyter cardinal, by the title of St. Anastasia, arch-
bishop of Sens, primate and chancellor of France, held a pro-
vincial council,'' in which, after he had condemned the doctrine
of Luther, Melancthon, Zuinglius, Oecolampadius and their
followers, he published a general decree, by which he declares
and renews all the ancient canons of the Lateran council
against heretics, their favourers and defenders, persons sus-
pected of heresy, and relapsed, as they are extant in the
decretals, and sometimes guards them by annexing a punish-
ment.
The laws used in the tribunal of the Inquisition were now
renewed ; and it appears that about this time the Inquisition was
again brought into France. For Francis I. chose inquisitors
of the faith from the Predicant friars. For in the orders of
that prince, *= there is a writ bearing date May 30, 1536, by
which he appoints Matthew Orry, D. D. a Predicant friar,
inquisitor of the faith.*^ Ribadineira also relates in the Hfe of
Ignatius Loyola,* and John Peter Maffeius, in his hfe of the
same Loyola, ^ that about this time he was accused before
a The emperor Charles V. pablished an edict, in which all the penalties of
high treason were pronounced against those, who should be found guilty of
holding any of Luther's tenets, or of republishing, or vending any books
written by him or his followers. In the execution of this edict, which
Charles from time to time renewed, all the fury of persecution was exercised,
and it is affirmed by several contemporary historians, that during the reign
of Charles, fifty thousand persons were put to death on account of their reli-
gious principles j these principles however, far from being extirpated, were
more and more diffused, in the midst of those severities which were employ-
ed to suppress them. — Watson's Philip ii. v. i. 101.
^ February, 1528. Bzovius, A. 1528. sect. 41. « Fol. 408.
* Du Caoge in voce Inquisitio. * Book ii. chap. ii. and xiv-
' L. 1. cap. 20. p. 315.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 168
Michael Orry, a Dominican divine, and inquisitor of the faith at
Paris, and by him acquitted. There is also extant in the second
volume a like writ of king Francis,^ by which authority is granted
to Josepli Corregie, a doctor of the same order, to execute the
office of inquisitor of the faith throughout the whole kingdom.
In the third volume,*" there is a royal statute, bearing date July
23, 1543, by which power is granted to the ecclesiastical judges
and inquisitors of the faith, to make Inquisition against luthe-
rans and heretics, provided that Laics, and such who had not
received holy orders, should be referred to the ordinary judges.
There is also another statute of Henry II. dated at St. Ger-
main en Laye,*= by which the edict of Francis I. is recalled, and
Matthew Orry, inquisitor of the faith, delivered from the trou-
ble of communicating to the supreme courts, the Baillives and
Seneschals, such actions as he brought against heretics, provided
he communicated them to the ordinary diocesans or their vicars.
At the same time that power was confirmed to him, by which
he was authorised to recover to a sound mind, either by instruc-
tion or admonition, such as erred from the faith, of granting
pardon and mercy to the penitent, and of punishing and cor-
recting the obstinate. This statute was inserted into the acts
of parliament, with this condition added, that the said Inquisi-
tors, in all privileged cases, should share the process with the
royal judges. (Father Paul, in his history of the council of
Trent,'' mentions Anthony Demohares, inquisitor of the faith ;*
speaks of other inquisitors in France. And Thuanus, in his
history,^ says, that in the year 1551,^ there was a royal law
rehearsed in the senate, concerning the power and office of
Matthew Orry, inquisitor of heretical pravity.)
How long the Inquisition continued in France, and how and
when it ended, I cannot exactly affirm. I am apt to think,
that when liberty of religion was granted by the royal edicts to
dissenters from the church of Rome, that tribunal immediately
ceased of itself.
* Fol. 247. dated April 10, 1540. ^ tol 482. -^ June 22, 1550.
• B. 5. p. 484, and 487. * And p. 494. * B. 8. p. 377
« 19ih Cal. Fcbr.
M ^
164 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. XXIX.
Six Cardinals appointed at Rome Inquisitors GeneraL
IN the early periods of the Inquisition it had been usual to
refer difficulties to the Pope himself; in order to avoid the
inconvenience resulting from this, Urban IV. in the year 1265,
created Ursarius inquisitor general ; this office was continued
with some accidental intermission, till the ever memorable days
of Luther.
The doctrines taught by that enlightened man, were so
rapidly disseminated in Italy, as well as Germany, as to cause
considerable alarm at Rome. Clement VII. ordered that the
utmost rigour should be used against persons who professed
those doctrines ; but as their numbers continued to increase,
and as the conduct of the Lutherans exhibited a remarkable
degree of constancy, of patience and of determined courage,
Paul III. was prevailed on in 1542, to appoint six cardinals,
with full powers, inquisitors general.
Pius V. in order to establish the power of these inquisitors
general, and that neither prince nor people might be able to
resist their authority, commanded in a constitution 1566, that
the princes, judges, and ministers of justice, should at all times
submit and yield obedience to their commands.
To these cardinals, for the furtherance of their office, was
added a commissary general, who must always be a Dominican
and an assessor general, besides whom the master of the sacred
palace attends their dehberations.
This officer has the power of prohibiting books, and posses-
ses the following privileges ; to reside in the apostolic palace
on a salary from the pope ; to sit in the chapel near his holi-
ness* feet ; to examine, prohibit, or approve all books intended
to be printed ; or sermons to be preached before the Pope ; to
attend aU the sittings of the cardinals inquisitors;* to pronounce
a sentence from which there shall be no appeal, and to receive
the title of most reverend.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 165
The supreme inquisitors are also attended by an advocate,
Fiscal and several counsellors, prelates and regulars.
There are three congregations of these inquisitors general
of the holy office in every week. The first on Monday at the
Inquisition house, which is attended by all the officers, who
take their places with scrupulous attention to precedency.
The second congregation on Wednesday, and the third on
Thursday, in the presence of the Pope, when he decides on, or
confirms the votes of the counsellors or cardinals. It is
customary for the pope to use a prayer at this assembly, a ser-
vice performed at the ordinary congregations by the oldest
inquisitor, and during the stay of his holiness, none are per-
mitted to it beside the cardinals.
CHAP. XXX.
Of the Inquisition in Spain against Heretics.
THE tribunal of the Inquisition in Spain, at first erected to
discover Jews and Moors, now began to proceed against heretics,
and exercised the same cruelty against these, as they had
hitherto against the others. Charles V. ^ king of Spain, who with
* Worn out by the cares, the activity, and the turbulence of an aspiring
reign, Charles resigned in 1555-6 his crown to Philip, and sought, in the se-
clusion of a monastry, that happiness, which, if his pursuits had ever afford-
ed, they had nov/ ceased to yield. In his retirement, however, it was not
his to enjoy tlie tender reciprocities of filial and parental ati'ection, for he was
stung by the ingratitude of the son, on whom he had bestowed his possessions
and his government, v\ho treated liim with cold neglect, and even suffered
the payment of his pension to be interrupted. This, together with the
infirmities of a worn out body, contributed to heighten the natural antipathies
of age, and if the recollection of the sufferings he had causf d on the score of
religion did ^?ot embitter his declining hours, he was at least compelled to
acknowledge the impolicy of his former actions. Having amused himself
with the construction of clocks and watches, he thence remarked how impos-
sible it was, that he, who never could frame two machines that would go
exactly alike, could ever be able to make all mankind concur in the same
belief and opinion. Having buried in the seclusion of this convent all his
m3
166 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
great difficulty had brought the Inquisition into the Nether-
lands against the Lutherans and Reformed, recommended it to
liis son Philip in his will. We have the clause of the will given
us by Caesar Carena, from Lewis Paramus, in his treatise of the
schemes of glory and ambition, he seldom enquired, or even snfFered his do-
mestics to inform him, concerning what was passing in the world. In this
retreat his occupations were wholly of a domestic kind, wliilst disencumbered
of the weight, as well as of the ceremonies of royalty, he endeavoured to
taste the sweets of social iuterconrse. Here it was, that he who through
life had exhibited his fondness for superstitious follies, performed an act
which justly claims pre-eminence. ** He resolved to celoijiate his own
obsequies before his death. He ordered his tomb to be erected in the chapel
of the monastery; his domestics marched thither in funeral procession, with
black tapers in their hands; he himself followed in his shroud; he was laid
in his coffin with much solemnity ; the service for the dead was chanted, and
Charles joined in the prayers that were offered up for the rest of his soul,
mingling his tears with those which his attendants shed, as if they had been
celebrating a real funeral; the ceremony closed with sprinkling holy water
on the coffin in the usual form, and all the assistants retiring, the doors of the
chapel were shut. Then Charles rose out of the coffin, and withdrew to his
apartment, full of those awful sentiments, which such a singular solemnity
was calculated to inspire -, but either the fatiguing length of the ceremony,
or the impression which the image of death left on his mind, affected him so
much, that next day he was seized with a fever ; his feeble frame could not
long resist its violence, and he expired on the twenty first of September, after
a life of fifty eight year, six months and twenty five days." " Charles had,
very early in the beginning of his reign, found the difficulty of governing
such distant dominions, and he had made his brother Ferdinand be elected
king of the Romans, with a view to his inheriting the imperial dignity, as
well as his German dominions. Bat having afterwards enlarged his scheme!),
and formed plans of aggrandizing his family, he regretted that he must dis-
member such considerable states, and he endeavoured to engage Ferdinand
by the most tempting offers and most earnest solicitations, to yield up his
pretensions in favour of Philip. Finding his attempts fruitless, he had
resigned the imperial crown with his other dignities, and Ferdinand accord-
ing to common form, applied to the Pope for his coronation. The arrogant
pontiff refused the demand and pretended, that though on the death of an
emperor he was obliged to crown the prince elected, yet, in the case of a re-
signation the right devolved to the holy see, and it belonged to the Pope
alone to appoint an emperor. The conduct of Paul was in every thing con-
formable to these lofty pretensions. He thundered always in the ears of all
ambassadors, that he stood in no need of the assistance of any prince, that he
Vf&s above all potentates of the earth, that he>ould not accustom monarchs
to pretend to a familiarity, or equality with him, that it belonged to him to
•Iter and regulate kingdoms, that he was successor of those who had deposed
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 167
office of the most holy Inquisition,* in which the emperor thus
speaks : " Out of regard to my duty to Almighty God, and
from my great affection to the most serene prince Phihp II. my
dearest son, and from the strong and earnest desire I have, that
he may be safe under the protection of virtue, rather than the
greatness of his riches, I charge him with the greatest affection
of soul, that he take especial care of all things relating to the
honour and glory of God, as becomes the most Cartholic king,
and a prince zealous for the divine commands ; and that he be
always obedient to the commands of our holy mother the
church. And, amongst other things, this 1 principally and
most ardently recommend to him, highly to honour and con-
stantly support the office of the holy Inquisition, as constituted
by God against heretical pravity, with its ministers and officials,
because by this single remedy the most grievous offences against
God can be remedied. Also I command him, that he would
be careful to preserve to all churches and ecclesiastical persons
their immunities.*' And again in his codicil to his will he thus
enjoins his son. "I ardently desire, and with the greatest pos-
sible earnestness beseech him, and command him by his regards
to me his most affectionate father, that in this matter, in which
the welfare of all Spain is concerned, he be most zealously care-
ful, to punish all infected with heresy with the severity due to
their crimes, and that to this intent, he confer the greatest ho-
nours on the office of the holy Inquisition, by the care of which
the Catholic faith will be encreased in his kingdoms, and the
Christian religion preserved."
Philip gave full proof of his zeal to execute his father's
commands. •» For as Famianus Strada testifies of him, when he
kini^s and emperors, and that rather than suhniit to any thing ijelow his dig-
nity, he wonld set fire to the four corners of the world ; he went so far, as at
table in the presence of many persons, and even openly, in a public consis-
tory to say, that he would not admit any kings for his companions, they were
all his subjects, and he wonld hold them tinder tliese feet, so savin;;:, he stamp-
ed on the ground with his old and infirm limbs, for he was now past fourscore
years of age."— Vide Watson's Philip II. vol. i. 24 aiid 101. Robertson'*
Charles V. vol. iv. 254. Hume's England, vol. iv. 426.
a Praelud. sect. 62. , b De Bel. Dec. 1. 1. 3.
168 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
was solicited to grant religious liberty to the low countries, he'
prostrated himself before a crucifix, and uttered these words :
" I beseech the Divine Majesty, that I may never suffer myself
to be, or to be called, the lord of those any where who deny
thee the Lord !"
In pursuance of these pious intentions, he gave some horrid
specimens of cruelty, in the year 1559. Before this it had been
usual, as Thaunus relates, to dehver one or more convicted of
heresy to death, but now a collection was made of those unhappy
persons, when they were brought forth before Philip in great
pomp for punishment.
The first act of faith was at Seville, on the 8th of October; in
which John Pontius of Leon, son of Roderic Pontius, Earl of
Villalon, was led before the others, as in triumph, and burned
for an obstinate heretical Lutheran. John Consalvus, a
preacher, as he had been his companion in life, was forced to
bear him company in his death ; after whom followed Isabella
Vaenia, Maria Viroesia, Cornelia, and Bohorquia ; a spectacle
full of pity and indignation, which was increased, because Bo-
horquia, the youngest of all of them, being scarce twenty, suf-
fered death with the greatest constancy. And because the he-
retical assemblies had prayed in the house of Vaenia, it was in-
cluded in her sentence, and ordered to be levelled with the
ground. After these came forth Ferdinand a Fano Johannis,
and Julian Ferdinand, commonly called the Little, from his
small stature, and John of Leon, who had been a shoemaker at
Mexico, in New Spain, and was afterwards admitted into the
college of St. Isadore, in which his companions studied, as they
boasted, the > purer doctrine privately. Their number was in-
creased by Frances Chavesia, a nun of the convent of St. Eliza-
beth, who had been instructed by John ^gidius, a preacher at
Seville, and suffered death with great constancy. From the
same school came out Christopher Losada, a physician, and
Christopher Aurellianus, a monk of St. Isidore, and Garsias
Alias, who first kindled those sparks of the same religion
amongst the friars of St. Isidore, by his constant admonitions
and sermons, by which the great pile was afterwards set on fire,
and the convent itself, and good part of that most opulent city.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 169
was also consumed. He was a man of uncommon learning,
but of an inconstant wavering temper ; and being exceeding
subtle in disputing, he refuted the very doc trines he had per-
suaded his followers to receive, though he brought them into
danger on that account from the inquisitors. Having by these
arts exposed many, whom he had deceived, to evident hazard,
and rendered himself guilty of the detestable crime of breach
of faith ; he was admonished by John ^Egidius, Constan-
tine Pontius, and Varquius, that he had not dealt sincerely
with his friends, and those who were in the same sentiments
\nth himself; to which he rephed, that he foresaw, that in a
httle time, they would be forced to behold the bulls brought
forth for a lofty spectacle ; meaning thereby the theatre of the
inquisitors. Constantine answer'd, " You, if it please God,
shall not behold the games from on high, but be yourself
among; the combatants. Nor was Constantine deceived in his
prediction. For afterwards Arias was called on ; and whether
age had made him bolder, or whether, by a sudden alteration,
his timorousness changed into courage, he severely rebuked the
assessors of the inquisitory tribunal, affirming they were more
fit for the vile office of mule-keepers, than impudently to take
upon themselves to judge concerning the faith, which they
were scandalously ignorant of."' He farther declared, that he
bitterly repented, that he had knowingly and willingly opposed,
in theur presence, that truth he now maintained, against the
pious defenders of it, and that from his soul he should repent
of it whilst he lived. So at last, being led in triumph, he was
burned ahve, and confirmed Constantine's prophecy. There
remained JEgidius and Constantine, who closed the scene, but
death prevented their being alive at the shew. iEgidius having
been designed by the emperor, Philip's father, for bishop of
Drossen, upon the fame and piety of his learning, being sum-
moned, publicly recanted his error, wTOught on either by craft,
or the persuasion of Sotus, a Dominican ; and hereupon was
suspended for a while from preaching, and the sacred office, and
died some time before this act. The inquisitors thought he
had been too gently dealt with, and therefore proceeded against
his body, and condemned him dead to deaths and placed his
170 HTSTOIiY OF THE INQUISITION.
effigy in straw on liigh for a spectacle. Constantine, who
had been a long while the emperor's confessor, and had always
accompanied him in his retirement, after his abdication from
his empire and kingdoms, and was present with him at his
death, was brought before this tribunal, and died a Uttle before
the act, in a filthy prison. But that the theatre might not want
him, his effigy was carried about in a preaching posture. —
And thus this shew, terrible in itself, which drew tears from
most who were present, when these images were brought on the
scene, excited laughter in many, and at length indignation. —
They proceeded with the same severity, the following October,
at ValladoHd, against others condemned for the same crime,
where king Philip himself being present, twenty-eight of the
chief nobihty of the country were tied to stakes and burned.
Bartholomew Caranza, archbishop of Toledo, was also ac-
cused ; who, for his learning, probity of life, and most holy
conversation was highly worthy of that dignity, and cast into
prison, and stripped of all his large revenues. His cause was
brought before Pius V. at Rome, and Gregory XIII. pro-
nounced sentence in it.^
Philip,'' not content to exercise this cruelty by land, esta-
a Bzovius, A. 1559, sect. 85.
*• A single instance of this monarch's domestic conduct, prevents surprise
at any of his public acts. His son, Don Carlos, had early discovered a de-
sire to govern, and had exhibited an intemperate ambition to be admiitcd fo
a share in his father's administration. Philip, whether from jealousy, or a
conviction of his son's unfitness for any important trust, refused to grant him
the object of his wishes. Hence Don Carlos conceived a strong aversion
against those who enjoyed bis father's confidence and their measures, and at
length formed the design of retiring to tlie Netherlands. Intelligence of this
was, by some courtiers, carried to the king, who, after having consulted with
the inquisitors of Miidiid, which he Jisu^ily did on matters of great import-
ance and difficulty, resolved to prevent the prince from putting his scheme in
execution, by depriving him of liberty. For this purpose he went into his
chamber in the middle of the night, attended by some of his privy counsellors
and guards; and, after reproaching him with his undutiful behaviour, told
hira that he had come to exercise his paternal correction and chastisement.
Then, having dismissed all his attendants, he commanded him to be clothed
in a dark coloured mourning dress, and appointed guards to watch over him,
and to confine him to his chamber. The high spirited young prince was ex-
tremely shocked at such unworthy treatment, and prayed his father and his
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITIOX. 171
biished the Inquisition also in the ships.* For in the year 1571,
a large fleet was drawn together under the command of John
of Austria, and manned with soldiers listed out of various na-
tions. King Philip, to prevent any corruption of the faith, by
such a mixture of various nations and religrions, after having
consulted pope Pius V. deputed one of the inquisitors of Spain,
fixed on by the inquisitor-general, to discharge the office of in-
quisitor ; giving him power to preside in all tribunals, and to
celebrate acts of faith, in all places and cities they sailed to.
This erection of the Inquisition by sea, Pius V. confirmed by
a bull sent to the general inquisitor of Spain, beoqnning, " Our
late most dear son in Christ. '^ Jerome Manrique exercised the
jurisdiction granted him, and held a public act of faith in the
cit}^ of Messina, in which many underwent divers punish-
ments.
Philip also established the inquisition beyond Europe, not only
in the Canary Islands, but in the new world of America ; con-
stituting two tribunals, one in the city of Lima, in the province of
Peru, the other in the province and city of Mexico. The In-
quisition at Mexico was erected in the year 1571,** and in a
short space gave large proofs of its cruelty. Paramus relates,
that in the year 1574, the third after its erection, the first act
of faith was celebrated with a new and admirable pomp, in the
marquis's market-place, where they built a large theatre, which
covered almost the whole area of the market-place, and was
close to the great chiu'ch, where were present the viceroy, the
senate, the chapter, and the religious. The viceroy, the senate,
and a vast number of others, went with a large guard, in solemn
attendants, to put animmrdiate end to his life. Animated by the most mise-
rable rage and despair, he endeavoured to procure death himself, i)y falling
on the fire, abstaining; from food, or sw illowing it nnbroken, with the design
of suffocation. Several princes interctded for his release, as did many of
the principal Spdnisli noblfs. But the father was relentless and inexorable.
After six month's imprisonment, he ransed tlie Inquisition of Madrid to pass
sentence against his sDn ; and under the rover of that sentence, ordered
poison to be given to him, wliirh in a few hours, put a period to his misera-
ble Hfe, at the age of twenty-thne. Watson's Philip II. v. i. 306.
• Param. 1. 2. tit. 2. cap. 14. '^ Ibid. cap. il.
172 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
procession, to the market-place, where were about eighty peni-
tents ; and the act lasted from six in the morning, to five in the
evening. Two heretics, one an Englishman, the other a
Frenchman, were released. Some for Judaising, some for po-
lygamy, and others for sorceries, were reconciled. The solem-
nity of this act was such, that they who had seen that stately
one at Valladohd, held in the year 1559, declared that this was
nothing inferior to it in majesty, excepting only that they
wanted those royal personage^ here, which were present there.
From this time, they celebrated yearly solemn acts of the faith,
where they brought Portuguese Jews, persons guilty of inces-
tuous and wicked marriages, and many convicted of sorcery
and witchcraft.
CHAP. XXXI.
Of the Inquisition in the Low Countries.
THE Inquisition was introduced into the Low Countries in
the year 1522, and Francis Hulstus, and Nicolas Egmondanus,
a Carmelite friar, were appointed inquisitors, of whom Eras-
mus thus writes* to John Carondilet, archbishop of Palermo, in
the year 1524 : — " And now the sword is given to two vio-
lent haters of good learning, Hulstus and Egmondanus, &c.
If they have a spite against any man, they throw him into
prison ; here the matter is transacted between a few, and the
innocent suffers barbarous usage, that they may not lose any
thing of their authority ; and when they find they have done
entirely wrong, they cry out, ' We must take care of the faith.' *"
In the same year he writes to Bilibaldus Pirkheimerus : ^ —
" There (viz. in the country of Erasmus) reigns Egmondanus,
a furious person, armed with the sword, who hates me twice
more than he doth Luther. His colleague is Francis Hulst, a
great enemy of learning. They first throw men into prison^
• Epist. lib. 21. *> Epist. lib. 30.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 173
and then seek out for crimes to accuse them of. I'hese things
the emperor is ignorant of, though it would be worth his while
to know them."' A great many were miserably used, and bar-
barously slain thrpugh their cruelty.
But in the year 1549, Charles, created emperor, endeavoured
to bring the Inquisition more openly into the Netherlands, after
the manner of that in Spain, by an edict against heresy and
heretics ; in which he commands all who had the adininistra-
tion of justice, and their officials^ when required by the inqui-
sitors, and at the joint request of the ordinaries or bishops, to
proceed against any one in the affair of heresy, to give them
their utmost assistance and countenance, and to help them in
the execution of their office, and in apprehending and detaining
those whom they should discover to be infected with heretical
pravity, according to the instructions which the aforesaid in-
quisitors had received from him. In the conclusion it is added,
that they should proceed against transgressors by execution,
whatever privileges had been before granted contrary td this
decree. This edict occasioned great disturbances, especially at
Antwerp, where, when it was known for certain, and that it was
soon to be published, a great number of merchants determined
to go into other places.^ As this would occasion great loss to
the city, and ruin their trade, the magistrates called together
the chief merchants, and citizens, and enquired what loss the
city had already sustained through fear of the Inquisition, and
what farther damage it might suffer, if the Inquisition should
be actually introduced. This was fairly drawn out in writing ;
and the magistrates presented it to Queen J\Iary, sister of
Charles V. then governess of the Netherlands; and largely
shewed, by many arguments taken from the edict, the instruc-
tions of the inquisitors, and the privileges of Brabant, how
many evils threatened the city and the whole country ; and
besought her that she would intercede with the emperor, her
brother, that so rich and flourishing a city might not be ruined
by the Inquisition, from which, as Avell as from all ecclesiasti-
cal jurisdiction, it had hitlierto been free, and ought ever to
» Weseubec. dc stat.rel. iu Belg. p. 20.
174 HrSTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
remain so, according to their privileges. The several orders
of Brabant joined themselves to those of Antwerp, and by their
reasons and prayers, the queen was so moved, that she went
to her brother at Augsburg, and obtained another edict, allow-
ing the ecclesiastical judges a power of demanding some person
from the supreme courts of the emperor, to be joined with
them, when they proceeded against any one for the crime of
heresy. As to the rest of the former decree, there was no
abatement. It was received with great difficulty and reluct-
ance, and pubhshed at Antwerp with this protestation, that
this edict should derogate nothing from their privileges and
statutes.
But notwithstanding this declaration of the magistrates, the
inhabitants could not be at ease, such was their dread of the
cruelty of the inquisitors; especially because they saw, that
those who were privately commissioned by the pope and the
emperor to be inquisitors, acted as such themselves, as well as
by their commissaries, in several provinces and cities. For se-
veral were condemned for heresy ^by them, in many cities, and
beheaded, hanged, or burned, or tied up in sacks and drowned.
The states, in vain, humbly besought the king to be deUvered
from so grievous a bondage. He was deaf to all their prayers,
and determined to lose his dominions, rather than suffer them
to be infected with heresy. This occasioned still greater dis-
turbances ; and as the cruelty of the inquisitors every day in-
creased, they broke out at length into an open revolt. The
common people threw down the images from the temples, and
committed other violences ; on which the king, that he might
have some shew of justice to conquer the Low Countries, and
make laws according to his absolute will, demanded the judg-
ment of the supreme office of the Inquisition in Spain, con-
cerning these revolters. After they had seen the several in-
formations and proofs, transmitted to them by the inferior
inquisitors, they declared all the inhabitants of the Low Coun-
tries, those only excepted whose names were sent to them,
heretics and favourers of heretics, and guilty of high treason,
either for what they had done, or omitted to do. The king
having received this answer, sent the Duke of Alva, with a
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 175
great army, into the Netherlands ; who, as he was a cruel and
bloody man, entered the country \\dth his forces, and meeting
no resistance, acted every where with the most outrageous fury.
One might have seen throughout all their cities, old men and
young, women and girls, without any distinction of dignity,
age or sex, suffering by the sword, gallows, fire, and other
punishments; till at length the miserable nation, warmed with
the remembrance of their former freedom, took courage and
arms ; and after they had recovered their liberty, drove out
the Inquisition from the whole country.
END OF BOOK 1.
HISTORY
OF THE
fc^ttt^Mtoui
BOOK II.
CHAP. I.
Of the Ministers of the iNauisiTioN in General.
J. HITS far we have described the origin of the Inquisition,
and its introduction into several kingdoms and countries.
There are three things yet remaining to be treated of. First,
The ministers of the inquisition, as well the inquisitors them-
selves, as others who serve them in the holy office, together
with their duties and offices. Secondly, The crimes subject
to the cognizance <A this tribunal ; by what ways guilt may
be contracted ; and what punishments are annexed to the se-
veral offi^nces. Thirdly, What is the manner of process ob-
served before the tribunal of the inquisition. These shall be
considered in three several books.
As to the first of these we need not repeat what hath been
already said in the former book concerning the cardinals, in-
quisitors general in all Christian countries, and of the supreme
council of the inquisition in the kingdoms of Spain and Portu-
gal. I shall speak only of the inquisitors and those who serve
them. For although the erection of those councils liath intro-
duced no small change in the office of the inquisition, yet it
respects rather the manner of process, than the officers of the
inquisition ; which therefore I shall afterwards endeavour to
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 177
explain according to the best assistance I can gather from those
authors who have written on the subject.
The offices in the Spanish and Portuguese inquisition are
somewhat different from what they were anciently, and from
those of the Italian inquisition to this day. And because these
two inquisitions are now the principal and most famous ones,
wherein they differ from other inquisitions, I shall carefully de-
scribe, and give an account of the several offices in them, as
they are delivered by the Spanish doctors.
Simancas gives us this account of the ministers of the Spanish
inquisition.* " In every province of Spain there ought to be
two or three inquisitors, one judge of the forfeited effects, one
executor, three notaries, two for secrecy, and the third for se-
questrations, one keeper of the prison, one messenger, one
door-keeper, and one physician. Besides these, assessors, skil-
ful counsellors, familiars and others are necessary." In Italy
they call them cross-bearers, of pretty near the same office with
the Spanish familiars. Besides these, there is a promoter fiscal,
a receiver of the forfeited effects ; and finally, visitors of the
inquisitors. Of these in their order.
fc'»^W%'»^
CHAP. II.
Of the Inquisitors.
IN the church of Rome there are two sorts of judges in the
affair of the faith : the ordinaries, such as the pope, and bishops
of places, who, when ordained or consecrated, are beheved to
receive, by divine right, power and jurisdiction over heretics: ^
and delegates, to whom the office of judging heretics is parti-
cularly given by the pope, who are called inquisitors by the
laws. Apostolic inquisitors are therefore judges delegated by
the pope, who is believed to be the supreme judge of the faith,
» De Cathol. Inst tit. 41. sect. 3. l» Eymeric. Diittt p. 3. q. 1.
178 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
who grants them full jurisdiction against all heretics and apos-
tates. And they are delegated for all causes.
No one can be thus deputed to this office who is not forty
yeai*s old. " We ordain by the approbation of this holy
council, that no person under forty years old, shall from this
time be admitted to the office of the inquisition." ^ But because
knowledge and prudence sometimes supply the defect of age,
it is determined by a general decree of the pope, that a person
of thirty years old may be apostolic inquisitor in Spain and
Portugal.*' Even in this age the congregation of cardinals
created Baptist a Martinengo, inquisitor at Cremona, who was
very little above thirty. It is also the custom to choose inqui-
sitors for cities, not out of the citizens, but from foreigners.
These inquisitors'^ receive power to execute this office from
the pope, who sometimes immediately appoints them by word
of mouth, sometimes by his apostolic letters. Thus in the
letters of Clement, beginning, " Licet ex omnibus mundi par-
tibus,**' >vritten to the inquisitors ; we read, " That the office
of the inquisition against heretics may be more eiFectually dis-
charged, we command your discretion by our apostolic writ-
ings, enjoining you, by the remission of your sins, to execute
the aforesaid office, which we commit to you by our apostolic
authority, in the love of God, and without any fears of men,
» Clement, cap. Nolentes. de haeret. b Carena, p- 1. tit. 5. n. 18. q. 3.
c Each of the inquisitors hath the title of Lord, and are a great terror to
the neighbouring peasants ; certain it is, that by this means the people
of Spain are so kept' under that they dare not hearken after any other
religion than what their priests and friars shall be pleased to teach them, or
entertain the truth if it comes amongst thetn, or call in question any of those
palpable and gross impostures which every day are put upon them, for by
this means the people of this kingdom have been, and still are punctual fol-
lowers, of the church of Rome, and that too in the very errors and corrup-
tions of it, taking up their religion on the pope's authority, and therein so
tenacious or pertenacious that the king doth suffer none to live in his domi-
nions which profess not the Roman catholic religion, of which they have
been since the time of Luther such avowed patrons, that one of the late
popes being sick, and hearing divers persons bemoan his approaching end,
uttered words to this effect ; *' My life can nothing benefit the church, but
pray for the prosperity of the king of Spain as its chief support."— Dugdale'ft
Spanish Inquisition, 1680.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 179
putting on the spirit of strength from on high." Sometimes he
commits it to a cardinal or legate.
Heretofore the pope ordinarily granted it to the master, and
provincial priors of the predicants ; to the general and provin-
cials of the Minorites, that they should take care to provide in
quisitors of the friars of their order, for the places assigned to
them, as we find it in their privileges, and as appears from
many rescripts of the popes, particularly Innocent, Clement,
and Alexander IV., which begin, " Licet ex omnibus." We
firmly charge and command your discretion, by these apostblic
writings, that with the advice of some discreet friars of your
order, you choose eight of the said order, fit for your province,
to perform this work of the Lord ; and that you strictly charge
them, in virtue of their holy obedience, by the apostolic au-
thority ^ that they execute the office of the inquisition, &c."
And they give this reason, because they are presumed to have
greater knowledge of their owti friars, and can therefore more
easily judge who are the most proper to be advanced to so high
an office. But at this time the apostolic inquisitors throughout
Italy are not chosen by the prelates of the aforesaid orders, but
either immediately by the pope, or by a brief, as the inquisitor
at Milan and Grenoa are chosen ; or by letters patents from
the cardinals, inquisitors general over the whole Christian
world. In Spain the president of the inquisition appoints the
inquisitors.
And as the power of the inquisitor depends on the pope,^ so
no one can be removed from this office, but by the pope alone,
and those to whom his holiness commits this power. Formerly
he granted the power to the general and provincial masters of
the orders, as appears from these letters of Innocent.
" Innocent,^ bishop, servant of the servants of God, to our
venerable brother John, bishop, formerly master of Bosmo,
and to our beloved sons, the friars of the Order of Predicants,
health and apostolic benediction. Being continuaUy refreshed
with the sweet savour of your order, we deservedly bear an
especial favour towards it, with full desire wishing its advance-
- Carei.a, p. I. tit. 5. q. 9. b Bzovius, A- 15Mj. sect. 12. n. 10.
N 2
ISO HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
merit, and endeavouring with our most diligent care to pro-
cure for it peace and other blessings, by which it may obtain
through the Lord the desired increase. For this reason we
have yielded to your request, that you, brother John, bishop
and master, and your successors, the friars of your order, who
are or shall be deputed by the apostolic see to preach the cross,
or to enquire against heretical pravity, or any other such affairs,
may lawfully and freely set aside, or recal, quite remove and
enjoin them to forbear, and substitute others in their room, as
shall seem expedient to you, and exercise the ecclesiastical cen-
sure against all contraveners. And by authority of these pre-
sent, we grant, that every provincial prior of the same order
may act in like manner in his province, as to the friars of the
said order, to whom this affair may happen to be committed by
the same see.''— Dated at Lyons, June Id. 5. and 3d of our
Pontificate.
But now the cardinals, inquisitors general in Christendom,
remove and change, and translate them from one place to an-
other, as they think convenient.
The popes were greatly desirous that this office should be
free from all obstruction ;^ and, therefore, as one very obvious
difficulty might arise from the prelates of the several orders,
if such as were created regular inquisitors should be forced to
obey their prelates in their office, therefore the popes exempted
them as to this affair from their jurisdiction, as appears from a
bull of Clement IV. beginning " Catholicae Fidei." Although
the master and minister generals, and other priors and provin-
cials, and the keepers or guardians of any places of your orders,
under pretence of any privileges or indulgences of the same
see, granted, or hereafter to be granted to the said orders, shall
enjoin, or any ways command you, or any one or more of you,
to supersede this affair for a time, or as to any certain articles
or persons ; we strictly prohibit all and singular of you, by our
apostolic authority, from presuming to obey, or in any manner
to regard them in this matter. For by the tenour of these
present, we recal all such privileges and indulgences relating
to this article, and decree that all sentences of excommunication,
* Eymer. Direct. Par. 6. Qu. 11.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 181
interdict, and suspension, that may be pronounced against you,
or any of you upon this occasion, shall be altogether null and
void." So that in the office of the inquisition they are by no
means subject to their superiors,* but only to the pope ; inso-
much that if an inquisitor should unjustly prosecute any one
for heresy, the person apprehended cannot appeal to the supe-
rior of that order, but only to the pope. Nor is the inqui-
sitor in any manner bound to obey the superior of his order,
interrogating him on any affairs relating to his office, but the
pope alone, whom he immediately represents.
And least the superiors of orders should claim to themselves
any power over the inquisitors, by reason of their inquisitorial
office. Urban IV. wrote to the inquisitors in privilege of the
Catholic faith. " For if the aforesaid see hath sometimes com-
mitted by their letters, under a certain form, to some prelates
of your order, a power to choose certain friars of their orders,
to exercise the office of the inquisition against heretical pravity,
and to remove and substitute others in their room, as they
should think convenient ; as this was granted them only, be-
cause it was presumed that they had a fuller knowledge of the
fitness of such friars, so hereby no faculty, jurisdiction, or
power, is given them over any such affair committed, and to be
committed to you immediately by the aforesaid see."
This is in force only when the inquisitors are of any parti-
cular order, whether predicants or friars minor. It is now of
no use in Spain ; for, as Simancas tells us, it is found by ex-
perience, that it is much more useful and proper, that the
inquisitors should be layers, and not divines.^
In like manner the Popes ordered, that in favour of the faith
the office of the inquisitors should be perpetual, so that it was
not to cease at the death of the Pope who conferred it, although
the jurisdiction delegated to them might not have been made
use of. Thus it is ordained by Clement IV. and is to be found
in the Sext. Decret. " Least any person should be in doubt,
whether the office of the Inquisition of heretical pravity, com-
mitted by the apostolic sec under certain limitations to your
care, expires at the death of the Pope who granted it, we by
a Eynier. Direct. Part 5. qu. 12. »» Ibid. tit. 41. sect. 3.
182 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
this present edict declare^ tliat the said office shall last, in favour
of the faith, after the decease of him who conferred it, not only
with respect to affairs begun during the Hfe of the granter, but
as to those which are untouched, and not begun, and what is
more, even as to such as may not arise till afterwards."* For
this reason the office of particular inquisitors continues in Spain,
after the death of the inquisitor general, although they should
be delegated by him ; and the rather, because they are chosen
under this forai : "we constitute you our vicegerents till we
shall specially recall tlie commission."" In which case the juris-
diction of the delegated judge continues after the demise of him
who deputed him.**
This office is accounted of so great dignity in the church of
Rome, that the title of most reverend is given to the inquisitors
equally as to bishops, and because they are delegated by the
Pope to their jurisdiction, they are advanced to the principal
part of the episcopal office, and are therefore thought to deserve
the honour of an equal title of dignity with the bishops them-
selves.*^ From whence also they infer, that the inquisitors
ought to take place of the vicar general of the bisliop, not only
in causes of heresy, but in other acts and causes that do not be-
long to the holy office.
In Spain'' oftentimes several inquisitors are deputed together,
and whenever this happens, they take care not to create two
who are akin, in the same province, nor suffer them to have any
official for their servant, or of their household.
" If any thing hard or difficult happens in any province, the
inquisitors must refer it to the council.*
" The inquisitors sit on their tribunal six hours every day,^
and if any thing comes before them that belongs to the inquisi-
tors of another province, they refer it to them, and the messen-
gers are to be paid the expences of the journey by the inquisitors
to whom they are sent.«
a Simanc. de Catliol. Instit. tit. 34, sect. 14.
b Cap. Si delegatus, de Offic deleg. 1. 6. c Caren. p. 1. t. 5. n. 57.
; " Simanc. tit. 34, sect. 21. * Ibid. sect. 15. ^ Ibid. sect. 16.
« 4 Instruct. Tolet. cap. 28, and 3 Instruct. ValdoUt. cap. 9.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
183
" Farther,* the inquisitors are diligently to read those books
in which the testimonies against heretics are contained, that
from hence they may know tlie names and offences of the guilty
persons, and understand distinctly their several crimes. And
of this matter the visitors are particularly to enquire, and re-
port it to the inquisitor general, if the inquisitors should happen
to be negligent herein.**
" The inquisitoi-s must take special care to agree with and be
friendly to each other.^ If any difference should rise against
them, they must conceal it, and refer it to the inquisitor gene-
ral, that after he understands the matter he may compromise it,
and judge between them."'*
The office of the Inquisition ceases upon the inquisitors ad-
vancement to any dignity.' If the inquisitor, for instance, is
made a bishop, these dignities are incompatible, because both
require personal residence, and therefore the office of the inqui-
sitor ceases.
[If the inquisitors are negligent or remiss in their office, ^
the synod of Sinigagha, held A. D. 1423, hath decreed, that
they shall hereby incur the penalty of suspension from entering
into the church for the space of four years. The same synod
commands, " that in provincial or synodical councils, a proper
remedy shall be provided, besides the forementioned penalty,
against such negligent persons, according to the degree of such
fault or negligence; all privileges, exemptions, customs and sta-
tutes whatsoever to the contrary notwithstanding."" But I am
persuaded that few offend against this decree, or incur the
penaly of suspension by neghgence or lenity ; since all compas-
sion is banished from this tribunal, and since all who are
promoted to this office of inquisitor immediately divest them-
selves, I will not say of all pity only, but even of humanity
itself]
If the inquisitors offend,^ by unjustly extorting money, it
» Simanc. tit. 34, sect. 17. " 5 Instruct. Hispal. cap. 3.
« Simanc. tit. 34, sect. 18. ^ Instruct. Hispal. cap. 26.
e Carena, p. 1. t. 5. n. 102.
f Richer. Hist. Con. I. 3. c. 1. scet. 1. p. 9.
g Pcgna, io part. 3. Direct. Com. 61.
X 4i
184. HISTORY OF THE I:NQUISITI0N.
was anciently provided," that they should be punished by the
prelates of their order. " Which said prelates are bound to
remove from their offices such inquisitors and commissaries as
are found guilty, and when removed, otherwise to punish and
correct them according to their desert."" But now as the pre-
lates of the several orders neither appoint or remove inquisitors,
so neither do they punish them ; but the affair is referred to
the cardinals inquisitors general in Christendom. In Spain
the president of the Inquisition, whom they call inquisitor
major, punishes the delinquent inquisitors, which was expressly
granted him by a bull of Leo X. But however notwithstand-
ing this, the Pope can, as often as he pleases, call, cite, and
punish the inquisitors of all kingdoms at the court of Rome ;
for he is the judge of aU, and the inquisitors are delegated by
him, and because it appertains to him to take cognizance of
their causes, and punish their offences. And if any others take
cognizance of these affairs, they do it by a power derived from
the Pope, which he can resume as often as he thinks fit, and
bring the w^hole affair before himself.
When any inquisitor is to be punished for his offence, they
take care not to lessen men's opinion of the dignity and autho-
rity of the holy office by his condemnation or punishment,
which they say is more dangerous than to suffer an offender to
go unpunished ; unless it be such an offence as gives scandal,
and therefore must not be passed over with impunity. And
they alledge this reason ; that the apostolic inquisitors are both
dreaded and hated by many, and especially by wicked men ;
and therefore if they should be easily or publicly punished, the
foolish and mad people would soon be drawn by their crimes to
hate and dishonour the holy office. So that when there is a ne-
cessity to punish the inquisitors, it must be done with caution,
to prevent greater inconveniences.
However, from these laws it is very plain, that the tribunal
of the Inquisition is not so very holy and blameless, as they
would have them believe in Spain and Portugal; but the
inquisitors punish innocent men sometimes very unjustly,
throwing them into prison, and treating them in a very barbar-
& Clement, dc haeret. cap. Nolentes.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 185
pus and unworthy manner.^ Of this we have a fresh instance
in the Inquisition at Goa, in relation to Father Ephraim, a
Capuchine, whom out of mere hatred and revenge thoy seized,
by craft and subtlety, and carried away to Goa, and there shut
him up in the prison of the inquisition. The story is this :
Father Ephraim having had an invitation from some English
merchants, built a church in the city of Madrespatan, which
was near to the city of St. Thomas. To this place several of
the Portuguese came from St. Thomas's, to have the benefit of
Ephraim'^s instruction. By this he incurred the hatred of the
Portuguese; and upon some disturbance that was raised.
Father Ephraim was called to St. Thomas to appease it, where
he was seized by the officers of the Inquisition, and carried to
Goa, bound hands and feet, and at night coming from on board
the ship, hurried into the prison of the Inquisition. All men
wondered that this Capuchine should be brought prisoner before
the tribunal of the Inquisition as an heretic, who was known to
be a person of great probity and zeal for the Roman religion.
Many were concerned for his delivery, and especially Friar
Zenon of the same order, who tried every method to effect it.
When the news of his imprisonment came to Europe, persons
were very differently affected. His brother the lord Chateau
des Bois, solicited the Portugal ambassador at Paris, till he
prevailed with him to send letters to his Portuguese majesty, to
desire his preremptory orders to the inquisitors at Goa, to
dismiss Ephraim from his prison. The Pope also himself sent
letters to Goa, commanding him to be set free, under the
penalty of excommunication. The king also of Golconda, who
had a friendship for him, because he had given him some
knowledge of the mathematics, commanded the city of St.
Thomas to be besieged, and to be put to fire and sword, unless
Ephraim was immediately restored to his liberty. The inqui-
sitors not being able to surmount all these difficulties, sent him
word that the prison gates were open, and that he might have
his liberty when he pleased. But he would not leave his jail,
till he was brought out by a solenm procession of the ecclesiastics
• Taviii). Travel^, b. 1. c U.
186 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
of Goa. And although there are many instances of the Uke
injustice, yet they very seldom publicly punished the injustice
and cruelty of the inquisitors, lest their authority, which
they would have always accounted sacred, should be con-
temned.
CHAP. III.
Of the Vic Alts and Assistants of the iNauisiTioN.
WHEN the Inquisition was first appointed and delegated,*
there were no cardinals inquisitors general over Christendom,
whom they could consult by letter, and from whom receive an
answer in cases of difficulty,*' after their having first advised
with the Pope. And therefore particular inquisitors were often
forced to go to Rome, during whose absence the affairs of the
faith were at a stand.^ To prevent this inconvenience, the
inquisitor may in such a case appoint a vicar general over the
whole province, with a power of proceeding to the definitive
sentences of the impenitent and relapsed. Urban IV. in order
to remove this difficulty, A. D. 1263, created by a rescript,
beginning, Cupientes, the cardinal of St. Nicholas in carcere
Tulliano, inquisitor general, or, as it were, protector of the
inquisitors, whom particular inquisitors might consult, either
in person, or by proposing their doubts to him by letters. But
now all these inconveniences are over, since the appointment of
the cardinals inquisitors general over Christendom, whom they
may consult by letters, and to whom all princes are subject in
this affair. This is plain from the bull of Pius V. published
1566. In Spain the inquisitors of particular cities consult the
inquisitor general of those kingdoms, or president of the Inqui-
sition ; and he with those of other provinces advises with the
cardinals inquisitors general.
» Eymer. 41. ^ Ibid. 43.
* Pegiia, in Eymer. p. 486,
HISTOEY OP THE INftUISITION. 187
It is however, now the constant daily practice of all inquisi-
tors to have their vicars general, who, in their absence, may
manage the affairs of the Inquisition. These are ouiinarily
appointed by the inquisitors themselves; for the inquisitor
hath power of constituting his \Ticar or commissary, by the bull
of Clement VII. sent to Paidus Bugitella," which begins. Cum
sicut, in which we read : " Moreover we decree that you may
have authority to appoint your vicars or commissaries, persons
whom you shall judge to be circumspect, fit, and proper, pro-
vided they are full thirty years of age."
This power doth not only extend to the appointing one or
two vicars or commissaries, but several, if the diocese or pro-
vince be large, and contains several cities.'' For as the inqui-
sitor cannot be personally present at all of them, it is necessary
he should appoint commissaries in them. He must create at
least in every city one, a man prudent and learned, an old
Christian, pious, and fit for business, a rehgious peison of his
own, or some other order, or a secular clergyman, viz. one pos-
sessed of some preferment in the principal church of that city,
or a canonist, whom he verily beheves will take care of the
matters of the faith dihgently, and according to the canonical
sanctions.
This vicar general may be constituted with such full powers
by the inquisitor,^ as to be able to receive denunciations, in-
formations, or accusations, from and against any persons what-
soever, and of proceeding, and of citing, arresting, and putting
In irons, as well the witnesses as the guilty, of receiving their
confessions or depositions, and of proving them, of examining
and compelling to give evidence, and of putting to the question
and torture to force the truth from them, jointly with the lord
bishop or his vicar ; as also of imprisoning them, by way of
punishment rather than safety, of calling together and advising
with skilful men at his pleasure; and, in general, of doing every
thing which the inquisitor himself, if present, could do. Only
the inquisitor usually reserves to himself the definitive sentence
» Pcgaa, in Eymer. Qn 13. * Pcgna, Com. 63.
c Eymer. p. 3. 17.
188 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
of all impenitents and relapsed, although he may also commit
even this to his vicar.
The power of pronouncing sentence, however, is seldom
given to the commissary or vicar, without first consulting the
inquisitor, who in decency, is bound to defend the conduct of
his commissary. The inquisitor, however, cannot endow the
commissary with power to employ a deputy, though they some-
times appoint two commissaries to act conjointly. The vicars
can only be deprived of their authority by the inquisitor, from
whom it was received.
CHAP. IV.
(y Assessors and Counsellors necessary to tJie Office of the
Inquisition.
THE inquisitors were originally religious friars, skilful only
in divinity, but ignorant of the laws.* And, therefore, because
they might be easily deceived in a judiciary process, and so ab-
solve such as should be condemned, and condemn such as should
be absolved, they were commanded to call in skilful persons,
such as divines, canonists, and layers, to consult them, and if
there was need, to compel them to give their advice in virtue
of their obedience ; as we find it, cap. Ut commissi, sect. Ad-
vocandi. de hccret. lib. 6. " That you also call in as occasion
requires, any skilful persons to assist you, and give you pro-
per advice in passing such sentences, and enjoin them by virtue
of their obedience, that in this matter they humbly obey you."
And thus we often find it in the book of the Tholouse Inquisi-
tion, in the sentences pronounced, " We, the aforesaid bishop
and inquisitor, with the advice and counsel of many good men,
skilful as well in the canon as civil law, and of many prudent
Religious persons," &c. I do not find that their number is
a Eymer. p. 3. qu. 77. Pegna, com. 126.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 189
precisely determined by any certain law. Carena says, » that
in the congregation at Cremona, there are regularly present,
four regular divines, four secular clergymen, canonists, and
four lay counsellors; and because the inquisitor there is always
a master in divinity, they do not need so many quahficators, as
the inquisitors of Spain do, who are layers.'*
It is to be wondered at, that the office of making inquisition
against heretics, and of judging them, should be committed to
persons entirely ignorant of the law. But if we consider the
modern inquisitors, and compare them with the more ancient
ones, and judge of their ignorance by what we find of the ig-
norance of the other, it must be owned that they know nothing
either of law, or of divinity, or of any theological points. The
author of the history of the Inquisition at Goa,'' was in doubt,
whether the baptism of the breath'^ could be reconciled with
those words of our Lord,'^ " Except a man be born again of
the water and the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of
heaven." The inquisitor who examined him as to his faith,
was astonished at the citing of this place, and asked where the
passage was to be found. He was equally ignorant of the ca-
non of the council of Trent, about the worship of images.*' So
that he concludes, that the ignorance of the inquisitors, in
matters of faith, exceeds all belief Father Ephraim also af-
firmed, that nothing was so troublesome to him in the prison of
the Inquisition, as the ignorance of the inquisitor and his asses-
sors, when they examined him, which was so very great, as
» P. I. tit. 8. n. 12. b Ibid. n. 35. c a. 22.
ti Baptismus flaminis is the baptism of the Holy Ghost, foiiuded on Acts i,
i. and, I suppose, so called from John xx. 22. " He breathed ou them, and
saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost,"
*= Dr.Geddes gives us a worse account of their stupidity and ignorance. The
writer of the Repertorium, printed at Venice, A. D. 1588, to shew his critical
learning, saith, the word Hareticus, according to some, is compounded oimo
and recto, because an heretic errs from what is right. According to oihers,
it is derived from eiciscor, which signifies to divide; and according to some,
it comes from adhcereo, because it is one's adhering obstinately to an error
that makes him an heretic. And with the same stock of learning it was
that another inquisitor proved, from St. Paul's words, U<ereticum decita, that
Christians were commanded to deprive heretics of their lives.
Geddea's Tracts, vol, i. p. 425.
190 HISTORY OF THE INatllSlTION.
that he verily believed not one of them had ever read the holy
scriptures. And, therefore, as the inquisitors are thus ignorant
themselves, they greatly want the advice, not only of persons
skilful in both laws, or as diey call them, of canonists and
layers, but of divines also. Such are generally called assessors
and counseDors.
They have their distinct parts. They are not all indifferently
consulted in all affairs, but each of them as to those which they
are presumed to understand. The divines are called in to
examine propositions, and explain their quahty. The layers
are consulted about the punishment or absolution of offenders,
and other merits of causes. The inquisitors generally consult
and deliberate with these skilful persons together, and not apart*
as is provided in certain letters of the Spanish counsel.
When, therefore, any question happens in the cognizance of
the causes of heresy, at the tribunal of the faith, relating to
the quality of propositions, spoken by heretics, or persons sus-
pected of heresy, the decision of that affair belongs to the di-
vines, from whence they are called Qualificators.
The inquisitors are, nevertheless, not bound to follow the
advice of the counsellors ; but after they have heard their opi-
nion, they are free to determine what they think proper : even
though it should be contrary to, or different from, the advice
so given.
In this particular, however, there is some diversity in differ-
ent countries. There is a letter of the council,* in possession
of the inquisitors of Corduba, by which this method is autho-
rized. But in the Inquisition of Valladohd, it is necessary to
refer to a council, unless a majority agree in one sentence. In
Portugal, the counsellors have a decisive vote, and are chosen
under the same conditions as the inquisitors.^
The counsellors are sworn to secresy,^ because they say se-
cresy is the principal nerve of the holy office. And if they
should at any time speak, write, or debate, of any matters affect^
ing any cause treated of by the holy office, they would thereby
» Sinianc. tit. 41. sect. 14.
^ Souza, !• 1. c. 1. sect. 14- Pegna, part 3. com. 128.
« Carena, p. 1. 1. 8. d. 65.
HISTOEY OF THE INaUISlTION. 191
incur excommunication; from which none but the cardinars
inquisitors could release them ; and if they should maliciously
reveal such things, they maybe proceeded against, as obstruc-
tors of the holy office.
It is unlawful to choose two persons to this office who are
related, as father and son, in order to prevent partiaUty or pre-
judice.
The proper place of congregation is the hall of the holy
office. Carena says, he heard from some worthy persons, that
there are letters of the inquisitors general upon this affair, com-
manding the congregation, when held before the bishop, to be
at his palace. But when the bishop will not, or cannot, be pre-
sent, they shall meet in the holy office. And that the vicar
general of the bishop must be there. And though he himself
did not see these letters, he says, this is exactly the method of
the Inquisition at Cremona.
At Rome it was the usual custom for the junior counsellors
to vote first, that the example of the elders might not mislead
him : but at Cremona this order was reversed.
*^-W»^ VV*'* 1
CHAP. V.
Oftlie PROMOTOR Fiscal.
" They usually call that officer of the Inquisition the promo-
tor fiscal, * who acts the part of the accuser. He must be an
honest, diligent, and industrious person, skilful in the law. —
He is prohibited from exercising this fiscal office in the pro-
vince where he was born, that he may not be thought to act
out of favour or hatred.
" It belongs to this office to examine the depositions of the
witnesses,^ to give information of criminals to the inquisitors, or
notice of them to the judges, and to demand their apprehen-
sion and imprisonment; £yid finally, when apprehended and
• Simanc. tit. 53, sect. 1.2. fc Ibid. sect. 3, &c.
192 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIO:i^.
admonished, to accuse them."* In the holy offioe in Spain,
the fiscals do not form their accusation against the criminal,
till the way is clear for the inquisitors to proceed against him.
" And although the criminals, upon admonition, should confess
all their heresies, yet the promotor fiscal must accuse them of
the same things, that judgment may be formed from the ac-
cuser, criminal, and judge. The charge is to be drawn up
and presented to the judges by the promotor, to which he is to
add an oath, that none of the heads of it proceed from a ma-
licious design ; but only that he may the better prosecute his
suit, and that he intends to prove them all.
" If the judges shall allow any time to receive the proofs,^
he must produce the witnesses against the criminal, and demand
their examination ; and that their depositions be allowed and
published. If after this, other witnesses shall appear to prove
other heresies, this also shall be added to the accusation, and
the promoter fiscal shall accuse the criminal of these. He must
also take particular care to observe all the confessions, sayings,
and answers, of the criminals, that he may be able to gather
what relates particularly to their case, and what to other here-
tics.^ And when the depositions of the witnesses are written
down and allowed ; and when the judges and counsellors de-
bate about the sentence to be passed, the promotor fiscal must
be absent. But he may be present when the process of the
cause is reported, and from fact or law alledge what he thinks
convenient.'' In the Cremona Inquisition the fiscal is not pre-
sent at the examination of the witnesses, unless the inquisitor
calls for him.*^ He is, however, present at the examination of
the witnesses, by way of defence ; and at the rehearing of the
witnesses, and must be present in the congregations when they
vote in the cause, and always at the torture, together with the
inquisitor, who sits between the vicar general on the right, and
the advocate fiscal on the left.
" Heretofore the promotor fiscal was bound to defend the
cause of the treasury before the judge of the forfeited effects,^
a Carena,p. 1. t. 9. n. 15. ^ Ibid. sect. 7. <= Sect; 10.
•i Ibid. 1. 1, t, 9, u, 41, « Ibid, sect, 11,
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 193
which is to this day in use in some provinces. But generally
speaking, this affair belongs now to tlie advocate of the trea-
sury.
" Besides this, in Spain, they choose a person for procurator
general of the holy inquisition there,* that he may manage the
affair of this most holy office at the court of Rome, who is to
have a proper salary paid him out of the forfeited effects. Into
tliis office a skilful and honest man must be chosen.*''
♦^•'W^V^V^*^
CHAP. VI.
Of the Notaries of the Inquisition.
THE office of the registers, whom they also call Notaries
and Secretaries, is to ^vrite down the injunctions, accusations,
and all the pleadings of the causes.^ The judge ought not
only to take care that the notary writes down the depositions of
the witnesses, or the answers of the criminals, but also that he
diligently explains, and particularly remarks, during the pro-
cess, the several circumstances relating to the witness, the in-
former, and the person against whom inquisition is made, viz.
Whether the colour of his face changes ; whether he trembles
or hesitates in speaking ; whether he frequently endeavours to
interrupt the interrogatories, by hawking or spitting ; or whe-
ther his voice trembles, and the hke. All these circumstances
the judge ought to take care to have particularly specified in
the process, that it may not be said, that the person inquired
against is put to the torture without proofs.
Whatsoever the notary writes down from the mouth of the
criminals, or witnesses, must be in the same language in which
the witness or criminal speaks, without altering, adding, or
diminishing, transposing or inverting any of the words. = If
a Carena, tit. 52. sect. 6. 2 Instruct. Hispal. cap. 2.
^ Siraaoc. tit. 41. sect. 7. Cainpeg. in Zancli. cap. 9-
' Pegnaeprax. Inq. !. 2. rap. 20. u, 12, &c.
194 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
the mminal or witness doth not understand Latin ; and if the
notary or inquisitor doth not understand the language of the
one or other, the inquisitor must have a skilful interpreter.
For it may happen, that a Frenchman, a Spaniard, an English-
man, or a German, may be examined before an Italian inqui-
sitor. The depositions of the witnesses and the confessions of
the criminals, are to be written down by the notaries, in the
same words in which they are delivered. And when there are
several witnesses, it is not sufficient that the notary, when he
hath particularly wrote down the depositions of the first wit-
ness, says, that the second or third says entirely the same as
tlie first ; but he must write down the particular words of the
several witnesses, because oftentimes the case before this tribu-
nal is the proof of formal heresy. Clement VIII., in a general
congregation of the inquisition,^ hath particularly commanded
the inquisition not to omit any of the interrogatories which are
made by the judge, in the examination of the witnesses and
criminals, but to write them down at large. Yea, so favour-
able are they to this affair of the faith, that though the notaries
should make one false libel, yet all their others are vaHd,
whilst they are kept in ofiice ; ^ although when the author is
condemned, the book is commonly condemned too.
" These notaries are to be chosen of the laity ; but in causes
of heresy, the clergy and monks, and also others in holy orders
may discharge this office. And although in Spain they usually
take them from amongst the laity, yet Simancas says,^ that
possibly it would be better, that they shovild be chosen from
the clergy, because they would want less than those who have
wives and children ; for the salary is scarce sufficient for one.
They are also obliged to register in a certain book, all the com-
mands of the inquisitors, given to the executors and receivers,
against heretics, and their effects ; that if any question should
arise concerning these things, they may be able, from those
registers, to detemiine it. Besides, they must be content with
their salary, and receive nothing for their writing, except the
* November 9, 1600. ^ Ex Gloss, in cap. Fraternitatus,
c Ibid. tit. 41. sect. 7, j*
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 1^5
notary of the forfeited effects, who may demand his lawful
dues, because he hath no salary. They must also travel at
their own expences within their proper province, to ratify the
depositions of the witnesses, the proof of the defences, and the
exceptions against the witnesses, as it is contained in a certain
decree of the council.'"* *
In the early periods of the inquisition, the appointment of
notaries was lodged with the bishop, and the inquisitors could
not appoint them. But by a rescript^ of Pius IV., beginning
Pastorahs Officii Cura, given A. D. 1561, Cal. 6th September,
it is provided that the inquisitors may, when they think it ne-
cessary by the apostolic authority, choose, assume, and create
notaries, one or more, either all clergymen or regulars of any
order.
When they are first chosen, they take an oath to act faith-
fully, and at every trial they are sworn to faithfulness and
secresy.
The writings of the holy inquisition are commanded to be
kept under three keys, which are to be in the hands of the
promoter fiscal and notaries, nor must they be read or she^vn
to any one, but in the presence of all, on pain of removal with-
out hope of pardon.
The notaries must attend the tribunal of the inquisition,
six hours every day. And if any one offends in his office, he
may be punished by fine, suspension of office, deprivation, or
banishment.'^
a C. ut Officium. sect, ad conscribenduna. de Laeret. lib. 6. 2 Instruct
Hispal. c. 13. and 4 Instruct. Tolet. c. 18.
b Pegna Com. ©7.
c Epist. dat. Granat. September 4, 1499, and 4 Instruct. Tolet. cap. 28
and 13.
O 2
196 HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION.
CHAP. VII,
Of the Judge and Receiver ofilie confiscated Effects.
" HE who is chosen judge of the confiscated effects, must
be an honest man, and skilful in the law, not of Jewish ex-
tract, nor of the Mahometan, nor of an heretical one, but one
who may be capable of discharging the office of assessor. =* His
office is, to judge between the treasury and private persons, in
causes relating to the effects of heretics. But he may also take
cognizance between private persons, when theii cause hath any
connection with the other. An appeal lies from his sentence to
the senate, but not to any other judges. But if the dispute is
between the treasury and the church defendant, or between
ecclesiastical persons, or concerning the revenues of benefices,
the inquisitors are to take cognizance of it, as is more fully con-
tained in one of the resolutions of the senate. The inquisitor
general, by advice of the senate, chooses this judge and all the
other ministers.
" He is generally called in Spain the Receiver, whom in
Italy they call the Treasurer of the Holy Office.'" He receives
the confiscated effects, and by command of the king is procura-
tor of the treasury, demands, defends, and sells the confiscated
goods, and pays the salaries and other expences of the holy
office. He who is chosen to the office, must be an honest and
wealthy person, capable of making up and reporting his ac-
counts, and must give proper sureties to pay all his deficiences.
He is to be chosen by the inquisitors, according to Carena.*^
" It belongs to the office of the receiver to be present at the
sequestration of goods, which cannot be done but by the pre-
vious command of the inquisitors. It must be performed by
the executor, in presence of the receiver, and notary of the
sequestrations, and some other notary ; and all the goods of the
criminals, which are found in their possession, or are in the
» Simanc. tit. 41. sect. 4. * Ibid. tit. 43. sect. 1, A:c.
c p. 1 t. 13. n. 1.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 197
hands of others, are to be written down severaDy in a catalogue
or inventory, two copies of which are to be made out, each
notary to have one.* All the effects are to be delivered to the
sequestrator, with an inventory subscribed by the executor,
and the said sequestrator and the notaries, one copy of which
is to be kept by the notary of the sequestrations. The seques-
trator is to be chosen by the executor and receiver, who must
be a sufficient citizen, not of kin to the heretic, nor of an evil
race. But when the process is formed against any person dead,
his effects must not be dehvered to the sequestrator, but taken
an account of, and sealed up, and left with the possessors under
good securities. If any other person's effects are with those of
the heretics, they must be immediately delivered to the owners.
Debts also must be paid out of the eflPects delivered in to the
sequestrator, without waiting for the issue of the whole cause.
Finally, If the criminal be absolved, all his effects must be im-
mediately dehvered to him.'' As to perishable effects, and
which may grow worse by keeping, and such also as are too
chargeable to keep, viz. Cattle and slaves, the receiver must sell
them by command of the inquisitors, without whose permission
nothing can be done.
" When the necessary expences are deducted, the surplus
money which remains out of the sale of the effects, is to be de-
posited with the sequestrator, of which the receiver must touch
nothing till the criminal is condemned. As to other things
which may be kept, they are to be hired out at reasonable
prices by the receiver and sequestrator. But these and other
the confiscated effects, must not be sold but by auction, and then
go to the best bidder. The same is to be observed as to the
effects which are hired out. ^ In these sales the receiver must
use great fidelity and diligence, and though he promises after
the rate of two or three per cent, for the recovery of any
effects, yet when they are recovered, he must allow only one.
" When the heretic is condemned, the sequestrator must
immediately deliver all the effects to the receiver before two
» 2 Instruct. Hispal. cap. 8. ^4 lustnrct, Tolet. cap. 22.
c 2 Instruct. Hispal. cap. 9.
o 3
198 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
notaries, nor can he receive or sell any thing but in their
presence. But the judge of the confiscated effects may at the
instances of the receiver give notice by the criers of the future
auction. If any one thinks himself to be concerned in it, he
may, when he knows the effects are to be sold, come to the
judge and demand his own, and sue for his right. If no one
comes, the immoveable effects are to be sold, and to be put up
to sale by auction the thirtieth day, after the pubhc notices, and
other customary things of the city, before the receiver and other
parties concerned.^
" As to those effects which are disputed, they must not be
sold by the receiver, till the suit is finished. As to effects
that are pawned, the receivers may sell them, not so as to
prejudice the right of the creditors ; but if the effects amount
to more than the debt, they must be sold, and the former
creditors first paid, and the remainder carried into the trea-
sury.^ However, the sale of the forfeited effects is not to be
deferred upon account of actions, that do not appear to have
any just foundation, but such effects are to be sold, and such
a sum must be deposited in the sequestrator's hands, that is
equal to the value of the debt sued for, and the charges of the
suit. Farther, if there be any effects which are to be in
common between the treasury and others, they must be divid-
ed, if it can be done conveniently : if it cannot, and it appears
better to sell them entire and without division, the treasury
hath the privilege to order ail of them to be sold by the
receiver, although the least part belongs to it, but must receive
no more than its proper debt, and pay the remainder to the
other creditors.^
" The receivers must omit none of these things ; if they do,
they incur the sentence of excommunication, and are to be
fined 100 pieces of gold, and make good all losses to the trea-
sury.*'
^' The receivers of one province must not seize on the effects
©f heretics which belong to other receivers, but give them
a 4 Instruct. Tolet. cap. 24. ^ Ibid. cap. 23. « Ibid»
d eod, cap. 23.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 199
more certain notice of sucli effects; otherwise they are deprived
of their office, and pay the loss, and double more. '
" All the monies received by the sequestrator, and the money
that arises from the sale of the effects, the receivers must de-
posit within three days after into the public chest, which must
be locked up with three keys, which the holy senate hath
ordered under excommunication, and a fine.
" The receivers of the treasury cannot forgive any monies
to debtors, and if any are forgiven by them, they are re-
claimed ; nor can they make any bargain or composition with
them,''
CHAP. VIII.
' Of the Executor and Officials of the Inquisition.
" THE executor is he who executes the commands of the
inquisitors.*^ His office is principally to apprehend and keep
in custody, criminals, whom he is obliged to pursue, if they
are at a distance, and to put in irons, and to be content with his
appointed salary. But if it be needful for the familiars to at-
tend him, they must have a salary appointed by the inquisitors,
to be paid by the receiver out of the treasury. And as he is
a mere executor of a command, he must carefully keep within
his bounds, and punctually execute the order of the judges.—
These they also call apparitors and pursevants.''''
Their office is the same with theirs who are otherwise called
officials, concerning whom Innocent IV.*" hath ordained these
things, by a constitution, beginning. Ad extirpanda, as they are
all placed in order, in a book, entitled, " The Manner of pro-
ceeding against heretics, ascribed to John Calderine.''
*' Let the governor or ruler be obliged, within three days
a 2 Instruct, cap. 2. ''4 Instruct, cap. 23.
c Simanca, tit. 41. sect. 5. «* 4 Instruct. Tolet. cap. 26.
« Bzovius, A. 1252, sect. 3.
o 4t
SOO HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
after his entrance into his government, to appoint twelve ho-
nest and Catholic men, and two notaries, and two servitors, or
as many as shall be necessary, whom the diocesan, if present,
and willing to be concerned, and two friars predicants, and two
minorites, deputed to this service by their priors, if there should
be there convents of the said order, shall think proper to be
chosen. Such persons, when appointed and chosen, may and
ought to take up heretical men and women, to seize on their
effects, and to cause them to be seized on by others, and to
cause that these things be fully done, as well in the city, as in
his whole jurisdiction and district, and to bring them, and cause
them to be brought, into the power of the diocesan or his
vicars.
*' Let their office continue only during six months, after
which let the governor be obhged to substitute so many other
officials, according to the prescribed form, who may execute
the aforesaid office, according to the said form, for the six
months next following.
" But let them not be compelled to any other office or em-
ployment, that doth, or may in any manner, hinder the said
office, nor let any statute made, or to be made, hinder, by any
means, their office.
" Let full credit be given to these aforesaid officials, con-,
cerning all things which are known to belong to their office,
without requiring from them any special oath, or admitting any
proof to the contrary, when two or more of them shall be pre-
sent. Farther, when these officials are chosen, let them swear
to execute all these things faithfully, and according to their
power, and to speak nothing but the truth concerning all these
things, so that they may be more fully obeyed in all things ap-
pertahiing to their office, and let the said twelve and their ser-
vitors, and the before appointed notai'ies, together or separate-
ly, have full power of commanding, upon pain of punishment
and the ban, (or curse) all things appertaining to their office, and
let the governor or ruler, be obliged to confirm and ratify, all
their commands which they shall give relating to their office,
and punish those who do not observe them.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. SOI
" Farther, let the governor be obUged to send with their
officials, one of his soldiers, or some otlier assistant, if the dio-
cesan, or his vicar, or the inquisitors deputed by the apostolic
see, or the said officials shall demand it ; and let such soldier
faithfidly execute his office with them. Let every one also,
if he be present, or required, whether in the city jurisdiction
or district, be obliged to grant to these officials or their com-
panions, counsel and assistance, when they will apprehend,
seize the effiscts of, or make enquiry concerning any heretical
man or woman, or enter into any house or place, or passage,
to take heretics, under the punishment of twenty-five imperial
pounds, or the ban. Let every corporate town be obliged to
it, under the penalty of an hundred pounds and ban, and a
village under the penalty of fifty, to be paid every time in
ready money."
Alexander IV. A. D. 1255, wrote to the inquisitors of Ligu-
ria,* and Insubria,** " That the aforesaid officials may command
any city, borough, or village, under the penalty and ban of
1200 marks of silver and more, at the pleasure of the governor
of such place, that they shall present, within a competent time
fixed, to the governor, or diocesan, or his vicar, or the inqui-
sitors of heretics, all heretical men and women, which the said
officials shall signify to them. And the governor of such place
shall be obliged to exact this punishment from all who do not
observe this order.""
Innocent IV. adds in the same bull, " That if any loss shall at
any time happen to the said officials, in their persons and ef-
fects, in executing their office, they shall be indemnified with
full restitution by such city, or place, and that the said officials,
or their heirs, shall not at any time, be sued for any thing they
have done, or belonging to their office, any farther than as the
said diocesan and friars think fit.
" And if the aforesaid diocesan or friars shall think fit to re-
move any one of the said officials, for being unskilful or impro-
per, or for any engagement, or excess, the governor or chief
» Containing the towns of Geneva, Nina, Vintimilia, Albenga, Polenza,
AWiTi, Aste, Aich, Tbrtona, nnil Voghcra.
^ Containiny Milau, Lcdi, ('!ema> ao'l Mons'n.
202 HISTORY OF THE IINQUISITION.
officer shall be obliged to remove him at their command and
appointment, and to substitute another in his place, according
to the prescribed form.
'' But if any one of them shall, contrary to his oath, or duty
of his office, be found to have favoured heresy; besides the
mark of perpetual infamy which he shall incur, a^ a favourer
of heretics, let him be punished by the governor or chief offi-
cer, at the pleasure of the Diocesan of the place and the said
friars."
CHAP. IX.
Of the Familiars or Attendants.
INNOCENT III. granted large indulgences and privileges
to those, who should accompany or assist the inquisitor, in his
making inquisition against and punishing heretics, that this
newly appointed office might have the more happy success. —
Hence the soldiers, who were assistants and helpers to the in-
quisitor, were commonly called familiars,* as belonging to the
inquisitor's family. In some provinces of Italy they are called
cross-bearers, and in others, the scholars of St. Peter the ]\Iar-
tyr, and they wear a cross before them upon the outside gar-
ment.
Anciently certain persons were appointed,^ whose office it
was to use all diligence in searching out heretics/ and to this
a The familiars are the bailiflfs of the Inquisition, which, though a vile of-
fice in all other criminal courts, is esteemed so honourable in this of the In-
quisition, that there is not a nobleman in the kingdom of Portugal that is not
in it, and such are commonly employed by the inquisitors to apprehend peo-
ple. Neither is it any wonder that persons of the highest quality desire to
be thus employed, since the same plenary indulgence is granted by the pope
to every single exercise of this office, as was granted by the Lateran council
to those who succoured the holy land.
Dr. Geddes's Tracts, vol. i. p. 425, 426.
b Pegna, Prox. Inq. cap. 5. sect. 3.
a When the familiar is sent for to apprehend any person, he hath the fol-
.lowing order put into his hand : — *' By the command of the reverend father
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 203
purpose they applied the decree of the council of Biterre, cap.
34. " In all parishes, as well within cities as without them,
let one priest, or two or three of the laity of good reputation,
or more if need be, be bound by oath to remove and change,
as often as it shall seem good to you (the inquisitors) who dih-
gently, faithfully, and frequently may search out heretics in vil-
lages, and find them when out of their houses, their subterraneous
shelters, huts, and fastnesses, and all other their liiding places,
all which let them cause to be stopped up or destroyed.'*—
" "Tlie familiars or cross-bearers ai'e now in their room : and
they are then especially in service, when the bishops or inqui-
sitors have dioceses bordering upon, and near to, the lands of
heretics, or persons suspected of heresy, so that a mutual com-
merce can scarce be avoided amongst them. For as then thev
may more reasonably be afraid, lest those who are subject to
them, and belong to their jurisdiction, should be infected and
corrupted by heretics, they ought to use the strictest dihgence
to know with whom heretics lodge, and into whose houses they
are received ; and whether any subject to them go to the neigh-
bouring towns of heretics, and for what cause, and whether
they have brought from thence the poison of heretical pravity,
by doctrines they have heard or read." So careful are they,
upon every occasion, that there shall not be the least dispute
about any of the doctrines of their church.
But now the familiars always accompany the inquisitors in
Spain, even though they are free from the danger which Pegna**
was so very sohcitous about. Simancas describes to us their
office and immunities.
N. an inquisitor of heretical pravity, let N. be apprehended and committed
to the prisons of this holy office, and not be released out of them, but by the
express order of the said reverend inquisitor." And if several persons are
to be taken up at the same time, the familiars are commanded so to order
things, that they may know nothing of one another's being apprehended.
And at this the familiars are so expert, that a father, and his three sons, and
three daughters, who lived together in the same house, were all carried pri-
soners to the Inquisition, without knowing any thing of one another's being
there until seven years afterwards, when they that were alive came forth in
an Ad of Faith. Geddes, vol. i. p. 429.
a Pegna, Prox. Inq. cap. 5, sect. 4, 5. ^ Tit. 11. sect. 15.
204 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
" The familiars or attendants are necessary to accompany
the inquisitors, and to defend them, if need be, from the insults
of heretics ; and to follow the executor when going to appre-
hend criminals ; and to do other things which the judges shall
think proper to fulfil the duty of the holy office of the Inquisi-
tion. The familiars are allowed to use arms, but must not
abuse them. Such as are to be chosen, must be good, peace-
able, and married men, as it is provided by a certain letter of
the council ; and no more must be admitted but what the
necessity of the office requires. *
*' The famiUars have no salaries, but are endowed with certain
privileges, their number is limited ; in the city of Toledo fifty ;
in Seville fifty ; in Grenada fifty ; — forty in Corduba, Cuence
and Valladolid ; at Calaborre and Irena twenty-five; in the city
of Murcia thirty. In every town of 300 burgesses six; in
those of 500 four, and in lesser towns two. But in every sea-
port or frontier town four.
'« The magistrates and governors must have a Hst of the fami-
liars, that they may know them, and in all ci\al causes they
may be cited before them, as if they were not famihars, though
in criminal causes, they cannot be punished by any but the
inquisitors, except for treason, rebellion, &c. ; and if any
difference should arise between the inquisitors and magistrates,
on this subject, the cause is to be referred to the king, when it
shall be dehvered over to those judges to whom it belongs,
without noise, or form of judgment.''
CHAP. X.
Of the Cross-Bearers.
BESIDES these familiars, there is another sort of them,
called cross-bearers, instituted by Dominic,** to whom he gave
• Clement. 2. sect. ult. de hseret.
b Carapcg. ID Zanch. cap. 9. f. 241. cap. 1.
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION. 205
such constitutions and laws for their direction, as obhges them
vio-orously to prosecute heretics, and when there is need, to
endeavour, witli the greatest violence, their destruction.
" They make a vow between the hands of the inquisitors to
defend the Cathohc faith, though with the loss of fortune and
life ; and may be compelled to perform their vow. The Popes
have honoured this fraternity with many graces, indulgences
and favours,'^ which may be seen at large in Campegius. Ber-
nai-d Comnensis gives us the main of them in his light of the
inquisitors.
" Their indulgence is," (1.) Their having a plenary remis-
sion of all their sins. This was granted by Alexander IV. in a
privilege beginning, Prcecunctis, and by Gregory IX. and
Clement IV. and also by the Extravagants.** But upon this
condition, that they vigorously prosecute their vow in aid of
the Inquisition, even to death. (2.) Every such cross-bearer
may be absolved by the Inquisition, from every sentence of
excommunication, suspension and interdict of a canon; and
from those especially which he may have incurred for the
burning of churches, or laying violent hands on ecclesiastical
persons, and from all other sentences generally promulgated by
the apostolic see. (3.) The Inquisition may dispense with these
cross-bearers, if of the clergy, for all irregularities they may
have contracted by celebrating divine service, when under any
canonical sentence. (4.) All their vows may be commuted for
by the inquisitors ; those only excepted of the holy land, and
which are perpetual. (5.) The inquisitors may allow them to
be present at divine services, and to receive the ecclesiastical
sacraments in such places where, by the apostolic indulgence,
they are allowed to be administered, in the time of a general
interdict. All these things appear by a privilege granted by
Innocent IV. which begins, Malitia, hujus temporis.'' These
privileges were confirmed by Pius V. by his constitution, begin-
nino". Sacrosandce Romance and universali Ecclesia^,'^ so
a In voce Indulgenlia cruce signatorum.
b De haeret. cap. exconimun. sect. Catholici vero.
• Dated October 13, 1.-570.
g06 HISTORY OF THE INaUISlTION.
far as they are not repugnant to the decrees of the council of
Trent.
From these privilege-s it appears,* that when the faithful are
to take the cross, their vow must be made only before the
inquisitors or their vicars ; and that tliey receive no advantage
from them, unless they have the inquisitors leave. These
things and the like, Campegius thinks, should be preached to
the cross-bearers, least they should pretend ignorance. For he
saith, " that he discovered many errors and abuses of these
cross-bearers, in a city, within his province of the Inquisition ;
for he found a large number of them, who did not enter into
this warfare by the door, nor receive the cross from any inquisi-
tor or vicar ; but that the very laics, the ministers of this same
fraternity, whom they call officials or massaries, wrote the
names of others that came to them in the book of the cross-
bearers ; and thus unjustly invaded the province of the Inqui-
sition." He adds moreover, " not being able to bear this, I
made a sermon on the cross, in the cathedral, according to the
ancient stile of the inquisitors, granting the usual indulgence to
the auditors ; and publicly admonished them of their public
error, and particularly explained what they ought hereafter to
do ; who upon discovery of the truth, submitted, after many
disputes, and the advice of advocates. For they would have
had, even against my will, that some of these should have
assisted at the examinations, as though it belonged to them of
right. Whereas I declared, that the inquisitor was the head
and captain of the cross-bearers, and therefore would not have
them preside over the inquisitors, but according to equity be
subject to it.
" The office of those cross-bearers is to provide the inquisi-
tors with necessaries ; ^ so that they are excommunicated if they
refuse to give money to the inquisitor, when he asks and wants
it for the service of the office of the Inquisition ; because
private persons, who have bound themselves by oath or vow,
are even by omission said to be favourers, viz. if they do not
manifest, or perform what they have promised by vow. '
* Campeg. cap. 37. fol. 267. verso.
^ Lucerna Iiiquis.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 207
These cross-bearers were heretofore of great use to the inqui-
tors.^ But in process of time, as there was no n6ed of arms to
subdue heretics, the name of this warfare grew into disuse ;
and with the change of some of their constitutions, they were
called, of the penance of St. Dominic, in honour of .their foun-
der. This rehgious order is the third of those instituted by
Dominic, the constitutions of which have been confirmed by the
Roman pontiffs.
CHAP. XI.
Of the Visitors of the iNauisiTORs.
'*' AS the office of the inquisitors and other ministers were
perpetual,^ it was necessary, that sometimes they should give
an account of their behaviour. Therefore there was a magis-
trate created to visit the inquisitors, and all the other minis-
ters, who was called the visitor. His office was to visit all the
provinces of the inquisitors, and report to the inquisitor general
and council whatever was proper to be amended. He was
strictly to keep to his instructions, not to be the guest of those
he visited, nor to receive any thing from them himself, or by
others. If one was not sufficient they might chuse more."
Simancas adds, that his great uncle, Francis Simancas, arch-
deacon of Cordova, enjoyed this office without any colleague.
But now they appoint visitors privately, as often as it is any
where necessary.*^
" All the ministers of the holy Inquisition are obliged to
swear before the inquisitors and bishops, or his vicar, that they
will faithfully discharge the trust committed to them. The
inquisitors, counsellors, and others also swear, that they will
faithfully conceal all secrets, which if any one dares to discover,
" Param. I. 2. t 3. c. 3. n. 7. b Simanc. tit. 41. sect. 27, 28.
c 4 Instruct. Tolet. r. 3. sect. 80, 31.
208 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOK.
he is to be deprived of his office, and to suffer other punishments,
according to the nature of his crime.
" It is also part of their instructions,* that the inquisitors,
and all other ministers, shall serve in the offices, by themselves,
and not by their substitutes ; the ministers are not to absent
themselves without leave of the inquisitors, which must not
extend to above twenty days. If any one is longer absent, or
goes without leave, he must be deprived of his salary, his
absence is to be noted, and his salary not paid by the receiver,
without first inspecting the book of defaults, according to seve-
ral letters of the council.
" Farther,'' no one must be a minister of this holy office in any
province where the inquisitor is either kin to him, or his Lord.
It is also prohibited for any minister to intermeddle in any
negociation, either by himself or others. He w^ho contravenes
this order is to be deprived of his office, and fined 20000 pieces.
He who doth not discover this is to be excommunicated.'^
'• If any lesser crime be committed by those ministers,"^ they
may be punished by the inquisitors. If their offence be more
grievous, it must be reported to the inquisitor general and coun-
cil, that if the case requires it,*^ they may be deprived of their
office/ It is also proliibited by the same instructions for any
one to be in two offices, or enjoy two salaries."?
CHAP. XII.
Ccyncerning the Duty or powei' of every Magistrate.
THUS far we have treated of the ministers which belong
to the Inquisition of heretics. The civil magistrate hath no
a 4 Instruct, To'.et.'c 3. sect. 35, 36. b Ibid. sect. 38.
c 4 Instruct. Tolet. cap. 13. fol. 21. And at the end of all the written
and printed instructions.
d 4 Instruct. Tolet. c. 3. sect. 39. ^ ibid. sect. 40.
f 1 Instruct. Hispal. c. 27. g 4 Instruct. Tolet. cap. 18-
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITIOX. 209
part in this affair; for he is entirely excluded from all cogniz-
ance of the crime of heresy. Thus Simancas* teaches : " the
cognizance of heresy solely belongs to the ecclesiastical judge,
because this is a crime committed against the faith and religion ;
for as to those crimes which the secular administration knows
nothing of, and which are declared such by the Christian reli-
gion, such as heresy, schism, and others of the like sort, the
ecclesiastical judge only hath cognizance of them. And
therefore to whatsoever branch of the secular judgment the
cognizance of such crimes may at any time happen, it must be
immediately referred to the ecclesiastical judges.
" It is more largely forbidden by the royal laws at this day
in Spain,^ that no one of the sectilar judges, of whatsoever
dignity and power, shall by any means presume to take cogniz-
ance even of those civil or criminal causes which belong to the
inquisitors, and the judges of forfeited effects ; no not under
pretence of relieving persons oppressed by violence, which, in
other cases would be a most wholesome and present remedy to
redress the grievances of the ecclesiastical judges. However,
if any will appeal in the before-mentioned causes, they must
apply to the council of the holy general Inquisition. This
royal command was dated at Burgos, March 7, 1508, and
renewed 1553.""
However, they stand in need of the arms and power of the
magistrate, for the punishment of heretics, and that they may
execute the sentences pronounced against them. For it is not
lawful for ecclesiastical persons to kill any one. Therefore they
desire to have all magistrates obedient to their commands, and
to have no liberty of conscience granted by them to heretics,
but insist on their being ready and prepared to draw their
swords against heretics at the Pope's command.*^ This is the
doctrine of Maldonet, explaining the parable of the tares sown
amongst the wheat. For after he hath said that the Calvinists
and Lutherans are to be cut off as manifest heretics, he adds
these things ; " Not that I speak thus, as though I had not
' Tit. 86. sect. 1. b Ibid. sect. 2.
'- Comment, in Mat xiii. 26
P
210 HISTOUY OF THE IXaUISITIOK.
rather liave them converted than put to death. All that I
intend is to admonish princes, or because princes may not read
tliese things, those who can advise them, that it is not lawful
for them to grant heretics those liberties of conscience, as they
are called, too much in use, in our days, unless first of all the
church, or the Roman pontiff, who is the head of the church,
the person of Christ, and as it were the father of the family,
shall judge, that the tares cannot be plucked up unless the
wheat also be destroyed ; and that it is for the advantage of
the church to permit both to grow together till the harvest.
In this matter princes, who are but the servants of the father
of the family, are not to judge, but the father of the family
himself, i. e. the governor of the church. Nor should princes
ask the father of the family, that he would suffer both to grow
till the harvest, but whether it be his pleasure that they should
go and pluck up the tares. They ought to be so affected and
prepared, as to need rather to be restrained than incited by the
father of the family.""
But because there is but seldom such a readiness in kings
and princes to extirpate heretics, the ecclesiastics are incessantly
urging them on till they have prevailed on them to yield to
them all things. Farther, they affirm that this is the duty of
the Pope and the other bishops, as we read in Gonrad Brunus,*
in his book of heretics and schismatics.^
a L. 3. c 8. sect. 1.
b It belongs to the duty of the Roman pontiff and the other bishops, dili-
gently to admonish the emperor, and other kings and princes, under whose
government there arise heresies and schisms, as often as tliere is need •, first,
that they preserve the true and Catholic religion and faith, and observe the
commands of God ; and secondly, that they every where suppress and extin-
guish heretical impicfy, by the discipline and rigour of the secular power,
which the sacerdotal office cannot do by their doctrine and ecclesiastical
censures. Thus Pope Leo implored the assistance of the emperor against
heretics, in his 55tli letter to the emperor Martian, and 36th to the empress
Pulcheria, and 23rd to the emperor Theodosius II. It belongs also to the
care and concern of the Pope, to take certain good and faithful men in the
court of every prince, who may enquire out heretics, and every thing that
belongs to the defence of the Catholic faith, and the preservation of unity }
and put the prince in mind of whatsoever is necessary to peace, and inform
the Pope of all such transactions whatsoever; as we find it in the 34th and
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 211
But not content with this, the Popes, by their decrees, bulls
and rescripts, command all magistrates whatsoever, to yield all
assistance to the inquisitors, severely threatening them with the
most grievous punishments, if they are wanting to their duty.
All wnich things are laid together in the book concerning the
form of proceeding against heretics, generally ascribed to John
Calderine.
These constitutions wholly subject the secular magistrate to
the inquisitors, who bid them draw their sword at their plea-
sure, and readily execute their commands with a blind obe-
dience.
CHAP. XIII.
Of the Privileges of the iNauisiTORS.
AS we have briefly described the offices of all the ministers
of the Inquisition, it remains now that we treat more fully
and distinctly of the inquisitors, who are the chief of all
We will therefore give an account of their privileges and
power.
The privileges of the inquisitors are many and great, which
the popes of Rome have granted them with a hberal hand, that
they may more cheerfully perform their duty, and vigorously
execute the laws made against heretics.
Urban IV.^ by a bull, beginning, Ne Inquisitionis negotium,
oi-ants the inquisitors, " that no delegate of the apostolic see,
or sub-delegate under him, no conservator, or executor deput-
ed by the said apostolic see, or hereafter to be deputed, shall
be able to publish the sentence of excommunication, suspension
or interdict against them, or their four notaries or wi'iters faith-
fully obeying them in these matters, whilst they shall be
80th letters of Leo to bishop Julian, the 55th to thcemperoi Martian, and 73d
to the emperor Leo.
a Eymer. p. 3. Q. 21.
212 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
engaged in the prosecution of this affair, without the special
command of the aforesaid see, making full and express mention
of this indulgence ; and he decrees every things done contrary
hereto to be null and void." This privilege is granted them,
that the causes of religion may not be forsaken or hindered by
the excommunication of the inquisitors, and other ministers of
the office, and heretics in the mean while go unpunished by such
hindrances of their judges.
He hath granted the same also by a special privilege to the
inquisitors of the orders of predicants and minors, that they
may not be hindered by their superiors in the causes of
faith.*
It is also granted to the inquisitors in favour of the faith,^
that when they cannot, without loss of time, and danger to the
affair, have recourse to their superiors, who, in such places
may laAvfully execute justice, they may require the temporal
lords, and their officials, though excommunicated, to afford
them their assistance and favour, according to theu' office,
without incurring themselves the penalty of excommunica-
* If it should so happen that the master and minister general, and other
priors and ministers provincial, and keepers and guardians of other places of
3^ our order, shall, under pretence of certain privileges or indulgences of the
same apostolic see granted to the said orders, or hereafter to be granted,
enjoin, or in any manner command you, or any one or more of you, that you
supersede this affair for a time, or as to certain articles, or certain persons;
we by our apostolic authority do strictly prohibit you, and all and singular
of yon, that ye do not presume in this, or by any means whatsoever, to obey
and submit to them. For we, by the tenor of these present, do revoke all
such privileges or indulgences, as far as relates to this article, and do wholly
pronounce null and void all sentences of excommunication, interdict and
suspension, if it shall so happen that they have been pronounced against
you, or any of you, upon this occasion. For if the aforesaid see doth some-
times give commission, under a certain form, by its letters to any prelates of
your orders, that they shall be able to take certain friars of their orders to
execute the office of the Inquisition against heretical pravity, and to remove
them when they think expedient, and to substitute others, yet by this there
is no faculty, jurisdiction or power granted them in this affair, immediately
committed, or to be committed to you by the aforesaid see, because the
•nly reason why such commission in such part is granted them is, that they
are presumed to have a more full knowledge of the fitness of the friars of
their own order.
»' Eymer. p. 3. Q. 22.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 213
tion:* "though they require such excommunicated persons,
they shall not therefore incur the sentence of excommuni-
cation.'' Agreeable to this, although tlie acts of tyrants are in
law void and null, yet in favour of the faith, if a ^tyrant, or any
other unjust lord, by command of the inquisitors, doth any thing
against heretics, it is valid.
Tlie inquisitors only, and not the ordinaries, can publish
edicts against heretics, l^hus a certain edict, pubhshed by
command of the ordinary, during the time of Lent, was
' revoked. ^
Likewise the inquisitors only, and no others, can absolve
from excommunication for heresy contracted, by virtue of a
jubilee, or letters of the apostolic see,'^ and even from the sen-
tence of excommunication, which the Pope himself pronounces
against them at the festival of the sacrament.
The inquisitors can excommunicate, suspend, and interdict.^
They can also command any presbyter with cure or without,
to publish monitory letters made by him, and denounce before
the people the persons excommunicated by them. And if he
refuses to do it, they may punish such Presbyter, not only with
a censure, but with some other punishment.
Persons under excommunication or interdict by the inquisi-
tor, cannot be absolved by the ordinary, or any other person,
without the command of the Pope, except in the article of
death.
The inquisitors may apprehend hereties,^ though they fly to
churches ; nor can the bishops hinder them from this under
any pretence. As John XXII. hath decreed by a constitution,
beginning, Ex parte vestra.
The inquisitor may prohibit the secular judge from proceed-
ing against any person upon account of any processes made by
the inquisitor himself,^ or upon occasion of any confession made
before such inquisitor.^
a Per cap. Piasidentes de haeret. 1. 6. , " Pegna, co/n. 71.
c Royas, p. 2. sect. 425. " Ibid. sect. 416.
• Pegna, Lucern. Inq. in voce Excommunira. Lucern. in voce Inq. liaerpiav.
f Ibid, in voce Excommunicatus.
6 Careua, p. 1. t. 5. n. 90. Lucern, in voce Index.
^ See cap. Tuam. de ordi. cogni.
p3
^14 HISTORY OF THE INatJiSlTlON.
Whosoever by himself or other shall kill, or beat, or strike
any of the inquisitors or officials of the holy office,* he is to be
dehvered over to the secular court without any charge of
irregularity, according to the grant of Pope Leo X.'' The
aforesaid grant is now extended to those who damage the
effects of the inquisitors, or officials, by the proper motion of
Pius V.=
Likewise the inquisitors receive the entire fruits of their
benefices,'' together with the daily distributions, when ab-
sent; as appears in the letters of Paul III. and Pius V. which
are in the first volume of the letters of the Inquisition in
Valentia.^
The pensions reserved by the apostolic authority to the holy
office, *^ are free from the payment of the fifteenth, as the su-
preme congregation of the holy office hath declared,^ for the
inquisitor at Pavia against the chapter of the metropolitan
church at Milan. The Pope hath also often declared that
the benefices united to the Inquisitions are free from payment
of the tenths.
They are also free from all real and personal offices,* and
even fi:om the law of the generality, by a special royal privilege,
which is also extended to some of the oflicials, as is more fully
contained in the said first volume.*
Lodgings, provisions, and other necessaries,'^ are to be pro-
vided for the inquisitors and their officials at a just price, accord-
ing to the tenor of the privilege of queen Joan.
The inquisitors may make statutes against heretics,^ and en-
crease tbe punishments against them.
They may also carry witnesses above two days journey.
Farther, Urban IV.'" hath granted another privilege to the
inquisitors, that they may absolve themselves and their assis-
tants, and dispense with themselves as to their irregularity.
a Royas, p 2. sect. 419. ^ Daled at Florence, Jan. 28, 1515.
«= Dated at Rome, 1569. *! Ibid. sect. 420. ^ Fol. 308.
f Carena, p. 1. t. 5. n. 97. g Jan. 4. 1622. l^ Ibid sect. 421.
' Fol. 288. •= Carena, p. 1. t. 5 n. 424, ' Ibid. 440.
"* Eymer. p. 3. qu. l3
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 215
** That you may more freely promote the affair of the faith,
we grant you by the authority of these present, that if it should
happen that you, and the friars of your order, your assistants,
should in any cases, by human frailty, incur the sentence of
excommunication and irregularity, or remember that you have
incurred it ; since you cannot easily, on this account, have
recourse to your priors, because of the office enjoined you, you
may mutually absolve one another upon these accounts,
according to the form of the church, and by our authority
may dispense with yourselves, in cases in which the said priors
can do it by grant of the apostolic see." They can likewise
absolve their servants and familiars from excommunication
for apprehending any one upon account of their office, as
Innocent IV. says in a bull, beginning, Devotionis vestroe.
But there are three cases in which the inquisitors cannot
mutually absolve themselves. The first is, when they have
omitted to proceed against any one they ought to have pro-
ceeded against. The second, when they have falsely charged
any one with heresy, or said that they have hindered the holy
office, who in reality have not.^ But the inquisitors are not
^ But because it is very heinous not to aet for the extirpation of tlie afore-
said pravity, when such infectious wickedness requires it, it is also very hei-
nous, and most worthy of condemnation, maliciously to charge innocent per-
sons with such pravity. We therefore command the aforesaid bishop and
inquisitor, and others substituted by them to execute the said office, in virtue
of their holy obedience, and under the thrcatning of eternal damnation, that
they proceed so discreetly and readily against persons suspected or defamed
for such pravity, that they do not maliciously or fraudulently, falsely charge
any one with so great a crime, or with hindering them in the execution of the
office of the Inquisition. But if through hatred, favour, or love, or with a
view of any temporal gain or profit, the bishop or superior shall omit to pro-
ceed against any one, contrary to justice and their conscience, when they
ought to proceed upon such pravity ; or with the same view shall charge any
one with such pravity, or hindering the office, and upon this account shall by
any means presume to trouble him, besides other punishments to be inflicted
on tliem, according to the quality of the fault, such bislioj) or superior shall
liereby incur the sentence of suspension from his office for three years, and
others the sentence of excommunication. From which sentence of excommu-
nication, those who incur it shall not obtain the benefit of absolution from
any one but the pope himself, except in the article of death, and not then
without satisfaction made, any privilege whatsoever to the contrary notwith-
standing. Clement, de hajret. cap. multorum. sect, vernmquia.
P 4
216 HISTORY OF THE Il^aUISITION.
subject to this penalty, if they omit to proceed through igno-
rance, but only when they know they ought to have proceeded,
and have then omitted to proceed through hatred, favour, love,
money, or entreaty, contrary to justice and their own conscience ;
or, on the other hand, have proceeded when they ought not.
The third case is, when they have unlawfully extorted money,
under pretence of their office, or have confiscated the effects
of the church for the offences of the clergy.^
Amongst the privileges of the inquisitors it is not the least,**
that the inquisitor hath power of granting an indulgence of
twenty or forty days, as he shall see fit, to all that are truly
penitent, and confessed, and who attend on his sermon made
for the faith, according to the rescript of Innocent, Clement,
Alexander, and Urban IV. pras cunctis. They can also release
from the penances enjoined them, for three years, all the com-
panions and friars of the inquisitor, and also his notaries, who
have laboured together with them in the prosecution of this
affair, and who have, from their hearts, personally afforded as-
sistance, counsel, and favour, against heretics, their favourers,
receivers, and defenders. And if any of them should happen
to die in the prosecution of this business, they grant them full
pardon of all their sins, for which they are contrite in heart,
and confess with their mouth.*^ Pegna tells us, that the cross-
• a Clement de liaeret. rap. nolentes. We also do more strictly enjoin all
their commissaries whatsoever, as well as those of bishops and chapters,
during the vacancy of the see, deputed for this affair, that they shall not ex-
tort money from any persons by any unlawful means whatsoever, under pre-
tence of the office of the Inquisition ; and that they shall not knowingly at-
tempt to confiscate to the rhurch the church's eJBfects, for any offence of the
clergy. And if any act contrary to these things, or any one of them, we
decree that they shall be actually excommunicated, from which they shall not
be absolved, unless in the article of death, till they have made full satisfaction
to those from whom they have extorted money : all privileges, agreements, or
remissions whatsoever to the contrary notwithstanding.
b Eymer, 3. part, qu, 127, com. 176
' c Thus Gregory IX. in his rescript, beginning, Ille humani generis : "Add
to these things, in order to their more freely and effectually executing the
office committed to them in all the premises, we, confiding in the mercy of
Almighty God, and in the authority of the blessed Peter and Paul, his apos-
tles, do release for three years from the penance enjoined them, all who shall
HISTORY OF THE I^JQUISITION. 217
bearers enjoy this privilege to this day, and they are the same
with the famihars in Spain, who are at the command of the
inquisitors, and execute all things they order them, to promote
this holy office, the propagation of the faith, and the extirpa-
tion of heretical pravity. But as there are extant, "" the bulls
of five popes, who every one of them grant these tliree years
of indulgences, some infer from hence, that these three years
of indulgences are to be added together, and therefore that
indulgences of fifteen years are granted to all who promote the
office of the Inquisition, for every time and instance. And
Pegna, who believed once that the indulgences of tlie former
popes were only confirmed by the bulls of the latter, says there
is reason to add them to one another.
But to the inquisitors themselves, is granted a plenary indul-
gence in life and death, by a rescript of Alexander IV. be-
ginning, Firmissime teneat.^
attend on their (_tlie i.iquisitors) preaching, twenty days in their several sta-
tions ; and all those who shall, from their heart, afford assistance, counsel,
and favour to the subduing of heretics, and their favourers, receivers, and
defenders, in their fortified places aud castles, or any other that rebel against
the church. And if any such should happen to die in the prosecution of this
affair, we grant them full pardon of all their sins, for which they are contrite
in their heart, and which they confess with their mouths.''
Eymer. 3 part. qu. 127. com. 178. . i
a Lucern. Inq. in voc. Induigentia eorumqui.
b It reads thus : — " By the mercy of Almighty God, and confiding in the
authority of his blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, we grant unto you, being
truly penitent, and confessed, full pardon of your sins." And by a rescript
of Urban IV. and Clement IV. beginning, Prae cunctus : — " And to you who
labour ,in this affair, we grant you that pardon of sins, which was granted in
a general council, to those who succour the holy land." Tiiis indulgence
was granted by Innocent III. in the Lateran council at Rome, Anno 1215,
and runs thus: — "In order to recover the holy land, &c. we, trusting in
the mercy of Almighty God, and in the authority of the blessed apostles,
Peter and Paul, by that power of binding and loosing, which God hath con-
ferred upon ns, though unworthy, do grant to all who undertake this labour
in their own persons, and at their own proper expence, full pardon of all
their sins, for which they shall be duly contrite in heart, and confess with
their moutiis, and do promise them an increase of eternal salvation, at the
letribution of the just. And as to those who shall not go thither in their own
persons, but only shall appoint proper persons, according to their ability and
faculty, maintaining them at their own expences ; and as to those also who
go thit'ier in dieit own persons, though at the expence of others, we grant
218 HISTORY or THE INQUISITIO.V.
This plenary indulgence the repertory of the Inquisition ex-
tends so far,^ as that the inquisitors shall not only obtain it
once in their lives, but by all perfect acts whatsoever, that are
celebrated against heretics, in favour and to the praise of the
faith.
CHAP. XIV.
Of the Amplitude o/^^/i^ Jurisdiction o/* //if iNauisiTORs.
BECAUSE the inquisitors are judges delegated by the pope
in the cause of faith, that all heresy may be wholly extirpated
according to the pope's pleasure, power is given them in favour
of the faith, of proceeding against all sorts of persons whatso-
ever. Few only are excepted. The inquisitor cannot proceed
against the officials and legates of the apostolic see, nor against
bishops ; but he may give notice of their crimes to the aposto-
hc see.** John XXII. ordained the same, when Matthew de
Pontiniano, a predicant, inquisitor of heretical pravity, in the
kingdom of Sicily, pronounced sentence of excommunication
against G. de Bale to, archdeacon of Forli, and chaplain to the
pope.* But Pius IV. by an Extravagant beginning, Romanus
Pontvfex, in the year 1563, ordained, that the cardinals inqui-
sitors general over all Christendom, might proceed against bi-
shops, and all other prelates whatsoever, and admonish and
cite them, and require their personal attendance within a cer-
tain term, and that under grievous penalties ; that so, when
tliem full pardon of all their sins. We also will and grant, that all shall be
partakers of the same remission, according to the nature of their assistance,
and the affection of theii devotion, who shall agreeably minister of their sub-
stance towards the relief of the said holy land, or shall give proper counsel
or advice in the aforesaid matters. The holy and universal synod also doth
unanimously bestow the assistance of their prayers and blessings upon all in
common, who piously proceed in this work, that it may worthily profit thera
to salvation.''
a Jn verb. Indulg, sect. Item. Inquisitores.
b Extrav. de haeret. c. 3. and cap. Inquisitores. de haeret. lib. 6
*= Bzoviu«, A. 1326, sect. 9.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 219
the process is formed, it may be reported to the most holy
lord, and that the deserved and just punishment may be pub-
hshed against tliem.
As to such rehgious as were exempt, there was formerly
a great variety about the power of proceeding against tliem.*
For Alexander IV. by a certain rescript, beginning, Ne com-
misoe vohis, Anno 12G0, ordained, that the inquisitors should
proceed, without distinction, against all manner of religious
and exempt persons whatsoever. The same also was ordained
by others. But Pius II. about the year 1460, granted to the
vicar of the order of the friars minors, that he should make
inquisition, and punish his own friars, suspected concerning the
faith, or of heresy. A few years after, Sixtus ordained by a
golden bull, beginning. Sacri Prcedicatorum ; which may be
seen in the book of the privileges of the predicant order, fol.
163, that the "predicants shall not proceed against the friars
minors, nor the minors against the predicants, in those places
where they exercise the office of the Inquisition. A few years
after this, Innocent VIII. forbad all the inquisitors to proceed
in any manner, or make inquisition against the friars minors, as
appears from the apostolic letters written about this affair, con-
tained in a book entitled, " Fundamentum trium Ordinum
beati Francisci.''
But whereas these immunities were sometimes manifestly
dangerous to the faith, the latter pope subjected all religious
or otherwise exempted persons, in the cause of faith, as formerly,
to the iniquisitors of heretical pravity. Thus Clement VII. by
a rescript, beginning. Cum siciit ; and Pius IV. by another,
beginning, Pastoi'is cenibits :^ for which reason it was declared,
by Charles V. emperor in Spain, that the soldiers of St. James,
if they should. happen to be heretics, are not exempted from
the ordinary jurisdiction, nor from that of the inquisitors. The
same rule also is entirely to be observed as to the soldiers of
St. John, and as to all others whatsoever.
• In some particular religions, the order is prescribed, whicli
must be observed in denouncing heretical or suspected friars;
a Diiect. par. 3. qu 28. com. 77. ^ Simanr. lit. 31. sect. 32.
220 HISTORY OF THE INaUlSITION.
whereby the prior of the convent must make the denunciation
to the provincial, the provincial to the general, and the general
to the office of the Inquisition. But that this circuitous
way may be avoided, when this method cannot be so conve-
niently observed, the prior alone may make the denunciation,
or other in his room upon his absence, that the cause of faith
may not be delayed.
But although the inquisitors may thus proceed against all
rehgious and exempt persons, yet there are some rehgious
against whom private inquisitors are not easily allowed to pro-
ceed, because of the prerogative of their dignity. Such are
the masters general of orders, of the predicants, minors, and
the like ; and also the masters general of the military religions.
When such are to be proceeded against, the proper way is,
first to inform the inquisitors general, who, upon taking cog-
nizance of the cause, must decree what is necessary to be done,
unless the criminal attempts to escape, and there appears dan-
ger in delay.
Farther, the inquisitor hath power to proceed against priests.*
^' Moreover, the priests and others of the clergy, who shall be
found to hinder the office of the inquisition, either by instruct-
ing heretics and their believers, when cited, to conceal the
truth, or speak falsehood, or by endeavouring unlawfully to
deliver them, may in such cases, since it is certain they act in
favour of heretical pravity, be restrained by the inquisitors, and
chastised with deserved punishment, either by seizing their
persons, or otherwise, as the fault of the criminal shall re-
quire.'*'
And finally. They may proceed against all kicks whatsoever,
without distinction, infected, suspected, or defamed of heresy,
of every condition, not excepting princes and kings. In the
latter case they think it safer, when they proceed against princes
and nobles that are heretics, or suspected of heresy, to consult
the pope, according to whose will, and manner prescribed by
him, they must proceed against them : not for that they think
any deference is due to nobility, which is forfeited by heresy,
" Direct. Par. 3. Qu* 29. per cap. Accusatus. sect. Sacerdotes, Extra, de
haeret. qu. ',M.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 221
but to prevent scandal. For if the inquisitors should publicly
aaiim advert, on nobles, consuls, and magistrates, they might
easily be hindered, especially in suspected places, and where
the inquisitors are poor and weak.
Moreover, they may proceed against all persons whatsoever,
of every condition ; and whatsoever privileges they enjoy, if
they any ways obstruct the office of the inquisition. Thus
Alexander IV. commands in his bull, beginning, " Cupientes.'"
Let all contraveners be punished by the ecclesiastical censure,
w^ithout any regard to their appeal. Any privileges or indul-
gences whatsoever, granted by the said see, or hereafter to be
granted, specially or generally, under whatsoever expression or
form of words, to any persons of whatsoever condition, dignity,
or degree, reUgion or order, or to any communities or univer-
sities of cities or places, to the contrary notwithstanding. For
by these or any other privileges or indulgences, we would not
have an affair of so great piety obstructed." The same pope,
in his bull, beginning, " Ne commissum vobis,'' commands,
That if the clergy and religious do not assist the inquisitors
according to their office and power, they may be proceeded
against according to the canonical sanctions, any privileges to
the contrary notwithstanding.
The inquisitors may also proceed against those, who have
offended in their province,* and remove themselves to another ;
as also against those, who having offended any where else, are
found in their province.
In like manner, when they want the testimony of other per-
sons, they may cite witnesses from one diocese to ano'cher,^ not-
withstanding the constitution of the two day's journey made in
a general council.^ But they say this must be done with pru-
a Cap. ut commissi de haeret. lib. 0.
»> Dirrct. Par. 3. Com. 123. SimHnc. tit. 64. sfct. 13-
" The form of tlie citation is thus : — To all and singular Christians, as well
ecclesiastics as laicks of both sexes, of whatsoever degree, order, condition,
pre-eminence, dignity, or authority, the highest not excepted. Know ye.
That wc, by the series and tenour of these presents, and by our authority,
and by that of the office we execute here, do charge and command, That
within twelve days after the publication hereof (the first four of which are
to be as the first, and the next four as the second, and the last four as a pe-
222 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
dence. For persons of distinction are not easily to be thus
removed ; and, therefore, they must be so dealt with, that it
may seem they are rather entreated tlian compelled. And
least they should refuse to submit to the power of the inquisi-
tors, they say it is more decent and modest for the judges to
wait on them, or at least to send others to them to receive their
depositions. The same must be observed as to all other illus-
trious persons, nuns, and other honourable women. But then
the inquisitor must determine what decency and modesty must
be used towards each of these, and how the causes of faith may
receive the greatest advantage, from the dignity, authority,
honourableness, and other qualities of the witnesses. We have
a famous instance how insolently the inquisitors sometimes abuse
this power, in Joan,^ daughter of the Emperor Charles V.,
whom they cited before their tribunal, to interrogate her con-
cerning a certain person, in some matters relating to the faith.
The emperor himself was so afraid of this power, that he com-
manded his daughter not to put off the affair, but make her
deposition without delay, to avoid the sentence of excommuni-
cation, as well against others as against himself, if she beheved
him culpable in the smallest matter. Upon which the most
serene Joan gave in immediately her deposition before Fernand
Valdez, archbishop of Seville, at that time inquisitor general.
But if the bishop or inquisitor sends for witnesses from any
other diocese, lie is not obliged to send the process to the
bishop of such diocese; nor can such bishop justly demand it.
On the contrary, he is obliged and bound to send the witnesses,
after having read the letters of tlie bishop who requires it, and
says he hath need of this or the other witness, to give his testi-
mony in the cause of faith. The necessary witness must there-
fore be sent, and care taken, if it can be done, that he may not
remptory and third canonical admonition) all that do know or suspect any
of heresy, do come and inform against them, upon pain of the greater excom-
munication latae Sentcntiae, which shall be ipso facto incurred, and from
which they cannot be absolved by any, but by our lord the pope, or by us.
And we do further certify, That whosoever, despising the penalty of this
excommunication, shall forbear to inform us, shall moreover be proceeded
against as a favourer of heretics. —Geddes' Tracts, vol. i. p. 427, 428.
^ Lud. Par. de Orig. S. Inquis. 1. 3. q. 5. u. 23, &c. and n. 40,
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 223
know that he is called to bear witness against any one in the
cause of faith, lest he should discover the affair, and so ob-
struct it ; unless for other reasons it ought to be done upon
full knowledge of the probity and fidelity of the witness.
In this age the Spanish inquisition endeavoured, under a
specious pretence, to extend its jurisdiction over the subjects
of other kings. According to the conventions and treaties be-
tween the kings of England and Spain, the English, who the
Spaniards call heretics, were allowed, upon the account of com-
merce and trade, to dwell in the countries of the Catholics,
upon this condition, That they should not be molested for any
matters relating to rehgion and faith, unless they gave pubhc
offence ; in which case they were to be punished in proportion
to the scandal given, according to law.' Antonius de Sousa,
counsellor of the tribunal of the supreme inquisition in Portu-
gal, enquires when the inquisitors may proceed against them,
and gives many limitations concerning such heretics, as they
call them, whereby he subjects them entirely to the power of
the inquisitors.
One may easily infer from the doctrine of Sousa, what the
subjects of Great Britain, and other kingdoms and states
must expect, since all things are to be done according to the
pleasure of the inquisitors, and how little safety they will find
by treaties against the violence of the inquisitors, unless they
are protected by the authority of their king, against these their
vile and unrighteous practices.
Of this we have a noble instance given us by Oliver Crom-
well, Protector of England. Thomas Maynard, consul of the
Enghsh nation at Lisbon, was thrown into the prison of the
inquisition, under pretence that he had said or done something
against the Roman rehgion. M. Meadows, who was then resi-
dent, and took cai-e of the Enghsh affairs at Lisbon, advised
Cromwell of the affair ; and after having received an express
from him, went to the king of Portugal, and, in the name of
Cromwell, demanded the liberty of consul Maynard. The
king told him, it was not in his power, that the consul was de-
* Aphor. Inq. I, 3. c. 31.
224 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOK.
tained by the inquisition, over which he had no authority.
The resident sent this answer to Cromwell, and having soon
after received new instructions from him, had again audience of
the king, and told him. That since his majesty had declared he
had no power over the inquisition, he was commanded by Com-
well tci Heclare war against the inquisition. This unexpected
declaration so terrified the king and the inquisition, that they
immediately determined to free the consul from prison ; and
instantly opened the prison doors, and gave him leave to go
out. The consul refused to accept a private dismission, but
in order to repair the honour of his character, demanded to be
honourably brought forth by the inquisition. The same May-
nard continued many years after under the same character, in
the reigns of Charles and James II., and lived at Lisbon till he
was about eighty years old, mthout any molestation from the
inquisition. This story was well known to all foreign mer-
chants, who hved at that time, and many years after at
Lisbon.
CHAP. XV.
Of the Power of the iNauisixoRs.
THAT the inquisitor may discharge his duty without any
hindrance," power is given him to compel the governors of
cities to swear that they will defend the church against heretics.
" We ordain moreover, that the earls, barons, governors and
consuls of cities and other places, shall take their coi-poral oath
at the admonition of the bishop, and swear that they will faith-
fully, effectually and sincerely assist the church, according to
their office and utmost power, against heretics and their accom-
plices, when required by the bishops : and if they refuse to do
this, let them be deprived of that honour which they possess,
and never be raised to any other. Let them farther be excom-
;^ * Direct. Par. 3. Qu. 32. cap. Aboleudam. sect. Statuimus, de haret.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 225
municated, and their countries put under the interdict of the
cliurch. If any city shall think fit to oppose these injunctions,
or neglect to punish tliose who do, at the admonition of the
bisliop, let their commerce vnth other cities be cut off, and let
them know that they are deprived of the episcopal dignity."*
We ordain moreover, that the chief magistrate, head officer,
ruler or consuls, or any others who preside over any city or
other place, either now, or who shall preside over it hereafter,
shall, at the command of the diocesan, or his vicars, or the in-
quisitors of heretical pravity, swear that tliey will precisely re-
gard, and inviolably observe, and cause to be observed by their
subjects, during the whole time of their government, in the
countries subject to their jurisdiction or government, the con-
stitutions promulgated and approved by the apostolic see,
against heretics, their believers, receivers, favourers and defen-
ders, and against their children and grand-children. And
whosoever will not swear, and observe them, let him be deprived
of the office and honour of his government, as infamous, and
as a favourer of heretics, and suspected concerning the faith ;
and let him no longer be accounted as a chief magistrate, head
officer, consul or ruler in any place, nor ever after be advanced
to any dignity or public office. And whatever he doth as
chief magistrate, bailiff, consul or ruler, let it be null and void.
To this there is another oath annexed,** viz. to extirpate with
all their power, from their countries, those who are noted for
heretics by the church, which the inquisitor may compel all
temporal lords, having perpetual or temporal jurisdiction, to
take. '^ " Let all secular powers, whatever be their offices, be
admonished and persuaded, and, if necessary, compelled by the
church, that as they desire to be accounted and held as faith-
ful, they pubhcly take an oath for defence of the faith, that
they will endeavour with all their might, in good faith, to
root out of all countries subject to their jurisdiction, all persons
declared heretics by the church. And at the time that any
person is advanced to any perpetual or temporary dignity, let
him be obliged to confirm this article by an oatli."" I'hus also
a Cap. ut Officium. sect. Statuimiis, de Iia?iet. lib. 6.
* Qu. 33. c Cap. Exconimuuicamus itaqiie, de haret. sect. Moneantnr
Q
226 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITIOX.
the council of Biterre, cap. 32 :' " Let the earls, barons, rulers,
consuls and bailiffs of cities, and other places, swear, that they
will faithfully and effectually, when required by them, assist
the church against heretics and their accomplices, according to
their office, and the utmost of their power ; and that they will
in good faith endeavour, with all their might, to extirminate
out of all countries subject to their jurisdiction, all persons de-
clared heretics by the church." Thus also the council of Tho-
louse :^ " We forbid also the prelates, barons, gentlemen,
and all persons of estates, to give the stewardship and manage-
ment of their lands to heretics, and their believers. Neither
let them presume to have or keep in their family or their
counsel, such persons, nor any defamed for heresy, or who they
believe to be suspected of it." And finally, the counsel of Bi-
terre commands,"^ " that heretics shall not be entrusted with
stew^ardships, or administrations, nor suffered to be in the
counsels or families of the great." Pegna remarks here, that
in the 6th council of Toledo, held 686, there is a passage con-
cerning the kings of Spain,*^ " That when they come to the
kingdom, they shall not ascend the royal throne, till amongst
other stipulations by oath, they have promised that they will
not suffer any persons who are not Catholics to remain in their
kingdoms." " This,'"* says he, " I wish was every where recalled
into use, and inviolably maintained."
The inquisitors may also compel the temporal lords to revoke
all statutes that hinder the office of the Inquisition. The se-
cular magistrates are also bound to seize, and keep in custody,
heretics, whenever commanded by the inquisitors, and to carry
them wherever they choose to direct. The magistrates must
also receive the inquisitors kindly, and treat them courteously,
as in the decree of the emperor Frederick : — " It is our plea-
sure, that they receive no offence from any, but aU assistance,
and that they have the recommendation of all the faithful
throughout the empire.
The inquisitors may also require an oath from the magistrates,
that they will observe and execute the laws and statutes, both ec-
» Par. 3. com, 4. b Cap. 16. «= Cap. 28. ^ Cap. 3.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 227
clesiastical and secular, against heretics. And as many difficulties
may arise, in the punishment of heretics, and the protection of
the faith. Innocent IV. and Alexander IV. conferred on them
this enormous power, that they might interpret the laws in any
thing ambiguous, according to their own judgment. Which
power the Seville instructions also grant.^
It is also granted to the inquisitors, to have an armed at-
tendance, and to go armed themselves ; so that their officials,
who in Italy are called cross-bearers, and in Spain familiars,
are to wait on the inquisitor whenever he commands, by night
or day, to execute whatever orders he may please to give, and
if these cross-bearers or familiars stand in need, they may call
in the aid of the civil power, to assist in executing the com-
mands of the inquisitor, for the apprehending or punishing of
heretics.
The inquisitors may also punish those who presume to injure
them in word or deed, because their office ought to be esteemed
more holy and venerable than that of all other judges whatso-
ever.
The inquisitors have also the power of summoning any per-
son, of whatever rank, before them, to give evidence, which, if
they refuse to do, they may compel them, by fine or torture ;
an instance of which is related by Carena,** wherein a person,
refusing to give evidence, was put to the torture at Rome.
Excommunication is another branch of power with which
the inquisitors are invested ; and their excommunication is the
more to be dreaded, because all who are excommunicated by
them, are put under the ban or public curse, by proclamation,
and have all their property m consequence, seized and confis-
cated ; and should they continue under that sentence for a year,
are to be proceeded against as heretics.*
They have also the power of increasing or lessening the
penances they enjoin. " We also grant you power, when you
shall think it proper to mitigate or change, in concert with the
prelates, to whose jurisdiction they are subject, the punishment
» lost. 1. cap, 28. b Catena, part .S. tit. 7. sect. 1. n. 7.
'^ Calden. de Modo proced. cont. hcret. f. 411.
228 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
of those who are shut up in prison or jail, if they humbly obey
your commands/ Hence we find, that in the book of the
sentences of the Tholouse Inquisition, the inquisitors ordina-
rily reserve this power unto themselves ; when they shew grace
to condemned persons, and release them from wearing their
crosses, and enjoin other penances in their room, such as pil-
grimages, visiting of churches, &c.
But now this power is not granted to the inquisitors in Spain.^
For this kind of dispensation belongs at this da}^ there, only to
the inquisitor general, because the inquisitors and ordinaries
have already discharged their office.*^
k.'VW^^-«/VWW*
CHAP. XVI.
Of the Power of the Inquisitors in prohibiting Books.
THAT this may be more distinctly explained, and that it
may be known what and how great the power is which is com-
mitted to the inquisitors, concerning the prohibition of books, I
shall give you an account of this affair from the very rise and
origin of it.
The first of whom we read, who prohibited books of religion,
was Antiochus Epiphanes, whose servants are said to " have
rent in pieces the books of the law, which they found, and to
have burnt them with fire ; and to have put to death every
one with whom was found the book of the testament, or who
consented to the law.""'' Dioclesian was the next, that most cruel
persecutor of the Christian faith ; of whom Eusebius * relates,
that by an edict, he commanded the sacred books to be burnt
with fire. Yea, he adds in the same chapter ; " We saw with
our eyes the sacred books of the divine scriptures burnt in the
public forum."" *^ Farther, the presidents in every province,
a Cap Ut commissi, de haeret. lib. 6. b Royas, Assert. 48. part. 2.
c Instruct, Hispal. cap. 7. and Tolet, cap. 9. Hist. Concil. Trid. 1. 6.
p. 550.
d 1 Maccab. i. 56, 57. ' 1. 8. cap. 2. f Baron, a. 302- n. 22.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 2^9
city, town, and village, took care that the Christians should
deliver up their sacred books, and they compelled them to it
by most grievous torments. Hence all those were called Tra-
ditores, dehverers up of the scripture, who, terrified by such
cruel punishments, delivered up the books which they had.
The Christians themselves afterwards brought into the
church this custom of raging against the books of heretics, as
they call them, as well as against their persons, which was first
derived from the heathens, when the empire fell into the
hands of Christian emperors.* Constantine, after the conclu-
sion of the synod of Nice, commanded tlie books of Arius,
condemned by it, to be burnt under the penalty of death.
Theodosuis and Valentinian decreed the sam,e concerning Nes-
toriousjhis followers and books,^ Valentinian and Martin con-
cerning Eutyches and his books.= Justinian ordained the
cutting off the hand of those who wrote out the books of
Antimus,'^ condemned in the fifth synod. And it is worth
observation what Brunus says concerning heretics and schis-
matics ; " That it appears to have been a most ancient custom
of the church, that when heresies were condemned, their writ-
ings should be destroyed, from hence ; that of all the heresies,
which for a long time continued in the church, the books con-
taining them are now no where extant, and the opinions of
most of them would have been altogether unknown, unless the
remembrance of them had been preserved in the writings of
the holy fathers, who endeavoured to confute them."
All these laws against the books of heretics were made by
emperors, who had the legislative power in their empire.^
" But after the year 800, the popes of Rome usurped to them-
selves many branches of tiie civil government, forbidding the
reading of books, and commanding them to be burnt, after
they had condemned the authors of them; but till this
age, there are but very few books found, that are prohibited
after this manner : at least, the universal prohibition of reading
books, containing heretical doctrine, or suspected of heresy,
a Socrates, Ecc. Hist. 1. 1. c. 6. " L. damnato. c. de haeret.
c L. qiiicun. sect. Nulli and Omnis. c. de haeret.
A L. 6. c. e. sect. 2- e Hist. Con. Trid. I. 6. p. 551.
HISTORY OF THE I>!aUISITION.
under the penalty of excommunication, without any other
preceding sentence, had not yet grown into practice." But
after that the pope had arrogated to himself the judgment of
the faith, and ordered himself to be acknowledged the infalli-
ble judge of all controversies of the faith, he also assumed to
himself all judgment concerning books, and the power of pro-
hibiting them. From this claim of power have sprung those
expurgatory indexes, by which, not only the books of such
authors as are condemned by the church of Rome are prohi-
bited, but the writings of all, even of the greatest Romanists
themselves, are subjected to a censure; and whatsoever is
found in them contrary to the opinions of the Roman church,
or not altogether agreeable to them, is marked with a -[-, and
commanded to be blotted out ; and every place is so carefully
noted, that no one can be ignorant, what words are to be erased.
So that if the popes command,* as contained in that index, is
to be observed ; we shall read no books as written by the au-
thors, nor have their sense, but only that of the court of Rome.^
" Pope Martin V. by his bull excommunicated all sects of
heretics, but especially the WicklifFs and Hussites; but
without any mention of those who read their books, although
they were in the hands of a great many. But Leo X. hav^ing
condemned Luther, forbid also all his books to be read under
pain of excommunication. The popes after him, by the bull
In Coena, condemned and excommunicated all heretics, and
therein devoted also to the same curses, all those who read their
books. And in other bulls, against heretics in general, did
thunder out the same terrible sentences against the readers of
those books. This occasioned a very great confusion : for as
the names of the heretics who were condemned were not pub-
hshed, persons were to judge of the books, rather from the
nature of the doctrines than the names of the authors. And
as different persons judged differently concerning these, the
a To this tribunal we must attribute that ignorance of sonnd philosophy,
in which Spain lies buried, while Germany, England, France, and even
Italy, have discovered such a nuiltitnde of truths, and enlarged the sphere of
knowledge.— Voltaire'8 Univ. Hist. vol. iii. p. 117.
b Hist. Con. Trid. 1. 6. p. 551.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 231
consciences of men were troubled with innumerable scruples.
Those inquisitors of heretical pravity who were more diligent,
made catalogues of such authors as they knew ; but as they
had not compared them with each otlier, the same difficulty
still remained."
But that no one miglu be at a loss for the future, what
books the pope had prohibited the reading of, by his bull, it
was necessary to make an index of the prohibited books. The
Roman authors differ amongst themselves who ordered the first
index to be made. Father Paul tells us, that PhiUp, king of
Spain,^ first endeavoured to prevent this confusion, by giving a
more convenient form, and by a law, made 1558, ordered.
That the catalogue of books, prohibited by the inquisitors of
Spain, should be printed. After his example, Paul IV. com-
manded at Rome, That those who were at the head of the
office of the inquisition, should make such an index, and
prhit it, which was shortly after done, A. D. 1559.^ But
Gretser says, that the index of prohibited books was printed in
Italy, by the Papal authority, A. D. 1548. And a larger one,
A. D. 1552. Another larger one yet, A. D. 1554. Another,
A. D. 1559, by pope Paul V. much larger than the others.
But whether the pope, or Philip king of Spain, first ordered
such an index to be made, it is certain that Paul IV. published
one, A. D. 1559."^
The zeal which was manifested in the formation of these
indexes was of the most extraordinary kind, for they prohi-
bited those books which were not written professedly on the
subject of religion, but which happening to contain any re-
marks of a political kind were disliked by them.
They even went so far as to make a catalogue of sixty-two
printers, and to prohibit all the books which they ever had
printed, excomnuinicating those who read them, who were ren-
dered incapable of any office or benefice, and consigned to per-
petual infamy. This severe censure was however revoked by
Pius IV., who refeiTcd the discussion of the subject to the
council of Trent.
a Hist. Cod. Trid. 1. G. p. 551. b De jure proliib. lib. 1. 1. c. 19.
c Hist. Con. Trid. p. 552.
Q 4
232 HISTORY OF THE INQUISIT10^■.
At length the fathers at this council, not being able to agree,
referred it back to the Pope, as Clement VIII. reports in his
bull, Oct. 17, 1595.
And the Pope by the advice of certain prelates, of great
learning and v. isdom, published the index and certain rules to
be observed in fonn-of a brief; — there is also a strict charge to
prevent transgression, and severe penalties against all persons of
ever}' order and degree, who " shall dare to have any books
contrary to the order of these rules."
Some alterations were afterwards made in these rules, in
favour of learned men, who could not avoid the having of some
books which were forbidden.
By the fourth rule, the common reading of the holy scrip-
tures is forbidden, in these words : " since it is plain by
experience, that if the sacred writings are permitted every where
and v/ithout diiFerence, to be read in the vulgar tongue, men
tnrough their harshness, will receive more harm than good. —
Let the bishop or inquisitor detern^ine, w ith the parish priest or
confessor, to whom to permit the reading of the bible, translated
by Catholic authors in the vulgar tongue.
In the tenth rule, there are several things to be observed,
about the printing of books, by which no books are allowed to
be printed, unless they are first examined by the Pope's vicar,
or other persons deputed by the Pope. The shops of book-
sellers are often to be searched, and printers and booksellers
are to take an oath before the bishop or inquisitor, " that they
will obey these rules in a Catholic and sincere manner, and will
not knowingly sanction heretical pravity.
Several expurgatory indexes have since been published, as that
under the authority of Philip II. of Spain, by Plantin the king's
printer. Printed at the king's own charge, not with a design to be,
published and dispersed, but to be given only to them, who were
appointed to preside over the expurgation of suspected books ;
by this means, this book lay concealed like certain mysteries,
for fifteen years, until a copy fell into the hands of Francis
Irenius, who made it public, as related by Pappers, in his
preface to the new edition, published at Stratsburg, A. D, 1599-
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 233
After this many expurgatory indexes came out at Rome and
Naples, and a much larger one was after this printed in Spain,
A. D. 1640, enlarging and enforcing former rules, and with a
more particular stress, prohibiting the sacred scriptures, " with
all parts of them, either printed or manuscript, with all summa-
ries and abridgements, although historical of the said bible in
the vulgar tongue/' I give this word for word, that the tyranny
of the Papists may fully appear.
From tliese things therefore, it is plain that the inquisitors,
especially in Spain, have a very great power in the prohibition
of books, for Pegnn relates, that the bishops and inquisitors may
condemn and prohibit, all books which contain opinions con-
demned by the church, although written by authors not
condemned ; as well as all books which they may suspect of
heresy. For says he, books are much more likely to do harm
than men, because heretics by teaching, can scarce spread their
doctrine over a single city, whereas books may be carried from
place to place, and infect not only a city, but kingdoms and
provinces.
In Venice however, the power of prohibiting books was
claimed by the civil magistrates, and this formed a ground of
contention between the senate and the cardinal nuncio, four
whole months, but at length the senate prevailed, and an
agreement was entered into, which secured this power to the
senate, though the Catholics earnestly requested that this their
concession, should be kept secret.
CHAP. XVII.
What the iNauisiTORs can do themselves, and what in con-
junction with the Okdinaeies.
BECAUSE the judgment of heresy is, as we have seen,
committed to the ordinaries or bishops, and to the delegates or
inquisitors, it is proper to consider what each can separately do.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
and what are those acts in whicii both must necessarily concur,
in order to their })eing effectual and valid.
The inquisitor without the bishop, and the bishop without
the inquisitor,* may cite and arrest, or apprehend and deliver
any one to safe custody, and put them in irons, if they think
proper, and make Inquisition against such as are accused. But
neither without the other can deliver any person to hard or close
imprisonment, which hath more of the nature of punishment
than of custody, or put them to the torture, or force them in
irons by hunger to discover the truth, which is one sort of very
grievous torment, or proceed to sentence against them. But the
inquisitor without the bishop, cannot deprive of their benefices
and ecclesiastical dignities heretical clergymen.
The bishop and inquisitor may constitute each other their
vicegerents in those cases, in which neither can act separately,
or they may proceed by a delegated authority, and then they
are equal.
When the bishop and inquisitor diiffer, they cannot proceed
to a definitive sentence, but must refer the whole case drawn up
to the Pope, or the supreme council. In Spain, this must be
done, even when they differ in cases of no great importance, as
prescribed by the Madrid instruction. A. D. 1561.*
When the bishop and inquisitor proceed separately, so that
there are two processes carried on for the same fact, one by the
bishop and tlie other by the inqui&itor, they ought to communi-
cate their processes to one another ; this communication how-
ever, is to be made only once, and that when the process is
finished.
But in Spain and Portugal the inquisitors only form the pro-
cesses,'^ and apprehend criminals in causes of the faith, and if the
bishops have any inforvnations against such criminals, they must
transmit them to the inquisitors. But it is uncertain whether
these Spanish inquisitors claim this by any legal custom and
prescription, or by the Pope's privilege.
These are the things to be observed, when the ordinary and
» Eynier. p. 3. q. 47. b Cap. 66.
» Caten. p. 1. tit. 4. sect. 21.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 235
inquisitor concur in the judgment of the faith. But because
oftentimes in Spain several inquisitors are deputed together, it
will be proper to consider how far each of them may stpai'ately
proceed.
As often therefore as it happens that two inquisitors are con-
stituted in the same province,* they may both together, or each
of them separately, proceed against heretics throughout the
whole province committed to them, sit in judgment in any part
of it, and when the executor is absent create another, because
they have entire jurisdiction- However, a criminal can be
punished only by one of them. But if there be any special
inquisitor deputed against any person by the Pope, the inquisi-
tors of provinces and dioceses, who, as general judges, seem to
have universal jurisdiction, at least with respect to persons,
cannot proceed against him, though they have actually began
the process ; because their jurisdiction is suspended by a special
commission granted by the Pope. He who is thus constituted
special inquisitor, may make use of every thing that hath been
done and discovered by the other inquisitors, whom if it be
necessary he may compel to deliver to him all the processes,
writings, inquisitions, depositions of witnesses, and all other
things they have discovered against any criminal. Although it
is reckoned more handsome to do this by the authority of their
superior, when this power is not specially given him in the let-
ters of his commission.
When the same heretics are proceeded against by different
judges, that inquisitor who first began the process has the
preference.
The elder inquisitor has the preference in all cases, except he
has been at any time suspended from his office.
Finally,'' it is said to be much safer for the bishops to send to
the inquisitors all causes of heresy, because secrecy is the
strength of all the causes of the holy office. This is inviolably
observed before the inquisitors, but cannot be so well kept be-
fore the bishops. Tliis the inquisitor Cantera attests, whilst he
was vicar general of Pampilona, viz. that he could never procure
» Uu. 4C. Com. O.'J. b Carcna, p. 1. t. 4. n. 23, Arc.
^36 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
secrecy to be kept in that ecclesiastical court ; and though he
oftentimes punished the Notaries, it signified nothing at all.
Carena also relates, that Cardinal Comporeus, bishop of Cre-
mona, and one of the supreme inquisitors, in all causes in which
lay persons had a right to decide and give judgment, did for
fourteen years always remit all causes of heresy, and suspicion
of heresy, immediately to the Inquisition; because he well
knew, how great inconveniences would arise, if the ordinaries,
who have neither secret nor safe jail and ministers, should in-
terest themselves in forming processes.
*/vv^%»v»'W**^
CHAP. XVIII.
Of the Jail of the Inquisitors, and Keepers of the
Jail.
JAILS were formerly appointed to keep men in custody,
and not to punish them.* But by the Canon law they may be
used for punishment.^
Heretofore the bishop and inquisitor might have their sepa-
rate jails, to hold persons in custody, but not to punish them ;
for as they cannot condemn any one to imprisonment without
the consent of both, it is therefore required that the jail for
punishment shall be common to both. But now they have not
usually separate prisons ; the same that belongs to the inquisi-
a Direct, p. 3. qn. 58. com. 107.
b Cap. Qiiatnvis. de pcenis. lib. 6. Although it be wrll known that the
jail is particnlarly designed to keep criminals in cnstodv, and not to punish
them, yet we do not disapprove that convict persons should be delivered over
to prison to do penance either tor ever, or (or a time, as you shall judge most
convenient, their crimes, per.sous, and other cirrnmstavKcs, bf'i)jg rarcfully
considered. Simancas gives this reason for it ; * tor since the sacred canons,
through the ecclesiastical lenity, cannot inflict the punishment ot death, the
consequence is, that lest crimes should go unpimished, tliey may inflict the
penalty of perpetual imprisonment for more grievous offences, which is in-
deed very gnevous, and equal to death.
* Cathol. Instit. tit. 16. sect. 15.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 237
tor, in which criminals are kept in custody, being common to
the bishop.
Here are two things to be explained. Fii'st, what must
be done before any person can be thrown into jail. Secondly,
what method must be observed in keeping and placing the
prisoners.
As to the first, Royas gives this large account of it.* In all
causes, as well civil as criminal, criminals must not be ap-
prehended, without a summary Inquisition against them con-
cerning their crime first had. This is particularly to be
observed in the crime of heresy. For though in other crimes
no one suffers much in his reputation merely for his being
thrown into prison, yet to be taken up for the crime of heresy
is greatly infamous, which must therefore be proceeded in with
great caution. For since the reason of proceeding in the crime
of heresy, is much more important than in other offences, there
is need of a greater Inquisition, and of a summary cognizance
before criminals are, apprehended. So that no one is hghtly to
be shut up in close prison for small offences, for propositions
that sound ill, or that are scandalous, or blasphemous, or
others which do not contain real heresy ; but is to be confined
either in some monastery, or in his own house or city.
The inquisitors may indeed proceed in the crime of heresy
against any person, especially if he be otherwise vile, upon a
light and moderate suspicion, so far as to ask such suspected
person, what he thinks of the faith. But in order to apprehend
any one for heresy, two credible witnesses are required,
although they say that the testimony of a single one, if beyond
all exception, is sufficient, who deposes what he saw or heard ;
yea, if he be not beyond all exception, yet is otherwise fit,
provided he agrees with the informer ; for in this case they say
there are two witnesses, and consequently more than half proof,
which is sufficient for any ones being apprehended. But that
one witness above all exception, is enough in this case, they
prove from the Madrid Instruction, A. D. 1561,*' which says,
" If the testimony be not sufficient for the apprehending.''
a Part 2. Assert. 1. •> Cap. 4.
238 HISTORY OF THE INaUISlTION.
This Instruction is in the singular number, and therefore inti-
mates, that one lawful witness against any one is sufficient for
his being taken up ; especially if the person be scandalous, and
vile, and suspected; as are all the new converts of the Maho-
metan sect in the kingdom of Valencia ; and as Royas says,
the French and German Lutherns. But if the person ac-
cused be noble, and of good reputation and fame, he is not to
be apprehended upon a single testimony. However, this is left
to the pleasure of the judge, after having considered the quality
of the person and his offence ; not that the inquisitors of the
faith should appear eager to take up criminals ; for they are
always to use great circumspection. This is especially neces-
sary in the receiving and examining witnesses. They must in
the first place admonish them, how horrible and dreadful a
wickedness it is to give false witness in any causes, and especi-
ally in the holy office of the Inquisition, and that they should
have God and his awful and tremendous judgment before their
eyes, that they may not, for prayer, or prince, or entreaty, or
any other wicked affection, defame an innocent person with so
great a crime. Then the witnesses are to be interrogated con-
cerning the place, and time, what they saw or heard ; whether
the person acted, or pronounced heretical words, once or
oftener; with what obstinacy or eagerness he affirmed them ;
and what other persons were present ; and for what causes,
reasons, and occasions they were present; and concerning
all other circumstances necessary to discover the truth or
falsehood.
These things premised, the witnesses received, and the pro-
positions qualified, the promotor fiscal demands before the
inquisitors, that the criminals be apprehended and imprisoned,
that they may suffer the deserved punishment.
When the offence thus appears,^ and it is proper to ap-
prehend the criminal, the inquisitor may then order him to be
taken up. When they have deteiimined upon his being ap-
prehended, they give out the order to that officer, who accord-
ing to the custom of the holy office, is to take up criminals ;
» Pegna, Com. 107.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 23^
and his order is subscribed by the inquisitors. If several
persons are to be taken up the same day and time, they give an
order for each person, which is inserted in their respective pro-
cesses, that such iicts, which are of great weight, may appear
openly.
As to the second. All criminals have not alike places of
imprisonment, their cells being either more terrible and dark,
or more easy and chearful, accordmg to the quality of the per-
sons and their offences. In reality there is no place in the prison
of tiie Inquisition, that can be called pleasant or chearful, the
whole jail is so liorrible and filthy.
These jails are called in Spain and Portugal, Santa Ca«a, i. e.
the holy house. Every thing it seems in this office must be
holy. The prisons are so built, as the author of the History of
the Inquisition at Goa describes them, that they will hold a
great number of persons. They consist of several porticoes, every
one of which is divided into several small cells of a square form,
each side being about ten foot. There are two rows of them,
one being built over the other, and all of them vaulted. The
upper ones are enlightened by u'on grates, placed above the
height of a tall man. The lower ones are under ground, dark,
without any window, and narrower than the upper ones. The
walls are five feet thick. Each cell is fastened with two doors,
the inner one thick, and covered over with iron, and in the lower
part of it there is an iron grate. In the upper part of it is a
httle windov/, through winch they reach to the prisoner his
meat, hnen, and other necessaries, which is shut with two iron
bolts. The outer door is entire without any opening at all.
They generally open it in the morning, from six o'clock till
eleven, in order to refresh the air of the prison.
In Portugal all the prisoners, men and women, without any
regard to birth or dignity, are shaved the first or second day of
their imprisonment. Every prisoner hath two pots of water
every day, one to wasli, and the other to drink, and a besom to
cleanse his cell, and a mat made of rushes to lie upon, and a
larger vessel for other uses, with a cover to put over it, which
is changed once every four days. The provisions which are
given to the prisoners, are rated according to the season, and
^40 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
the clearness or plenty of eatables. But if any rich person is
imprisoned, and will live and eat beyond the ordinary rate of
provisions, and according to his own manner, he may be
indulged, and have what is decent, and fit for him, his servant,
or servants, if he hath any, with him in the jail. If there are
any provisions left, the jail-keeper, and no other, must take
them, and give them to the poor. But Reginald Gonsalvius
observes,'' that this indulgence is not allowed to prir-oners of all
sorts, but to such only as are taken up for small offences, who
are to be condemned to a fine. But if they find by the very
accusation that any persons are to be punished with forfeiture
of all their effects, they do not suffer them to live so
plentifully, but order them a small pension for their subsistence,
viz. about thirty Maravedis, of the value of ten Dutch Stivers.
This agrees with the account of Isaac Orobio, who had a plen-
tiful fortune at Seville, and was nevertheless used very hardly
in the 'prison of the Inquisition there. Although his estate
was very large, yet he was allowed a very small pension to pro-
vide himself provision. This was flesh, which they made him
sometimes dress and prepare for himself, without allowing him
the help of any servant. In this manner are the richer prison-
ers treated. As to the poorer, and such who have not enough
to supply themselves in jail, their allowance is fixed by the
king, viz. the half of a silver piece of money, called a real,^
every day ; and out of this small sum, the buyer of their pro-
vision, whom they call the dispenser, and their washer, must be
paid, and all other expences that are necessary for the common
supports of life. Besides, this very royal allowance for the
prisoners doth not come to them but through the hands of se-
veral persons, and those none of the most honest ; first, by the
receiver, then the dispenser, then the cook, then the jail-keeper,
who, according to his office, distributes the provision amongst
the prisoners. Gonsalvius adds, that he gave this particular
account of this matter, because all these persons live, and have
^ p. 106.
b Dr. Geddes tells us of one in the Inquisition at Lisbon, who was allowed
no more than three vintems a day ; a vintem is about an English penny far-
thing.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 241
their certain profits, out of this small allowance of the king to
the prisoners, which coming to them through the crooked hands
of these harpies, they cannot receive it till every one of them
hath taken out of it more than a tenth part of it.
The author of the history of the Inquisition at Goa tells us,
this order is observed in distributing the provisions. The pri-
soners have meat given them three times every day ; and even
those who have the misfortune to be in this case, and they have
money, are not treated much better than others, because their
riches are employed to make provision for the poorer. I was
informed by Isaac Orobio, that in Spain they sometimes give
the prisoners coals, w^hich they must light, and then dress their
own food. Sometimes they allow them a candle. Those who
are confined in the lower cells generally sit in darkness, and are
sometimes kept there for several years, without any one's being
suffered to go or speak to them, except their keepers, and they
only at certain hours, when they give them their provision.
They are not allowed any books of devotion, but are shut up
in darkness and sohtude, that they may be broke with the
horrors of so di'eadful a confinement, and by the miseries of it
forced to confess things, which oftentimes they have never
done.
And how dreadful the miseries of this prison are, we have a
famous instance given us by Reginald Gonsalvius Montanus.*
In the age before the last, a certain English ship put in at the
port of Cadiz, which the familiars of the Inquisition, according
to custom, searched upon the account of religion, before they
suffered any person to come a-shore. They seized on several
English persons who were on board, observing in them certain
marks of evangelical piety, and of their having received the
best instruction, and threw them into jail. In that ship there
was a child, ten or twelve years old at most, the son of a very
rich English gentleman, to whom, as was reported, the ship,
and principal part of her loading belonged. Amongst others,
they took up also this child. The pretence was, that he had
in his hands the psalms of David, in Enghsh. But as Gonsal-
« p. 1J9.
R
242 HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION.
vius tells us, those who knew their avarice and cursed arts,
may well believe, without doing any injury to the holy Inqui-
sition, that they had got the scent of his father's wealth, and
that this was the true cause of the child's imprisonment, and of
all that calamity that followed after it. However, the ship
with all its cargo was confiscated, and the child, with the other
prisoners, were carried to the jail of the Inquisition at Seville,
where he lay six or eight months. Being kept in so strait con-
finement for so long a while, the child, who had been brought
up tenderly at home, fell into a very dangerous illness, through
the dampness of the prison, and the badness of his diet. When
the lords inquisitors were informed of this, they ordered him
to be taken out of the jail, and carried, for the recovery of his
health, to the hospital, which they call the Cardinal. Here
they generally bring all who happen to fall ill in the prison of
the Inquisition, where, besides the medicines, of which, accord-
ing to the pious institution of the hospital, there is plenty, and
a little better care, upon account of the distemper, nothing is
abated of the severity of the former jail; no person, besides the
physician and the servants of the hospital, being allowed to
visit the sick person ; and as soon as ever he begins to grow
better, before he is fully recovered, he is put again into his for-
mer jail. The child, who had contracted a very grievous ill-
ness from that long and barbarous confinement, was carried
into the hospital, where he lost the use of both his legs ; nor
was it ever known what became of him afterwards. In the
mean while it was wonderful, that the child, at so tender an age,
gave noble proofs how firmly the doctrine of piety was rooted
in his mind ; oftentimes, but especially morning and evening,
lifting up his eyes to heaven, and praying to him, for he had
been instructed by his parents, to desire and hope for certain
help ; which the jail- keeper having often observed, said, he was
already grown a great little heretic.
About the same time,* a certain person was taken up and
thrown into the same jail, who had voluntarily abjured the
Mahometan impiety, and came but a httle before from Mo-
a Reginald, p. 121.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. £48
rocco, a famous city of Mauritania, and capital of the kingdom,
into that part of Spain which hes directly over against it, with
a design to turn Christian. When he had observed that the
Christians were more vicious and corrupt than the Moors he
had left, he happened to say, that the Mahometan law seemed
to him better tlian the Christian. For this the good fathers
of the faith laid hold of him, thrust him into jail, and used him
so cruelly, that he said pubhcly, even when in confinement,
that he never repented of his Christianity, from the day he was
baptized, till after his having been in the Inquisition, where he
was forced against his will, to behold all manner of violence
and injuries whatsoever.
The complaint of Constantine, the preacher of Seville,* was
was not less grievous, concerning the barbarities of this prison ;
who, although he had not as yet tasted of the tortures, yet
often bewailed his misery in this jail, and cried out, " O my
God, were there no Scythians in the world, no cannibals more
fierce and cruel than Scythians, into whose hands thou couldst
carry me, so that I might but escape the paws of these
wretches ?'^ Olmedus also, another person famous for piety
and learning, fell into the inquisitor's hands at Seville, and
through the inhumanity of his treatment, which liad also proved
fatal to Constantine, contracted a grievous illness, and at last
died in the midst of the filthiness and stench. He was used to
say, " Throw me any where, O my God, so that I may but es-
cape the hands of these wretches !"
The author of the history of the Inquisition at Goa,'» agrees
in this account, who frankly owns, that through the cruelty
and length of his imprisonment, he fell into despair, and thereby
often attempted to destroy himself; first by starving himself,
and because that did not succeed, he feigned himself sick, and
when the physician of the Inquisition found his pulse unequal,
and that he was feverish, he ordered him to be let blood,
which was done again fiv^ days after. When the doctor was
gone, he unbound his arm every day, that so by the large ef-
fusion of blood, he might continually grow weaker and weaker,
» Reginald, p. 104. ^ Cap. 19, 20, 21.
R 2
244 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
In the mean while he eat very Httle, that by hunger and loss of
blood, he might put an end to his miserable life. Whilst he
was in this sad condition, he had sent him a confessor of the
Franciscan order, who, by various arguments of comfort, en-
deavoured to recover him from his despair. They also gave
him a companion in his jail, which was some comfort to him in
his confinement. But growing well again, after about five
months, they took his companion from him. The lonesome-
ness of his jail brought on again his melancholy and despair,
which made him invent another method to destroy himself.-—
He had a piece of gold money, which he had concealed in his
cloaths, which he broke into two parts ; and making it sharp,
he opened with it a vein in each arm, and lost so much blood,
that he fell into a swoon, the blood running about the jail.
But some of the servants happening to come, before the usual
time, to bring him something, found him in this condition. —
The inquisitor hereupon ordered him to be loaded with irons
upon his arms and hands^ and strictly watched. This cruelty
provoked him to that degree, that he endeavoured to beat his
brains out against the pavement and the walls ; and undoubt-
edly the ligaments upon his arms would have been torn off,
had he continued any longer in that state. Upon this they
took oiF his chains, gave him good words, encouraged him, and
sent him a companion, by whose conversation he was refreshed,
and bore his misery with a httle more easiness of mind. But
after two months they took him from him again, so that the so-
litude of his jail was more distressing to him than before.
The prisoners, as soon as ever they are thrown into jail,* are
commanded to give an account of their name and business.
Then they enquire after their wealth,'' and to induce them to
a Inquis. Goan. cap. 13.
^ " The inquisitors) notwithstanding their ardent zeal for the faith, seldom
give themselves much concern about those from whom nothing is to be got;
whereas those possessed of property, conscious of no misdemeanour, whereof
the holy office takes cognizance, languish many years in confinement, and at
length are put to the torture, in order to extort a confession. Some persons
have had such resolution, that nothing could ever induce them to plead
guilty. Others have retracted their forced confessions, the instant Ihey were
taken off the rack. For many, terrified at the very sight of the instruments
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 245
give ill an exact account, the inquisition promises them, that if
they are innocent, all that they discover to them shall be faith-
fully kept lor, and restored to them ; but that if they conceal any
thing, it shall be confiscated,* though they should not be found
guilty. And as in Spain and Portugal, most persons are fully
persuaded of the sanctity and sincerity of this tribunal, they
willingly discover all their possessions, even the most concealed
things of their houses, being certainly persuaded, that when
their innocence shall appear, they shall soon recover their li-
berty and effects together. But these miserable creatures are
deceived ; for he that once falls into the hands of these judges,
is stripped at once of all he was possessed of. ^ For if any one
denies his crime, and is convicted by a sufficient number of
witnesses, he is condemned as a negative convict, and all his
effects confiscated. If to escape the jail, he confesses his cyime,
he is guilty by his own confession, and in the judgment of ^11
justly stripped of his effects. AVhen he is dismissed from pri-
son ^s a convert and penitent, he dares not defend his inno-
cence, unless he desires to be thrown again into jail, and con-
demned, and, as a feigned penitent, to be delivered over to the
secular arm.
Of these things J. Royas gives us an account :^ " When any
criminal is apprehended, and put into the jails of the holy
office, his effects must be immediately sequestered, that they
may not be conveyed away, or concealed, and put into the
hands of some proper person, before the notary and executor,
who is to have the custody and care of them. Such effects
as cannot be kept, he who hath them in custody, must sell
by the inquisitor's command. This sequestration is made
only for real heresy. From hence they infer, that this se-
questration or description of effects, is not to be made, when
the inquisitors proceed against blasphemers, or fortune-tellers,
of torture, have accused themselves of crimes which never entcreil into their
thoughts. Everyone of these unfovlunate creatures, if they escape with
their lives, are sure to be stript of all their substance; and, to add to their
afflictions, exposed to lasting infamy, more bitter to a generous mind, than
d«ath itself." Letters on the Inq. <kc. 43.
a 2 part, assert. 2.
246 HISTORY OF THE Il^QUISITION.
or those who marry again whilst their former wives are hving,
or against clergymen in orders, or professed monks who have
contracted matrimony, or against persons who speak proposi-
tions rash, scandalous, injurious, or that sound ill ; and in all
other causes, in which there is not, dejure, any confiscation of
effects, that which precedes it, viz. the sequestration of such
effects, by consequence ceases."
When the prisoner is brought before his judge, he appears
with his head and arms and feet naked.* In this condition he
is brought out of jail by the warder. When he comes to the
room of audience, the warder goes a little forward, and makes a
profound reverence, then withdraws, and the prisoner enters by
himself. At the farther end of the audience room there is
placed a crucifix, that reaches almost to the cieling. In the
middle of the hall is a table about five feet long and four broad,
with seats all placed round it. At one end of the table, that
which is next to the crucifix, sits the notary of the inquisition,
at the other end the inquisitor, and at his left hand the prisoner
sitting upon a bench. Upon the table is a missale, upon which
the prisoner is commanded to lay his hand, and to swear that
he will speak the truth, and keep every thing secret. After
they have sufficiently interrogated him, the inquisitors ring a
bell for the warder, who is commanded to carry back his pri-
soner to jail.^
a luqnis. Goan. cap. 18.
b The form and furniture of the inquisitorial judgment hall is expressly
ordained by law. " There shall be at every inquisition, a room allotted for
the board of dispatch which shall be iu so safe a place, that nothing may be
heard of what passes there from without ; in this room there shall be chairs
with backs to them, or without backs, as many as may appear necessary, a
bench for the prisoner to sit upon, and in winter the apartment shall be de-
corated w^ith tapestry of arras-hangings, and in summer with gill leather-
hangings ; upon a platform three inches high shall be a table covered with a
cloth of crimson damask, and upon it a black leather, and the platform shall
be large enough to accommodate at least five chairs on each side, and in this
table there shall be three drawers with diflPerent keys to tnem, in which each
of the inquisitors may keep hid papers, but shall not keep in it the quires
(memorand'.iin but k.v) for these must always be locked up in the secret.
Upon this table shall be a mass-book, tor administering the oaths, a tablet,
with the prayer of the Holy Ghost, the bye-laws of the holy office, and of the
^
I
■^
igmiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilii
HISTORY OF THE IN^QUISITION. S-i?
No one in tlie prison must so much as mutter, or make any
noise, but must keep profound silence. If any one bemoans
himself,* or bewails his misfortune, or prays to God with an
audible voice, or sings a psalm or sacred hymn, the jail keepers,
who continually watch in the porches, and can hear even the
least sound, immediately come to him, and admonish him that
silence must be preserved in this house. If the prisoner doth
not obey, the keepers admonish him again. If after this the
prisoner persists, the keeper opens the door, and prevents his
noise, by severely beating him with « stick, not only to chastise
him, but to deter others, who, because the cells are contiguous,
and deep silence is kept, can very easily hear the outcries and
sound of the blows. I will add here a short story that I had
from several persons, which, if true, shews us with what seve-
rity they keep this silence. A prisoner in the inquisition
coughed. The jailors came to him, and admonished him to
forbear coughing, because it was unlawful to make any noise
in that house. He answered, it was not in his power. How-
exchequer of the inquisition, the collection of apostolic bulls, and the privi-
leges of the inquisition : also, a sufficient number of ink-stands for the minis-
ters who are at the tabic-, and a bell. And in the wall fronting the place
where the prisoners are to sit, there shall be an image of our Lord Jesus
Christ, in a solid statue, decorated with becoming decency.
There shall also be a room called the Secret, where are to be kept all do-
cuments of trials, records, books, and papers requiring secrecy, and the win-
dows of this room shall have iron grates, very strong and close to each other,
that nobody may gain entrance through them, and there shall be only one
door to the room of dispatch, very strong and secure, with three locks and
three different keys, one of which the promotor shall keep, and ihe other two
the two senior notaries.— Bye Laws of the Holy Offi<e, Title 11. printed in
the Palace of the Inquisition, at Lisbon, 1610, in Da. Cosia. vol. ii. 7.
a The inquisitors take very particular care, that their wretched victims
shall not be permitted to vent th'Ar woe, obtain infurmahon, or ask advice
of any Thus the Bye-Laws provide, book i. tit. 14. sect. 16. " He (the
goaler) shall accompany the prisu.iers when they go to the board, or return
from the board to the prison, having always one of the guards, and he shall
never permit the prisoner to speak when they pass by the corridors, nor .-hall
bespeak to them, nor shall he persuade them to confess their crimes. Aud
when the prisoners shall commence any discourse with him on that subject,
he shall inform them, that this matter can be noticed only at the board of the
holy office." — Da Costa, vol. i. 135.
S48 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
ever, they admonished him a second time to forbear it, and
because he did not, they stripped him naked, and cruelly beat
him. This increased his cough, for which they beat him so
often, that at last he died through the pain and anguish of the
stripes.
They insist so severely on keeping this silence, that they
may cut off every degree of comfort from the afflicted,* and
especially for this reason, that the prisoners may not know-
one another, either by singing, or any loud voice. For it
oftentimes happens, that after two or three years confinement
in the jail of the inquisition, a man doth not know that *his
friend, nor a father that his children and wife are in the same
prison, till they all see each other in the act of faith. And
finally, That the prisoners in the several cells may not talk
with one another, which, if ever found out, their cells are im-
mediately changed.
If any one falls ill in the prison, they send to him a surgeon
and physician, who administer all proper remedies to him to
recover him to health. If there be any danger of his dying,
they send him a confessor, if he desires it. According to the
provision of the Madrid instruction, A. D. 1561. cap. 71.^
If the criminal doth not not ask for a confessor, and the
physician believes the distemper to be dangerous, he must be
persuaded by all means to confess ; and if he judicially satisfies
a Gonsalv. p. 117.
b If any criminal falls ill in prison, the inquisitors must take diligent rare
that he may have medicines, and all things necessary for his safety, and the
advice of one physician or more, to recover him * And if he desires a conr
fessor, let them assign him one of known probity, and who may be confided
in, and let him be sworn to secresy. If the penitent says any thing to him in
confession, which he would have told out of the jail, let him not obey him in
this by any means, nor discover any such commands. But if he enjoins him
any thing out of confession, let him reveal that to the inquisitors. Farther,
let the inquisitors admonish and instruct the confessor how he shall behave
towards the penitent, particularly that he tell him, that since he was im-
prisoned for heresy, and accused as guilty of it, he cannot be absolved, un-
less he judicially declares his heresy. Let other things be left to the judg-
ment and conscience of the confessor, who ought to be instructed that he
may understand what is fit to be done in such a cause.
I * Direct, p. 2. com. 25.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 249
the inquisitors, he is to be reconciled to ihe church before he
dies, and being absolved in judgment, the confessor must ab-
solve him sacramentally. This is ordered by the same instruc-
tion.
If he is well, and desires a confessor, some are of opinion he
may not have one granted him, unless he hath conft^ised judi-
cially. Others think he may ; and in this case the confessor^
business is to exhort him to confess his errors, and to declare
the whole truth, as well of himself as of others, as he is bound
de jure, to do. However, he must add, that he must not accuse
himself or others falsely, through weariness of his imprison-
ment, the hope of a more speedy deliverance, or fear of tor-
ments. Such a criminal the confessor cannot absolve, before
his excommunication is first taken off, and he is reconciled to
the church. But in Italy the prisoners are more easily allowed
a confessor than in Spain.
They are particularly careful not to put two or more in the
same cell, unless the inquisitor for any special reason shall so
order, that they may not concert with one another to conceal
the truth, to make their escape, or to evade their interrogato-
pies. The principal reason indeed seems to be, that through
the irksomeness of their imprisonment, they may confess what-
soever the inquisitors would have them. But if an husband
and his wife are both imprisoned for the same offence, and
there be no fear that one should prevent the other from
making a free confession of the crime, they may be put in the
same cell.
The inquisitors are obliged to visit the prisoners twice every
month,^ and to enquire whether they have necessaries allowed
them, and whether they are well or not. In this visit they
usually ask him in these very words. How he is ? How he
hath his health ? Whether he wants any thing ? Whether his
warder is civil to him ? i. e. Whether he speaks to him in a
reproachful and severe manner .? Whether he gives him his
appointed provision, and clean linen ? and the like.'' These are
exactly the sentences and words they use in these visits, to
* Gousalv. j». 12.1. b Inquis, Goan. c. 12.
S50 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
which tlie}^ neither add any thing, nor act agreeably ; for they
use them only for forms sake, and when the inquisitor hath
spoken them, he immediately goes away, scarce staying for an
answer. And although any one of the prisoners complains
that he is not well used, it is of no advantage to him, nor is
he better treated for the future. If there be occasion or ne-
cessity, it will be convenient for them to visit the prisoners three
or four times every month, yea, as often as they think proper,
viz. when the criminal bears with impatience the misfortune
and infamy of hi^ imprisonment, in such case the inquisitor must
endeavour to comfort him very often, not only by himself, but
by others, and to tell him, that if he makes a free confession,
his whole aifair shall be quickly and kindly ended.
The inquisitors must take care not to talk with the crinlinals,
when they are examined or visited, upon any other aitairs but
such as relate to their business. Nor must the inquisitor be
alone when he visits, or otherwise gives them audience ; but
must have with him his colleague, or at least a notary, or some
other faithful servant of the holy office. According to the
Madrid instruction.^
1 his also they are particularly careful of, that the criminals
may not be removed from one cell to another, nor associate with
any other. If any prisoners have been shut up together at
once in the same cell, when they are removed, they must be
removed together, that hereby they may be prevented from
communicating any thing that hath been transacted in the
prison. This is more especially to be observed, in case any of
them recal their confession, after they have been removed from
one cell and company to another. But if a criminal confesses,
and is truly converted, he may more easily be removed from
one cell to another, because the inquisitor is in no pain for fear
of his retracting, but may oftentimes make use of him to draw
out the truth from other prisoners, according to the advice of
Eymerick, in his Directory of the Inquisition.''--" Things of
this nature," says he, " are to be learned rather from expe-
rience than art, or precept, especially as there are some things
a A. D. 1561. c. 17. " P. 3. n. 107. and Pegna's Commentary 23.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 251
whicli must neitlier be revealed or taught, and are well known
in themselves to the inquisitors.""
If women are imprisoned, they must each of them have,
according to their quality, one honest woman at least for a
companion, who must never be absent from her, to prevent all
siispicion of evil.' This companion must be antient, of a good
life, pious and faithful. Sometimes when women are to be im-
prisoned, they do not carry them to the jail of the inquisitors,
especiaUy if they are regulars, if the jails be within the walls
of the monasteries, but to the convents of the nuns. When
this happens, they command the abbess or prioress to admit no
body to discourse "vvith the prisoner without express leave of
the inqiiisitor, but diligently to observ^e the order given her.
But when the cause is of importance, and full of danger, and
such they esteem all that relate to tlie faith, they think it safer
that women should be imprisoned in the jails of die inquisitors.
But the cardinals inquisitors general are to be consulted in this
affair, who, after mature consideration, are to determine whe-
ther it be most expedient that such criminals should be kept in
the jails of the bishops, or inquisitors regulars, especially if
they are yoang and handsome, as is -often tlie case of those
who are taken up for telling people's fortunes about their
sweethearts.
It is farther the custom and received use of this holy tribu-
nal, that such who are imprisoned for heresy, are not admitted
to hear mass, and other prayers which are said ^vithin the jail,
till their cause is determined. Their principal pretence for
this custom is, that it may possibly happen, when there is a
great number of criminals, that the several accomplices, com-
panions, and partakers of the crime, may at least by nods and
signs, discover to one another, how they may escape judgment,
or conceal the truth.
But the true and genuine reason is, that the prisoner may
have nothing to contemplate, besides his present misfortune,
that so being broken with tlie miseries of his confinement, he
may confess whatsoever the inquisitors would have him. For
* Pegua, Piax. iiiq. I 2. c If), n. G.
252 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
this reason they deny them books, and all other things that
would be any relief to them, in their tedious imprisonment. If
any one of the prisoners whatsoever prays the inquisitor when
he visits him, that he may have some good book, or the holy
bible, he is answered, that' the true book is to discover tlie
truth, and to exonerate his conscience before that holy tribunal,
and that this is the book which he must diligently study, viz.
to recover the remembrance of every thing faithfully, and de-
clare it to their lordships, who will immediately prescribe a re-
medy to his languishing soul. If the prisoner in the same or
next visit is importunate about it, he will be commanded si-
lence, because, if he asks to please himself, they may grant or
deny him according to their pleasure.
The keeping the jail anciently belonged to the executor's
office,'' and as often as he was absent, he was obliged to pro-
vide another keeper at his own charge. But now the jail-
keeper is created by the inquisitor-general, and is diiferent from
the executor.
Those who keep the jails for the crime of heresy, must swear
before the bishop and inquisitor, that they will faithfully keep
their prisoners, and observe all other things prescribed them
by Clement I. de haeret. sect. Porro.
There must be two keepers to every jail,'' industrious and
faithful men, one appointed by the bishop, the other by the
inquisitor. Each of them may have their proper servant. Be-
sides this, to every cell there must be two different keys, each
keeper to have one, w^hich they may give to their servants, to
supply the prisoners with necessaries. The bishop and inqui-
sitor have no power to agree that there shall be but one keeper,
because it doth not seem safe enough, neither is it allowed
them by law, nor appointed in their cause or favour.'^
But now there is cnl}^ one jail-keeper appointed in every
province, chosen by the inquisitor general, who is not allowed
to give the prisoners their food. But the inquisitors choose
a Simanc. tit. 41. sect. 5.
b Simanc. de Cathol. Instit. tit. 16. sect. 7, 8, 9.
c Clem. I. sect. Sane, de liaeiet.
HISTOEY OF THE INQUISITION. S53
some proper person to this office, who is commonly called the
dispenser. The provisions they give the criminals are generally
prepared and dressed in the house of the inquisition ; because
if they were prepared in the houses of the criminals themselves,
or any where else, something might easily be hid under them,
that might furnish them with the means of concealing the truth,
or to elude or escape judgment. This^ however, is to be left to
the prudence and pleasure of the inquisitors, whether and when
the criminals may, without danger, prepare their provision in
tlit'ir own houses. But upon account of the hazard attending
it, the inquisitors but seldom, and not without exqtiisite care,
gratify them in this particular. If any things are sent them
b}^ their friends or relations, or domestics, the jail-keeper and
dispenser never suffer them to have it, without first consulting
the inquisitors.*
As these keepers have it in their power greatly to injure or
serve their prisoners, they must promise by an oath, before the
bishop and inquisitors, that they will exercise a faithful care
and concern in keeping them, and that neither of them will
speak to any of them but in presence of the other, and that
they will not defraud them of their provision, nor of those
things which are brought to them. Their servants also are
oblio;ed to take this oath.
But notwithstanding this law, a great part of the provision
appointed for the prisoners, is withheld from them by their co-
vetous keepers; and if they are accused for this to the inquisi-
tors, they are much more gently punished, than if they had
used any mercy towards them. Reginald Gonsalve relates,b
that in his time, Gaspar Bennavidius was keeper of a jail: —
" He was a man of monstrous covetousness and cruelty, who
defrauded his miserable prisoners of a great part of their pro-
visions, which were ill dressed, and scarce the tenth part of
what was allowed them, and sold it secretly, for no great price,
at the Triana. Besides, he wholly kept from them the little
money allowed them to pay for the washing of their linen ; thus
suffering them to abide many days together, without that ac-
» iD.^truct Tolet. cap. 20. b ;>, lll,&c.
254« HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
commodation, deceiving the inquisitor and treasurer, who put
that money to the keeper's account, as though it had been ex-
pended every week for the use of the prisoners, for whom it is
appointed. Neither was it very difficult to deceive them, be-
cause they took but httle pains to enquire out the truth. If
any one of the prisoners complained, muttered, or opened his
mouth upon account of this intolerable usage, the cruel wretch,
who had divested himself of all humanity, had a remedy at
hand. He brought the prisoner immediately out of his apart-
ment, and put him down into a place they call Mazmorra, a deep
cistern that had no water in it. There he left him for seve-
ral days together, A^dthout any thing to lie on, not so much as
straw. His provision there was so very rotten, that it was
more proper to destroy his health by sickness, than to preserve
it, or support him in hfe. All this he did without ever con-
sulting the inquisitors, and yet fraudulently and villainously
pretending their command to his prisoner. If any one besought
him to complain to the inquisitors for so injurious a treatment,
for they could not do it by any other person, and to desire an
audience, the cunning wretch, knowing that the whole blame
must lie upon himself, pretended that he had asked, but could
not obtain it. By such forged answers, he kept the miserable
prisoner in that deep pit twelve or fifteen days, more or less,
till he had fully gratified his anger and cruelty. After this,
he brought him out, and threw him into his former jail, per-
suading him, that this favour was owing to his humanity and
care, having made intercession for him with their lordships. In
short, his thefts and injuries with which he plagued his pri-
soners, who were otherwise miserable enough, were so nume-
rous, that some persons of interest with the inquisitors, at length
accused him before them. Upon this he was imprisoned him-
self; and being found guilty of many false accusations, he re-
ceived this sentence : — That he should come out at a public
act of the faith, carrying a wax candle in his hand, be banished
live years from the city, and forfeit the whole sum of money,
which, by virtue of his office, he was to have received from the
holy tribunal.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. ^5$
" This very man,^' whilst he was keeper, had in his family,
an ancient servant maid, who, observing the distress of the pri -
soners, labouring under intolerable hunger and misery, throuo-h
the wickedness and barbarity of her master, was so moved with
pity towards them, being herself well inchned to the evano-e-
lical piety, that she often spoke to them through the doors of
their cells, comforted them, and, as well as she could, exhorted
them to patience, many times putting them in meat under their
doors, in proportion to the mean and low abihties of her con-
dition. And when she had nothing of her own, by wl)ich to
shew her liberaUty to the prisoners of Christ, she took good
part of that provision from the wicked thief her master, which
he had stolen from the prisoners, and restored it to them. And
that we may the more wonder at the providence of God, who
so orders it, that the worst of parents shall not have always
the worst of children, but sometimes even the best ; a little
daughter of the keeper himself was greatly assisting to the
maid in these humane acts. By means of this servant, the pri-
soners had information of the state of the affairs of their bre-
thren and fellow prisoners, which much comforted them, and
was oftentimes of great service to their cause. But at length the
matter was discovered by the lords conunissioners, by whom she
was thrown into prison for a year, and underwent the same fate
Avith the other prisoners, and condemned to walk in the public
procession, with a yellow garment, and to receive two hundred
stripes, which was executed upon her, the following day,
through the streets of the city, with the usual pomp and cruel-
ty. To all this was added, banishment from the city and its
territories for ten years. Her title was, " llie Favouress and
Aidrcss of heretics.'' What excited the implacable indignation
of the lords, the fathers of the faith, against her was, that they
discovered in her examination, that she had revealed the secrets of
the most holy tribunal, to some of the inhabitants oi" the prison,
particularly relating to the provision allotted to the prisoners.
From both these examples, and from their different and un-
equal punishment, any one may see, how much safer it is to
add to the affliction of the prisoners in their jail, than to com-
fort them by any act of humanity and mercy whatsoever."
* p. 114.
^56 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
And in order that the jail of heretics may be kept secret/
no one of the officials, no not the judge himself, as we shaU
aftei-wards see, can enter it alone, or speak with the prisoners
but before anotlier of the officials, nor without the previous or-
der of the inquisitors.^ All are obHged to swear that they will
observe this, that no one may see or speak to the prisoners be-
sides the person who gives them their necessaries, who must
be a faithful honest person, and is obliged to swear, that he will
not discover the secrets, and must be searched, to prevent his
carrying any orders or letters to the prisoners.
This command they will have observed as most sacred, be-
cause, as they say. secresy is the strength of the Inguisition,
which might easily be violated, unless this order be punctually
kept, and therefore they always most severely punish those who
transgress it. Gonsalvius Montanus gives us a very remarka-
ble instance of this.'^ " A few years ago, (viz. before Gonsal-
vius wrote this account) one Peter ab Herera, a man not alto-
gether vile, but of some humanity, and not very old, was ap-
pointed keeper of the tower of Triana, which is the prison of
the Inquisition. It happened, as it often doth in such nume-
rous and promiscuous imprisonments, that amongst other pri-
soners committed to his custody, there was a certain good ma
tron, with her two daughters, who were put in different cells,
and earnestly desired the liberty of seeing one another, and
comforting each other in so great a calamity. They therefore
earnestly entreated the keeper, that he w-ould suffer them to be
^ Sect. 11.
^ The prevention of all communication with the prisoners, is another proof
of the ridiculous secrecy that pervades the Inquisition; for the prisoners are
allowed to hear nothing that has passed out of doors, however trivial the in-
telligence may be. Soon after my imprisonment, I heard an alarm of fire,
and afterwards, asking one of the guards, who was a little more kind than
the rest, where it had taken place, and if it had caused much damage, I was
told that the prisoners of the Inquisition were not to busy themselves con-
cerning any thing that passed out of doors. Another time I asked, whether
that was to be a day of business, or holy day, in the tribunal, as I intended
to solicit an audience from the inquisitor. The answer was, that I could not
be informed. If I wanted an audience, I might solicit it, and perhaps, if
convenient, the request would be granted." Da Costa's Narr. vol. i. 72.
c p> 108.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 257
together for one quarter of an hour, that they might have the
satisfaction of embracing each other. He, being moved with
humanity and compassion, allowed tliem to be together, and
talk with one anotlier for half an hour, and after they had
indulged their mutual affections, he put them, as they were
before, in their separate prisons. A few days after this, they
were put with great cruelty to the torture ; and the keeper
being afraid, that through the severity of their torments, they
should discover to the lords the fathers inquisitors, his small
humanity in suffering them to converse together for half an
hour, without the inquisitor's leave, through terror went him-
self to the holy tribunal, of his own accord confessed his sin,
and prayed for pardon, foohshly behoving, that by such his
confession, he should prevent the punishment threatened him
for this action. But the lords inquisitors judged this to be so
heinous a crime, that they ordered him immediately to ba
thrown into jail ; and such was the cruelty of his treatment,
and the disorder of mind that followed on it, that he soon
grew distracted. However, his disorder and madness did not
save him from a more grievous punishment. For after he had
lain a full year in that cursed prison, they brought him out in
the public procession, clothed with the yellow garment, and an
halter round his neck, as though he had been a common thief,
and condemned him, first to receive two hundred lashes through
the streets of the city, and then to the gaUies for six years.
The day after the procession, as he was carried from the Tri-
ana to be whipt with the usual solemnity, his madness, which
usually seized him every other hour, came on him, and throw-
ing himself from the ass on which, for the greater shame, he
was carried, he flew upon the inquisitory Alguazile,* and,
snatching from him a sword, had certainly killed him, had he
not been prevented by the mob who attended him, and set him
again upon the ass, and guarded him till he had received the
two hundred lashes, according to his sentence. After this, the
lords inquisitors ordered, that as he had behaved himself in-
* An officer wbo executes the orders of the Inquisilioii,
258 HISTORY OF THE iNaUISITION.
decently towards the Alguazile, four years more should
be added to the six for which he was at first condemned to
the gallies/'
These keepers are answerable for the smallest fault, for they
are to use the same care in the custody of their prisoners, as
fathers ought to do in governing their families ; so that if diey
suffer any one to escape from jail, they are to be punished
according to the nature of their offence. It is therefore their
business frequently to visit and search the cells of their priso-
ners, to prevent any thing from being clandestinely carried in,
by which they may destroy themselves, or dig through the walls,
and so escape.^ Their care of the women is to be pecuharly
strict, since the sex is naturally frail, and more subject than
men to yield to passion and despair, and so are more likely to
seek an occasion of destroying themselves. They must, above
all other things, take care that they do not behave themselves
indecently towards their women prisoners. Thus the congre-
gation of cardinals inquisitors general, condemned a jail keeper
to the gallies for seven years, and to perpetual banishment from
the place where he committed his offence, for a criminal
intimacy with a woman that was prisoner in the holy office ; as
appears from the letters of Cardinal Arigonius,^ directed to the
inquisitor of Cremona.
If the inquisitor thinks it necessary to prevent the escape of
any prisoners, he may lay them in irons. If the poverty of the
inquisitors is so great, or their jails so defective, as that they are
not fit to hold in safe custody, either for the thinness of the
walls, or for want of iron bars to the windows, or sufficient
bolts for the doors, if the magistrate be required by the inqui-
sitor, he must take care of the safe custody of the prisoners,
according to the constitution of Alexander IV. beginning. Ad
extirpanda.
What the several duties of the messenger, door-keeper,
and physician are, is plain enough from their very names.^
* Carena, p. 1. t. ih. n. 11.
b Jan. 13, 1610. • Simanc. tit. 41. sect. 10.
HISTOltY OF THE INaUISlTlON. 259
They must be honest men, and not suspected, and bom of old
Christians.
CHAP. XIX.
Of the Expences requisite in the Administration of the In-
quisition and Confiscation of effects applied to this Use.
THESE jails cannot be built, nor criminals be apprehended,
nor maintained in prison, without expence. It was therefore
necessary that some law should determine how these expences
should be provided for. Besides the inquisitors, and all other
servants of the Inquisition, must have their salaries paid them.
Originally this burthen was laid on the cities themselves, as
may be collected from the constitution of Innocent IV.* Ad
extirpanda^
But as the cities thought themselves aggrieved by this
charge, and openly refused to bear it, the confiscated effects of
heretics have been applied to these uses, and the cross-bearers
have bound themselves by vow, that they will expend their own
estates for the defence of the faith. But that it may be more dis-
tinctly understood how these effects are applied to the uses of
a An. 1252. sect. 3. Bzovius.
b Let the chief magistrate or governor be obliged, at the expence of the
place where he presides, to cause such heretics, when apprehended, to be
carried wheresoever the diocesan, or his vicars, or the inquisitors, or inqui-
sitor, shall order them to be carried, within the jurisdiction or district of
such diocesan bishop, or of such city or place. The olficials shall be allowed
out of the chamber of such city or place, when they go without the said city
or place, in execution of their office, every one of them eighteen Imperials in
ready money per diem, which the magistrate or governor shall give, or cause
to be given them, within three days after their return to such city or place.
They shall also have the third part of the effects of heretics they seize on,
and of the fines to which they shall be condemned, according as it is contain-
ed below, and with this salary shall be content. Ne-ther shall they be com-
pelled by any means to any other office and service, that may hinder them iu
the exercise of this.
S ^
360 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
the Inquisition, I shall endeavour to trace this whole affair from
the beginning.
When the delegated Inquisition was first constituted,* the
sentence concerning the confiscation of effects in the dominions
of the church, was pronounced by the ecclesiastical judge; but
in other countries by secular princes, as appears plain from the
text.'' " But in the countries subject to our temporal jurisdic-
tion, we ordain that the goods of heretics shall be exposed to
sale ; and in other countries we command that it shall be done
by the secular powers and princes, and if they appear negligent,
we will and command that they shall be compelled to do it by
ecclesiastical censure, without benefit of appeal."" But in a
course of years it was, without any difference, provided that
the declaratory sentence concerning such confiscation, should
every where be passed by the ecclesiastical judge, who judges
of the crime ; and farther, that the execution of such confisca-
tion, viz. the seizure of the goods, should be made by the
ecclesiastical judge, viz. by the bishop or inquisitor : ^ " the
execution of such confiscation, or the seizure of the effects
themselves shall not be made by princes, or other temporal
lords, before the sentence for such crime shall have been
pubhshed by the bishop of the place, or some other ecclesiasti-
cal person, who hath power in this affkir. '^
Whether heretics repent or not, whether they are converted
before they are dehvered to tue secular court, or afterwards,
their effects are ipso facto ^ confiscated. = "The goods of
heretics, who offend more grievously, horribly, and detestably
than others, we, with the advice of our brethren, decree
to be, ipso jure confiscated.'' Neither doth it signify whe-
ther the heretic hath persisted in his heresy for a longer
or shorter time ; because heresy is not judged of by the length
of time.
But if any voluntarily return to the church, before they are
accused or denounced, or if immediately after they are appre-
* Direct, p. 3. com. 148. b In cap. Vergentis. de haeret.
c Cap. Ut Iijquisitionis. sect. Prohibemus.
* C. Cum secundum leges, sect. fin. de haeret. lib. 6. ibid.
' Ibid, de haret. I. 6.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 20*1
hended, they make a full and entire confession of themselves
and others, whom they know to be heretics : such who thus
return with a pure heart, before the depositions of tlie witnesses
are published, are, as seems equitable, kindly excused from
imprisonment, and have also for the same reason the confisca-
tion of theii- effects remitted them.^ In Italy it is owing rather
to custom than to any papal constitution, that the effects of
penitent heretics are not sold. But in Spain, the effects of he-
retics, thougli penitent, are confiscated, not only by the papal,
but royal laws.
But as to the seizure and application of such confiscated
effects, the civil law thus determines.^ " Whom also we
pursue with the publication of all their effects.'' However such
eflPects, pubhshed because of heresy, were not condemned to the
treasury, if the children of such heretics were Catholics ; as
is plain from the before-mentioned law. " Neither do we per-
mit their children to become their heirs, unless they forsake
their parents wickedness." It is also farther explained,"^ to
whom the confiscated effects of heretics shall be applied, if their
children are not Catholics, viz. to their next relations and
kindred, if Orthodox and Catholic. But if none such are to be
found, the effects are all to be converted to the treasury of the
secular prince. And a little after,'* this method of succession is
prescribed, if the fathers should be Catholics, and their children
heretics. Because heretical children arid relations cannot suc-
ceed Catholic parents, if the father be a clergyman, the church
shall inherit ; if a layman, his estates shall go to the treasury.
Many ages after this, Frederic the emperor, by a law begin-
ning, Catharos, thus ordained, about the year 1220. " We
condemn all heretics of both sexes, and every name, to per-
petual infamy, we deprive them of our protection, and put them
under the bann, ordering their effects to be confiscated, and
never more to return to them, so that their children shall never
» Sinianc. tit. 42. sect. 17. * L. Manichaeos. Cod. de h»ret.
* L. CogDOvimus, C. de haeret.
* In Autheiit. sect, quis de predictis.
262 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
come to the possession of them, since it is much more heinous
to offend the eternal than the temporal majesty.
But as the crime of heresy is merely ecclesiastical, they con-
tend that the ecclesiastical laws, which order all things relating
to the punishment of it, ought to prevail, and be every where
observed. And therefore since the confiscation of effects is one
of the penalties ordained against heretics, they affirm, that what
hath been ordained by the ecclesisastical papal laws and consti-
tutions, ought to be observed by aU that would approve their
obedience to the church of Rome.
Pope Innocent III. in the year of our Lord 1199 or 1200,
and second year of his papacy, first ordained at the Lateran,*
by a decretal epistle, beginning, Vergentis in senium^ directed
to the clergy, consuls, and people of Viterbo, that the effects
of heretics should be confiscated, as had been determined by
the civil laws, and that they should be apphed to the treasury
of the church in the countries subject to her, and in other
dominions of the empire, to the treasLu-y of the secular judge.
And this he commands to be observed, although heretics should
have Catholic children, who by the civil law were allowed to
succeed to their parents estates. The same confiscation of
effects, a few years after, A. D. 1215, was decreed in the La-
teran council under Innocent III.
Pope Innocent IV. by a constitution made at Perouse 1252,
commanded the confiscated goods of heretics to be divided into
three parts, one to be apphed to the public use of the city,
another to the officials engaged in the affair, and the other to
the disposal of the inquisitor or diocesan, in favour of the faith,
which was afterwards confirmed and modified by Clement IV.
and Boniface VIII.
Lastly,^ Friar Bernard Comensis, in his Hght of the inquisi-
tors, hath given us this short account of the whole affair.
" The effects of heretics, since they are ipso jure confiscated
from the day of the crime committed, shall not be sold or
alienated by the said heretics.^ Yea, the treasury or inqui-
sitors shall reclaim the said effects, if sold or ahenated, out of
a April, Cal. 8.
^ ** Id voce. Bona barefr Ibid. 4.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 263
the hands of the possessors, without any charge, through what
hands soever they may have passed ; unless the price, or some-
thing equivalent to it, was amongst the effects of the said here-
tic thus alienating them.
" The ordinary or diocesan shall have no part of the profits
of the goods of heretics,'* appropriated to the office of the
Inquisition, although he himself proceeds in the said office ;
but must discharge his duty at his own proper expences, and
out of his own returns, because he is the ordinary, according to
the Extravagant of Benedict XI. beginning, Ex eo qiLod.
Nor are the inquisitors obliged to give an account to the said
diocesans of the effects accruing to the office of the Inqui-
sition.
'' Whereas the cross-bearers now generally provide, in aid of
the office of the Inquisition,** all the necessary expences of the
said office, at the pleasure of the inquisitors, and appoint such
officials as are necessary to the said office, and pay them, as the
inquisitors order them ; they have therefore, now introduced a
custom, that the confiscations made of the effects of heretics by
the inquisitors, shall be applied to the office of the Inquisition,
and administered by the inquisitors, or the said cross-bearers
at the pleasure of the inquisitors, to expedite the affairs of the
said office, and in all causes appertaining to it.
" When the effects of heretics are confiscated,*^ such confis-
cation reaches not only to such effects as are found in the
territory where the condemnation is made, but to such as are
found in any other territory ; and the execution shall be made
by the officials of that place where the goods are. For
instance, if a man is born at Bologne, and hath a good estate
there, and yet builds himself an house at Florence, and is by
the inquisitor of Florence condemned there for heresy ; in such
case the inquisitor of Bologne shall seize upon all his effects
which he finds there, because the purse of the church of Rome
equally extends to Bologne as to Florence. But it is not
thus with the part that comes to the officials. See the declara-
tion of Nicholaus IV.'*
» lu voce. Bona haeret. 5. b Ibid. 6. « Ibid. 7. '
^, * A. D. 1291. Oct. 5.
S 4
264 HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION.
" The moveable effects of the criminal, which are found in
any other territory, must go to the treasury of such place in
which they are condemned.''
CHAP. XX. G
Of the Salaries of the Inquisitors, and other Officers.
IT is very evident from what hath been akeady said, that
the method of paying the inquisitors their salaries, is not every
where the same, but very different, according as the confis-
cated effects are seized, either by die secular lords or the inqui-
sitors.
Formerly, in France,^ the expences and necessary supports
were given them out of the royal treasury, by the Balhves ; ^
who, in that age, received the returns of their several districts,
and had their accounts audited in the chamber of accounts,
as appears from those acco Lints themselves. For some of them
gave in an account of the expences of the friars inquisitors, at
Ascension term, A. D. 1248. There is also extant in the royal
chamber of records,^ an edict of Philip the Fair, by which they
are commanded, not only to furnish the inquisitors with ne-
cessary provisions, but also to give them assistance and counsel
in the execution of the office committed to them. " To the
Seneschall of Tholouse, and Carcassone, greeting: Whereas
Friar William de Morreriis, a predicant, of whom we have re-
ceived a favourable account, is, as is reported, newly deputed
by the apostolic authority, inquisitor at Tholouse, we command
ycu, that ye cause to be given and ministered to him our jails,
situate in our lands, for the custody of persons taken up for the
« Du Cauge in voce Inquisitio.
•• Ballives, are judges to administer justice in provinces and greater cities,
and who also took care of tlie fines, confiscations, mortmains, and other
effects belonging to the king, in their respective districts.— Du Fresne.
c Register Book xxxvi. cap. 16.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 265
crime of heresy ; as also money for his provision, and for exe-
cuting his office ; and that you gi'ant him all help, favour, and
counsel therein, as hath been hitherto granted to other inqui-
sitors, and as long as it shall b? our pleasure." *
James, king of Arragon, by a law, beginning, *' Quoniam
fidei Catholicae,** thus commands : " Likewise also we will and
command, that ye provide for the said inquisitors, their ex-
pences, and pay all their charges they shall be at upon account
of the said inquisition, as well for horses as for other matters
as they shall give in their accounts of them, as often as you
shall be required by them, or any one of them.' ^
In Italy and other places, where tlie inquisitors are poor, the
commonwealth must maintain them in the places where they
hve, as is provided by many rescripts of former popes ; '^ and
particularly by a rescript of Innocent IV. beginning. Ad
exstirpanda. It is also the duty of the cross-bearers to support
the inquisitors with their estates, to which they have obho-ed
themselves by vow.
In Spain all these things are determined by certain laws.^ As
to the expences relating to the criminal under inquisition, the
Madrid instruction*^ hath thus determined: ''Let so much
money be taken out of the sequestred effects of the delinquent,
as is necessary to carry liim to jail, and six or eight pieces of
gold more for his own support ; nor shall any more expences
be allowed him than are necessary for him, and the cattle that
are to carry him, and the bed on which he is to sleep. If there
be no ready money in the sequestred effects, such of them
however as are less necessary shall be sold to bring in the said
quantity. The executor of this affair shall take care to write
down what he orders at the bottom of tlie registered effects,
and what remains shall be assigned over to the dispensator of
the prisoners, in the presence of the attorney of the sequestra-
tion. And the inquisitors shall be certified as to the whole
affair.^'
In many inquisitions this exact order is not observed, either
" Dated at Vicenn. 1302. b Made May 23, 1202.
c Baovius A. 1292. stct. J. " Eyiner. p. 3. q. 104. com. 158.
« Ibid. f A. 1501. cap. 9.
266 HISTORY OF THE IN^QUISlTION.
through poverty, or for other reasons; in which case every
one abides by the received custom of his inquisition.
In Spain there are fixed salaries for the inquisitors, and other
ministers of the holy office, which are paid them at stated times
out of the forfeited effects, according to the quantity and order
described by Simancas.^
It is also provided in Spain, by many constitutions, that in-
quisitors, who receive gifts incur the sentence of excommuni-
cation, and are deprived of their office, and fined double the
value of what they take.* This holds if they take gifts from
* Cathol. Inst. tit. 41. n. 33, 34. " The salaries must be paid to the inqui-
silors and officers by the commonwealth, which they serve with great labour,
but greater profit.* Every inquisitor hath annually allowed him 60,000,which
now is increased to an hundred thousand pieces, every one of which is worth
two of those brass pieces of money, which they commonly call Albi. The
judges of the forfeited effects have each of them 30,000. The promotor fiscal
as many. The scribe or notary the same. The executor 60,000. The re-
ceiver as many. The messenger 20,000. The door-keeper 10,000. The
physician 5,000. These salaries may be increased at the pleasure of the
inquisitor general, and are to be paid by the receiver at the fixed times,
which if be neglects to do, he may be deprived of his office by the inqui-
sitors.t
" All these salaries are paid out of the forfeited effects. | A third part is
to be paid in the beginning of every fourth month, and they then begin to be
due, when the judges and ministers go from their houses to manage the affairs
of (his holy inquisition. But if they die before the four months are complete,
their salaries shall be paid and go to their heirs.
*' The assessors and counsellors have no stipend, but must give their ad-
vice gratis, when the inquisitors desire it, as some lawyers affirm ;|| and
though they may receive a salary freely offered them, yet they cannot de-
mand it, because all Christians are bound to support and defend the affair
of the Catholic faith. However, these assessors, who are the eyes of the
judges in every cause, even though it be spiritual, justly receive a salary for
their service and labour. For many things are justly received, which it
would be injustice to demand.
'* Those advocates who defend the causes of the poor have a stipend out
of the treasury, which is usually very small, though honourable.§ But if the
criminals are not poor, the advocates are paid out of their effects.'*
^ Simanc. de Cathol. Inst. t. 34. n. 45.
* Eymer. p. 3. q. 104. com. 153. sect. 23.
t 4 Inst. Tolet. c. 2. Inst. 3. Valdolit. c. 13.
X Eymer. p. 3. q. 104. com. 153. sect. 34. || Ibid. sect. 13.
^ § Ibid. tit. 5. sect. 6, 7.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 267
their officials. It is ordained also, by the same instructions,
That all the officers shall be content with their stipends, and
receive no gifts ; not so much as any thing to drink or eat.
And if any one is convicted of doing it, he is deprived of his
office, must pay double the sum, incurs the sentence of excom-
munication, and is fined in 10,000 pieces. If any one of the
officers knows of any such thing, and doth not discover it to the
inquisitors, he must suffer the same punishment.*
But Paramus doth not interpret this constitution,"* so as to
make the inquisitors, who are criminal in this respect, actually
incur excommunication, and deprivation of office, but only so
as to make them hable to this punishment from the inquisitor
general. He also believes, if it be a small matter, the inqui-
sitors may take it when voluntarily offered to them. But it is
his judgment that they would do better to take nothing at all,
neither from the criminals, which looks very suspicious, nor
from their relations or friends, or any other persons what-
soever.
Every minister of the inquisition is also forbidden to con-
cern hunself in any traffic, either by himself or other persons ; "
if any one doth he is deprived of his office, and fined 20,000
pieces. If any one doth not discover this, he is excommuni-
cated.'^
The inquisitors, ministers, and receivers, are also forbidden
to buy any thing of the confiscated effects, although they are
pubUcly sold.* If any one doth buy any of them, though openly
and honestly, he nevertheless incurs the sentence of excommu-
nication, and is fined in an 100 pieces of gold.*"
a The vTOids of the instruction, a, 1484. cap. 1. are these : " They have
likewise decreed, that the inquisitors and assessors of the inquisition, and
other their officials, such as advocates, fiscals, executors, notaries, and door-
keepers, siiall receive no gifts or money from any persons whatsoever, which
the said inquisition doth or may lay hold of, nor;from any other persons ap-
pointed by them. And the inquisitor general shall command them not to
receive any thing under pain of excommunication, deprivation of offices,
which they hold from the holy inquisition, and returning double of what
they take.
* Sinianc. lib. 3. q. 2. n. 68. c Ibid, de Cathol. Inst. t. 41. n. SS.
.« 4 I list ToleU c. 12. « Simanc. de Cathol, In»t. sect. 29.
f 4 Inst. Tolet. c. 23.
268 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
However, as the author of the History of the Inquisition at
Goa informs us, the inquisitors know how to amass vast riches,
by two methods.* When the effects of the prisoners, after
confiscation, are sold by the cryer, the inquisitors, notwith-
standing this interdict, usually send one of their domestics,
v^^ho bid a low price for such things as their masters want,
being pretty secure that nobody else will out-bid them ; and
by tliis means they buy very valuable things for half price, or
less. Besides this, the inquisitors have a right to demand the
payment of the expences, and other necessary charges they have
been at, when, and in what sums they please, whenever the
money arising from the confiscations is carried into the royal
treasury ; without ever giving any reason, or any ones daring
to ask them for what purposes they employ it.
Gonsalvius Montanus also tells us, in his arts of the Spanish
inquisition.** That the inquisitors aie sometimes prevailed
with to use their prisoners a little more kindly, by some pretty
presents made by their friends and relations. But this matter
must be dextrously managed, that so the inquisitor mav not
refuse the offer. The first thing therefore is, to bribe one of
his servants, in which there is no difficulty, provided it be done
privately. When the inquisitors themselves are tampered with,
they generally answer, That holy tribunal is incorrupt, and
suffers no manner of gifts whatsoever to be received But
they have generally, amongst their attendants, some child of
their brother or sister, or, at least, a servant that they greatly
esteem, and who is to be highly respected, and who only sees
the inquisitor refuse the presents offered to him. This servant
comes to the prisoner's friend, and privately points out to him
the relation of the lord inquisitor. This is giving him to un-
derstand, unless the person be a stock, that thoui»h before he
in vain attempted to corrupt the integrity of this holy tribunal,
he may by this conveyance prevail upon the inquisitor, though
he would refuse to accept the same present when more openly
offered liim.
a Simaijc, de Catiioi. lust. c. 25. '' Cap. 10.
END OF BOOK II.
HISTORY
OF THE
aFtWi^iiii^ittfeiro^
BOOK III.
VniMES BELONGING TO THE TRIBUNAL OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. I.
(y Heretics and tJieir Punishments. And first of stick as
are Ecclesiastical.
ilERESY is t}ie crime properly subject to the trial of the
inquisitors. For they are inquisitors of heretical pravity ; and
their whole office consists in the extirpation of heresy. But
there ai'e various offences relating to heresy, according to the
statutes of the church of Rome, and one offence is more griev-
ous than another. For some are manifest heretics, others con-
cealed. Some affirmative, others negative. Some impenitent,
others penitent. Some arch-heretics, others believers of here-
tics ; some receivers, others defenders, others favourers of here-
tics. Some are hinderers of the office of the inquisition, others
suspected of heresy, others defamed as heretics, and others re-
lapsed. Again, there are some who, by committing certain
other crimes, incur the suspicion of heresy, or, who committing
certain crimes, punishable by other tribunals, yet are answer-
able to the tribunal of the inquisition, because of some heretical
word or action mixed with those crimes : so that it must be
particularly declaied, what the respective crimes are, and what
the punishments annexed to them. And finally, the Jews, in
S70 HISTORY OF THE INaUISlTION.
some certain cases, and the revolters to Judaism, as also witches
and sorcerers, as far as they are said to deny the faith, are to
be brought before the tribunal of the inquisitors. Of these se-
verally in their order.
AND FIllST OF HERETICS.
Three things are required to make any one truly and pro-
perly an heretic.^ First, That he hath professed the Cathohc
faith, i. e. hath been baptise(I. Secondly, That he err in his
understanding in matters relating to the faith. What these
things are the papists enquire; but they are reduced at last to
this, that all points determined by a general council, or the
pope as necessary to be believed, or enjoined as an apostohc
tradition, are matters of faith. And this is said to make a man
an heretic initially, and as to his disposition. The third is ob-
stinacy of will. This is discovered tWo ways. The first is,
when any one is called before a judge of the faith, and by him
informed that the opinion he holds is contrary to an article of
faith, or contrary to the determination of the church made
concerning the faith, and yet nevertheless persists in his error.
The other is, when any person, after the discovery of his error,
will not renounce it at the command of a judge of the faith, by
abjuring it, and giving suitable satisfaction.
This crime is so widely extended by the doctors of the church
of Rome, that they esteem as heresy '» every thing that is con-
a Eymeric, p. 2. qu. 32.
b The regulations of the holy office, book ii. tit. 4. offer a very remarkable
instance of cruelty, where the age at which children are permitted to be pro-
ceeded against as heretics, and to abjure is defined ; by which, as well as book
iii. t. 1. sect. 12 it appears, that a male child at ten years and a half, and a fe-
male at wine years and a half, are liable not only to be tortured by the inquisi-
tion, but to be ordered to execution. History indeed affords many instances
of tyrants, who have exercised their cruelties even against innocent children
and tender infants, as has been said of Herod and others; this happened,
however, through arbitrary orders dictated by an impulse of rage, or perhaps
in some momentary derangement of the mind, but to ordain such horrid bar-
barities in cool blood, to make them part of a legislative system, which has
been considered revised, corrected, examined, and meditated upon, from
time to time, for years and for centuries, was reserved only for the holy office
of the inquisition, — Da Costa's Narrative, vol. i. 131.
HISTORY OP THE INQUISITION. 271
trary to any received opinion in the church, although it be
merely philosophical, and hath no foundation in the sacred
scripture. Such is that assertion of Bernard Comensis, in his
Candle of the Inquisitors in the word heresy.^ He is an here-
tic, who says, defends, or obstinately maintains, that the ra-
tional or intellectual soul is not the form of the human body of
itself, and essentially ; as appears in the Clementines, Unica de
summa Trinit.^
The punishments ordained against heretics are many, and
most grievous, because the church of Rome looks upon heresy
to be a much more heinous crime than any other whatsoever.
These punishments are divided by some into ecclesiastical and
civil. Others say, that some punishments are inflicted on here-
tics, a jure and *ipsoJacto ; and that others are inflicted by
men. Conrad Brunus'^ comprehends, and particularly specifies
all of them, under this threefold division.*^ Of human punish-
ments ordained against heretics, some are ecclesiastical or
canonical, which the sacred canons have appointed, such as
excommunication, deprivation of ecclesiastical burial, dignities,
benefices, and ecclesiastical offices. Some are civil, which the
civil laws have enacted, such as the depriving men of the pri-
vileges and benefits of law, pecuniary mulcts, banishment, death,
and the bann. Some are mixed, ordained both by the sacred
canons, and the imperial laws ; such as confiscation of goods,
absolving subjects from their allegiance, infamy, and the eccle-
siastical interdict. I choose rather to distinguish punishments
only into ecclesiastical and civil. By ecclesiastical, I mean
those which are inflicted on any one considered as a member of
the church, and which are supposed to bring on him some spiri-
tual evil. By civil, I understand such punishments as refer to
the body or estate of any one, and are inflicted on him as a
member of civil society, whether they are appointed by the
civil or canon law, or by both.
Simancas gives a merry reason why they punish heretics so
severely,"* instead of convincing them by scripture of their error
and false doctrine. " We must not contend with heretics by
• Sect. 14. b Sect. Porro. '^ De haeret. 1. 5. c. 3. sect. 1.
d Calhol. lustit. tit. 59. sect. 11.
27S HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
scripture, because by that our victory will be uncertain and
doubtful.'" So that it is no wonder they should defend doc-
trines, which have no foundation in scripture, by force, and
dreadful punishments, and extort that confession by the fear
of punishment, which they can never persuade the mind of
the truth of, as being destitute of the weight of reason, and
the clear testimony of scripture. But it is time to return to
our subject.
The first punishment ordained against heretics by the Canon
law, is excommunication.^ This was in use amongst the
Christians in former times. For ever since that councils were
held for the extirpation of heresy, the custom of excommunicat-
ing heretics was introduced. By this excommunication heretics
were driven from the sacraments, deprived of the common
suffrages of the church, and expelled the com.pany of the pious
and faithful. Thus the synod of Vernon determined in the
year 755, chap. 9. " That ye may understand the nature of
this excommunication, he must not enter into the church, nor
eat and drink with any Christian ;^ let none receive his gifts,
nor offer him a kiss, nor join with him in prayer, nor salute
him.
The ceremony . of excommunication is thus : = When the
bishop pronounces the anathema, twelve priests must stand
round him and hold hghted candles in their hands, which they
must throw down on the ground, and tread under their feet at
the conclusion of the anathema, or excommunication. Then a
letter is sent about to the parishes, containing the names of the
excommunicated persons, and the reason of their sentence.
Excommunication is either the greater or the less. Of both
the synod of Nimes hath thus decreed, A. D. 1284. The
greater excommunication is, when the prelate says, I excom-
municate thee. " This excommunication separates a person
from the communion of the faithful, and the participation and
perception of the sacraments. The lesser excommunication is,
a Cap. cum Christus. Siciit ait, ad obolendam. Excommiinicamus de
haeret.
*> Du Cange in voce Excom, * Brunus, 1. 5, c, G. sect 6.
HISTOUY OF THE IXQUISITION. 273
^^ when any one communicates with a person under the greater
excommunication ; by tlius partaking with him he is removed
from the perception of the sacraments, so that he ought not to
receive the cuchai'ist or other sacpaments, till lie is absolved."
An interdict is, when the prelate says, I interdict thee ; or, I
put thee under the ecclesiastical interdict ; or, I interdict or
prohibit thee from enteiing the church. " Such an interdicted
person, and he who is under the greater excommunication must
not enter the church, nor stand near it, when divine service is
performing, as long as they are under the sentence.
An interdict is a general excommunication, pronounced
against a province, a town, or city.^ Brunus describes it as ap-
plied to ecclesiastical affairs,
" An ecclesiastical interdict is one of the principal ecclesi-
astical censures, as it forbids a person all divine services, *»
which is itself the greatest'^punishment, as it deprives a man of
the benefit of divine services and sacraments, and affects ^the
soul, even as a civil interdict doth the body. It is pronounced
sometimes against a person, a community, or chapter. Some-
times against a place, a church, or city. And there is this dif-
ference: when a community is interdicted, the clergy may
perform divine service with a loud voice, the*gates being shut,
and the bells rung, provided the excommunicate and inter-
dicted persons be excluded, which they cannot do in an inter-
dicted place. Farther, when a community is put under an
interdict, we are not to understand it of the community as a
bod}^, but of some particular interdicted persons ; because the
matter of the interdict is proportioned not to the body, but the
several members. And yet an interdict may be pronounced
against the whole community, as a punishment of the crime of
the governors of the university, or body, in which case both
the guilty and innocent are subject to the ecclesiastical interdict,
especially those who were present, and knew the faults of the
governors, without opposing them. Jn this case the truth is,
that all the citizens, even the ignorant and innocent^ are in-
cluded in the interdict.*"
» Cap. 17. de vcibor Siguif. ^ I5rnnus, 1. 5. c. 10. sect. 10,
[ • Qj Du Cangc in voce interdict. The foini of the interdict we have in the
T
274 HlSTOfiY OF THfe INatTlSITlON^
The Venetian divines, in their treatise concerning the inter-
dict of pope Paul v." affirm, that the interdict is a new censure
council of Limoges, A. 1301 . session Ihe second. « Unless tht- y come to tcrrai
ot'peac<e, !<?t all the country of the Limosin be put under a pKblic excommu-
nication, so that no person, except a clergyman, or poor beggar, or stranger,
or infant from two years old and under, he permitted burial, in the whole Li-
mosin, or permitted to be carried to burial in any other bishopric. Let
Divine service be privately performed in all the churches, and baptism given
to those who desire it. About the tiiird hour let the bells ring in the churches,
and all prostrate pour out their prayers, upon account of tho tribulation, and
for peace. Let penance and the viaticum be granted in the article of death.
Let the altars of all the churches be stripped, as in Easter eve, and the crosses
and ornaments be taken away, as a token of mo>irning and sadness to all.
Let the altars be adorned at those masses only, which any of the priests shall
say, the church doors being s!iut j and when the masses are done, let them
be stript again. Let no one marry during the time of the excommunication.
Let no one give to anotlier a kiss. Let no one of the clergy or laity, no in-
habitant, or traveller, eat jSesh or other meat, than such as is lawful to eat in
Lent, in the whole country of the Limosin. Let no layman or clergyman be
trimmed or shaved, till the censured princes, the heads of the people, abso*
lutdy obey the holy council." Some synods held at Landaff, recited in the
English councils, after the ecclesiastical laws of king Alfred, declare, that in
the time of the interdicts the altars were uncovered, the crosses and relics of
the saints laid upon the ground, and the bells turned upward.
There is another farm of the interdict extant in a manuscript of the church
of Beauvis, amongst the laws of Charles the Great. In the name of Christ, I
Hildegariiis, bishop of Beauvis, by the authority of the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Ghost, and by the authority of St, Peter, prince of the apostles, and
by ottr own authority, do excommunicate and interdict this church, and all
the chapels belonging to it, that no one may have power from Almighty God,
or from St, Peter, the prince of the apostles, from this day to sing or hear
mass, or perform any divine office, or receive the tythe of Almighty God,
without our special leave. And whoever shall presume, contrary to these
interdicts, either to sing orhear mass, or to perform divine service in any
place, or to receive tlie tythe of Almighty God, let him be excommunicated
and accursed by the authority of the omnipotent God, the Father, the Son,
adn the Holy Ghost, and of St. Peter, and all the saints, and separated from
the society of Christians, and from tlic doors of our holy mother church,
^here there is remission of sins, and let him be anathema maranatha, t9
the end of the world, with the devils in hell. So let it be, once, twice,
thrice, Amen. Boniface VIII. ordained, that notwithstanding the eccle-
siastical interdict, divine service might be performed in the four festivals, to
which Urban VI added the festival of Corpus Christi, as may be found in lh«
great Beltjic Chronicle, a. 1389.
» A. 1006. propos. 10.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 275
in the church; and they thus prove it: because there is no
mention of an interdict, either as to the word or meaning, in
tlie holy scripture, or any one of the ancient fathers, or in the
colI(?ction of canons by Curcard or Gratian, who \vrote about
the year 1150. And, therefore, it did not begin till after his
lime, because Alexander III. first mentions it in the decretals,
in a certain letter of his to the Enghsh prelates, A. D. 1170.
They add,
In the beginning, when the interdict took place, all divine
services were prohibited, except the baptism of children, and
the penance of the dying.* About the year 1200, Innocent III.
allowed of preaching and the sacrament of confirmation.^ About
the year 1230, Gregory IX. granted, that mass should be cele-
brated once every week, but without the ringing of the bell,
with a low voice, and the gates shut, in order to consecrate the
most holy sacrament for dying penitent s.'^ About the year
1245, Innocent IV. permitted the sacrament of penance to be
administered to the cross-bearers and strangers, and that two
or three of the clergy might celebrate dirine service with a
low voice.*^ About the year 1300, Boniface VIII. decreed,
that penance should not only be administered to the sick, but
to such as were well, and every day ; and that divine service
should be performed with a low voice, the gates shut, and
without ringing of bells, except on the feasts of the Nativity,
Easter, Whitsunday, and the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin,
when it should be celebrated with open gates, and the ringing
of the bells.=
To this they subjoin the effects of an interdict, to shew, that
if this censure be not used with some difference, it Avill destroy
the church. It is worth while just to recite these effects, in the
words of the aforementioned place, Alma Mater, and from the
extravagant Proc^iff^. ** Because," says he, **by such sort of
statutes the indevotion of the people is forgotten, heresies spring
up, an infinite number of dangers arise to souls, and the church,
* Alexander III. capit. " Non est nobis." re«pons. A. D. 1170.
b Capit responso. de Sent. Excom.
« Cap. Pciinillinius. de Sent. Excom. d Cap. Qnod. in Text de rcen.
« Cap. Alraa Matrr. do Sent. Excom. in C.
S76 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
without lier fault, loses the obedience due to her." The words
of the extravagant are these: " Prayers for the dead, especially
by the frequent oblation of the salutary host, are either entirely
prevented, or greatly lessened ; young persons and children
more seldom partake of the sacraments, and are thereby less
inflamed and confirmed in the taith, the devotion of the faithful
grows cool, heresies spring up, and the dangers of souls are in-
creased."" The gloss upon the same chapter. Alma Mater,
says, that after the removal of the interdict from any place, per-
sons of thirty or forty years old, who had never seen the mass
celebrated, laughed at the priests as they were celebrating it.
Sotus, a famous doctor, says,* " That though an interdict on
one hand tends to terrify the excommunicate, yet on the other
it endangers divine service, especially if it lasts for any consi-
derable while ; for that not only the laity lose their affection
and regard for divine services, from not being accustomed to
frequent them, but even the clergy themselves grow more re-
miss and indolent in perfoniiing them: upon which account
religion itself suffers great loss, and the manners of the people
grow wild and savage." Thus far the Venetian divines.
Heretofore they used, three times a year, solemnly to ana-
thematize heretics of every sect, viz. in the day of Cceni Domini,
the ascension,^ when Christ prayed for all the faithful, and in
the feast of the dedication of the churches of St. Peter and
Paul ; to denote that the excommunicate person was deprived
of the sacrament of the supper, *= that he could not partake of
the prayers of the church, and that he was expelled the church,
so that he could not pray with the rest of the faithful. To this
custom succeeded the process of the bull, called In ccena Do^
mini, which was read publicly, and with a loud voice, every
year, on Holy Thursday, in the morning, by the last cardinal
deacon, in the presence of the pope, and the rest of the cardi-
nals and bishops, by which all heretics are anathematized.—
When the reading of it is finished, the pope takes a little light-
ed torch, and throws it into the street, as a token of the thun-
der sent against the excommunicate. The use of this bull doth
» Distinct. 22. qu. %. arlic. 1. *» Pegna, p. 2. com. 22.
" Hierokx in voce Processus.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION* STT
not seem very ancient ; for neither Thomas, nor Eymericus,
nor other ancient writers mention it. But it seems to have
begun in the time of Martin V. about the year 1420, when the
Bohemian doctrine was cursed and condemned by the council
of Constance. Paul II. and Sixtus IV'. make mention of it in
some rescripts, beginning, Etsi domlnici Gregu, Afterwards
Leo X. increased it against Luther, as did Paul TIL and the
other Roman pontiffs.
Excommunication infers other punishments.* For if an he-
retic excommunicated hath any spiritual jurisdiction, he for-
feits it, nor can he vahdly perform those acts which requii*e ju-
risdiction, because as this is given by the church, the church
may resume it. Hence all things that are done by a priest
or bishop, without permission, are null, for the want of juris-
diction. All absolutions, censures, sentences, punishments,
done by him, are void. Thus it is said,^ that an excommuni-
cated person cannot excommunicate, and that they are not to
be looked on as excommunicate, who are excommunicated by
heretics. Yet they so far retain the powers belonging to their
order, that they may validly do an act which doth not require
jurisdiction, though not lawfully, because they sin in doing it;
and they give this reason, because the power of any order con-
sists in an indelible character.'^ Hence they infer, that he who
hath once legally received this power, must always keep it, and
that therefore, he may validly do an act, which doth not require
jurisdiction, provided the due matter, form, and intention^ be
preserved, because such a power hath its force from the insti-
tution of Christ, which the church cannot take away.
Finally, heretics are deprived of all ecclesiastical benefices
and dignities.*^ But there is this difference between heretics,
and their favourers, receivers, and defenders. Heretics are
rpsojure^ deprived of their ecclesiastical benefices, from the day
of their committing their crime, liy a rescript of Pius V. be-
ginning, Cum ex Apostolatus^ in which he reserves all bene-
fices of whatsoever sort, and wherever they are, vacant for the
• Becani. Theol. Scholast. p. 581.
^ Cap. Andivimus 24. qu. 2. ^ Ibid. rap. aperte
J Eymer. part 3, qu. 113. Pf jna, com. 162.
T 3
278 HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITIOX.
crime of heresy committed by any one, to the nomination and
appointment of the apostolic see ; whereas the receivers, fa-
vourers, and defenders of heretics are not ipso jwe^ deprived
of their benefices, but must be deprived by sentence.*
This is extended to their posterity,^ to the second generation
by the father's side, and tlie first by the mother's.^ So Uiat
if the father be an heretic, his son and daughter, and grandson
by his son, is judged incapable, but the grandson by the daugh-
ter is not incapable, because he is redeemed of his own father's
family. If the mother be an heretic, the son or daughter only
in the first decree is incapable, and no farther. The sons of
those also suspected of heresy are incapable. But whei-. the
receivers and abettors of heretics and the like are dead, there
can be no process against them, because their crime is extin-
guished by death. As for those children who accuse their
heretical parents to the judges of the faith, the punishments
appointed by law do not affect them.
Amongst the ecclesiastical punishments is also reckoned, that
no offering is to be made for those who die in heresy, nor axe
they to receive Christian burial.'^ And this Innocent IV. espe-
cially ordained by a perpetual constitution, induced thereto by
that solemn sentence, " The bodies of excommunicated persons
ought not to be buried in the sacred places of the faithful, be-
cause as the church had no communion with them when alive,
she will have no communion with them when dead."^
^ Cap. Excom. i. sect. Credentcs. de liaeiet.
b Qn. 114. com. 163, 164.
<^ Cap.Quicunq. sect. Heret. de hzeret. 1.6. and cap. Statutum deh£ret.}ib.6.
^ Cap. Sicnt ait B- Leo de naeret.
^ • Brovius, A. 1247, sect. 4. u. 15.
HISTOKY OF THE INQCISITIOX. £79
CHAP. II.
Of the Civil Punishments of Heik£tics.
POLITICAL punishments appointed by the canon and
civil laws, against heretics, are vaiious>
The first is what is commonly called, the confiscation of their
goods.* " We ordain that the goods of heretics be confiscated
in all countries subject to our temporal jurisdiction, and in
other places also by the powers and secular princes of them ;
and if they should prove negligent in this affair, we will and
command that they be compelled to it, by an ecclesiastical cen-
sure, without benefit of appeal.'^
" This confiscation of effects, Lewis a Paramo^ derives from
the example of God, who, not contented with the sentence of
death pronounced against our first parents, drove man from
the place of his delights, stript of all his goods, wounded in
naturals, and spoiled of those gifts that had been freely granted
him, his original integrity especially being irreparably lost, and
adjudged him to hard and continual labours, and out of his
hatred to so great a wickedness, commanded the very earth to
bring forth briars and thorns. This example, he saith^ the
most holy tribunal of the Inquisition follows, confiscating by a
just proscription the goods of heretics, and depriving them of
all their effects and fortunes. Neither ought this instance to
be accounted foreign from the case. For although the con-
fiscation of effects doth not regularly take place as to all other
crimes, though very heinous, nevertheless God, the first of the
inquisitors, that in this detestable crime of heresy, he might
give an example to otlier delegatect inquisitoi-s, deprived our
parents of all their effects, of tlie possession of their earthly
paradise, the use of all the fruits of it, and theu- dominion over
all the creatures ; for they did not only after this not obey our
first parents, but became enemies to them. He also deprived
their children and successors of these goods, &c. and this irre-
vocably. Nor can any one ever more come to such a place*
» Cap. Vtrgentis iu .Scniuui. de liaret. v L. i. t. 2. c 7- p. 4S» '^
X 4 *
280 IIISTOIIY OF THE INaUISITIOX.
Moreover, the goods of heretics are declared ipso jure ^ confis-
cate, in the chap. Cum secundum leges.^ " We decree by the
advice of our brethren, that the goods of heretics, who offend
more grievously, horribly, and detestably, than the before
mentioned, be ipso jure, confiscate."
This law is of great use in the tribunal of the Inquisition,
and extremely hard and severe u})on the criminals, tlieir rela-
tions, and heirs. For hence it is,^ that because the goods of
heretics are ipso jure, confiscate, they become forfeited from
the very day of their crime, so that all donations by heretics,
although secretly made, are null and void. Even portions
given to daughters, to support the burthens of matrimony,
though it be the duty of a father to portion them out, or given
to such as have taken on them the holy vow of a monastic Hfe,
are to be revoked and confiscate. Zanchinus gives this rea-
son,*^ because his goods are confiscate from the very day of his
committing the crime, and therefore he can have no right of
administration. But as for the goods of such, who cannot
purge themselves, or are condemned for contumacy, they are
not forfeited but from the day they are presumed to be here-
tics, not from the day that the witnesses declare them to have
been heretics.
If any one gives a legacy upon account of death,*^ and falls
into heresy, and his goods become confiscate, the legacy shall
be recovered as void, and belongs to the treasury equally with
all the other goods of the heretic. If an husband bequeaths
any thing to his wife, and his memory be condemned for heresy
after his death, such donation shall be revoked, although his
legacies to others shall stand good. If any thing be owing to
an heretic by a conditional contract, it belongs to the treasury
under that condition, who must perform it, if they conveniently
can. All the goods of a wife condemned for heresy and im-
piety are forfeited, whether they be her dowry, or any other
things besides, which she brought to her husband, or such
donations as the Spaniards call ArrJuv ;^ or such profits as
a de hapict. 1. G. ^ Simanc. tit. 9. sect. 21, &c. <= Cap. 27.
<J" Simanc. tit. 9. sect 9, &c.
^ Arrhce are the presents giveii to any women upon their being betrothed.
HISTOKY OF THE I^'aUISlTIO>?. 281
belong to wives by the royal laws. But the husband hath all
his actions good against the treasury.^ In like manner the
goods of an heretical son gotten in war arc confiscated, because
that is the son s private property, in whicli the fatlicr hath no
right. If he shall happen to have sold any of his goods, and
the money be in his possession, or any thing equivalent, let it
be restored to the othodox buyer^ but if it be consumed, it shall
not be restored.
Hence it is, that in every sentence, the time of the person's
falling into heresy is particularly expressed, and these or the
like words inserted in it, " and by this our sentence we de-
clare,'* that all and singular his goods were brought into our
treasury from the said time of committing the crime, and we
do solemnly declare all and every of them to be confiscated to
the treasury of the church of Rome, and our office of the
Inquisition."
U'his confiscation of goods is so rigidly insisted on, that there
is no possible way of evading it, no not by the alienation of a
man's effects. The treasury of the Inquisition devours all.
It is prescribed in Italy, by the Pope's command, that by no
pretence of alienation there may be any possibility of escaping
the confiscation of goods, or forfeiture of dominion. Lucas
Waddingus relates in his annals,*^ that Friar Andrew, inquisi-
tor in Tuscany, proceeded to seize a certain powerful heretic,
called Capellus de Chia. The Pope commanded, that all the
faithful, both ecclesiastical and secular, should grant their
assistance, that they should muster an army against him, and
proceed in an hostile manner to waste and destroy his lands.
Capellus, knowing himself proscribed, made a pretended sale
of the castle or Casal. Peter James Surdus, a citizen of
Rome, obtained from the senators of the city an order, that
the inhabitants of Viterbo, who had taken arms in obedience to
the church and the inquisitors, should not attack it, falsely
pretending that it belonged to him. The Pope chid him
severely, adding these amongst other words. " We therefore
a Zaiicli. c. 27. b Ibid. r. 11.
«: Bzoviu,«, A. 12G0, sect. 5, &c.
282 HISTORY or TttE IXaUlSITION.
^fil], and by these presents strictly ccjmmand you, that as soon
as ever you receive them, and as you regard the divine favour
and ours, you desist from so impious and pernicious an under-
taking, as the defence of the said castle, and that you. do not
enter by any means whatsoever; but that you do procure, that
the inhijbition given through your instigation by the aforesaid
senators of Viterbo, be totally revoked. Otherwise we will
have you to know, and certainly to understand, that we shall
proceed against you, by the authority of the lord, both spiri-
tually and temporally, as a defender and favourer of heretics.'*
Anagni, 2 IMay, and sixth year of our pontificate. Moreover
he exhorts the inhabitants of Viterbo, that notwithstanding the
contrary orders of the senators of the city, they should pro-
ceed in an hostile manner, to waste the lands of the aforesaid
Capellus de Chia
But in our own time the Spanish inquisitors are endeavour-
ing to extend their power and jurisdiction further, and under
the pretence of confiscation of goods, to seize on theirs also,
who have any commerce with the Spaniards, though they live
in other countries not subject to them, and have separated
from the communion of the church of Rome, because they
have in their possession some of the effects of those who are in
prison of the Inquisition, or condemned by the inquisitors,
according to the daily practice of traders and merchants. Of
this the Inquisition of Madrid gave a remarkable instance a
few years ago.* Many persons were thrown into the Inquisi-
tion at Madrid, accused of being concealed Jews. Amongst
these were Diego, and Anthony Diaz, and Don Damianus de
Lucena. About the end of August 1688. Sentence was
pronounced against them, by which aU their effects were con-
fiscated, and they themselves sent to Toledo, there to perform
wliolesome penance. These persons traded with Peter Poulle,
a merchant of Amsterdam, who was neither a Jew nor a Spa^
niard, but a Christian, and a Dutchman, who had in his hands
leveral of tlie effects of these Spaniards. The Inquisition, in
•rder to possess themselves of those effects, which were not sub-
» Ff b. 1G87. 1
;history of the inquisition. 283
ject to their power, discovered by j)rivate enquiry, tliat this
Dutch merchant traded with se\eral Spanish merchants, and
tliat he had a *?reat many effects in their hands, and therefore
ordered them all to be seized by the receiver of the forfeited
goods, till they had the vahie of tliose effects, which the
Amsterdam mercliant had in his custody; and gave ihis reason
for the forcible seizure, that the imprisoned persons had a claim
upon the estate of the Dutchman, and that their claim was
devolved upon the Inquisition, and tliat therefore they had the
same risht as the prisoners themselves to attach the other
effects, wherever they could be found in Spain: however,
this endeavour was in vain, ])ecause no confiscation can be
just, of such effects wliich are in the possession of another
person, who lives out of the territories of the judge, and is
not subject to his jurisdiction ; and therefore the lords of the
united provinces, at the information and request of the Am-
sterdam merchant, obtained that those effects should be restor-
ed to him.
This punishment of confiscation is inflicted upon all who are
convict of heresy, or confess, v. hether they repent, or persist m
their heresy, because they are declared to incur the punishment^
^p so jure, as soon as they fall into heresy.
The next punishment that follows the confiscation of goods,
is the disinheriting of children, who though they may be
Catholics, can never inherit the estates of their fathers dying in
heresy, unless a son accuses his father before the inquisitors
of heresy, in which case, he is rewarded by a freedom from
penalty.
The third punishment is, their being rendered infamous.'
There, amongst otlier things, it is said, " Let him be ipso jure,
infamous; let him not be admitted to any public offices, or
counsels, nor to chuse any into them, or to bear witness; let
him also be intestable, so that he can have no power to make a
will, or to inherit by virtue of one. Farthermore, let no one be
forced to answer him upon any affair, but let him be forced to
answer others. If he should happen to be a judge, let his
• Cap. Excominuniranius, 1, sect. Crcdentes. de liaeret,.
g84 11 ISTOllY OF THE INQUISITIOX.
sentence be void, and no cause be referred to his hearing. If
he be an advocate, let him not be admitted to plead. If a no-
tary, let no instruments, drawn by him, be valid, but condemned
with their condemned author. And in all like cases we command
the same to be observed.
The fourth punishment is,* that they are deprived of all
dominion, natural, civil, and that which is introduced by the
law of nations. First, they are deprived of that natural power
they have over their children.^ Being thus deprived of the
natural power of parents, they lose all authority over their
children, who, becoming as it ^vere strangers and foreigners
from their fathers family, are under no obligation to obey them
as before. *This crime of heresy in the father, even before it
is declared by the church, frees the son from his father's
power. '^
Farther, they are deprived of that civil power which they
have over their sei-vants, and of that political power,"* which
they have over any others subject to them.'^ So that slaves,
freed-men and servants are ipso facto, freed from servitude, and
every instance of duty, the moment their master falls into
heresy. In Spain, if the slaves are believers, or profess the
Christian rehgion, when their -master falls into heresy, they
recover their freedom, according to the Seville Instruction,
A. D. 1484.^ " Our lords the king and queen, out of their
goodness and clemency, will and ordain, that the servants of all
heretics shall be made free, provided that if whilst they hved
with them they were Christians." But if they had not professed
the Christian rehgion, they are forfeited with the other effects.
And though such slaves should have been made free by theur
blasters, yet if it was after their becoming heretics, it is for that
reason null and void.
Subjects, when the prince or magistrate is an heretic, are
» Direct, p. 3. Qu. 116. com. 165. Simanc. tit. 46. sect. 74.
»> Cap. Quicunq. sect ult. de haeret. 1. 6.
e in Cap. Qiiicurq. sect. ult. verbo desierint, de haeret. 1. 6.
^ Direct, p. 3. Qa. 119. com. 168.
• Cap. ult. Extiav. de haeret. ' Cap. 24.
HISTORY OF THE Il^aUISITION. S85
freed from their obedience. Thus it hath often happened,
that kings pronounced heretics by tlie Pope, have, with
all their posterity, been deprived of all dieir dignities, jurisdic-
tions and rights, their subjects absolved from their oaths of
allegiance and fidelity, and their dominions given 'as a prey to
others.
And finally, they are deprived of that power, which is intro-
duced by the law of nations, whereby they lose all property in
every thing they have,* insomuch,^ that every one is at ones
wholly freed from every obligation he can be under to persons
fallen into manifest heresy." " Let all know that they are
freed from the debt of fidelity, dominion, and all service, to
manifest heretics, how strong soever the obligations may be
which they are under." These things are thus inferred:'*
<^ First, if an heretic deposits any of his effects with any per-
son, such person is not obhged to restore them to the heretic,
after his heresy is manifest, but to the treasury. Farther, a
Catholic wife is not obliged to any duty to her heretical
husband, because by the husband's heresy she is freed from
her duty. In like manner a Catholic husband is freed from
all duty to his wife, if she be an heretic. Nevertheless they
cannot mai-ry witli odiers, because the band of matrimony is
not dissolved.^ An husband cannot be forced to cohabit with
his wife if she is fallen into heresy, even though she is recon-
ciled ; nor is he bound to maintain her, because her dowry is
confiscated by heresy ; and as she is stripped of her dowry by
her own fault, the husband is not'obliged to maintain an unen-
dowed wife. Zanchinus Ugolinus explains this matter more
largely/ The very children, brothers and sisters of heretics,
ought to forsake them. Yea, the very band of matrimony
with such is dissolved. For if any one departs from the
orthodox faith, and falls into heresy, his wife is not obliged to
cohabit with him, but may seek to be separated from him by
the judgment of the church, such separation of the bed being
* Cap. cum secundum leges, de haeret. 1. C.
b Qii. 119. com. 168. « Cap. absolutes, de Leerct.
* Simanc. tit. 46, sect. 73. * Royas, p. 2. Assert. 40, sect. 82i.
J Ibid, r, 18, sect. 2.
886 HISTORY OF THE IKaUISlTIO>J.
as reasonable upon account of spiritual fornication, as for carnal.
And if any heretic shall, after his fall, return to the unity of
the church, the other married person shall be obhged to return
to him, if they were not before parted by the sentence of the
church. But if they were parted by sentence, it shall be at
the option of tlie other party who continued in the faith,
whether to return, or become religious; because such party
cannot remain in the world, and take another during the life
of the party converted, because made whole by penance.
'' Moreover,* the governors of forts and castles, of people or
cities, are not obliged to restore them to their heretical lord,
nor to keep them in his name. Finally, all vassals whatsoever
are Ipso jure, freed from every obligation to their lords, though
such obligations shall have been confirmed by an oath.*"
Hence proceeds the maxim, that faith is not to be kept with
heretics, which some are not afraid openly to teach ; although
those who are more wise in Germany, France, and the Low
Countries, endeavour to wipe oft this spot from their church.
But the Spaniards, though they cannot be daily charged with
this perfidiousness, because they have none whom they call
heretics living amongst them, yet assert it in plain and open
words, without dissembling, and are not ashamed to defend
and confirm it by the practice of the council of Constance.^
This then is one part of the punishment of heretics, and
what tends to render them more odious, that faith is not to be
kept with them.*^ For if it is not to be kept with tyrants,
pirates, and other public robbers, because they kill the body,
much less is it to be kept with obstinate heretics, who destroy
the soul. And therefore certain heretics were most justly
burnt by the grave decree of the council of Constance, though
they had the promise of security. St. Thomiis also is of
opinion, that an intractable heretic is to be betrayed to his
judges, notwithstanding a Catholic may have given his faith,
and bound himself by an oath to the contrary."^ Add to this,
a Simauc. c. 18, sect. 2.
^ See amongst others, Simancas, Cathol. Instit. Tit. 46, sect. 52, 53, 54.
« Ibid. tit. 46. sect. 52. d Ibid. sect. 53.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOJ?. 287
that the Catholics ought to have no commerce, nor enter into
peace with heretics ; and therefore notwithstanding tlie faith
given to them, and confirmed by an oath, it is not to be kept,
because against the public good, the salvation of souls, and
contrary to the laws of God and man. But if faith be given to
heretics by a prince, or any pubhc power/ it is to be exactly
preserved, excepting only in those things which the inspired or
natural law forbids the performance of
To the same purpose speaks Brunus, although many now
endeavour to disguise this villany.'' No peace can, at this day,
be confirmed with heretics, who spread their impious doctrine
amongst the Christian people by their wicked preaching, if
made on this condition, that tliey must not be offended. Yea, ^
so much the more to be abhorred and abominated is peace made
with heretics and schismatics upon this condition, that such as
offend them shall be condemned for breach of the peace. For
how can peace be broken by offending them, with whom no
Christian man ought to have communion, and whom they
ought not to bid God speed.? Such may safely be offended,
who by the civil laws are put under the imperial bann, who
are permitted to have no liberty of meeting or abiding On the
Roman ground, or indeed in any place, wherein they may injure
tlie very elements themselves, and finally, wlio by all laws hu-
man and divine, deserve to be extinguished.
The same person teaches,<= that no covenants, conventions or
laws are firm, that permit heretics to have or reform churches,
or to possess or administer their revenues; or by which the
processes of churches against heretics or schismatics, that are Or
may be moved in judgment, are wholly put off, or suspended
for a time, or for ever ; or finally, by which heretics or schis-
matics are permitted to exercise any jurisdiction or administra-
tion, either by themselves or with Cathohcs, or to enjoy anjr
public offices.
Moreover, all places of refuge, which are open to malefactors
and the worst of villains, are denied to heretics, as though
they were the very offscouring of the earth, and had put off
* Simanc. tit. 4G. sect 64' »> Brunus, 1, 3. c. 15. sect. 8.
= Ibid. c. 16, 17. 18.
f>SS HISTOrvY OF THE INClUISITIOiT.
the very human nature at the same time they did the Roman
rehgion.
Finally, they teach, that heretical kings are to be deprived of
their kingdoms for heresy.
The fifth punishment is imprisonment/ For although by
the Civil law the prison is only to detain men, yet by the Canon
law it may be used as a punishment.'' So that an heretic
either confessed or convict, may either be delivered to the
secular court, or condemned to perpetual imprisonment. In
which case the condemned person shall be punished at the
option of the judge.
The sixth punishment is the bann and diffidation.'^ The
bann is that sentence,'^ by which any person is cast out of the
commonwealth, so that he cannot enjoy the public protection,
or discharge any public offices, or receive any benefit of law,
and hath some likeness with excommunication. For as by ex-
communication a person is cast out from the converse of the
faithful, so by the bann he is excluded from the common good.
Diffidation declares heretics to be enemies of their country and
the empire.*^ Its effect is this : when any one is declared an
heretic by the sentence of the judge, any man, by his own
private authority, may seize, plunder and kill him, as an
enemy or robber, even though he be a clergyman. He may-
be capitally punished as a deserter, and attacked with impunity
wherever he is found. That heretics may thus be seized on,
and plundered by the private authority of any man. Innocent
IV. openly determined. And this plunder of heretics Brunus
tells us is by divine right.^ " Heretics, by divine right, may
be stripped of all their effects, as unworthy their possessions.
For the just shall devour the labours of the wicked ; and there-
fore Catholics may claim the places of heretics. These things
are permitted against heretics, because religion and the Christian
faith is endangered by their impiety." -
a Brunus, 1. 5. c. 12. b C Quamvis de poenis, lib. 6.
c Diffidare is properly to wiithdravv by leUers or writing, that protection,
which one owes to another, or hath promised him.
<i Brunus, I. 5. c. 14. e Direct. 3 part. com. 30,
f De haeret. 1. 5. c. 5, sect. 2, 4, 7.
S Austin. Epist. 48. ^
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION. ^89
But if heretics are apprehended, it is not lawful for any one
to undertake their defence.* All advocates or notaries, who
give assistance or favour to heretics or their abettors, or who
plead for them when under examination, or draw any instru-
ments for them, are pronounced infamous, and suspended from
tlieir office.''
The last punishment of heretics is that of death, and that
not the common one, but the most terrible that can be inflicted ;
viz. to be burnt alive. This they infer from 2 Kings xxiii.
^v here Ozias commanded the bones of the heretical priests to
be burnt ; and from the words of our Lord, John xv, 6.= " If
a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is
withered, and men gather them, and cast them into the fire,
and they are burned." Here Brunus observes, some think
that this punishment was introduced only by custom, and can
be proved by no other right, whether divine or human. This
is his opinion, " For," says he, " this punishment cannot be
inferred from that passage of the gospel, of thromng the branch
into the fire. For this speaks of the eternal fire of hell, and
not of the temporary punishment of fire. Nor do the civil laws
prove this punishment For though they fix that punishment
against heretics, which we call death, yet they do not express
this kind of death, viz. the punishment of fire ; which undoubt-
edly the lawgivers would have done, if they had determined to
appoint it against heretics ; especially as the punishment is so
terrible, that they expressly mention it, ^whenever they think
the heinousness of the crime deserves it ; as may be made ap-
pear from other constitutions, where this punishment is particu-
larly specified.*" However, Ludovicus a Paramo finds out this
punishment of fire in many places of the new testament —
" James and John thought that the Samai'itans, who would not
receive our Lord, should be destroyed with fire from fieaven,
according to St. Luke.'' See here now the punishment of here-
tics, viz. fire. For the Samaritans were the heretics of those
* Cap. Si adveisns nos terra consnrgerct. de Laerrt.
^ See rap. Excommunicarnus, sent. Credentes. and rap. 2. sect. i. de hw-
let. lib. G. « Pegna in Direct. I. 5. c. 13. sect. 14. ^ Cap. 9.
U
J^90 HISTOEY OF THE INdUISITlOK.
times.' Christ adds three parables : one of the two sons, ano-
ther of the vineyard let out to the husbandmen. The third of
the nuptial feast prepared for those who were invited. By
these he plainly shews, that the kingdom was to be taken away
from the heretical Jews, and their city to be burnt with fire.
See here now the very confiscation of effects, and fire with
which heretics are punished." Nor is this reasoning to be won*
dered at in a man, who every where in the old and new testa-
ment, and even in paradise itself, finds out an inquisition against
heretics, and endeavours to prove, by many arguments, that
God himself exercised the office of inquisitor of heretical pra-
vity against Adam in paradise.^ /? The first who ordained this
punishment of burning heretics, after it had been some time in
use in the church of Rome, was Frederick II. by a law, which
begins, Liccmsutilemy^ which says, " By the tenor of this pre-
sent law, we decree, that the paterenes, and all other heretics
whatsoever, being condemned, shall suffer that death which
they affect, and that being committed to the flames, they shall
be burned ahve in the view of all men.'' This law many
popes have confirmed, and therefore the punishment of fire
hath been ordinarily inflicted upon impenitent heretics, as is
the custom of the church of Rome to this day. Panormitanus
says,** " That heretics ought to be punished with fire, and
burnt, and that in this the divine, canon, civil, and common
law agree." Simancas also,*' not only endeavours to prove by
many arguments, that heretics ought to be burnt, because hea-
thens and heretics thus punished the Catholics, as Eusebius,
Ruffinus, Socrates, and others testify ; but contends that it is
the most ancient punishment, as appears from the acts of the
council of Chalcedon ; because the bishop of Alexandria is there
reported to have said, if Eutiches pretends to be wiser in his
opinions than the church, he is not only worthy of punishment,
a Mat. xxi. and xxii. Mark xii. and Luke xxii.
to Lib. I. tit. 2. c Sect. 4.
^ * In cap. ad Abolendam. de lizeret. lib. 6. super gloss, in verb Audentit,
aliegans Hostiensem post Joan. Andr.
* Cathol. Institut. tit. 46. sect. 47. and se^
KtSTORY OF THE INQUISITIO>I. S^l
but to be burnt ; and because, as Nicephorus* relates, they or-
dered Anatolius, the heretic, to be burnt ahve.
Simancas also infers this punishment, from a certain law of
Theodosius,^ saying, that Theodosius published a constitution,
in which are these things : *' Farthermore we command, that
whosoever shall bring over a servant or freeman unwillingly,
or by persuasion, to the wicked sect, or ceremony from the
Christian worship, shall lose both his fortune and his head.""
And a little after, " Let him farther know, that his goods
shall be forfeited, and afterwards he himself put to death,
■who shall pervert any one from the faith by false doctrine." —
Simanca adds, " A law truly worthy of a Spanish emperor."^
So that heretics must be punished with fire,** and if that
cannot be done, they must at least be banished and expelled,
and their effects forfeited, agreeable to the laws of the old
Gothic kings in Spain, by which the goods of heretics were
<x>nfiscated, and they themselves deprived of honour and dig-
nities, and banished for ever.
With this punishment of fire only heretics relapsed, obsti-
nate, and impenitent, are punished, who, after sentence, are
delivered over to the secular judge, who was bound immediately
to condemn them, and send them to the fire. The obstinate
were to be burnt alive ; others to be first strangled, and then
burnt^
Sometimes this punishment of burning is heightened by ano-
ther kind of cruelty. In Spain and the Netherlands, lest they
should speak to the spectators when brought to the stake, and
piously testify their constancy, they were gagged ^ with an ii'on
a Eccles. Hist, book 18, chap. 4.
t> De Cathol. Instit. tit. 46. sect. 48.
<^ Vide Cod. Tlieodos. tit. de Juda-is L. prima, and lib. 16. tit. C. 1. 05.
*^ De Cathol. Instit. sect. 53.
« 5 Instruct. Hispal. cap 9. Simanc. Ibid. sect. 49.
' *' How many instances have occurred in Portugal, of men being seized
at night, and taken, with the greatest precaution and secresy, to the prisons
of the holy office, where their property, at the same time, became the prey
of the Inquisition. Some years afterwards, these individuals, whom no one
€ver suspected, appear at an^^nro da fe, with a gag in their mouths, that
they may not have the power of uttering their wrongs. On these occasions,
U 2
SO^ HISTORY OF THE INaUlSITION.
instrument, so that in the midst of iheir torments they could
utter only an inarticulate sound. Thus also Simancas pro-
nounces,^ '' That obstinate heretics should be burnt alive, and
be brought to the stake gagged, that they may not offend the
little ones.*" This muzzle, or gagg, the Spaniards in their
language call Mordaza. And if they could invent any thing
more terrible, they would not fail to use it against heretics. —
This Carena testifies,^ affirming that the custom of punishing
lieretics with fire is most reasonable, " because burning is the
most terrible death, and therefore the most grievous of all
crimes ought to be punished with it ; so that if any punishment
more terrible than this could be found out, it ought to be
inflicted on heretics ; and also because by this means the heretic
and his crime is more speedily blotted out from the remem-
brance of mankind/'
Thus we see that there is no kind of punishment that can
possibly be invented, but is enacted against heretics, and that
greater gentleness is used towards thieves, traitors, and rebels,
those enemies of mankind, than towards miserable heretics,
who, endeavouring to worship God with a pure conscience, and
regulate their lives by the gospel rule, yet oppose some doc-
trines of the church of Rome, which they are persuaded are
contrary to the gospel ; and that it is a much more grievous
offence in that church, to oppose certain opinions by the clear
light of the word of God, and to reject certain pharisaical su-
perstitions, than openly to contemn the divine Commands by
an impious and profane life, and vilely to dishonour the most
lioly name of God.
a priest ascends the pulpi<^, and thunders out against these wretched beings
a catalogue of their crimes. When this mockery is finished, tlie victims are
led to perish in the flames, without being permitted to utter even a groan ?
whilst the Inquisition would fain persuade us that these horrors are the act^
«f justice ! Da Costa's Narr. V. i. p. 121.
» Tit. 48. sect. 6. »> Tit. 13. sect. 1. num. 7„
MISHOEY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. III.
Of Open and Secret Heretics.
HERETICS are divided into several classes in the church
of Rome, and this is very necessary for the instruction of the
inquisitors, that they may always certainly know what sentence
to pronounce upon each. However, every thing is not so fully
determined, but that there yet remain great controversies
among the doctors and inquisitors themselves, so that one of
them often judges more favourably than another ; and, there-
fore, it is of great concern by what inquisitor any person is to
be judged; for he who happens to be condemned as an here-
tic by a severe one, might have obtained a milder sentence, had
he been tried by a judge of more favourable sentiments and
opinions.
First of all, heretics are divided into open and secret.* —
" An open heretic is one, who publicly avows something con-
trary to the Catholic faith, or who professes an heretical error
contrary to the faith, or who defends an eiTor of lus own, or
one of other heretics, or who is convicted before the judges of
the faith, of heretical pravity, or confesses it himself; or finally,
who is condemned for it by their sentence.
" A secret or concealed heretic, is one who eiTS in his mind
concerning the faith, and purposes to be obstinate in his will,
but yet hath not shewn it outwardly by word or deed.^ He
who is a concealed heretic in this sense, is generally called an
heretic purely intellectual; and the common opinion of the
doctors is, that such a one doth not incur the sentence of ex-
communication, and is not subject to the judgment of the
church for his heresy, because the church hath no power over
purely intenial acts, and cannot, by its jurisdiction, direct, pro-
hibit, or punish them ; and because excommunication dotli not
belong to the court of conscience, but to that of cxtcmid judg-
ment.'^
» Eymcr. p. 2. qn. 33. *> Simanc. tit. 52. sect. 3.
u 3
294 HISTORY OF THE fNftUISITION.
Although an heretic be tlius concealed, yet if he infects or
perverts others,* he is unmediately to be discovered to his
judires without any precechng admonition. But yet they do
not athmi that a concealed heretic is obhged to betray himself,
when he is asked by tlie judge in a general inquisition, v/hether
he knows any heretic. In like manner, when an heretic purely
mental, confesses his intellectual heresy in the sacred court of
penance, he doth not incur excommunication by this external
act, because such an action is good and pious, and not liable
to human judgment.^
CHAP. IV.
Of Affirmative and Ne-gative Heretics.
HERETICS are fartlier distinguished into affirmative and
nesrative.^ Affirmative are such, who err in their mind in mat-
ters of faithj and who shew by word or deed, that they are thus
obstinate in then* will, and openly confess it before tiie inquisi-
tor. Negative heretics are those, who, according to the laws
of the inquisition, are rightly and justly convicted of some he-
resy before a judge of the faith, by some lawful witnesses,
whom either they cannot, or will not, refute, but yet who will
not confess, constantly persisting in the negative, and that tliey
profess the Catholic faith, and detest heretical pravity. They
except indeed against facts committed many years before, which
are presumed to be forgotten. But even this is not to be pre-
sumed in facts of importance aud v.eight, according to the Se-
ville instruction.'^ Such are, if any hath wilfully preached up
heretical propositions, or broken the images of the saints.—
Neidier is this to be understood of persons of good memories,
but only of hght facts, and of persons naturally dull and for-
getful. Who are to be esteemed such, and what time is to be
a Simanc. tit. 52. sect. 12. ^ Ibid. sect. 9.
^ Ejmer. put. 2 q. 34. ^ A. 14S4, cap. 13.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITIOX> 295
supposed sufficient to such forgetful ness, is entirely left to the
ecclesiastical judges, after they have weighed the circumstances
of persons and things.
He also is esteemed by many a negative heretic, and, as it
were, diminute, confessed, and obstinate, who doth not discover
either all the heresies of which he is convicted, or the whole
time of his offence, or all his accomplices, if the things are so
fresh, as that he cannot be supposed to have forgotten them. —
Amongst these sort of negatives are also reckoned by some,
such who confess before the inquisitor heretical facts or words,
but who deny any pravity of intention, although others, as we
shall soon see, call them impenitent.
What their punishment ought to be, the doctors differ.
Simancas says,* that he who confesses heretical words, but
denies the pravity of intention, may be condemned as impeni-
tent, except the matter be doubtful. In such case he ought to
be purged, or abjure, because of his being suspected, or put to
the torture, which is generally the custom.
But because this case often happens in Spain, because of
their new converts from the Jews and Moors, John Royas
handles this matter largely,'' of which I shall here give you the
substance; from whence we shall know what sort of Christians
they are, which the Spanish kings have converted to their
church by the fear of punishment from amongst the Jews and
Moors.
We know by experience,*^ how many there are who are de-
tained for heretical pravity in the prisons of the office of the
holy Inquisition, who ingenuously confess heretical deeds and
words, but who absolutely deny all rash behef, and pravity of
intention .'* Thus a man may confess that he hath said, as often
happens in examining causes of faith, that every one may be
saved in his o^vn sect and opinion, a Jew by the Jewish law, n
Saracen by the Mahometan, and a Ludierun in the Lutheran
sect.* For the guilty person sometimes confesses in his dis-
course, that he pronounced the aforesaid words inadvertently,
* Cathol. Inatit. tit. G, sect. 19. * De haeret. part. 1.
« Ibid. n. 1, &,c. »l Ibid. n. 3. * lijid. n. 4.
U 4.
^96 HISTORY OF THE raQUISITIOX.
and through the error of his tongue, and being asked by the in-
quisitors of heretical pravity. Whether he beheves such things,
he says he never did, but that he ever held what the holy Ro-
man church preaches and teaches.* Thus he denies the inten-
tion, and only confesses the words, which without douNt are
heretical. Another instance is of one who confesses thia iic
said simple fornication is not a mortal sin, and yet denies all ras i
belief and error of understanding, asserting that, speaking ^'or
wantonness sake, he pronounced the aforesaid words to some
wenches, which are in reality heretical words.
An instance of an heretical fact shall be in him, who
being baptized, is afterwards circumcised, and f-bserves the
fast called Ramadan, and the passover, after the Maho-
metan manner,^ and makes the Zalah, i. e. his ad oration or
prayer in his own home or in the mosques, washing first his
body, bending his knees, bowing down, and lifting up
his head, and who feeds on flesh killed from the Keblah.*^
The new converts in the kingdoms of Valencia,, Aragon, and
Granada, publicly observe many other sacrilegious and impious
rites.'' Another example is of him, Avho, especially if he be of
the Jewish race, observes the sabbath by refraining from all
labour, and observes the other festivals of the Jews,*" and who
confesses such facts and words, but affirms that he said or did
them inadvertently and ignorantly, and that he is ready to
submit to the correction of the church. It is queried, whether
such a one is to be accounted an heretic, even though not con-
victed by lawful witnesses.
On the negative side it is urged, ^ that heresy supposes an
error in the understanding, and obstinacy in the will in adhering
to those things which are contrary to the determination of the
church.^ Hence they infer that that of Innocent is reasonable
a De liaeret. part. 1. ii. 7. b Ibid, n 10.
c Tiie Mahometans call that part of the world, where Mecca is sitdated,
by tiie name of Kt bla, towards which they are ohiigcd to turn iheinselves
when ihey say their piayers. Mecca is situated touanis liie South.
«> De hagreJ. part. 1. n 15. « Ibid. n. ZZ.
f Ihid. n. 10. e Ibid. I,. 01.
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITIOX. 297
and true, who said,* that if any one beheves wliat the chiircli
believes, but through the influence of natural reason falsely
supposes that the father is either greater than the son, or
before him, or tliat the three persons are three things distinct
from each other, he is not an heretic, and doth not offend,
because he believes this is the churches belief, and supposes his
own opinion to be the faith of the church.^ Therefore he thinks
it is but rcc'isonable, that in the defences of the criminals,
regard ought to be had to their simplicity and imprudence, so
that the punishment may be mitigated, and that the judges,
especially the inquisitors of heretical pravity, according to
their office, should be very solicitous and diligent in examining
and searching into their defences, because of the partial and
maimed defence of the criminals, though the party doth not
seek it, or even refuse it.*^ But he adds, that it is antiently
decided by the Rota 875, ' that if any one be accused of heresy,
and legally convicted by witnesses or otherwise, and yet denies
that he said or beheved such heretical things, yet that lie ought
nevertheless to be condemned as a negative and impenitent
heretic, and delivered over to the secular arm, although he
asserts that he believes, tmd hath believed as the church
believes.
However, the doctors generally maintain the affirmative,®
because the nature of facts demonstrate the intention, mind and
will of the doers. For instance, if any one should do a
properly Jewish action, *^ such as observing the sabbath, and
other Jewish rites, from thence is inferred the hitention and
will of judaising. If the intention doth not appear, in a doubt-
ful case, it is presumed that this was done with the intention of
judaising, when the act or commission is certain, either from
the person's confession, or by witnesses, and especially if the
person be suspected. He therefore who confesses an heretical
action, and denies the intention, which is the quality affecting
* Cap. Firmiter rle sumnia Triii, &c n 6.
b Ibid. n. G6, 07. c Ibid. sect. GO.
«1 In C. Acciisatus dc lurosi, in tit. de liaerct. c Ibid. sect. 27C.
f Ibid sect. 281.
g98 HISTORY OF THE INaUISlTION.
such an action to make it punishable or not, may possibly be
condemned as a negative heretic ; at least may be tortured to
discover his intention, as the doctors are generally of opinion,
and as is the usual practice. But if the fact be plainly hereti-
cal, such as a person's going over, or returning to the Jewish
or Pagan rites, it is sufficient to his being condemned as an
heretic, that he be convicted of the fact, although there be no
certainty as to his belief.^ They also make a difference between
an heretical word and fact, and Royas gives the reason of this
difference. There is this difference between one who confesses
an heretical fact, and one who confesses an heretical word, and
denies the evil intention ; that he who confesses the fact is to
be delivered over especially if he be a suspected person, and
the fact hath been repeated; whereas he who confesses an
heretical word, is to be tortured to discover his intention. The
reason of the difference is, because there is a greater affection of
the soul, and deliberation of the mind in facts than in words.**
To this they add, that there are other sins, such as covetous-
ness, intemperance, lust, &c. to which men are naturally prone.
Others to which nature doth not lead men, yea rather to which
the appetite and pleasure of men is repugnant ; such as, in the
time of a fast not to eat till night, or pray, or not to eat swines
flesh, not to drink wine, or to observe the evil ceremonies of the
Mahometans or Jews. As to the former, men are carried into
them by their own wills. As to the latter, the will is undoubt-
edly governed in its choice by the understanding, and therefore
it may be concluded that they proceed from an evil intention
-and beliefs So that if several witnesses depose in general, that
such a one hath a good reputation, their testimony deserves no
credit to prove such a one to be a CathoHc, if he be convicted by
two witnesses, to have particularly said or done something
_ repugnant to the Catholic faith.** This is the case when the
action is forbidden. But if it be of an indifferent nature,
which may be either good or evil, they say there ought to be
no presumption of a crime, but that the ambiguous deeds or
a Cap. Firniiter de surama Trin, &c. pari. 2, sect. 400.
«» Ibid. sect. 317. c ibid, sect. 346. <J Ibid. sect. 358.
histohy of the inquisitiox. 299
words ought to be interpreted on the more chai'Itable side.^ If,
for instance, any one says, the Lutherans are more noble, i. e.
in the Cathohc sense, the peers and nobles in France are
Lutherans more than the common people, it is not heretical*
If it be understood of the nobility of their virtues and morals,
it is suspicious ; if of the nobiUty of religion, it is heretical.^
But this they say must only be understood as to the full proof
of an offence, and not as to any presumption for which a person
may be tortured, especially if he be suspected. For in a
doubtful case heresy is to be presumed, and if the proofs
appear too plain, he is to be put to the torture (because the
salvation of his soul is concerned) that he may confess under
torture, and be reconciled, and receive his penance, that if he
be capable of correction his spirit may be saved, according to
St. Paul.<= Farther, it is usual in this office of the Inquisition,
that in expounding the words of any proposition, the nature
and condition of the speakers be attended to; particularly
whether the words were spoken by a countryman, of poor
capacity, in a blundering way, and without deceit and evil
belief; or by a learned person, of an acute understanding, and
in a subtle manner ; for then they are to be understood to be
deceitful. All these things are to be considered by the quaUfi-
cator divines, whom the inquisitors call and consult, and to
whose opinions the inquisitors ought wholly to assent.^ Finally,
they affirm, that if the mind and intention is not to be proved
by the external actions, it can never be proved, and so the
crime of heresy can never be punished. From hence Royas
concludes, that he who confesses an heretical action or word,
but denies the wicked intention, denies that which is the prin-
cipal form and substance, and is therefore to be delivered over
as a diminute, impenitent and negative heretic.*^ The same is
to be affirmed of him, who being fully convict of several errors,
confesses some, but denies others ; because he is deficient in a
substantial part. It is not so with one who confesses all his
» Cap. Firmiter de sunima Trin, &c. part. 2, sect. 3Gf).
•> Ibid. sect. 378. « Ibid. sect. 378.
«i Ibid, sections 384, 677, 590. « Ibid. sect. 595.
300 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
errors, though not the several times which are provided bj
legal witnesses.
From this long account, of which this is only the summary,
one may infer, that it is the common opinion of the Spanish
doctors, that such who confess an heretical word or action, but
deny the intention, are to be put to the torture to make them
confess such intention ; but that such who confesses an heretical
deed, and deny the intentior, are to be sent back again as
negative heretics, and delivered over to the secular court. Yea,
as to doubtful words, it is to be presumed there is heresy ; not
so indeed as to be full proof, but so far as to be a just reason
for the torture.
Royas^ affirms the same of such who retract the confession
they have made w^hen under examination. " He who confesses
his heretical errors when under prosecution, and afterwards
retracts his confession, is' to be delivered over as a negative,
unless the mistake plainly appears. For by confession the
office is fully proved, and by retracting it, the guilty person
becomes obstinate, impenitent and negative. And therefore
unless the mistake appears, he is to be delivered over even
though there be no other proof of the crime, and although
his confession was made and confirmed under torture. For
this is the same thing as a free and spontaneous confession,
although afterwards revoked, if the mistake doth not plainly
appear,"
CHAP. V.
Of Heretics Impenitent and Penitent,
OTHER heretics are called obstinate, or impenitent, others
penitent.^ An impen itent one is he, who being legally convicted
of heresy before a judge of the faith, or having confessed it,
will not obey his judge, when he conamands him to forsake his
a Part. 2. Assert. 25. * Eyraer. part, 2. q. 40.
HISTOUY OF THE INQUISITION, SOI
error and abjure it, and give competent satisfaction, but obsti.
nately perseveres in such error.
Obstinate heretics, according to Simancas, are to be burnt
aUve, and deUvered over to the fire with their mouths jrafro-ed,
and their tongues tied, that they may not offend the httle ones.
For in this, says Carena,^ it is the only kind of piety, to be cruel,
whilst he is impenitent.
** An impenitent heretic is one, who will not repent of his
error, as to which every impenitent person is also obstinate. So
that if his heresy be plainly proved, and he will not confess his
error with a pure heart, nor readily abjiu*e his heresy, and sub-
mit to the penance enjoined him, he is to be left to the secular
judge as obstinate and impenitent, although he protests a thou-
sand times over that he was and is a Catholic, and is resolved
to hve and die in the Christian faith.'' So that the impenitent
is the same that others call negative ; and if such a one be
convicted to have said or written any heresy, it signifies nothing,
though it be proved that he was a Catholic before, or after,
and every tune else, unless he will return to the church, and
submit to his penance."''
But Simancas gives a different account, viz. that a person
may always retract his confession before the tribunal of the in-
quisition, and that his last confession only is to stand, from
whence it is to be concluded, whether he be a j^enitent or impe-
nitent heretic. If he persists in his confession, and submits
himself to the church, he is penitent. If he retracts his con-
fession, he is accounted and punished as an impenitent. His
words are plain.*^ " In the process of the holy inquisition, the
guilty person may retract his confession when and how he
pleases ; and although he gives no probable or sufficient reason,
his retractation is to be admitted ; and his last confession is to
'Stand, whether it be for or against him; for by this it is to be
determined, whether the criminal be penitent or impenitent.
And this is the course of the law."
If it should happen that any one should confess through fear
of punishment, yet he must not assert his innocence, upon pain
* P. 3, t. 14. sect. 13. q. 92. b Ibid. sect. 27.
c Ibid. tit. 13. sect. 14.
302 IIISTOKY OF THE IXaUlSITION.
of being again delivered to the inquisition, and punished as ini*
penitent.
In the meanwhile, that they may not appear to be the defen-
ders of any unjust sentence, they allow innocent persons, who,
wearied with imprisonment, and through fear of death, have
confessed crimes they never committed, to have their cause re-
heard before the inquisitors, but with such a limitation, as is
enough to deter the most innocent person in the world, which
Simancas thus describes to us.'' '' An innocent person, who,
through fear of witnesses, and wearied out with imprisonment,
confesses he hath been an heretic, if he can prove his innocence,
ought not to neglect his reputation, but to have the cause heard
over again by the inquisitors. But if he cannot refute the wit-
nesses nor justly retract his confession, he ought to confess that
sin to his parish priest, and do nothing more, lest something
worse should happen to him ;"" i. e. lest he should be dismissed
as an impenitent, and delivered over to the secular court.
Besides these, there is another kind of impenitents, viz. such
who have professed their heresy, but do not observe the penance
enjoined by the inquisitor. Such are thought to be but feigned
converts, and therefore impenitent. Thus Simancas.'' " Those
who do not satisfy the penance enjoined them, ought to be
punished as impenitent, perjured, and feigned converts. They
are inn>enitent, because they do not perform penance; per-
jured, because they violate the oath, by which they promised
they would obey the commands of the church ; feigned con-
verts, because they neither perform true penance, nor remain
in due obedience to the church." Friar Bernard Comensis, in
his light of the inquisition, calls these impenitent. But Pegna '^
says, there is need of mature dehberation, and manifold dis-
tinctions in this matter.
However, Simancas doth not rank them with other impeni^
tents, because he adds,** " That such impenitents are not imme-
diately to be left to the secular court, but they must be dealt
with by law till the pronouncing the definitive sentence. Nei-
a Simane. de haeret. tit. 13. sect. 27, 28. b Ibid. 48. sect 20.
*= In voc. Impoenitens. n. 3. d Ibid. sect. 32.
HISTORY *0F THE INQUISITION. SOS
tlior arc they to be rooted up out of the Catholic cliurch, till
they have been once and again, and several times admonished
about the salvation of their souls, by learned, pious, and reli-
gious men.''
Penitents are those, who, admonished by the ecclesiastical
judge, abjure their error, and give suitable satisfaction at the
pleasure of the bishop and inquisitor.* Of these there are two
sorts : some come of their own accord, or within the time of
grace, without being cited, or called by name, or having any
particular inquisition made after them ; whereas others return
after being apprehended, cited, and inquisited, and oftentimes
after many admonitions. The first are treated with greater
mildness, and are sometimes enjoined a secret penance, but
must however abjure their errors, and be bound under the
forfeiture of all their effects to the inquisition, to accomplish the
penance enjoined tliem.
■wx-w* *%».•%■«.»
CHAP. VI.
Of Arch Heketics.
AMONGST heretics there are some arch lieretics, such who
have invented heresies, or taught them others when invented,
and so become themselves the masters of error. ^ These are
usually called Dogmatists or Dogmatisers, and antiently per-
fect heretics. If such as these will be converted, the council of
Biterre hath thus determined concerning them.* " Let perfect
heretics, or convicted ones, be secretly examined before certain
discreet and faithful men, persuading them, according to their
duty, to conversion, and to such as are willing to turn approve
themselves favourable and kind, because by such much light
will be spread, and great advantage will accrue ; and mitigate
their penances according to the nature of their conversion and
a Eymer. p. 2. q. 40.
^ Direct, part. 2. qu. 39,40. = Cap. 16
SOi HISTORY OF THE INQ.UISITI0y.
merit, or shew tlieni regard, as you shall think proper and con-
venient." Thus also the council of Tarracon : " But let perfect
lieretics, and dogmatisers, if they will be converted, after abso-
lution and abjuration, be shut up in perpetual imprisonment."
Hence in the sentence of Peter Auterius,^ a doctor of the Albi-
genses, we read: " Saving, however, and retaining, that if
thou wilt turn from this sect and heresy, and be converted, and
return to the ecclesiastical unity, thy life shall be saved : reserv-
ing however to ourselves full and free power of enjoining thee a
punishment and wholesome penance, for the things thou hast
done in thy former sect and heresy.''
However, the doctors now think, that considering the most
miserable condition of these times, in which heretics dare every
thing that is impious, all arch heretics are to be delivered, over,
without mercy, to the secular court, because, as Simancas says,*»
" They deserve to die not one death only, but many ;" and
therefore he is for punishing them " not as other heretics, but
with severer punishments, without any compassion. *' He far-
ther says, " That the masters of the Lutheran heresy are by
no means to be spared ; as being tainted with many vices and
crimes, viz. enemies to the church, haters of the saints, violaters
of the divine law, sacrilegious persons, corrupters of good
works, and therefore of all good manners, and subverters of na-
tions. And therefore," he adds, " they must not be forgiven,
who commit such wicked, abominable, and heinous crimes."
CHAP. VII.
Of the Believers o/' Heretics aw^^o/* Schismatics.
FURTHERMORE, there are some who are believers, others
who are receivers, some defenders, and others favourers of here-
tics.*^ The behevers of heretics are, some of them, they who
* Lib. Seat- Inquis. Tbolos. fol. 40. ^ Tit. 47. sect. 54, 71, 63.
'^ Direct, p. 2. q. 50,
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOl^. 305
believe^ their errors and heresies. Sucli are excommunicate.
Others are judged to believe the errors of heretics, from their
words or actions. By their words, viz. by their own confession,
when .they say they beheve such an one''s errors. Or by the
evidence of the fact, viz. by pubhcly preaching or defending
their errors. Or by legally producing witnesses, by whom they
are convicted of divulging such errors.
By the council of Narbonne many rules were given for dis
covering believers in heresy : as to give reverence to heretics, to
receive the communion from them, or to seek among them con
solation at the time of death.
The Waldenses also were to be known by their refusing an
oath. Thus we read, " If any of them through a damnable
obstinacy refuse the solemnity of an oath, and will not swear
from this alone, they are to be accounted heretics." *
Schismatics are thus described by Simanca, ^' Schismatics
are either consummate heretics, or near akin to heretics. Such
as depart from the unity of the church, and believe that there
may be salvation and true sacraments without the true church,
differ but Httle from heretics ; but others are without blame,
who err through probable or insuperable ignorance.
The punishments of Schismatics are privation of ecclesiasti-
cal power, excommunication, incapacity for all offices for the
future, and finally death.^ And the doctors observe, that when
schismatics are impenitent, the secular judges may in such case
punish them, if clergymen, without degrading them. They
add, that all lords and magistrates, as well ecclesiastical as secu-
lar,'= who fall into or raise schism, ought to be punished like-
wise with death: accordimj to the bull of Paul IV. bemnDinjr,
" Cum ex Apostolatus officio," in which the pope commands
that all such schismatics shall be punished, even for the first
offence, as the very relapsed themselves. ** But if they repent,
the inquisitors, after a formal abjuration of their schisin. and
their suspicion of heresy, according to the degrees of it, usually
• Cap. Exrom. it 17. extra de haerct. sect. Adiccimus.
Catena, p. 2. t. 3. sect. 12. ,. « Ibid. n. 49. / Ibid, sect 13.
306 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
punish them witii other punishments at pleasure; either by
fines, banishment, imprisonment, confinement, galhes, and
deatii, according to the nature and aggravation of their fault.
'«.«^^«'»/»^'«/W»
CHAP. VIIL
Of the Receivers and Defenders o/^ Heretics.
THE council of Tarracon hath determined those to be re-
ceivers of heretics, who have twice, or more, knowingly re^
ceived heretics in their house, or any other place.* A recepta-
cle is an house or lodging, where heretics have met together
twice or more to preach or read, or where they have frequently
lodged. But such offend more grievously who know their
errors, and that the church doth persecute them, and neverthe-
less receive and conceal them from the hands of the church,
even though they have done this but once ; and by this recep-
tion they render themselves suspected of heresy, more or less,
according to the difference of ch'cumstances. And therefore,
as suspected persons, they are obliged to abjure. Their
punishment is excommunication, and if after this they persist
in their crime, they are put under the bann, banished for ever,
and suffer confiscation of all their goods. But if any one re-
cei/ei^ an heretical relation, his crime is less, and he is more
gently punished. And in tliis they consider the degrees of
kindred, that such who are nearest akin to the received heretic,
ma}^ be more gently dealt with than those who are farther off.
The defenders of heretics, according to the definition of the
council of Tarracon,^ are such as knowingly defend heretics
by word or deed, or any method in their own lands, or any
where else, whereby the church is prevented from executing
its office in the extirpation of heretical pravity. Now there are
different ways of defending. An heretic may be defended with
* Diiect. p. .2 gu 51 • *j;ibid. qu. 52.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 807
arms, or without them, or by giving him notice for his escape.
He may also be defended when under trial, or when he is not.
They may also be said to be defenders of heretics by conse-
quence., who hin der in any manner the office of the inquisition.
CHAP. IX.
Of the Favourers of Heretics.
THE favourers of heretics,* as the name shews, are those
who shew favour to heretics, and are in all things equal to the
defenders of them. They are either magistrates or private
persons, and they may all favour heretics by omission or negli-
gence, by deed or assistance, and linally, by counsel or words.
The magistrate's office is to extii-pate heretics, and expel them
from his kingdoms and dominions, and to give all counsel and
favour to the inquisitors of heretical pravity, for the punishing
and restraining of heretics, and the suppression of all rising
heresies, because the inquisitors, without the magistrate's help,
are weak, and cannot drive away heretics ; and therefore they
must bend all their endeavours to this, that the wickedness of
heretics may not increase under their goverament, and the se-
curity and religion of the Catholics be not diminished or dis-
turbed. The favourers, therefore, of heretics are first, such
as omit to do those things concerning heretics, or persons
suspected and defamed for hei*esy, or those who beheve, re-
ceive, defend, and favour them, which they are obliged to do
by office, when required to do it by the inquisitors or bishops,
or one of them, viz. if they do not take them up, keep them in
safe custody, send them to the appointed place, or if they do
not readily punish them, when condemned and delivered over
to them.
Private persons are said to be favourers of heretics, when
out of their own rashness, they free from prison heretics, or
. a Direct, part. 2, qu. 53.
X 2
508 HISTORY or THE ixauisiTioK.
persons apprehended for heresy, or give any assistance, council,
or favour towards their dehverancc, or so accompany tliem,
when freed, as not to seize them ; or resist those who would
apprehend them, or presume directly or indirectly to hinder
process judgment, or sentence, in a cause of faith, or give
council, assistance, or favour, to such hindrance. Private per-
sons indeed are not said to be favourers of heretics by mere
omission, viz. for not apprehending or not taking them into
custody, as not being obliged to it. Nevertheless they will be
favourers, if they shall omit to discover and apprehend them,
when obliged to it by office : such, for instance, are the cross-
bearei-s, who in Spain are called Famihars; or if when called
on bv the magistrate, to assist in apprehending heretics, they
refuse to do it without reason, and when they have nothing to
prevent them.
Lastly, both magistrates and private persons may be said to
be favourers of heretics, by omitting to discover them, because
all persons are obliged under pain of excommunication, to dis-
cover all heretics, even concealed ones, to the bishops and in-
quisitors, and, if it be necessary, to accuse them. So Gregory
IX. ordained in one of his extravagants against the Patarenes,
beginning Eixommunicamus, inserted amongst the apostohcal
letters for tlie office of the inquisition. " Likewise if any per-
son knows any heretics, or such who hold private conventicles,
or who differ in their hfe and manners from the conversation
of the faithful, let him endeavour to discover them to his con-
fessor, or some one else, who he believes may give notice to the
prelate, otherwise let him be excommunicated."' And this
obligation of informincj acjainst heretics is so strict, that it takes
place not^^ithstanding any oath, covenant, or promise to the
contrary. But if the wife only should happen to know that
her husband eats flesh on forbidden days, and knows him to
be so furious, as that probably he would murder or abuse her,
if she informed against him, some think her fear may excuse
her from the suspicion of heresy.
Friar Ivonetus describes the marks and signs, by which
persons may be knovm to be favourers of heretics. There is
extant a volume of his, tiie fragment of which is in a parch-
HISTOEY OF THE IXaUISlTIOK. 309
ment book of the Vatican librar}^, intltled, " How the favourers
of heretics may be discovered." And he there reckons up five
signs in these words: — " The favourers of heretics mav easily
be known by these five very probable marks. First, whoever
privately visit them, whilst in custody, and whisper with them,
and gives them victuals, are suspected of being their disciples
and favourers. Secondly, whoever greatly lament their appre-
hension or death, seem to have been their spiritual friends whOst
they lived ; for it is scarce credible that any person can be a
long while intimate with an heretic, and not know his secrets.
Thirdly, such who complain they ai'e unjustly condemned, after
they have been openly convicted, or have confessed their heresy^
it appears that they approve their sect, and think the church
hath erred in condemning them. Fourtlily, such who look with
a bitter countenance upon tliose who persecute heretics^ or
preach vigorously against heresy ; for he v/ho diligently ob-
serves, may see by their eyes, and nose, and aspect, that they
do not look with a favourable countenance, and ai-^ therefore
greatly to be suspected^ that they hate those against whom their
heart appears to be so bitter, as their countenance betrays, and
love those for whose destruction they so much grieve. Fifthly,
if any are found to have by stealth gathered together in tlie
night the bones of heretics biuTit, as rehques, it is not to be
doubted but that they reverence them as saints, whose bones
they lay up as a kind of sanctuary, and are therefoi^ equally
heretics with them. Because no one accounts an heretic for a
saint, but he who believes his sect to be holy, and is equally
an heretic with him. These things give great presumption of
heresy against him, although it be not sufficient proof to con-
demn him, unless there concur other arguments, by wliich it
manifestly appears they did the aforesaid things in favour ctf
heresy."
The favourers of heresy are \psojitre, excommunicated.' If
they are mere favourers, but not publicly excommunicated, they
do not incur any other penalties. But if tliey are publicly de-
' C. Excommunicamus. sect. Credentes. ibid, de Laret.
x3
SIO HISTORY OF THE INatJISlTIOK,
clared excommunicate, and do not give satisfaction within a
year, they incur other penalties.
CHAP. X.
Of the Hinder ers of the Office of the iNauisiTiON,
THE hinderers of the office of the inquisition come nearest
to the favourers of heretics, and are usually reckoned amongst
them.
That this office may be vigorously exercised, and that no
heretics may escape the rigour of it, all are strictly commanded,
of whatsoever dignity or condition, especially archbishops, bi-
shops, and other prelates, to favour the business of the inqui-
sition, and yield all countenance and help to the inquisitors.'
Persons are said to hinder the office of the inquisition,'* either
directly or indirectly. Directly, such who dehver from prisonj
by their own rashness, persons taken up for the crime of heresy,
or who destroy rhe processes of the inquisition, or who wound
the witnesses in a cause of faith for their testimony. Or if a
temporal lord ordains, that no one ought to take cognizance of
the crime of heresy but himself, and that no one shall be ac-
5 * Thus Alexander IV. in his bull, beginning, Orthodox^ fidei Christiance,
commands all archbishops, bishops, and other prelates. " Since therefore
there are certain predicant friars appointed by the apostolic see, inquisitors
against heretics in the aforesaid provinces, that they may carry on the busi-
ness of the faith, with a fervent mind, and constant heart, through many tri-
bulations and persecutions, we admonish and exhort all of you in our Lord
Jesus Christ, strictly commanding you by these apostolical writings, in virtue
of your obedience, and enjoining you, that you favourably assist these inqui-
sitors in carrying on the said atfair ; and that laying ^aside the fear of man,
you effectually give them your counsel and help : knowing that those who
hitherto have done, and shall do these things, shall always obtain the special
favour of the apostolic see, and find us favourable and kind in all their occa-
sions. Bat as for those whom we shall know to be contemners, besides the
divine judgment that hangs over them, they shall not escape the ecclesiastical
vengeance "
Direct. Inq. p. 2. qa.54. ,
HISTORY OF THE IJ^aUISITION. Sll
cused, or give testimony but before himself. As also such,
who use only threatnings and terrifying words ;* and who di-
rectly hinder process, judgment, and sentence in a cause of
faith, or give counsel, help, and favour in doing thus.
They are said indirectly to obstruct, who use any insinua-
tion or other means, from whence consequentially any" impedi-
ment may arise to the office of the inquisition. Such for ex-
ample, who order that no one shall bear arms, unless of the
household of the temporal lord, and that no one shall appre-
hend, or cause to be apprehended, any person, but the tempo
ral lord. For from thence it follows, that those who belong to
the inquisitors cannot wear arms, nor take up any person.
These are less criminal than the former ; but are all excom-
municated ; and if they lie under that exconmiunication for a
whole year, they must, in order to their reconciliation, abjure
such impediment and favouring,- othen^dse they are dehvered
over as impenitent heretics to the secular arm.
Carena relates^ from Farinacius, that a certain prisoner in
the holy office was hanged for killing 'his keeper, in order to
make his escape. He adds, that at Cremona,' a certain Jew
was hanged for killing another Jew who had deposed against
him in the holy office. And not only thus, but if the woimd
is not mortal, but slight, he says that he hath seen such offend-
ers sometimes condemned for ever to the gallies, or at least for
ten years. This was executed upon a certain person at Cre-
mona, who had caned a witness for deposing against his bro-
ther in the holy office. His sentence was publicly read to him
in the great episcopal hall at Cremona, Carena himself being
present.
The same Carena gives us a case, by which it will appear,
that sometimes those who terrify witnesses, but yet do not ob-
tain their end, have been dismissed with a severe reprimand,
and being put in mind of the beforcmentioncd bull. A certain
sergeant of tlie holy office had a message from the inquisitor
to deliver to a certain countryman's wife : the woman not being
at home, the sergeant would leave it with her husband, iqxou
» Carena, p. 2. t. 4. n. 23. t> P. 2. t. IS. sect. 24.
, A. D. ICU.
SIS HISTORY OF THE IN<iUISITIO^^
which the countryman gave him several hard names, and fol-
lowed him with weapons, crying out, Li scirro hecco torna in
dletro a tor il tuo precetto. The pope consented that the
cause should be tried before him,* and the sentence approved
was, that the said countryman had incurred the penalty of this
constitution, and that he was to be condemned to the gallies
for five years ; with this addition, that from the goodness of
the pope he should be heard, if he desired the grace of com-
mutation, upon consideration of the plainness of the man, and
liis conjugal afTection.
However, Carena adds a caution, that from these instances
it is not lawful for the inquisitors and ministers of the holy
office, to make for themselves a general rule, viz. that such
who terrify the witnesses ought to be punished, as above,
and after the same manner as those who wound them ; for this
is not left to the pleasure of the inquisitors or ordinaries by the
matter of this bull, but to the cardinals, the supreme inquisi-
tors, to whom it belongs to declare, whether criminals have
incurred the penalties of this constitution, or not.
He gives us another instance that happened at Cremona,
A. D. 1592. A certain person had accused all the witnesses
examined against him in the ho]y office, and had caused them
to be imprisoned by the secular judge, for sundry crimes and
damages which they and then- cattle had occasioned in his
grounds. The major part of the congregation at Cremona
thought, tliat altliough the accusation could not be called for-
mally that terrifying of which the bull speaks, yet inasmuch
as it appeared slanderous and deceitful, the criminal should be
obliged to free the imprisoned witnesses from jail at his own
expence, and pay them, when delivered, all their charges.
This takes place, not only when any person is accused as
an heretic, '"" but in all and every cause whatsoever belonging
to the holy office ; because every cause belonging to this tri-
bunal, is properly said to be a cause of the faith, and to belong
to it, and to infer some mark of the faith, either directly or
indu'ectly. And in all causes of this holy office there is the
^ July 15, 1C21. * Careua, sect. 17.
HISTOfiY OF THE INaUISITION. 313
same reason for maintaining the liberty of tliis tribunal. Thus
in the year 1635, a certain Neapolitan soldier had rescued
from the Shirri a certain blasphemer, taken up in the name of
the lioly office, for which he was condemned, by order of the
supreme tribunal of the city to all the penalties of this consti-
tution. Although afterwards, through the favoiu- of the said
supreme tribunal, the punishment of d(?,ath was exchanged for
that of the gaUies for ten years. And this was publicly exe-
cuted at Cremona, in the hall of the holy office."
Yea, they extend this affiiir sometimes so far, that all manner
of offences committed against any one that belongs to the inqui-
sitors, though they have no relation to the faith, are punished
in the same manner, as though the office of the inquisition had
been hindered by them, or the inquisitor himself had received
some grievous injury. Reginald Gonsalvius gives us a remark-
able instance of this which happened in the former age at
Seville.^ The bishop of Terragone, chief inquisitor at Seville,
■went one summer for his diversion to some pleasant gardens
situate by the sea side, with all his inquisitory family, and
walked out, according to his custom, with his episcopal attend-
ance. A child of the gardener, two or three years old at most,
accidentally sat playing upon the side of a pond in the garden,
where my lord bishop was taking his pleasure. One of die
boys that attended his lordship, snatched out of the hand of the
gardener's child a reed, with which he was playing, and made
liim cry. The gardener hearing his child, came to the place,
and when he found out the occasion of his crying, was angry,
and bad the inquisitor's servant restore the reed to him. And
upon his refusal, and insolently contemning the countryman,
he snatched it away, and as the boy held it fast, the gai'dener
slightly hurt his hand by the sharp husk of the reed, in pulling
it from him. The wound was far from being serious, or from
endangering the loss of any part, and so could not deserve a
severe punishment. It was no more than a scratch of the skin,
a mere childish wound, as one may imagine by the cause of it.
However, the inquisitor's boy came to his master, who was
walking neai' the place, to complain about his wound, upon
• p. 191.
314} HISTORY OF THE INQUISITIOxS'.
which the inquisitor orders the gardener to be taken up, and
thrown into the inquisitory jail, and kept him there for nine
months in very heavy irons, by which he received such damage
in his circumstances, which were at best but mean, as the poor
man could not easily recover ; his children and wife, in the mean
did while, being ready to perish for hunger, because he
not pay deference enough to the inquisitor's boy, as a mem-
ber of the holy tribunal. At nine months end they dismissed
him from jail, and would have persuaded him, that they dealt
much more mercifully v>'ith him, than his crime deserved.
CHAP. XL
Of Persons suspected o/* He re sy,
ALTHOUGH, in other cases, it is usual to distinguish be-
tween a suspicion and a presumption, a suspicion being no other
than a man's opinion concerning a crime, several of which sus-
picions must concur to form a presumption of it, yet in the
cause of heresy they are taken for the same.* A presumption
or suspicion therefore in this affair is, a probable guess of a
doubtful matter, proceeding from the nature of the thing, or
the circumstances of affairs or persons.^ Presumptions arise
from a person's country and parents ; but these are too general.
Others arise from his education, and the manners of those with
whom he converses. This is the reason that the inquisitors,
in their first examinations, so diligently ask the criminals of
what nation, country, family, and kindred they are, amongst
whom they have been educated, who were their masters, in-
structors, companions, and friends. For these things, and a
thousand other such are usually considered in doubtful cases,
that from hence they may draw more probable proofs. They
:also consider the sex. A man may more easily be presumed
• Direct. pa> t. 2. q", 55, 56. ;2: , *> Siraanc. t. 50. sect. 8, &c. sect. 17.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 315
guilty of robbery. A woman of witclicraft. And farther,
they consider the age, fortune, difference of condition, nature
of mind, and incHnations.
In the cause of heresy suspicion is threefold ; light, vehement
and violent : a light suspicion is that which arises from the
external signs of actions and words, by which such a guess
may be made, as may imply, not indeed frequently, but seldom,
and by accident, that he who says or does such things is an
heretic. This is inferred by a small consequence. As if any
one should argue thus : he is found to frequent private con-
venticles, and in his hfe and manners departs from the common
conversation of the faithful ; therefore he is an heretic, because
heretics themselves are found to do such things frequently.
Such are lightly suspected of heresy. But the inquisitors
teach, that such persons ought not easily to be proceeded
against in a cause of such importance. However, sometimes
the very speaking to heretics hath not escaped without punish-
ment. Thus Bzovius relates ; » Acursius, the son of Aldo-
brandinus, a citizen of Florence, incurred the canon, because,
whilst he dwelt in France, he conversed with heretics. For
it was, they thought, a crime for any one so much as to salute
them, contrary to the apostolic institutions. But as he was
afterwards absolved by Raymond Peniafortius, penitentiary of
the apostohc see, Pope Gregory enjoined the prior, and Friar
Robert, and the rest of the predicant friars in Paris, that they
should not any ways molest him, or suffer or command him to
be molested.
A vehement suspicion, which is also called Juris, arises from
such external words and deeds, which, when known, infer an
argument frequently conclusive ; and because, as to most, he
who doth or says such things is an heretic ; and is usually
taken for full proof, if there be nothing proved to the contrary.
Such are those, who being called to answer concerning the
faith, do not appear in the time assigned them; such who
knowingly hinder the office of the inquisition ; who knowingly
give their counsel and assistance and favour to such liinderers ;
• A. D. 1234 sect 14,
316 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
who instruct heretics when cited to conceal the truth, and
speak falsely; who are any ways excommunicated upon ac-
count of the faith ; who knowingly favour, defend, and receive
heretics ; who are infamous for heresy, upon account of their
famiharity with such whom they know to be heretics ; who
knowingly accompany, visit, and receive heretics.
A violent suspicion, which is also called Juris and de Jure,
is a certain disposition of the law, presuming something, and
determining upon such presumption, as though it were certain
and known. Nor can any proof to the contrary be regularly
and directly admitted against such presumption ; because, as it
proceeds from open and violent marks, it is taken for a mani-
fest truth. It arises from external signs of actions or words, by
wliich it may be concluded effectually, and almost always, that
he who says or doth these things is an heretic. As if hereto-
fore any one should adore heretics, or reverence them after
their manner ; or receive the consolation or communion from
them, or do the hke things belonging to theii* custom.* Such
are said to be violently suspected.
A person hghtly suspected is enjoined canonical purgation,
and if he afterwards fall into the like suspicion he must be
more grievously dealt with.
A person vehemently suspected, must be commanded to
abjure generally every heresy, and if he should afterwards
return to those errors he shall incur the punishment of the
relapsed.
He who is violently suspected is to be condemned as an
heretic. If he confesses, and will return and abjure his errors
he must be admitted to penance, but if he doth not consent
to abjure, he must be delivered over to the secular court, and
receive his deserved punishment.
The heirs of persons suspected are compelled to fulfil the
penance enjoined, as if one be adjudged to build a church or
an hospital, and die before it is completed ; his estate must
descend to his heirs with that incumbrance.
• Cap. FilH ct Acrusatns. Extra, dc haeret. lib. €.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION 317
CHAP. XII.
Of Perscms defamed for Heresy.
WHO they are that are defamed for heresy, we are taught
by the council of Tholouse.' " Such ought to be accounted
defamed, who are cried out against by pubhc report, or of
whose defamation amongst good and grave persons there is
legal proof before the bishop of the place." So that to the
perfect proof of such defamation or infamy for heresy, two
good and grave witnesses suffice. But if they are vile and
infamous, although they are not to be despised on this account,
so as to stop proceeding to an inquisition from what they de-
pose, yet such defamation is not fully proved by them.
They say also, that it is not necessary that the witnesses
should hear this infamy from the same prudent and discreet
persons ; but it is sufficient, though they hear it from different.^
And they give this reason for it ; because, as they are only to
prove infamy, it is sufficient if the witnesses agree in and con-
cerning this matter. Yea, they teach farther, that it is not ne-
cessary that the witnesses should agree as to the causes of dieir
o^vn knowledge. So that if the witnesses should say, they
know this infamy, because they have heard of it, they are not
bound to prove they have heard it ; nor is it required that one
witness should agree with the other as to time and place, and
the causes of their knowledge. Because the question is not
about these things, but only concerning the fame and infamy.
So that though they appear singular in what they say, their
assertion shall be abided by.
The punishment of one thus defamed is canonical purga-
tion, and some other ordinary penalty ,« when the defamation is
fully proved. But if it is not fully proved, tlie person cannot
be compelled to a canonical purgation, unless there be fuller
proof, and other signs and tokens concur with the defamation*
a Direct, p. 2. qu. 57. cap. IG. ^ Luccrn. Inq. in voce Infamia.
t Cap. Excomraunicamus itaq j Extra, do haeret. sect. Adjicimua.
S18 HISTORY OF THE INCIUISITION.
They say it is the same, if the infamy arises from rivals and
enemies. This is sufficient to give a beginning to the inquisi-
tion, but not to enjoin canonical purgation, unless what they say
be probable.
CHAP. XIII.
Of Persons Relapsed.
A PERSON is said to be relapsed, upon a double account,
either in heresy, or the favouring of heresy.' One relapsed
into heresy is he, who after he hath been convicted either by
the evidence of the fact, or his own confession, or by a legal
production of witnesses, hath pubhcly abjured his heresy, and
is convicted of falling into it again. So that though a person
who falls into the sam,e error again and again, without any
solemn penance intervening, or making an abjuration or cano-
nical purgation, may be truly said to be a relapse, yet he can-
not be punished as such, so as to be delivered over to the secu-
lar court, if so be he will repent. Of these relapsed persons
there are four sorts.^ The first, when any one falls into the
same heresy he hath abjured. Here the doctors dispute, whe-
ther or no a person who abjures as an heretic before the inqui-
sitor's subdelegate, and afterwards falls into the same or any
other heresy, is to be accounted as a relapse, if there be no
certainty of the subdelegation of that judge before whom he
abjures. However, in the city of Como a certain woman, who
had thus abjured, was given over as a relapse to the secular arm^
and burnt, by the advice of the whole college of counsellors in
that city, and of the bishop, and of John Thomas Odeschalcus,
a senator. It was determined also after the same manner at
Mantua in a like case.*^ The second, when any one falls into
an heresy which he abjured as vehemently suspected, but not
a Direct, p. 2. qu. 58. •* Carena, p. 2. t. 2. sect.'6. n. 36.
« Cap. Accusatus. de haeret.lib. 6. Ibid. sect. Cum vero. sect. Ille quoquc.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 319
if he only falls again into a vehement suspicion of heresy.
The third, when after a general abjuration of heresy, he falls
into an heresy different from the particular one he abjured.
The fourth, when after having abjured as an heretic, he accom-
panies, visits, &c. heretics, sends them presents, or grants
them favour.
The gloss on the aforesaid cited chapter only excepts the
case of hunger, which excuses, provided it be violent.^ But
this exception was not allowed by the supreme council of the
Spanish inquisition, in which a certain person was dehvered over
to the secular arm as a relapse, who having been reconciled as a
moor, returned afterwards to some of that sort, and would have
excused himself by this gloss, that he went to them upon ac-
count of hunger.
Persons who have relapsed into heresy are to be condemned
without mercy, and saith the council of Narbonne, " leave
them without further hearing to the secular judgment, to
receive their due punishment, since it is enough, that such
have once deceived the church by a false conversion," their
punishment differs from that of other condemned persons, in
this only, that they are allowed the sacrament of penance and
the eucharist ; but in Spain, the eucharist is generally denied
to such, because of the danger which may happen by the alter-
ation which he receives, who is to be delivered over to the
secular arm, and he is therefore allowed only the sacrament of
penance.
CHAP. XIV.
Of such wIlo read and keep prohibited books.
BESIDES these there are others, whose crimes may be
thought more properly to belong to another court. But it
sometimes happens that they are said to be sprinkled with the
a Carena, p. 2. t, 2. sect. 6. n. 31.
S20 HISTOBA^ OF THE INftUISITION.
plague of heresy, because they are suspected of it, and there-
fore must be inquisited on account of their intention. Amongst
these first occur those who read and retain books prohibited
upon account of heresy. These are numbered amongst suspected
persons, and there are several severe edicts of the Roman pontiffs
against them.
Pius V. published a bull upon the festival of Cona Domini}
In the first chapter are excommunicated all heretics and schis-
matics, of whatsoever name or sect, and all favourers, receivers,
and believers of heretics, and those who an}^ wise knowingly
read, keep in their houses, print, or in any wise defend, for
any cause, publicly or privately, under any pretence or colour,
and in general all who defend their books, without the autho-
rity of the apostohc see. Pius IV. recalled all licences of
reading and keeping such books, by his constitution, which
begins. Cum pro menure.^ By these letters he commands,
that all persons shall dehver and consign over all condemned
books to the inquisitors of the cities where such books are. In
like manner those who retain them cannot be excused, even
though they keep them locked up in a chest, so that no one
can see or read them, because all such excuses are cut off by
this sentence, and by the alledged constitution of Pius IV.
Again, those who print them are excommunicated ; and also
those who in any wise, or for any cause, publicly or privately
defend heretical books, &:c. and the absolution of all such per-
sons is reserved to the Pope.
And that all manner of leave of reading even the least thing
in a book condemned for heresy, may be cut off,^ they declare
that they understand not only printed books, but even manu-
scripts and parts of them, which they thus expound. He who
reads that part of the books of heretics that are divided into
tomes, which doth not professedly contain heresy, is not
accounted to read a book prohibited by the bull Coena, even
though the other tomes should be heretical. But if a tome
contains heresy, or treats of religion, and it be divided into
several books, he who reads one of the books of such a tome, is
» Compeg. in Zanch. c 34. ^ March 24, 1564.
* Sousa Aphor. Inquis. 1. 1. c. 21. sect. 8, &c.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
said to read a book prohibited by this bull, even though the
particular book doth not contain heresy, nor treat of rehgion,
and is bound up separately from the others. Yea, it is enough
to say that a person hath read a prohibited book, if he only just
runs it over with his eyes, adverting to the things written in it,
though he doth not mention one word of it with his mouth.
And yet, which is strange, they add, that he who by memory
recites a prohibited book, though he doth it with an evil inten-
tion, is not accounted so to read it, as to incur the censure
pronounced against such who do ; so observant are they of the
letter of the law ; though at the same time he incurs the
censure of the bull, who reads a book prohibited by it, though
he doth not do it with an ill design, but out of pure curiosity,
or to confute the errors of heretics.* But to a man's incurring
the penalty of excommunication, it is necessary that he should
knowingly read it. So that ignorance excuses, but not when it
is gross and affected, viz. when a person pretends not to know
that the author of a book was an heretic, although he knew
the book treated of religion, or that the book treated of reli-
gion, although he knew the author to be an heretic.^ He who
keeps the aforesaid books either in his o^vn, or another's house,
whether he understands the book or not, whether it be the
whole or a part, even so much as a single leaf,*^ whether he
keeps it to read, or only for curiosity and ornament's sake, or to
exchange for other books, or to wrap up what he sells with the
leaves of it, incurs the excommunication of the bull. Like,
wise he who causes it to be printed, defends it, praises it, says
it is not fit to be burnt or prohibited, or hmders its coming to
the inquisitors hands.
These are all suspected concerning the faith, and may be
punished by the inquisitors as suspected.'^ But if any one
doth not deliver an heretical book to the inquisitors, but burns
it by his own authority, he is not suspected of heresy, though
he falls into excommunication ; because Juhus III. by a con-
a Soiisa Aphor. Inquis. 1. 1. c, 21, sect. 22, 2.'^.
^ Ibid. sect. 28. ^ jbid. sections, 38, 31.
«" Ibid, sections, 36, 30
r
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
stitution, beginning, Cum meditatio cordis^* commands, that
such books shall be really and effectually delivered up to the
inquisitors.
This interdict of reading prohibited books is so universal,
that it comprehends even the clergy themselves, and as most
contend, the bishops and very cardinals, who cannot read the
said books mthout the Pope''s licence ; because all hcences and
privileges were revoked by Julius III. in a constitution,
beginning. Cum meditatio ; and afterwards by a constitution of
Paul IV. beginning, Cumfuturum; and of Pius IV. Cum pro
munere ; and by a constitution of Gregory XV.** beginning,
Apostolatus offictum ; and finally by a constitution of Urban
VIII.*= this revocation was often confirmed. Hence it is that
this penalty is appointed against the clergy who retain and
read prohibited books, that they are vehemently suspected,
may be deprived of the active and passive voice, suspended
from divine services, deprived of the offices of reading, preach-
ing, &c. and farther be enjoined fastings, pilgrimages, &c.
CHAP. XV.
Of POLYGAMISTS.
POLYGAMISTS are those who marry several wives at
once.'* The tribunal of the inquisitors takes cognizance of their
cause, because they are ^suspected of heresy, and are presumed
to think wrong concerning the sacrament of matrimony, and to
hold it lawful to have several wives at once.
When a Polygamist is in the jails of the holy office,* and he
is known to be the self same person, either by his confession, or
by witnesses, and when his crime is proved, he is asked,
a Carena, p. 2. t. 10. n. 46. b Published Dec. 80, 1623.
" Published Ap. 11, 1681. d Carena, p. 2. t 5. sect. 2.
* Ibid. sect. 10. n. 55.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 325
whether he truly believes that it is, and hath been lawful for a
Christian man, after the evangelic lavr, to marry several wives
at once ? If he answers affirmatively, he is taken for a formal
heretic, and is to be punished as such. But if he answers
negatively, and like a Catholic, denying that he had any hereti-
cal intention, but was rather enticed to a second matrimony by
the lust and concupiscence of the flesh, he must be put to the
torture concerning his intention, that the judges of the faith
may certify themselves what the Polygamist truly thinks
concerning the faith, because the crime of heresy is secret, and
lies hid in the mind. This is pecuhar to this holy office ;
though according to the laws of it, they rightly apply the
torture. For since the fact which the criminal confesses,
or of which he is convicted, may be committed without any
error of the mind, but for some other cause, for instance,
concupiscence, the criminal is tortured concerning his inten-
tion and belief of those things which he hath done. And
thus we see, that it is a smaller crime in the church of Rome
to marry two wives through lust and carnal concupiscence,
contrary to the dictates of conscience, than from some
error of the mind, and with a conscience that doth not con-
demn the fact.
Polygamists are suspected of heresy.^ In Spain they are
only hghtly suspected, and therefore, according to the general
custom of Spain, they must abjure only as lightly suspected.
But in the supreme tribunal of the Roman Inquisition, they
are vehemently suspected, and must abjure as such.
Yea, such who marry a second wife,^ being ignorant that the
first is dead, but yet bring witnesses to prove that they had no
wife, although then: actual Polygamy is not certain, yet they
must abjure as vehemently suspected, and be condemned to the
gallies. Carena gives us an instance of a cert^un person oi
Bologna, who had married his first wife there, and afterwards,
having examined witnesses, to prove he never had a wife,
married a second at Naples, being ignorant whether the first
was dead. This man was brought before the Pope by the
» Carena, p. 2. t. 5. sect. 11. •' Ibiil. n. 5<).
Y ^
324 HISTORY OF THE INaUlSITION.
sacred congregation,^ and being first put to tlie torture concern-
ing his intention, he was forced to abjure as vehemently
suspected, and condemned to the gaUies for five years. Because,
though his actual Polygamy was not certainly proved, yet, as
to himself, he had consummated the crime. ^
But if any one during the life of his first wife, betroths
another, he is only lightly suspected, and must therefore only
abjure as such. And they give this reason of the difference;
because, in this case, there is no actual abuse of the sacrament,
but only an evil disposition of mind to abuse it.
After abjuration these Polygamists are enjoined various
salutary penances by the inquisitors, "" such as fastings, prayers,
and the hke, after which, he who hath married two wives, is
condemned to the gallies for five years ; and if he hath produc-
ed false witnesses to prove the death of his former wife, for
seven years and more, at the pleasure of the inquisitors, and is
commanded to return to his first wife. If they are of the
ordinary sort of people they are generally beat, and half their
effects confiscated. And in some places they have an infamous
sort of a mitre put on their heads, and are afterwards beaten. In
Spain they are condemned to the galhes for ten years. If any
one hath married thrice or more, he is more grievously punish-
ed, and condemned for a longer while to the, gaUies. Thus at
Rome,*^ four Polygamists were condemned to the gallies in the
church of St. Mary supra Minervam, by the supreme tribunal
of the Roman Inquisition, two of them for seven years, who had
married three wives, and the other two for five yeai's, who had
married two.
i a October 19, 1620.
l» Catena, p. 2. t. 5. sect. 13, n. 61.
e May 18. A. D. 1697.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 325
CHAP. XVI.
Of those who celebrate and administer the sacrament of Pe-
nance, not being Priests.
HE who celebrates mass, not being in presbyters orders,* is
subject to the judgment of the inquisitors, and opposes in fact
tlie CathoHc verity, according to the constitution of Gregory
XIII. beginning. Officii nostri. The evil of this crime, ac-
cording to Sousa, reaches to idolatry, because those who thus
celebrate, make the faithful of Christ to adore bread and
wine, as though it were the true body and blood of our
Lord.
In hke manner he who is no priest, and yet hears confessions,
and gives absolution, is said to abuse the sacrament, and greatly
to injure his neighbour.
Such are vehemently suspected of heresy,^ because they think,
at least as to the very fact, that other persons besides priests may
be the ministers of those sacraments.
Such criminals are to abjure as vehemently suspected, and
are then delivered over to the secular arm to be punished with
death ; but are first degraded from their orders if they are in
any.^ Thus, A. D. 1636. and the following, two of these
criminals were delivered over to the secular court at Naples,
and by order of the holy council first hanged, and then
burnt.
Urban VIII.^ commanded by a letter of Cardinal Mellinus,
to the inquisitor general of Portugal,^ that criminals confessing,
or convicted of this crime, should be absolutely delivered over
to the secular arm, and punished with death. But in as much
as before tliese letters they were not punished with death in
Spain, according to the constitutions of Gregory and Clement,
so Sousa affirms, that he never saw this punishment inflicted in
» Sousa, 1. 1. t. 32. D. 7. ^ Carciia, p. 2. t. 11, sect. 1.
c Ibid. sect. G. n. 30. ^ Ibid. sect. 7.^
* March. 5, 1G22.
y3
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
the kingdom of Spain, after the said letters of Cardinal Melli-
nus.^ But this was the method of punishment there generally
made use of, viz. that if the pretended priest was a layman,
or vile person, he was beat, and sent to the gallies, and
enjoined some spii'itual penances. Or if he was a person of
credit, or a religious, he was sent to the gallies. If of such
quality as that he could not be sent to the gallies, he was
banished ; and, if in any order, suspended from it the whole
time of his banishment. If the offence was attended with any
aggravating circumstances, they add other punishments accord-
ing to their quality.
We have an instance to this purpose in the book of sentences
of the Tholouse Inquisition.^ A certain countryman called
RoUand, believed he had a power from the Lord to celebrate
mass, and consecrate the true body of Christ from common
bread, and the true blood from wine mixed with oil and salt, in
a wooden bowl that had a foot to it, which he used instead of a
chalice. And thus he every day sacrificed secretly in his own
house, upon a coffer covered over with a linen cloth, and often
communicated of that bread, believing it to be the true body
of Christ. After four years he was thrown into prison, and
was with difficulty prevailed upon to abjure his error. But
whilst he was in his imprisonment, he was found to have
relapsed into the same error, and to have repeated this cere-
mony. But before he was punished as a relapse, he died in
jail, without a confession of his sins, and the sacrament of the
eucharist. The inquisitors commanded his body to be taken up
and burnt.
Raynald gives us another instance of one, who did not
indeed celebrate or administer the sacrament of penance as a
priest, though he really was none, but who said he was a
bishop, though he had not the Pope's bull, and as such conse-
crated priests. And because he was made an example of ex-
treme cruelty, I will here relate the matter exactly as I find it
in his annals.
" James the priest, a false Minorite, born in the dutchy of
Juhers, forged the Pope's buU, and declared in the Netherlands
* Sousa, I. I. 32. n. 13. ^ Fol. 122.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 327
that he was a bishop ; and although he had not been ordained
a bishop, he consecrated priests by a false ceremony in several
dioceses of Germany and the Low Countries. At length he
was convicted of his wickedness, and the magistrates of Utrecht
thought fit, not to condemn him to the flames, that he might be
quickly consumed, but to be gradually burnt by boiling water,
that so they might conquer his obstinacy, because he most
impudently refused to acknowledge his crime. But being
gradually let down into the boihng cauldron, and overcome
"with the extremit}^ of the pain, he detested his wickedness, and
prayed that he might receive a milder punishment. His judges
being moved with compassion, ordered him to be taken out of
the boiling cauldron, and then to be beheaded."
■^^-v^-v^-v^-v^-*/*
CHAP. XVII.
Of Soliciting Confessors.
BY these are understood such confessors, who, in the
sacramental confession, solicit and provoke, or attempt to sohcit
and provoke women to dishonourable actions.* Paul IV.**
published a bull against such persons, directed to the arch-
bishop of Seville, beginning. Cum s'lcut super^ and Pius IV.
another,*" and the supreme inquisitors general an edict, approved
by Clement VIII. But those bulls, and that decree seem only
to take place in Spain, because the bulls were directed to the
archbishop of Seville, and the decree of the sacred congregation
expressly restrained to the places of Spain. But in the year
1612, in the month of April, it was decreed by Pius V. that all
the inquisitors should be admonished to command the confes-
sors, to abstain from all and every sort of solicitation, and to
proceed rigorously against all those who did not. And finally,
there is extant a constitution of Gregory XV. ** beginning,
• Sousa, I. 1. c. 34. sect. 1. Camia, p. 2. t. 6. sect. 1.
b A. D. 1561. April 16. c April G, 1564.
- Published August 30, 1G22.
Y 4
328 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
Universi dominici, in which he confirms the letters or bull of
Paul IV. and commands it to be firmly and inviolably observed,
not only in the kingdoms of Spain, but in all other parts of the
Christian world. And because the words of that bull about
the middle of it, " whatsoever persons, and whatsoever they
shall be which they solicit," are general, from this generality of
the words they conclude that they extend also to confessors, who
solicit boys in the sacramental confession.
The incontinence of the priests gave occasion to these edicts
and bulls, viz. because, as the words are in the bull of Paul IV.
" Certain priests in the kingdom of Spain, and in th^ cities and
dioceses thereof, having cure of souls, or exercising such cure
for others, or otherwise deputed to hear the confessions of peni-
tents, have broken out into so heinous an iniquity, as to abuse
the sacrament of penance in the very act of hearing confessions,
and thus are not afraid to injure this sacrament itself, and him
who hath appointed it, the Lord God and our Saviour Jesus
Christ, by enticing and provoking, or trying and procuring to
entice and provoke penitent women to lewd actions, whilst they
are hearing their confession.'^
When this bull was first brought into Spain,* all persons
were commanded by a public edict, solemnly published through-
out all the churches of the arch-bishopric of Seville, that who-
soever knew or had heard of any monks or clergymen who had
abused the sacrament of confession to these crimes, or had
in any manner acted in this vile manner at confession with their
daughter or daughters, they should discover him within thirty
days to the holy tribunal ; and very grievous censures were
annexed to such as should neglect or contemn it. When the
decree was published, so large a number of women went to the
palace of the inquisitors in the city of Seville only, to make
their discoveries of these most wicked confessors, that twenty
secretaries, with as many inquisitors, were not sufficient to take
the depositions of the witnesses. The lords inquisitors being
thus overwhelmed with the multitude of affairs, assigned
another thirty days for the witnesses ; and when this was not
* Gonsalv. p. 185.
HISTORY OF THE IXQUISITION. 329
sufficient, they were forced to appoint the same number a third
and a fourth time. For as to women of reputation, and others
of higher condition, every time was not proper for them to
apply to the inquisitors. On one hand their conscience forced
them to a discovery through a superstitious fear of the censures
and excommunication ; and on the other hand, their regard to
their husbands, whom they were afraid to oficnd, by giving
them any ill suspicion of their chastity, kept them at home ;
and therefore veihng their faces after the Spanish custom, they
went to the lords inquisitors, when, and as privately as they
could. Very few, however, with all their prudence could
escape the diligent observation of their husbands at the time of
discovery, and hereby possessed their minds with the deepest
jealousy. However, after so many had been informed against
before the inquisitors, that holy tribunal, contrary to all men's
expectations, put a stop to the affair, and commanded all those
crimes which were proved by legal evidence, to be buried in
eternal obhvion.
In the mean while this crime, according to the bulls and
edicts of the popes, ought to be judged and punished before
the tribunal of the inquisitors.
In Spain these soliciting confessors are only lightly sus-
pected," because the Spaniards consider it rather as proceeding
from the effect of the passions than an intention to abuse the
sacrament of penance. But in Italy they are vehemently sus-
pected; and therefore whereas in Spain they abjure only as
lightly suspected, in Italy they abjure as vehemently. So
Carena gives an instance of a certain confessor in one of the
cities belonging to the territories of Cremona,** who abjured as
lightly suspected for this crime of soliciting, but was forced to
abjure again as vehemently suspected at Cremona, by order of
the supreme tribunal of the city of Rome.
Besides salutary penances, such as fastings, prayers, and the
like, such confessors are usually condemned to the gallies for
five or seven years, to perpetual imprisonment ;*= yea, some-
times at the pleasure only of the cardinals supreme inquisitors,
* Careiia, sect. 15. ^ Ibid. n. 75. « Ibid, sect- 18.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. ^
they may be delivered over to the secular arm, as the constitu-
tion of Gregory XV. plainly directs. They are also to be
suspended for ever from hearing confessions, to be deprived of
their benefices, dignities, active and passive vote, at the plea-
sure of the inquisitors. Such confessors as are regulars, may
also be enjoined to be in the last and lowest place amongst the
regulars of their monasteries. Sometimes the inquisitors must
command, that the sentence against a regular confessor shall
be read pubHcly in the next general chapter of their religion,
as a terror and example to others.
Yea, sometimes, according to the heinousness of the
offence, a more grievous punishment is inflicted. John
Stock, notary of the apostolic Rota, relates, in a letter writ-
ten at Rome,* to J. Hensberg, a divine of Cologn, a re-
markable instance of this, " These wretches of ours are not so
holy as they appear. They walk in the likeness of sheep, but
within are ravening wolves, and their pretended sanctity is a
double iniquity. They are under the influence of a strong
ambition. The Venetians ordered one of them to be burnt
alive, by command of the pope. He had been father confessor
to some nuns in the dominions of Venice, and had had chil-
dren by twelve of them, amongst w^hom the abbess and two
others had children in one year. All were filled with admira-
tion and astonishment, taking the man for a perfect saint, he
had so great a shew of sanctity in his very face.^
In Portugal also the cognizance of an unnatural crime be-
longs to the tribunal of the inquisition, by the decree of Gre-
gory XIII.'^ by which it is granted to the inquisitor of Portu-
gal, to proceed in this crime, as in that of heresy, observing
the same manner and form.** By the laws of the kingdom of
Portugal such persons are punished with death, and confisca-
tion of all their effects, and their children and grandchildren
become infamous.^ After the natural death of one accused, if
a October 8, 1564.
»» Epist. ad Belgas, Cent. 1. Ep. 66. p. 345. and Ep. 63. p. 316.
c August 13, A. D.
"• Sousa, Aphor. Inquis. 1. 1. c. 59. sect. 29, 30.
e Ibid. sect. 31.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 331
the crime hath not been proved, they cannot proceed against
him, neither as to tlie crime, nor confiscation of effects, al
though the crime can be proved by legal witnesses. Because
crimes, which are not particularly excepted, of which this is
one, are extinguished by the death of the delinquent. Nor
do they proceed against tlie dead, nor confiscate his effects,'' or
althouo-ii he hath been convicted or confessed when he was
alive. If such a one takes sanctuary in a church, he cannot
be taken out of it.^
If we compare these things with the punishments of heretics,
as related in the second chapter of this book, it will appear,
that this horrible crime, in the kingdom of Portugal, is esteem-
ed a much smaller one than that of heresy, because those guilty
enjoy privileges which are denied to heretics. And yet it may
happen, that a truly pious man, who fears God, and is most
careful of his eternal salvation, may be accounted an heretic by
the Portuguese inquisitors, whereas one guilty of this crime
cannot but be the vilest of men. But it is not at all strange,
that by the laws of that tribunal, Barabbas should be released,
and Christ crucified.
w^-wv*^
CHAP. XVIII.
Ofcme that is insordescent in Excommunication.
A MAN is said to be insordescent in excommunication,
who, after he hath been by name declared excommunicate,
persists in that excommunication for a year.'^ The nature of
this crime requires obstinacy of mind, including the contempt
of the keys. This they infer, when the excommunicated per-
son hath had knowledge of the excommunication, and taken no
care to obtain absolution. For if within a year he endeavours
to obtain absolution, though he should not actually receive it ;
a Sousa, Aphor. Inquis. sert. 32. b Ibid. 1. 2. c. 26. sect. 30.
c Carena, p. 2. t. 8. sect. 2.
S32 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
or if there be any real hindrance that prevents his appearance,
he is not judged guilty of contempt.
He who thus persists in his excommunication, is accounted
as confessed and convicted of the crime for which he was ex-
communicated ; nor is he to be any farther heard, unless he can
demonstrate his innocence with new proofs.^ If the crime for
which he was excommunicated be of the number of those, which
do, ipso jure, infer privation, he must be deprived of his bene-
fice for insordescence. But if it be such a crime for which the
delinquent is to be deprived of his benefice, but not ipso jure,
in such a case he is also to be deprived for insordescence.
He who thus persists in excommunication, is violently sus-
pected of heresy.^ For if there be only a hght suspicion of
heresy against any person, and if when cited he is obstinate,
the suspicion then begins to be vehement. If through contu-
macy he continues in excommunication for a year, the vehe-
ment presumption becomes violent, and thus he may be taken
for an heretic, and punished as such. Because, from thus per-
sisting, there arises a presumption of the law, and de jure, by
which the crime of heresy is sufficiently proved.
But that such a one may be condemned as an heretic,'^ he
must not fail to be cited, in order to purge himself from the
suspicion of heresy, because he continued for a year in excom-
munication.
If such an excommunicated person appears when the year is
elapsed,*^ and desires to prove his innocence, before he is de-
clared an heretic he must be admitted to trial.'' Yea, as some
affirm, he must be heard even after he is declared an heretic,
and his effigies burnt.
If when he appears, and doth not prove any legal impedi-
ment,^ but only his innocence as to the heresy for suspicion of
which he was cited, although he is to be absolved from the
heresy, yet he is to be tortured to discover his intention, upon
account of a vehement suspicion of his contempt of the keys of
the church, and must abjure as one vehemently suspected. If
neither a legal impediment nor his innocence appear, he is to
• Carena, sect. 3. " Ibid. sect. 5. u. 19. « Ibid. n. 21.
d Ibid. n. 23. « Ibid. n. 24. ^ Ibid. sect. 8.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 333
be dealt with as one veliemently suspected of heresy, and of the
contempt of the keys.
If he proves nothing, and is impenitent, or relapsed, he is to
be left to the secular court If he is penitent he must abjure,
according to some, as vehemently suspected; according to
others, formally. Besides, wholesome penances are to be en-
joined him, and he may be condemned, according to the nature
of his crime, to more grievous punishments, and especially pe-
cuniary ones.
CHAP. XIX.
Of Blasphemjirs.
THERE are two sorts of blasphemers." Some who do not
utter heretical blasphemies, who do not belong to our history ;
and others who throw out blasphemies that are heretical, and
who are therefore subject to the judgment of the inquisitors
J. Royas argues concerning them in this manner.'* " It is
very often a matter of doubt in the court of the inquisition,
what blasphemies may be said to be heretical, to make the cog-
nizance of them belong to the inquisitors. But, according to
the common custom, and agreeable to law and reason, these
words are heretical, ' I deny God, I do not believe in God.'
In Spanish, ' Discreo de Dios, reniego de Dios, o reniego de la
fe, o de la cruz, o crisma a que teng o en la trente, o reniego de
la pu ridad de nuestra senora,' i. e. 'I do not beheve in God,
I deny God, or I deny the faith, or the cross, or the chrism,
which I have received in my forehead, or I deny the virginity
of our lady.' These words are said to be heretical blasphemies,
and the inquisitors have cognizance of them, because they have
an infidel signification, and denial of the faith, and are directly
opposed to a confession of the faith. But other blasphemies,
viz. ' Pese a Dios, por vida de Dios, voto a Dios, malgrado aya
a Kymer, p. 2. q. 41. b Royas, p. 2. assert. 12. sect. 170
334? HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
Dios, o despecho de Dies,' and the like, i. e. ' Let it trouble
God, by the Life of God, I vow to God, God's curse on you,
or God spite you,' are not heretical, because not opposed to a
confession of the faith, although they are absolutely blasphe-
mies. The punishment of these belongs to the ordinary
judges."' * In Italy also it is not reckoned blasphemy ; if any
one says, " Al corpo di Dio, o dira vel putana di Dio becco ;
vel al dispetto di Christophero, or putana della virgin e Gio-
vanna ;" i. e. " Body of God, or he will say, &c. or in spite of
St. Christopher ; or the whore of the virgin Joan.''
Heretical blasphemers are punished in this manner by the
inquisitors. If the blasphemy be very heinous, and the blas-
phemer a mean person, he is made to wear an infamous mitre,
hath his tongue tied, and pinched with an iron or wooden gag,
is carried forth as a public spectacle without his cloak, whipt
with scourges, and banished. But if he be a person of better
condition, or noble, he is brought forth without the mitre,
thrust for a time into a monastery, and punished with a fine.
In smaller blasphemies they are dealt with more gently at the
pleasure of the inquisitors, viz. the blasphemer is condemned to
stand, during divine service, upon some holy-day or other, with
his head naked, without his cloak, and shoes, his feet naked, a
cord tied round him, and holding a burning wax taper in his
hands. Sometimes also they squeeze his tongue with a piece of
wood. After divine service is over his sentence is read, by which
he is enjoined fastings and a fine.
And because such who accustom themselves to blaspheme,
though they do it in passion, are vehemently suspected of
heresy, they are forced to abjure as thus suspected. Thus
Diana relates,^ that in the Inquisition in Sicily, two blas-
pheraerswere made publicly to abjure, as vehemently suspected,*^
in the presence of the judge himself. But in smaller blasphe-
mies, because they are but lightly suspected, they only abjure
as such.
But in these cases the inquisitors mostly act ^according to
their own pleasure, who have an ample power of judging
a Carena, part 2. t. 7- sect. 8.
'> Resol. moral. Par, 4. tract. 7. resol. 8. c Dec. 16, 1633.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 335
according to the nature and heinousness of the crimes. Gon-
salvius^ tells us of a certain person wlio had a quarrel with a
clergyman of Ecya, a city in Spain, who accidently said, in the
hearing of otliers, that he could not believe that God would
come down into the hands of so profligate an adulterer. The
vicar of the ordinary fined him for tlie speech. But the
clergyman not contented with this revenge, afterwards accused
him of blasphemy at the tribunal of the inquisitors at Seville.
Nor did the fine to which he was before condemned by the
ordinary, prevent his being taken up by command of the
inquisitors, imprisoned for a whole year, brought out in
triumph \\dthout cloak or hat, carrying a wax-candle in his
hand, his tongue gagged with a wooden gag, thus to punish his
blasphemy ; and being forced to abjure as lightly suspected, he
was fined a second time.
CHAP. XX.
(y Diviners, Fortune-Telleiis, and Astrologers.
FORTUNE tellers and diviners are distinguished.'' For
there are some who act merely by the art of divination, such as
tell fortunes, by looking into the palms of the hand, and
judiciary astrologers. Others who exercise divination by lots,
with the addition of some heretical word or fact : as if any
one in telling fortunes about sweethearts should deny God and
the sacraments of the church; or should mingle any of the
sacraments of the church with his for tune- tellino\ or those
things which the divines call sacramental; as if he should
baptize images, rebaptize a child, or only anoint him with holy
oil, or incense the head of a person dead, or do any of the like
things to divine future things, or use a candle and holy water
to discover stolen goods. All these things render the doer
a Resol. moral. Par. 1. tract. 7. rcsol. 8. p. 19.5.
*> Eymcr. p. 2. qii. 12. Com. 07.
336 HISTOKY OF THE INQUISITION.
suspected ; for unless he had beheved such sacraments or
sacramentals had some virtue to effect such evil operations,
he would not have used them for this purpose. So that the
inquisitors take diligent care to interrogate them concerning
their belief, and if they deny the intention they are tortured ;
and if they do not confess, they may be made to abjure as
vehemently suspected. They may also be punished with
excommunication, suspension of dignities, whipping, banish-
ment, imprisonment in monasteries, and other punishments,
according to the quality of the persons. They may also be
pubhcly brought forth wearing the infamous mitre, or be dis-
gracefully tied to a ladder near the gates of the church, and be
banished from the diocese.
As to judiciary astrologers, their art is generally condemned
as superstitious.^ But there is one species of it, which the
doctors pronounce erroneous and heretical, viz. that which
professes to foretel the mysteries of our faith by the stars. In
like manner they are condemned as rash astrologers, who
pretend they are able to foretel by the stars certain things
concerning the state of the church, hfe or death, or the assump-*
tion of the chief pontiff. Pope Urban VIII. by a constitution,
beginning, Inscrutahilis^ hath appointed, that judiciary astro-
logers, who make judgments concerning the state of the
Christian republic, or apostolic see, or the life of the Roman
pontiff, or his kindred, or who, when made, keep them in
their own possession, or shew them to others, or speak of them
by words, besides the punishment of excommunication which
they shall, ipso jure, incur, shall be punished with death as
guilty of high treason, confiscation of effects, and that if they
are of the clergy, they shall be punished with deprivation of
their benefices and offices.
We have also instances of very gi'ievous punishments in-
flicted on these judiciary astrologers, one of which may be seen
in Bzovius, under the year 1327. Bzovius*s words are, —
" Francis Asculanus was thro^vn into jail at Florence, and
burnt, being by name convicted of blasphemies, heresy and
a Carena, p. 2. t. 12, sect. 12. b Published Ap. 1, 1631.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITIOJJ. 387
judiciary astrology, as also of other damned arts, and was
condemned by the inquisitors of the faith." After this he
subjoins a catalogue of the crimes objected to him, from
which it appeai-s that most of them were taken from judicial
astrology.
kW^-'VV-W-*
CHAP. XXI.
Of Witches.
WITH these fortune-tellers are properly joined ^vitches
or hags, which in Italy they commonly call strigiae, from their
resemblance to the screech-owl, a night and troublesome bird,
because they are reported to deal in their witchcraft principally
at nig-ht, and to suck the blood of infants. Others call them
sorceresses, charmers, and the like.^ "I hey are said to have
been a sect of people, principally women, who arose in Italy in
the year 1400. They gather together in certain places near
towns and villages, at particular times, and especially the
night preceding Friday, when the devil appears to them in a
visible human shape. When they enter into this gang, they
first, and before all things, do, by the devil's command, deny
their holy faith and baptism, the Lord God, and the blessed
Virgin Mary, and after this they trample under their feet on
the ground, a cross made by one of the witches. After this
they promise allegiance between the hands of the devil, taking
him for their lord, and promise obedience to him in all things.
As a token of all this, they put their left hand behind their
back, and touch the devil's hand, and offer him somewhat as a
mark of their subjection. From henceforth they are said to
believe the devil to be their true lord and god ; and as often
as they go to their nightly assemblies, which they call the play
of good fellowship, they worship the devil appearing in human
« Bernard Comensis de Stiigiis.
z
338 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
shape, and by bowing their head profoundly down, adore him
as their true god. It is reported of them, that tliey go to
this assembly or play, truly and corporally, when awake
and in their perfect senses: if the place be near they go
on foot ; if distant, they are carried by the devil through
the air.
Many authors have written largely of these witches or hags.
James Sprenger, Sylvester de Prierio, Bartholomew Spineus,
and others, who warmly contend that they are all corporally
carried to these night-plays or dances. Francis Ponzinibius is
the only one amongst the papists of former ages, who opposes
their common opinion, and affirms that they are not corporally
carried, but only deluded by di'eams and phantasms.
The crime of witchcraft is cognizable by the court of the
Inquisition.
By the sanctions of the Roman pontiffs, the inquisitors are
required to proceed against them as heretics. Innocent VIII.
writing to the inquisitor of Germany, speaks thus, " we have
indeed lately heard to our great grief, that in some parts of
upper Germany, as also in the provinces, cities, places and
dioceses of Mayence, Cologne, Treves, Salzburg, and Bremen,
many persons of both sexes, unmindful of their own salvation,
and deviating from the Catholic faith, abuse themselves with
male and female devils, and by their incantations, charms and
conjurations, and by other horrid superstitious sorceries and
excesses, crimes and offences, do cause and procure many evils.
We therefore as in duty bound, being compelled hereto by our
zeal for the faith, &c. do by the tenor of these present, and by
our apostohc authority appoint, &c. that it shall be lawful
for the inquisitors to imprison and punish the aforesaid
persons."
These letters were confirmed as to the greater part of them,
and sent to master George de Casali, inquisitor at Cremona,
by Juhus II. and were afterwards extended to all the inqui-
sitors of the congregation of Lombardy, by the letters of Alex-
ander VI.
The principal methods of detecting witches, are the accusa-
tions of their companions,, the effects which their incantations
HISTOltY OF THE INaUIglTION. 839
produce, and the presumptions and conjectures of credible
witnesses, as when tlieir companions assert, that they were
present at a certain time and place. When distempers and
other harms befal men, women, children, cattle, and the fruits
of the earth, or when any men or women who are ignorant of
the art of physic prevent such evils, or when any one utters a
certain threatening against any, and such effects follow, it is to
be presumed that such is a witch and dedicated to the devil by
a denial of the faith, whereupon the inquisitors may proceed to
inflict the torture.
On such grounds have the Inquisition proceeded against
persons charged with witchcraft, and by the extremity of
the sufferings they have inflicted, obtained numerous con-
fessions of a crime which never had an existence; so that
as Liidovicus a Paramo relates, they burnt during 150
years 30,000 unhappy persons for this imaginary offence,
he adds, " the inquisitors have most severely prosecuted
these most outrageous furies, who have thro^vn off all hu-
manity, especially in the kingdom of Sicily, where when I
myself a few years past, executed the office of inquisitor,
many of this kind of apostate witches were discovered and
punished.
And first, before they begin the process, there must be some
certainty as to the reality of the crime, whether the offence be
of that sort which leaves the proper traces behind it. For it
hath been observed, that some judges have ordered certain
women to be punished with death, for confessing a crime which
had never been committed. Thus Ferrerius, reports, that a
woman confessed, tliat in the night she took a certain infant
from the breasts of its mother, and carried it into the assembly
of the witches, where it was killed by her and her companions.
But upon examining the mother of the infant, she declared
that no such accident had ever happened to it. Now the
reahty of the offence is proved by the judgment of skilful
physicians, if they do clearly determine that the disease is not
natural, but possibly and probably a witchcraft, and there be
legal proofs that the witchcraft is committed by the woman.
340 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
After this the inquisitor may proceed to imprisonment, first
takinjT advice of tlie counsellors. After imprisonment he
searches her house with a notary, to see what things they can
fmd in the coffers and beds, both for the assistance of the person
inquisited, as whether there be crowns,' divine services, books
of devotion and the like ; and for the assistance also of the
fiscal ; as whether there be any images of wax run through
with needles, powders, ointments, papers with crosses, books
containing witchcrafts, bones under ground, poisons, bones of
dead persons, and all extraordinary things found under the
threshold, and in the beds. This search must be made by the
ministers of the holy office, in the presence of the notary before
the inquisitor. None of the family of the person accused of
witchcraft must be present. And here they advise that all
unusual things found in beds are not to be looked on as a
token of witchcraft ; for some such things may naturally hap-
pen ; and therefore such things can cause but a very hght
suspicion, unless what they find in the said places are in
themselves, and, according to the common use of witches, fit to
perform magical operations. As for instance, if half of an
human skull is found in the bed or on the pillow of the witch,
and another half exactly answering to the former, is found in
her chest, a very considerable suspicion would from hence
arise against such person, as the prudent judge shall deter-
mine, and certainly greater than if no such half skull had
been found at all. These and other things, too tedious to
mention, the inquisitor is commanded to take prudent notice of,
least he should proceed against any person as a witch, rashly,
and without just cause.
a Consecrated bread made like a crown, or in a round form.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 341
CHAP. XXII
(y Jews, and such as return to Jewish Rites.
THE nation of the Jews, after the destruction of the city
and temple of Jerusalem, were brought into miserable bondage
and captivity, and dispersed throughout the whole world. Im-
patient of their miseries, they have, however, often taken up
arms, and endeavoured to assert their liberties. But havinsr
been subdued by most grievous slaughters, they have at length
laid down their fierceness, and are forced to bear the yoke. —
The Cathohcs, partly through fear of the rage of the Jews,
and partly through an ignorant zeal for Christianity, have en-
deavoured either wholly to destroy, by various miseries, this
dispersed people, or to tire them out by the grievousness and
length of their miseries, and thus to compel them to profess
the Christian faith. Upon this account, various edicts have at
different times proceeded against the Jews. Some have pro-
scribed them in the countries where they have lived, others
have deprived them of their liberties, and reduced them to sla-
very ; others have stripped tliem of those advantages and pri-
vileges which their other subjects have enjoyed, that by these
means they might at length be wholly extinguished, or wearied
out by the miseries they endured for their Judaism, renounce
it, and embrace the Christian religion. Very severe edicts have
been made against them, especially in Spain, where a very
large number of them dwelt, and were thought to endanger
the safety of the kingdom.
In the sixth council of Toledo, this decree was published
against the Jews.* " We the holy council, with the consent
of the most Christian prince, and his nobles, and most illus-
trious persons, publish this sentence, pleasing to God, that
whosoever shall enjoy the kingdom for time to come, shall not
ascend the royal throne, before he hath promised upon the holy
sacraments, that he will suffer no persons but Cathohcs to
a Simanc. tit. 35. sect. 9.
Z 4
34^ HISTORY OF THE l^^QUISITION.
dwell in his kingdom. And if any one, after his accession to
the kingdom, shall rashly violate this promise, let him be Ana-
thema Marantha before the eternal God, and become fuel for
the everlasting fire, and also all such who agree with him.""*
Baroiiius, under the year 638, says, this was principally decreed
out of hatred to the Jews, and bestows great praises on it,
and from hence concludes, " It is not without reason that the
kings of Spain have had the title of Catholic bestowed on them,
being worthy of so high a title, because they not only swear
that they will be Cathohcs themselves, but that they will not
suffer any one that is not a Catholic to dwell in their large do-
minions."" But notwithstanding this decree, a great many Jews
remained in Spain, and soon encreased to such a number, that
they began to appear formidable to the kings, and they were
accused, whether right or wrong, of a design to raise a rebel-
lion. Upon which account another edict was made against
them in the seventeenth council of Toledo.'' " Since the per-
fidiousness of the Jews hath not only defiled the coat of sa-
cred Christian baptism which they have received, but also at-
tempted to conspire against the king and kingdom, let them be
deprived of all their effects, and those perfidious wretches
themselves, their wives and children, and the rest of their pos-
terity, throughout all the provinces of Spain, be subject to
perpetual slavery, and remain every w here dispersed ; and let
such who have made slaves of them, by no means permit them
to celebrate their ceremonies," Yet still the posterity of the
Jews greatly multiplied in Spain.
In the mean while the Romanists contend, that the Jews
ought not to be compelled by force to embrace the Christian
religion against their wiU, because religion ought to be volun-
tary, yea, sometimes they have been protected by the papal au-
thority, against the injuries of some intemperately zealous Ca-
tholics.
Thus pope Innocent 111.*= published a constitution for not
oppressing the Jews. The papists also farther contend, that
a Can. 3. b Can. 8.
I <: Bzoviiis, A. 1200. sect. 18.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 343
although they obhge the Jews in Spain and Portugal, to de-
part thence, unless they embrace the Christian religion, yet they
do by no means force them to become Christians ; and there-
fore Osorius and Mariana blame king Emanuel, who kept the
younger children of the Jews against their parent's will, and
compelled the Jews by a severe bondage to receive baptism ;
and they say that this action is neither agreeable to law or reli-
gion. Can any one believe that these people speak seriously,
who by so many methods cruelly distress the Jews, that they
may force them, thus broken by mieries, of which they see no
end, to embrace the Christian religion ? * For it is owing to this
that so many amongst the new converts are found to be Jews
in their hearts. Hence it is, that they themselves always sus-
"" During the reigns of kings D. Eoiannel, and D. John II. the Jews were
forced, by the intrigues of the priests, to be baptized, in order lo avoid the
great persecutions then instituted against them; but afterwards the same
priests took occasion, from their baptism, to confer a title of infamy on the
Jew5, by calling them, in a way of contempt, New Christians-, and what is
still worse, considering the same thing in the light of a crime, for the least
act, or suspicion of an act, against religion, was fully sufficient to subject
such unhappy person to imprisonment in the inquisition; and it was at the
same time alleged against him, that he was a new Christian. He was then
told in the tribunal, that it was his duty to confess every. thing comprised in
the information agaiast him, if he wanted to save his life, without informing
him what the crimes were of which he was accused ; consequently the poor
wretch accused himself of every thing that his imagination could conceive,
to make his evidence credible, without caring what crimes he heaped toge-
ther on his own head, imder the impression, that if he were to deny the jus-
tice of the information against him, and refuse to reply to the accusation, he
should be burnt alive as negative, but by becoming his own accuser, he
might have his life spared. Such a prisoner was of course tried and con-
demned on his own accusation, and in his sentence at the Auto da fe, de-
clared guilty of the crime of Judaism, and adjudged to penunce, and the
confiscation of all his property, for the use of the holy office. This practice
continued from the establishment of the Inquisition in Portugal, to the reign
of king D. Joseph.
The power of the Inquisition was, however, considerably abridged during
the ministry of the Marquis Ponihal, who meditated its total destrustion,
when the Jew's law was enacted, forbidding the disgrace of the title new
Christians, as applied to baptized Jews or their descendants. Notwithstand-
ing the justice of which, one of the goalers of the Inquisition dared to intf-
mate to me, that this irreligious law was procured by the Jews by an immense
bribe. Vide Da Costa's Narr. v. i. 155.
344 HISTOKY OF THE INQUISITION.
pect the new Christians, viz. such who are converted from the
Jews and Saracens, and desire that their posterity may be al-
ways separated from the posterity of the old Christians.
Sometimes, also, they have openly persecuted the Jews, and
compelled them to become Christians. Sethus Calvisius relates
from Cedrenus, under the year 722, that Leo the emperor
forced the Jews to embrace Christianity ; but that they after-
wards either renounced their baptism, or shut themselves up in
their houses, and burnt themselves with all tlieir families.
The Inquisition, say they, was not introduced to compel the
Jews to the Christian religion; because, as they are not bap-
tized, and have not professed the faith of Christ, they cannot
be said to be heretics or apostates, and therefore are not subject
to the jurisdiction of the inquisitors. For the church doth not
judge of those that are without, and the jurisdiction of the
inquisitors is only granted them against heretical pravity and
apostacy. The Inquisition, indeed, in Sp.i')i, is introduced
against those, who, being converted from the Jews or Maho-
metans, to the Christian religion, return again to Judaism or
Mahometanism, and give such marks of their apostacy as are
capable to convict them. Such a one, as well as a Christian,
that goes over to the Jewish rites, may be punished by the
inquisitors as any other heretic or apostate. And in order to
prove this crime, they admit the testimony of Jews ; and when
it is legally proved, they are by the royal laws of Spain deli-
vered over, as relapsed and impenitent, to the fire.
Pope John XXII. also, as Bzovius relates under the year
1319,* by a letter. No. 190, renewed the constitutions of Cle-
ment IV. and other his predecessors, and by severer laws in-
creased the power given to the inquisitors against them ; com-
manding that they should gather together and burn all the
books of the Talmud, and punish those who were convicted of
execrable blasphemies. In the month of December following,^
by the command of Friar Bernard Guido, inquisitor of hereti-
cal pravity, the books of the Jews called the Talmud, were,
as many of them as could be found in the possession of the
a Sect. 9. b Tholos. Inquisit. fol. 136.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S45
Jews, burnt at Tholouse, after it had been declared by sworn
examiners, skilfid in the Hebrew tongue, that they contained
errors and blasphemies against the Lord Jesus Christ, and his
most holy muther, the Virgin Mary.
In the kingdom of Valencia,* the inquisitors may proceed
against the Jews or Saracens, or other unbaptized infidels,
dogmatizing amongst Christians, especially against the Alfa-
quins, or those who Iiinde:- the office of the Inquisition, or cir-
cumcise boys, or are receivers of heretics, or who compel any
one to deny the faith, or persuade them to use their rites or
public ceremonies. But yet others think that a Jew, who says
to a Christian, " La fede vostra e fede di Cazzi,''^ i. e. Your
faith is the faith of a — — — — ., or who throws dirt upon the
cross which is carried in the litanies, ought not to be punished
by the inquisitors, but by the secular judge.
Andj finally, Gregory XIII. A. D. L'>81,^ pubhshed a con-
stitution, beginning, Antigua Judceorum improbitas, by which
he gi-anted power to the inquisitors of heretical pravity, freely
to proceed against the Jews in the following cases : " If they
deny matters of faith common to them and Christians. If they
invoke devils, or sacrifice to them. If they teach any Christian
these things, or bring them to them. If they speak heretical
blasphemies. If they pervert a Christian from the faith. If
they hinder infidels from coming over to the faith of Christ. If
they knowingly receive an heretic, or give him assistance. If
they keep heretical books, or talmudical, or any other Jewish
books any ways condemned. If they deride the salutary host,
or the cross, or the like things, or Christians. If they keep
Christian nurses, or shall compel them from the day in which
they received the sacrament of the Eucharist, to throw their
milk into thejakes.'"*
But especially in the kingdom of Spain and Portugal, the
Inquisition is introduced to detect and punish those who, being
Jews, have embraced the Christian religion, and witnessed their
profession by the solemn receiving of baptism, and have after-
wards turned again to Judaism.
» Royas, p. i. sect. 552. •» Cazri is ao obscene word,
c Camp. Bui. par. 2. p. 178.
346 HISTORY OF THE INGIUISITION.
There are several signs by which it may be collected/ that a
person is revolted to Judaism. Anciently, the converted Jews
themselves allowed, that it might be known by certain marks,
which of them were not sincerely converted to Christ, but
cherished Judaism in their heart in a certain ordinance, made
in the name of the king of Spain, about the year 653.^ In
which they promise entire devotion to the Catholic faith, and
vow entire separation from their own nation, declaring for them-
selves and their posterity, that they will neither marry with
the Jews, nor observe any of their customs, as of circumcision,
and particular foods, as swine's flesh, &c. concluding thus : —
" We swear by the same Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who is
one in trinity, and the true God, that whosoever of us shall be
found a transgressor of all or any of these things, he shall pe-
rish with new flames or stones."
But Pegna is of opinion, that a more certain suspicion of
secret Judaism arises from other observed rites of the Jews,
viz. from too intimate conversing with them, by frequenting
the places in which they dwell, and especially the synagogues,
by the observation of the sabbaths, and many other things,
than from their abstinence from swine's flesh, which may be
either unpleasant to the taste, or nauseous to the stomach.
This consideration particularly affects the nev^ converts, who,
through custom, cannot be supposed easily to relish swine's
flesh, or other meats forbidden them before their conversion.
But this doth not hold as to their children and grandchildren,
and other descendants, who cannot be supposed to abstain from
these things for any other reason, but their reverence and ap-
probation of this accursed sect, because the reason of custom
cannot be pleaded in their behalf, though it may as to those
who are themselves converted.
Amongst other signs of secret Judaism, the name that a per-
son takes is accounted one. For they say it is customary amongst
the Hebrews, frequently to give the same name to those who
come over or return to their sect, which they had before they
^ Pegna, com. 25. in 3. part. Eymer.
*^ Leg. del fuero Jurgo. lib. 12.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION S47
were baptized. If therefore any person, after baptism, in
which he put off his old J.ewish name, and took the name of
some saint, according to the custom of Christians, shall take
it aga:.n, or some other name familiar and usual amongst the
Jews, it will be a presumption that he approves Judoism.
In how many, and in what cases, the Jews and other infidels
are subject to the power of the inquisitors, Gregory XIII.
hath largely declared, A. D. 1581, by a rescript, beginning,
" Antiqua Judaeorum.'"'
As to the punishments of such offending Jews,* their crimes
are distinguished into three sorts. Some of them are common
to them and Christians. Others are against the Christian or
rather Popish faith. And, lastly, others against their own
faith, which are not to be treated of here.
As to crimes of the first sort, respecting them as well as
Christians, such are declared heretics who deny God to be Al-
mighty. If they confess that they said and believe this, they
are compelled to abjure as for formal heresy. If they confess
they said it, but deny that they believed it, they must be tor-
tured as to their intention, and be made to abjure as well as
Christians, according to the degree of the suspicion, whether
hght or vehement.
As to crimes of the second sort, they are tortured only to get
out the truth, and discover their accomphces. For in these
things they are not truly heretics ; but because they grievously
offend against the Christian or Popish faith, they are usually
punished in a very severe manner, and in this case they are not
compelled to abjure, because the church doth not compel them
to the faith.
The punishments which the inquisitors inflict upon the Jews**
who offend in the aforesaid cases, are various, and lighter or
a Carena, p. 2. t. 14. sect. 18.
« A Portuguese Jew, whose father had been burnt alive for Judaism, fled
into Holland. This man had not yet been instructed in the law of Moses,
and behaved in every respect like a good Catholic, till this dreadful execu-
tion, when he saw his talher expire in the rtames with all the constancy of
one of the ancient martyrs ; whirh made so deep an impression on him, that
S48 HISTORY OF THE INaiHSITION.
heavier, according to the nature or degree of the crimes, viz.
privation of all conversation with Christians, fines, perpetual
imprisonment, whipping, and also to be deUvered over into the
power of the secular arm.
he instantly conceived such an aversion to the principles of Christianity, ai
to renounce it, giving this reason, that a religion which authorired such bar-
barities, conld not possibly be good. Iiettcrs on the Inq. Sec. 42.
END OF BOOK III.
%%^%%%«^'W'W
HISTORY
OF THE
iJi^tti^ittDn
BOOK IV.
»)F THE MANNER OF PROCEEDING BEFORE THE TRIBUNAL OE
THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. I.
Ho:c the Inquisitor begins his Office.
JLT now remains that we give an account of what relates to
the execution of the inquisitorial office. This wiU. be a more
difficult task, because, although the inquisitors are bound to
certain laws, yet many things are left to their pleasure. Be-
sides, the very application of the laws to particular cases, which
come before the inquisitors, and also, tlie metliod of proceeding
and cb-awing a confession from the prisoners, depends very
much on their will. Hence it comes to pass, that although all
the inquisitors are directed by certain general laws, so that one
and the same general method of proceeding is observed by all, yet,
as to many circumstances, the method is very various and differ-
ent, which besides cannot be so fully explained, because the in-
quisitors leai'n many things rather by use and practice, than by
instruction and precepts; especially, considering that they
oblige all persons by oath, whom they dismiss from the prison
of the Inquisition, to silence ; that the secrets of the Inquisi-
tion, as though they were the mysteries of Ceres, may not by
any means be revealed.
S50 HISTOllY OF THE INatJISITION.
When the inquisitor is first constituted by the pope,* he must
present hiniscif to the king, or temporal lord of those territo-
ries, in which 'the inquisitor is deputed by the apostolic see^
and exhibit his apostohc commission. Then he must demand
his protection for himself,'' his colleague, notary, servants, and
their effects, and his orders to his officials to obey the inquisitor
in apprehending heretics, their believers, receivers, defenders,
favourers, and such as are defamed for heresy ; and that they
do all and singular matters that belong to their office, in making
execution against the aforesaid, to extirpate heretical pravity,
and to extol the Catholic faith, whensoever, and as often as
they are required by the inquisitor, or in his name.
When he liath obtained these letters, he must likewise exhi-
bit his apostolic commission to the archbishop and metropolitan
of the province to which he is deputed; as also to all the
bishops and their vicars, to whose diocesses he is sent.*= After
this he must shew the letters which he hath obtained from the
king or temporal lord of the place, to his officials, and require
of them, according to the law of the emperor Frederick, that
at the desire of the inquisitor, or other Catholic men, they will
apprehend heretics, and when taken, strictly keep them, till
being condemned by the ecclesiastical censure, they perish with
an accursed death.'' Finally, he takes an oath from these offi-
cials, for their defending the church against heretical pravity,
and that they will obey the inquisitor with all their might, for
which end he summons them before him by letters.^ If they
appear, he proposes the form of the oath to them/ If they
consent to take it, they must do it publicly in the church, or
in some other place appointed for that purpose, upon their
bended knees, and their hands upon the book of the gospels. ^
If the officials desire timt to consider, and refuse, after the ex-
piration of it, to take the oath, the inquisitor, a few days after,
must cite them before liim, and demand of them to take the
oath, under the penalty of excommunication. If the}^ appear
within the fixed term, and consent to swear, the same form of
the oath is shewn them. If they do not appeal*, after the said
a Direct. Inq. p. 3. n. 1. b Ibid. n. 2. c Ibid. n. 4.
^ Ibid. n. 5. = Ibid. n. G. f Ibid. n. 8. g Ibid. «. 10.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S51
time is elapsed, they are declared excommunicate, and the ex-
communication is ordered to be published in the cathedral
church. After the denouncing the excommunication, they are
absolved from the sentence of it if they will take the oath, and
enjoined some hard arbitrary wholesome penance, as shall be
most conducive to the honour of the faith. When their absolu-
tion is given, they are denounced free from excommunication.
However, they cannot be absolved, unless they first take this
oath, at the command of the inquisitor : — " I swear that 1 will
obey the commands of the church." Or thus : " I swear that
I will stand to and obey thy commands."
But if they abide under this sentence of excommunication
two or three months, the processes are aggravated, and they
are commanded to be denounced publicly excommunicated in
the aforesaid churches, with lighted candles thrown on the
ground, or put in water, and the bells rung once or oftener in
a week or day. If, without being terrified by this excommuni-
cation, they refuse to take the oath, they are not only excom-
municated, but all who have any manner of converse with them,
who eat, drink, or talk with them. If, nevertheless, they per-
severe in their contumacy, their lands are put under an eccle-
siastical interdict.^ If, after this, they will not take the oath,
they are deprived of the honour and ofHce of government, as
infamous favourers of heretics, and suspected of the faith, and
are condemned to be never hereafter admitted to any public
office or dignity ;'» and whatsoever they do after this is null,
according to the chap. Ad abolendam^" and chap. Ut qfficium^
And this sentence is commanded to be published by those who
have the cure of souls in the cathedral and other churches.
If the city or place acquiesces in the sentence, and deprives
such persons of their offices, others are chosen in their room,
who, before they are admitted to the discharge of their office,
are bound to take the oath which the others have refused.
But if the city doth not submit to the sentence, but supports
their officials, though deprived of their offices by the inquisitor,
a Direct. Tnq. part 3. n. 27. ^ Tbid. n. 33.
c Sect. Statiiimus. extrav. de haeret. " Sect. Statnimns. lib. G.
352 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
he may cut it off from all communication with other cities, and
deprive it of the episcopal dignity. But they thmk it better
to acquaint the pope with the contumacy of such a city, that
he may order in what manner to proceed against it.
At this day the inquisitors in Spain,^ when they enter upon
a province or city, where they never were before, must in
the first place shew their letters of delegation, by which they
are created inquisitors, to the chapter of the greater church,
and consistory of the city, that it may appear that they ai'e
judges of the causes of heresy.^ And such who have offended
as recited must be proscribed by the inquisitors, and apprehend-
ed and punished by the royal hand.*^
But if the officials, terrified by the more grievous denuncia-
tion of the inquisitor, take the oath, they are freed from their
excommunication, but receive an heavy penance, which is al-
ways increased, according as their contumacy is longer or mere
aggravated. In their first penance they are enjoined to stand
in the gate of the church, or on the steps before the altar, on
several Sundays, or holy-days, whilst the greater mass is saying,
and there is a large concourse of people, without hat or shoes,
and to hold in their hands a wax taper, of a certain weight, and
to offer it to the priest when the mass is ended. Or they must
do this always, or at some certain time, when it happens that
the inquisitor makes a general sermon for the faith. Other
milder punishments may be also thought of; for instance, some
larger almsgiving, the building some holy place, and the hke.**
But if they persist longer in their contumacy, there is some-
what added by way of penance, which directly turns to the
honour of the Christian faith.
During these transactions,* whether the oath be taken or not,
the inquisitor may and must appoint, in every bishopric, one
commissary of fopty years old, a religious or secular clergyman,
a wise and prudent person, famous for knowledge and good
manners, and zealous for the holy faith, with a power of re-
ft Simanc. tit. 44. sect. 1. b i Instruct. Hispal. cap. 1.
c Pegna, in Diiect. p. 432. n. 16. * Ibid. n. 24.
* Ibid. n. 37.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 353
ceiving denunciations, and informations or accusations, from or
against any persons whatsoever, and of proceeding and doing
other things, which the inquisitor himself, if present, could do.
V^-v^'W-v^'W*^
CHAP. II.
Of the Promulgation of the Edict of Faith.
THE commissaries thus appointed or not," the inquisitor
appoints a general sermon, according to the prescript of the
council of Biterre.^ " And then, caUing together the clergy
and people, and propounding to them the word of God, declare
the command that is given you, and the cause of your coming,
reading the letters, by authority of which you are to proceed,
even as you know you ought to do." And that there may be
no hindrance to the offices of the church, he must not appoint
this sermon on a solemn festival, but on the common Sunday,
excepting Lent, or the Advent ; and must take care that the
rectors of the churches have these letters of indiction on Sun-
day, that the Sunday after they may appoint the general ser-
mon to be the Sunday following.*^ And that the solemnity of
that day may be the greater, all other sermons on it must be
suspended ; and it must be notified to all the heads of religious
houses, and indulgencies of forty days promised to all who
come to the sermon. When the Sunday before that on which
the general sermon is to be made, comes, the inquisitor must
admonish the heads of rehgious houses, that two or four of
each order be present at the said sermon.
On the Sunday appointed,** the inquisitor makes the general
sermon to the people, in which he speaks concerning the faith,
commends it, and exhorts the people to the defence of it, and
the extirpation of heretical pravity. When the sermon is
ended, he admonishes the people, that it is their duty to disco-
a Pegna, in direct, n. 47. " Cap. 1.
^ Pegna, in direct. «.50. ^* I»>i*^' "• 5*-
354 HISTOEY OF THE INQUISITION.
ver it to the inquisitor, if they have known any person that
hath spoken or done any thing against the faith, or who holds
ajiy error. After this admonition he commands monitory let-
ters to be read from the pulpit by his notary, or some other cler-
gyman,^ by which all persons, of whatsoever condition or state,
clergy or laity, are commanded, under pain of excommunica-
tion, to discover to the inquisitor, Avithin six or twelve days next
following, any heretic, or person suspected of heresy, that they
know. These monitory letters are called an edict of the faith,
and usually read out of the pulpit.
In many places, but especially in Spain,'' it is the custom,
that when the sermon of the Catholic faith is ended, all pro-
mise upon oath, before the crucifix and gospels, that they will
give favour, help, and counsel, to the holy inquisition, and the
ministers of it ; and that they will by no means, directly or in-
directly, hinder them. This oath the magistrates of cities must
particularly take, which must be registered amongst the acts by
the notaries of the Inquisition.*^ This oath the inquisitor may
force them to take, and mil do it when he thinks fit. In all
other cases he must follow the received custom of the city
where he is, to prevent innoxations, and that there may be no
hindrance in this cause.
After the sentence of excommunication is read/ the inquisitor
explains it more distinctly, and reduces it to several heads.—
Then he pubHshes an indulgence of forty days to all who come
to his sermon, and promises, in the name of the pope, indul-
gences for three years, to aU who give him counsel or favour
in his office of reducing heretics. He also adds three other
years of indulgences to those who discover to him any heretic,
or person defamed for heresy, or suspected, or who in any
other case bear true witness before him in a cause of faith, ac-
cording to the privilege of Urban IV.
Finally, he assigns a time of grace to all heretics,* and their
favourers, and persons suspected of heresy, viz. the entire
a Pegua, in direct, n .52, 53.
b Pegna 3, part. com. 12. Simanc. tit. 44, sect. 2.
c 1 lustruct. Hispal. cap. 1, 2.
* Direct, p. 3. n. 54, 55 « Ibid. n. 56.
HISTORY OF THE I>3QUISITI0N. S55
month folio win fr, and promises, that if within that space they
come to him freely, or not admonished, by name, and do not
wait till they are denounced, accused, or apprehended, and
voluntarily discover their guilt, and ask pardon, they shall ob-
tain large pardon and mercy, viz. freedom from death, impri-
sonment, banishment, and confiscation of effects, according to
the determination of the council of Biterre.'' " Farther, do
you command that all, who know themselves or others to have
offended in the crime of heretical pravity, do appear before
you, to speak the truth, assigning them a competent term,
which you usually call the time of grace, who ot^ierwise would
not have had such grace shewn them., And such who appear
mthin this term, and are penitent, and speak the whole truth
of themselves and others, let them be free from the punish-
ment of death, imprisonment, banishment, and confiscation of
effects." However, this power of granting pardon is allowed
the inquisitors only when they are sent to a city or diocese,**
in which the Inquisition is first erected,^ but not when upon
the death or removal of an inquisitor, another is put into his
place. In Spain also the letters patent of such grace must be
inserted in the edict.
CHAP III.
Of the Obligation to denounce every Heretic to the In-
quisitors.
THE pubhcation of the edict of faith is repeated every
year, and all are obliged under penalty of exconmiunication,
to be present at the publishing of it, and at the general
sermon concerning the faith, unless they are prevented by
sickness, age, or any other hindrance, and can make a legal
excuse.
• Cap. 2. h Pe{»na, com. 12.
<= Instruct. Hispal. A. D. 14«4, cap 1, 2, 8.
356 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
The oath which all persons, not only private, but magis-
trates, are compelled by the inquisitors to take, obliges them
not to obstruct the office of the Inquisition, either directly or
indirectly. Such are believed to obstruct it indirectly, who do
not reveal the trutii they know, i. e. do not accuse to the inqui-
sitor every one they know to be an heretic, or suspected of
heresy. So that in Spain they are doubly obliged to accuse to
the inquisitor every heretic, first under penalty of excommuni-
cation, which they incur if they are wanting in theu* duty ; and
secondly, by their own oath.
In order therefore to excite all persons to turn accusers, the
popish doctors lay the greatest stress they can upon this
obhgation to accuse. Camillus Campegius,* after laying toge-
ther the testimonies of several doctors, teaches, that every one
is obliged to accuse and testify, and that according to Cajetan,
he is bound to it as necessary to salvation ; if there be no other
way of preventing the general danger but by this method, and
then concludes in these words : " these things ought so to excite
every faithful and Catholic person, as to engage them willingly
to accuse or denounce and bear witness, for the common good
of the Christian religion, without the admonition, citation or
punishment of the judge. Though this ought to be observed
in all cases, yet it ought to be done with greater ardency in the
affair of the Christian faith, since hereby we not only avoid the
most severe punishments, but secure incomparable rewards,
through the bounty of the supreme God, and the favour of his
holy church.
Nor is there any regard to kindred in this affair. For the
brother is bound under the same penalty to accuse his brother,
yea, the wife her husband, and the husband his wife, if guilty^
or suspected of heresy. Pegna ^ however thinks, that the wife
is to be excused, if she doth not accuse her husband for eating
flesh on prohibited days ; if the husband be a violent man, and
she is afraid of ill usage from him. In all other cases he thinks
the wife is obhged to accuse her husband.
« In Zanchin. a. 13. d. ^ Direct, p. 2. com. 78.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 857
Ludovicus a Paramo tells us,' that Lewis de Carvajal,
although governor and captain general of the province of
Tampico and Pamico, was forced to walk out in pubhc pe-
nance, because he did not denounce four women, who were
secretly Jews, and to whom he was uncle ; and that though a
little before he had the honourable title of pi-esident, he was
forced to hear his ignominious sentence publicly, was for ever
deprived of all offices under the king, reduced to the lowest
misery, and through grief and weariness of his life, soon went
the Avay of all flesh.
It is disputed amongst the popish doctors,^ whether a son be
obliged to accuse his father, who is a secret heretic, or at least
to discover him to the judges. The general opinion is, that he
is obliged to it. But others think differently, because there is
no law, natural, divine, or human, that lays such a burthen on
the shoulders of children. And yet even such who are of this
opinion, confess the son may do it, especially if the father be
incorrigible. Yea, think such a son ought to be commended
who conquers his natural love, and overcomes this most strong
affection, from an ardent love to divine rehgion. He must
however try every method before he accuses his father to the
judge. But yet they teach, that there an two cases in which
the son is obliged to betray his heretical father to the judges.
The first, when the son is legally interrogated by the apostolic
inquisitors ; the second, when the father's heresy is dangerous
to the common-wealth.
And from this obligation to accuse,*^ no one is freed, of
whatsoever order and dignity they may be. For the edict of
faith obliges all. So that they will have neither princes nor
kings themselves exempted. Ludovicus a Paramo proves this
by a famous instance. Joan tl^e daughter of the emperor
Charles V, was cited by the inquisitors tg be interrogated be-
fore them, against a certain person concerning some things
relating to the faith. She consulted her father, who advised
«» L. 2. t. 2. c. 21. n. 16.
b Simauc. de Cathol. Instit. tit. 29, sect. 35, &c.
c Ibid. Lib. 3. qu, 5. n. 40.
A a 3
S58 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITIOX.
her to make her deposition without any delay, least she should
incur excommunication, not only against others, but even
against himself, if she knew him to be blameable in the least
manner. Joan obeyed this command of her father, and imme-
diately deposed before Ferdinand Valdez, arch bishop of Seville,
at that time bishop and inquisitor general.
CHAP. IV.
Of sy^ch who voluntarily appear, and the Grace shewn them,
" IT is the present custom in Spain^ for one of the inqui-
sitors in these acts, to visit the province, and to propose general
edicts wherever he goes, by which he commands under penalty
of excommunication, that whosoever knows of any thing done
or said against the Catholic faith and evangehc law, he must
immediately discover it to the inquisitor. Whatever is report-
ed, must be secretly [written down by the notary of the inquisitors.
The other of the inquisitors remains in the city in which their
residence is fixed, and must preside, in ordering the acts of
causes. But if there be no occasion for his residence there, that
he may not sit idle, he must visit in the same manner the other
part of the province.^
" This visitation and general Inquisition the inquisitors
must make,^ each in his turn, through all the cities and corpo-
rations of their province ; and if they are negligent in this
affair, they must be deprived of their office. In this visitation
the inquisitors may compel all those whom they judge proper,
to swear and bear witness,*^ and must take particular care not to
be entertained by those who are related and akin to Heretics,
Jews, and Mahometans, which must also be observed by their
ministers. Nor must they receive any gratuity from the persons
where they lodge, because they are to be content with their sa^
« Simanc. tit. 44, sect. 4. b 5 Instruct. Hispal. cap. 2.
c Simane. tit. 44, sect. 5. d ibid. sect. G.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 359
laries, and because sometimes an intimate fricntlsliip is contract-
ed by this means." ^
Whilst one of tliem is visiting the province,^ the other
inquisitors stays at home, that all \A\o come voluntarily may
have access to him. If tlu^y come within the appointed teiTn,
and accuse themselves, he treats them more gently. He must
not however admit them after the maiijier of sacramental
confession, but after the manner of confession in a judicial
court ; so that they must declare their crime before the inquisi-
tor, and the notary take down their confession.
However, such as come voluntarily, are far from escaping all
punishments, but are either treated kindly at the pleasure of
the inquisitor, according to the quality of their persons and
crimes, or else condemned to pay a fine, or give alms, or some
such works of charity. But if they wait till they are accused,
denounced, cited or apprehended, or suffer the time of grace to
slip over, they are pronounced unworthy of it.
CHAP. V.
Of the three Methods of beginning the Process before the TrU
bunal of the Inquisition.
IF any appear within the term assigned to discover heretics,
&c.* to reveal to the inquisitor certain matters relating to the
faith, such denunciations'^ must be received judicially. If so
great a number appear, that the denunciation of all cannot be
taken judicially, the inquisitor must provide himself with a
distinct book in every diocese, to write down in it all the denun-
ciations brought to him, the names of the denouncers and
» 8 Instruct. Tolet c. 19. b Direct, part. 3, sect. 58.
c Direct, p. 3. ii, 68.
«• There is this difference between a denunciation and an accusation. A
denunciation doth not not disable the person that makes it to be a witness, as
an accusation doth.
A a 4
360 HISTORY OF THE INaUlSlTION.
witnesses, and the town and place where they dwell ; whicn
book he keeps privately to himself, that the names of the
denouncers may not be discovered, and they thereby come into
any danger.
When the time of grace is elapsed,^ the inquisitor must
carefully (?xamine the informations, viz. which have the greater
appearance of truth, and Avhich crimes are more heinous and
prejudical to the faith. Where this appears he begins to make
Inquisition, by citing the informer, giving him his oath, and
taking the best information from him that he can. If he finds
no appearance of truth, he over-rules it, but however must not
cancel the information out of his book, because what may not
be discovered at one time, may at another. If he finds an
appearance of truth, he makes farther inquisition.
Now there are three ways of proceeding and beginning the
process.'* First, by accusation, which must be preceded by
inscription.*^ Secondly, by denunciation^ which must be pre-
ceded by a charitative admonition. (But it is now the custom
in Spain, that heretics, although concealed, must be immedi-
ately discovered to the judges, without any brotherly correction.
So that those who, under pretence of brotherly correction, do
not discover secret heretics to the inquisitors, and those who
advise them not to do it, are punished as concealers of here-
tics, Tand as hinderers of the office of the holy Inquisition.)
Thirdly, by Inquisition, which must be preceded by notorious
suspicion." This Inquisition is either general or special. The
general is whensoever the inquisitors visit their province, or
when being newly created, they go to the provinces decreed to
them, and begin to exercise their inquisitory oflice. For then
they publish general edicts, to enquire out secret and uncertain
heretics, for the exercise of which there is no need of preceding
infamy. But the inquisitors are obhged, ex officio^ thus to act
at certain stated times.
' Direct, p. 3. n. 65. b Simanc. t. 19, sect. 16.
« Inscription is a certain instrnment, by which the accuser, if he fails in
his proof, binds himself to undergo the same punishment, which the accused
person must, if the crime he is accused of be fully proved,
d Pegna in Direct, p. 3. Com. 16.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 861
A special Inquisition is a certain right of proceeding by office
to condcmnatian and punishment, against certain persons inqui-
sited by name, defamed for particular crimes, to which the
judge cannot proceed without preceding infamy, whicli supplies
the place of an accuser. However, in the crime of heresy, the
inquisitor may act upon signs and probable suspicions, where
there is no precetUng infamy, and even where he is not sure
of the body of the offence, because heresy is a crime that leaves
no traces after it. But in this case he must proceed cautiously,
and very privately, that no person's reputation and honour
mav be injured.
But of these three methods of proceeding,* the first, by way
of accusation, is not used ; the second, by formation, although
common and usual, yet seems rather to be the beginning than
the completion of the wiiole process ; because upon information
given against those who are guilty of high treason against the
divine majesty, to the judges of the faith, they begin to inquire
and to proceed, and in this whole affair the Inquisition claims to
itself what is otherwise done chiefly by witnesses. And there-
fore the judges are called inquisitors, and the tribunal and
ministers are said to be of the office of the most holy Inquisi-
tion, from this third method of proceeduig by Inquisition.
V^'VW^W*^'*/*
CHAP. VI.
How the Process begins by way o/* Inquisition.
WHEN the process is made by Inquisition, he who goes to
the inquisitor says, that he doth not appear as an accuser or
denouncer, but only relates to him that there is such a report,
and that it hatli frequently come to the ears of the inquisitor
from grave and reputable persons, that such a one hath done
or said some things against the faith, and the pubhc report
» Pegua in Diitct. p. 3. Com. 10. sect. 3. n. 6.
S62 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
plainly discovers the common insinuation. And by this tneans
the process is carried on.
Then the inquisitor causes certain witnesses to be cited,^
especially gi-ave and reputable persons, and in the presence of
a notary, and two religious, or otherwise reputable persons,
inquires of them only concerning the report. Whether it is
the common report of such a one, that he did or said such
things against the faith ? How they know there was such a
report ? How long such report hath been ? Whether they
know such person to be defamed ? Whether they know whence
the report arose ? Whether from ill disposed persons or
others ? And the like.
This is the command of Innocent.^ Hence we may gather
how infamy is proved. For the witness must say, that the
person under consideration is defamed of such a crime. And
when it is inquired of him, in whose account he is infamous, he
must answer with such and such ; and unless he assigns them,
he doth not appear to give a good reason of what he says.
Besides, it cannot be known whether they are serious or ill dis-
posed people.
When the report is thus proved,*^ the inquisitor proceeds to
inquire out the truth of the affair. For this purpose he causes
the witnesses to be cited, and especially such as have been
intimate with the person accused, and other reputable men,
and zealous for the faith ; and after giving them their oath, he
inquires of them, not concerning the report, but the thing itself,
in presence of the notaries, and two religious or reputable
persons. After this he proceeds to draw out a confession from
the criminal himself And first he goes to the place of the In-
quisition, v/here, when the criminal appears before him, he tells
him that he is excited and moved by the fame and frequent
reports, that he the criminal appearing and standing before him,
hath taught, written, or publicly declared certain things against
the truth of the Cathohc faith, or that he hath beheved and fa-
voured such who teach these things, or received or defended
» Direct, p. 3. n. 79. b Cap. Qualiter and quando, de Accusat.
* BiHuns de haeret. 1. 4. c. 7, sect. 10.
HISTOrtV OF THE INQUISITION. 363
them. Til at therctbre lie, according to liis office, cannot dis-
semble that there is such a report; however, that lie \\ill not
condemn him, till these crimes are legally and plainly proved
before him.
If the criminal be not defamed of the criiut.-; laid in the
articles of the Inquisition, and he makes this exception, the
promotor fiscal and die denouncer must necessarily prove the
defamation.
If this cannot be done,* the criminal is absolved from all
farther concern in judgment. He may also prove himself to be
a person of good report. For instance, if he is accused of
being defamed for defenchng the doctrine of an heretic, by >some
writing that he pubhshed, he may prove that he confuted such
doctrine by writing against it ; or if he be accused of harbour-
ing an heretic, in some house belonging to him, he may prove
that he hath no home in that place, nor ever had since such
person hath been taken for an heretic. He may likewise object,
that such evil report was raised of him by loose and infamous
persons, enemies, conspirators, and the hke.
But if the inquisitor proceeds and inquisits not at the promo-
tion,'' denunciation or instance of another, but ex mero officio^
the criminal is not to be heard when he excepts, that he is not
defamed of the crime objected to him ; nor is the judge obliged
to regard such infamy ; for there is no person who can obhge
him to do it, unless the criminal appeals. In this case the
judge must inform his superior of the infamy of the appellant.
If also any one departs from the common conversation of the
faithful in divine worship, he is not to be heard, if he alledges
that he is not defamed. For Inquisition may be made against
him without infamy.
* Brnnus de Uaerct. 1. 4. c. 8. sect. 11, *> Ibid. sect. 12.
36^ HISTORY OF THE INfftUISITIOiJ.
CHAP. VII.
How the Process begins hy Accusation.
WHEN the accuser reports to the inquisitor any crime com-
mitted by another, and the accusation hath the appearance of
truth, they proceed in this manner, according to the instruc-
tion of Eymerick, which hath been long obsen^ed.^ First, the
inquisitor inquires, wheth^^r the accuser will accuse, and proceed
in the affair by way of accusation, or not ? If he says he will
proceed by way of accusation, he is to be admonished by the
inquisitor, that he renders himself liable to the punishment of
retaliation, unless liib proof be good. But this method of
proceeding the inquisitor must not easily allow,* because it is
not customary in a cause of the faith, and because it is very
dangerous, and greatly difficult to the accuser. But if the ac-
cuser persists, he must give his accusation in wiiting,* which
must be written by the notary, in order to begin the process.
But others contend, that in the crime of heresy it is not neces-
sary that a person should oblige himself to the law of retalia-
tion. And as they now seldom admit the person of an accu-
ser, they have constituted a public minister, whom they call
the fiscal, who sustains the person of the accuser, and accuses
the criminals, who doth not obhge .himself to the punish-
ment of retaUation, nor any others which false accusers usually
suffer.
Formerly, when the process was carried on at the instance of
the accuser, after the accusation was made before the inquisitor,
the inquisitor commanded the accuser to produce the names of
his witnesses, who being cited by the inquisitor, are strictly
examined upon oath.'' If what they depose doth nothing con-
cern the fact, the inquisitor must advise the accuser, to with-
draw the word accusation, and put in the room of it denuncia-
tion, that so the inquisitor may proceed ex officio, and not at
a Direct, part. 3. ^ Ibid. 67. * Pegna,Coin. M.
d Ibid. 71.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 365
the instance of the party, because so very dangerous to the
accuser. But if the proof of the witnesses be full, the inquisi-
tor produces them, and giving them their oaths upon the four
gospels to declare the truth, which he can oblige them to take
if they refuse it, strictly examines them in a judicial manner
before the notary and two religious persons, or otlierwi^e re-
putable. Then he interrogates them concerning sundry
things, as. Whether they know such a one ? As to the occa-
sion and time of their knomng him ? Concerning his charac-
ter ? Whether they have seenj or heard him say, or do any
thing against the faith, and what that was ? Where they
saw him, how often, and who present ? In what manner he
said those things, whether in jest, or by way of recital, or whe-
ther with a deliberate mind, and by way of assertion ? And
finally. Whether they depose these things through hatred or
rancour ? Or, whether they omit any thing through love or
favour ? The answers of the witnesses to all these questions
are taken down by the notaiy. These interrogatories of the
witnesses may be oftentimes repeated at the pleasure of the in-
quisitors, that what was omitted in the former interrogatories
jnay be supplied.
CHAP. VIII.
How the Process begins by Denunciation.
BUT if the accuser says, as is commonly the case, that he
^vill not accuse, but denounce ; ' and that he doth this through
fear of incurring the penalty of excommunication, ordered by
the inquisitor for discovering things pertaining to the faith
within the prescribed term, then the inquisitor prepares him-
self to make inquisition. And this is the most ordinary method
of procedure.
When the denouncer, who is also called the appearing wit-
a Eymer. p- 3. n. 61.
3^6 HISTORY OF THE IMaUISITION.
ness, comes to the bishops or inquisitors, before the notary takes
his denunciation in a juridical manner, he is usually asked,
what he hath to propose ? that they may know, whether what
he is determined to denounce belongs to the holy office.^ Be-
cause sometimes country ignorant people, or those who are
troubled ^vith scruples, bring such matters before them, the
cognizance of which doth not belong to the inquisitors. When
they find that the crime brought before them is cognizable by
the holy office, they make the denouncer swear that he will re-
late the truth. After this the notary receives the whole denun-
ciation before the bishop or inquisitor, or their vicar, taking
down the denunciation, or the report of the denouncer in the
first person. And that there may no doubt arise as to the va-
lidity of the oath, to spoil the credit of the denunciation, as the
inquisitor doth not only take an oath from the denouncer, or
witness voluntarily appearing, but also from the witness who is
cited, upon the holy scriptures touched ^vith their hands, so it
is farther requisite, that the notary should write at length, that
such a one " took his oath touching the scriptures," and not
only ^vi'ite down, touching with an S^c. that there may be no
difficulty in defending such acts upon account of this defect.
The oadi being taken, the denouncer is interrogated concern-
ing various things by the inquisitor. ^' First, if he be not a
well known person, he is interrogated concerning his own
name, surname, country, employment, and place of abode.
Then, how long he hath known N. against whom he de-
nounces ? Likewise, how he came to know him ? Again,
whether he observed that the aforesaid N. was suspected of
matters relating to the faith from his words, or his actions ?
Likewise, how often he had seen the said N. do or say those
things for which he thought him an heretic, or suspected of
heresy ? Likewise, at what time, and in the presence of
whom the aforesaid N. did or said those things of which he is
denounced.? Likewise, whether the aforesaid N. hath had
any accomplices in the aforesaid crimes, or any writings be-
longing to the offences denounced .'' Likewise, to what end
a Pegua, Prax. luq. I. 2. c. 1.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 367
and purpose the aforesaid things were done or said by the
aforesaid N. whether seriously or in jest ? If it appears that
there was a long interval of time between the commission of
the crimes denounced, and the making the denunciation, the
inquisitor interrogates the denouncer, why he deferred so long
to come to the holy office, and did not depose before, especially
if he knew, that he incurred the penalty of excommunication by
such omission." They account this interrogatory necessary for
tAvo reasons. First, because the delay of denouncing may give
a just presumption of calumny in the denouncer. Secondly,
that it may be known, whether he hath been compelled by his
confessor to denounce, upon his refusal to absolve him v,ithout
denouncing, in which case greater credit is given to the de-
nouncer. " He is moreover asked, whether he knows any
thing farther of N. vhich concerns >the holy office, or of any
other person ? Likewise, whether he hath at any time had
any cause of hatred or enmity with the aforesaid N. and whence
it proceeded ? With what zeal, and with what intention he
comes to the holy office, and to make denunciation ? Whether
he hath denounced through any passion of mind, ill will, hatred,
or subornation ? And he is admonished ingenuously to tell the
truth.*" He is especially inteiTOgated how he came by his
knowledge, because on that principally the truth and weight of
the testimony depends. From the denunciation, and the an-
swers to these interrogatories, they form other questions, that
there may be nothing wanting in the inquisition. And what-
soever the denouncer answers to these interrogatories, the no-
tary writes down.
The denunciation thus received, three things are usually ob-
served before the denouncer goes from audience. First, the
whole denunciation, as written down, must be read over to the
denouncer, that he may add, take away, or alter as he pleases.
Secondly, the denouncer must subscribe to his deposition ; or if
he cannot write, he must at least put under it the sign of the
cross. Thirdly, the denouncer must take an oath of secrecy.
All these things are exactly written down by the notary.
368 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
CHAP. IX.
Of the Witnessea^ and who are admitted as Witnesses before
the Tribunal of the iNauisiTioN.
AFTER the denouncer hath discharged his duty by legally
denouncing, he hatli no farther concern, but the whole affair is
left to the inquisitor to make inquisition concerning the crime
of the offender, from the witnesses named by the denouncer.
Before therefore we proceed to the examination of the witnesses,
we must premise some things concerning the witnesses them-
selves, viz. as to their person and number.
All persons may be witnesses as well in civil as criminal
causes that are not expressly prohibited. In the affair of the
inquisition, in favour of the faith, all persons, even such as are
not allowed in other tribunals, are admitted as witnesses, ene-
mies only excepted. But here they distinguish between the
accuser or denouncer, and the witness. For although an ene-
my can never be a witness, he may be an accuser. or denouncer,
and his denunciation must not be neglected by the inquisitor,
according to Campegius.=*
Not that every sort of enmity prevents a person from being
a witness, but only mortal enmity. Thus the council of Biterre
determines,^ and that of Narbonne,<= " Such exceptions only
shall wholly destroy the credit of the witnesses, which seem to
proceed from the instigation of malice, conspiracy, and mortal
enmity."
But, the testimony of an heretic against an heretic, is ad-
mitted, but not for an heretic. They affirm the same of a Jew
and an infidel, who, when they are admitted as witnesses, must
not swear upon the gospels as Christians do, but according to
their own laws.
In like manner the testimony of a wife, sons, and daughters,
or domestics, against persons accused of heresy, is allowed, but
* Campeg. in Zanch. cap. 13. d.
b Cap. 13. *= Cap. 25.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. ' 369
by no means in their favour and behalf.* The reason Simancas
gives, why kindred are admitted as witnesses against kindred,
is, because they cannot }X)ssibly be suspected. *» Yea, some add,
that when other proofs are wanting, the judge may compel not
only a brother, but even a wife, or son, to witness against a
father.<= Servants also may be tortured against their masters.
Even perjured persons, who having taken an oath before the
inquisitors to speak the truth, have forsworn themselves by
concealing it, and would afterwards correct themselves, and
swear back again against themselves and others, are to be ad-
mitted, if it plainly appears that they act not from levity of
mind, nor the instigation of enmity, nor from being corrupted
by money, but from their zeal for the orthodox faith, and that
on this account they would discover in favour of the faith what
they had concealed before, according as Alexander IV. hath
decreed, and as may be found in the VI. of the Decretals. And
although perjured persons are not allowed as witnesses even
after repentance, yet it is quite different in a cause of the faith ;
and the doctors observe, that such a one's second deposition
must be stood to, when hereby he discovers the crime of heresy.
But if when he takes his second oath, he denies what he de-
posed concerning heresy when he took his first, the first deposi-
tion must be stood to, and not the second ; for which they give
this reason, because he may have spoken with the criminal, and
so is presumed to be corrupted and suborned, and therefore his
first deposition stands firm.
Farther, infamous persons may be admitted as witnesses in
this tribunal, such as infamous women, when they testify of
ihinjTs done in the houses of ill fame.* Such also as are under
the ban, whom the inquisitors may cite before their tribunal,
and grant a safe conduct, that they may be examined as wit-
nesses in the tribunal of the inquisition, although the secular
prince hath put them under the ban, because the inquisitor is
greater than any supreme, secular judge, and may proceed in
causes of the faith freely, and without any impediment what-
* C. Filii, de haeret. lib. C. ^ Pegna, lb. com. 117. tit. G4. sect. 47.
' Cart-na, p 3. t. 5. n. 21. ** Ibid, sect 12.
B b
370 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
soever of law or fact. Usurers, also, common blasphemers, com-
mon gamesters, persons quite intoxicated, and not only exhila-
rated by wine, stage-players, and prize-fighters, apostates from
religion, persons bastinadoed, bankrupts, traitors, backbiters
and spendthrifts. But they add, that these are not witnesses
above all exception, and that they amount only to half proof;
that they may be admitted to prove heresy, and the substan-
tial circumstances that prove it, such as familiarity with here-
tics, secret conventicles, and the like, but not the external cir-
cumstances necessary to it, baptism for instance, which is pre-
requisite in the case of heresy. Besides the number of wit-
nesses may make good their incapacity, though every one
singly should be incapable of being a witness, yea, if the num-
ber be large, it is sufficient to inflict the ordinary punishment.
This number they fix, and say that four are sufficient to con-
demn the criminal to the ordinary punishment. Others leave
it to the inquisitor to determine the number.
CHAP. X.
Of the Number of the Witnesses.
AS to the number of the witnesses, it is generally beheved
that two witnesses are sufficient fully to prove heresy, and to
condemn any one for heresy.* But it is necessary they should
be worthy of credit, and, as they say, above all exception.'^
Hence it is, that though excommunicated persons, and those
guilty of the same crimes, are not absolutely rejected from
being witnesses against heretics, their defenders, receivers, and
all other suspected persons, yet full credit is not to be given
to them, unless it appears that they speak truth, from probable
conjectures, the number and quality of the persons, and other
circumstances.*^
* Eymer. p. 3. qn. 71. com. 120. •> Simanc. tit. 64. sect. 36.
* C. In Fidei favorem, de liaeret. lib. 6.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 871
The informer or denouncer is now also reckoned amongst the
witnesses. For although no man can be accuser and witness in
the same cause, yet he who discovers an heretic to the judges is
a legal witness.^ For, as they say, such a witness is not influ-
enced by any private advantage, but by a zeal for the most holy
religion, and for the public benefit of the Catholic church, and
with a view to the amendment of the heretic. Nor can he have
any private interest to discover an heretic, but only as being of
the number of the Christian people, in which case they affirm the
testimony of the informer to be complete.
In doubtful cases, however, it is left to the inquisitors plea-
sure to proceed as they think fit,^ as it is expressly commanded
in the constitutions of the bishop of Albano, legate of the apos-
tohc see, who, it is probable, was appointed legate, and publish-
ed by the Pope's commission many constitutions, relating to the
punishment of heretics, and the order of proceeding against
them, about the time when the poor men of Lyons, or the
Albig-enses and other heretics infested the countries of France
and Lcmbardy. These constitutions are very useful to private
inquisitors, to enable them to determine rightly and profitably
causes and controversies of the faith, and are extant in an old
parchment manuscript in the Vatican hbrary, and in a very old
one at Florence. Amongst other things it is thus determined,
" But when the witnesses or informers differ in what they
depose, but yet agree in the substance and nature of the thing,
we leave it to the pleasure of the inquisitors so to proceed, as in
the sight of God, they shall think fit, especially if common fame,
and the fitness and credit of the deposers agree and make against
him, wlio is to undergo the Inquisition.
a Sinaauc. t. 19, sect. 17. and t. 6t, sect. 55.
k Direcr. Part. 3 com. 121.
» b ^
S7S HISTOEY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. XI.
Of the Exammai/ion of the Witnesses.
AFTER having thus spoken of the witnesses themselves,
I now come to their examination.^ When therefore the wit-
nesses named by the informer are found out, the inquisitor
orders them to be cited by his spiritual messenger, to the office
of the Inquisition, where, when they come, they are legally
examined. First, they take an oath upon the scriptures to
speak the truth. After this he is asked by the inquisitor,
whether he knows, or can guess the cause of his citation and
present examination .? If he says yes, he is interrogated how
he knew it .? If he says no, he is interrogated, whether he hath
known, or doth now know any one or more heretics, or persons
suspected of heresy, or at least is able to name any such ?
Whether he knows iV.^ What was the occasion of his
acquaintance with him .? How long he hatli known him ?
Whether he hath been used to converse with him "^ Whether
he hath heard at any time any thing from the said N. concern-
ing the Catholic religion ? Whether ever he was in such a
place with the said N. and whether the said N. did or said there
such and such heretical things, or favouring of heresy "^ Who
were present when N. did or said the aforesaid things .? How
often he saw them said or done, and on what occasion, and how ?
Whether the said N, spoke the aforesaid things in jest, or
without thinking, or through a slip of his tongue, or as relating
the heresies of some other person or persons '^. Whether he
said any thing which ought not to have been said through
hatred or love, or omitted and concealed somewhat that ought
to have been explained .? He is farther admonished to tell the
simple truth, because if he is detected of speaking falsely, he
will be made to suffer the penalties, not only of perjury, but of
favouring heresy, and that therefore he ought to tell the truth,
and beware of lies. Because, if it appears to the holy office, by
» Pegna, Piax. Inq. 1. 2. c. 5.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S73
witnesses worthy of credit, tliat the witness himself is conscious
of the things concerning which he is interrogated, and conceals
and hides them, he may be confined, and compelled to give
security, and to oblige himself not to depart from that city and
place where he is examined, and under a penalty, fixed by the
inquisitor, to make his appearance as often as and wheresoever
the inquisitor shall command him.* When the truth cannot
be found out from the mouth of the witness and these general
interrogatories, the Italian'* inquisitors come to particular inter-
rogatories concerning the place and person denounced, that so
the truth may be discovered, after which the witness is dismiss-
ed, being first injoined secrecy upon oath, and signing what he
hath said. All these things are taken down by a notary, and
inserted into the acts of the process.
a Catena, Anno. Ibid.
b The Inquisition lias been less sanguinary at Rome and in Italy, where
the Jews have great privileges, and the people of any credit busy themselves
more in making their fortunes, and that of their relations in the churcli, than
in disputing about mysteries. Pope Paul IV. who gave too great a scope to
the Inquisition at Rome, was detested by the Romans; the people made a
disturbance at his funeral, threw his statue into the Tiber, demolisiicd the
prisons of the Inquisition, and flung stones at its officers j yet not one per-
son had been put to deatii by the Inquisition, under Paul IV. whereas, Pius
IV. among other cruelties, caused three men of learning to be burnt, being
accused of thinking differently from others. But never did the Italian Inqui-
sition come up to the horrors of that of Spain. The greatest harm wiiich it
has done in Italy, has been to keep as far as it could, an ingenious nation in
ignorance. All who undertake to write, must ask a Jacobin leave to think,
and others must ask leave to read. The men of reflection and learning in
Italy, mourn in silence, others live in pleasure and ignorance, and the lower
sort in superstition. It is on account of the genius of the Italians, that such
strict care has been taken to restrain them, and with all their wit, they are
now ruled by monks, so as in several places, to kiss their hand as formerly,
they kissed the chains laid on them by the Goths, the Lombards, the Franks
and the Teutons. — Voltaire's Univ. Hist, Supp. v. 1. 224.
B b 3
874 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. XII.
How the Criminals, "uolien informed against, are sent to
Jail.
WHEN the skilful men or counsellors are called together
to give proper advice/ either as to the quality of the proposi-
tions, or the weight of the proofs and discoveries, or as to the
process or giving sentence, or any doubtful article of the cause,
that nothing may appear in the whole affair but a burning and
serious zeal for the divine glory, they make solemn prayers to
the Holy Ghost, which are usually said over in all the congre-
gations. The inquisitor and counsellors say them on their
bended knees. The form is this :
" We are here present, O God, the Holy Ghost, we are here
detained with the greatness of sin, but gathered together
specially in thy name. Come to us, be present with us,
vouchsafe to enter into our hearts, teach us what we should do,
where we should walk, and shew us what we ought to perform,
that we may be able to please thee, assisting us in all things.
Be thou the health, the suggester and maker of our judgments,
who alone with God the Father and his Son, possess a glorious
name. Suifer us not to be perverters of justice, O thou who
lovest the strictest equity. Let not ignorance draw us to the
left, let not favour bend us, nor regard to office or person
corrupt us, but join us to thyself effectually by the gift of thy
only grace, that we may be one in thee, and in nothing deviate
from the truth ; and as we are gathered together in thy name,
so let us in all things preserve justice moderated by piety, that
our sentence here may in nothing differ from thee, and that
hereafter we may obtain everlasting rewards for our good deeds."
When the prayer is ended, all answer Amen.
This prayer in the time of Carena, was recited in the Inqui-
sition at Cremona, by Cardinal Camporeus, bishop of that city,
the inquisitor on his right hand at a corner of the table, and the
• Pegna, prax. iDq. 1. 2. c. 9.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S75
vicar general at liis left at another corner, and the other coun-
sellors in then- order, all on their knees. But if a single bishop
only is present, then the bishop and inquisitor sit at the head of
the table, their seats bemg equal, in all the Inquisitions in
Italy. But the bishop sits by virtue of his episcopal dignity
in the seat placed on the right hand, and the inquisitor in the
other.
These prayers being over,"" the inquisitor consults whether
the cognizance of the crimes which are denounced and proved
by the witnesses, belongs to the holy office. If there be any
doubt of this, he must call in the qualificator divines, who must
give their opinion written and subscribed with their own hand,
that it may be inserted in the process, as the foundation of the
jurisdiction of the inquisitor. If the crimes are small, or the
propositions only sounding ill, scandalous or blasphemous, or
which do not include formal heresy, no one upon account of
these is immediately ordered to secret imprisonment, but must
rather be confined in some monastery, or in his own house, or
city.
No one can be taken up without half full proof at least, or
such evidence as is sufficient to put to the torture, because im-
prisonment by the Inquisition renders the prisoner infamous.^
The apprehending a prisoner is called citation, it is of two
kinds, verbal and real, the verbal is used in lesser crimes and
consists in a message sent to the person, requiring him to wait
on the inquisitors who have something to ask of him ; the real
citation is the taking actual and forcible possession of the party
in question.
If the party accused be some illustrious person, or in any
post of great authority, the senate of the Spanish Inquisition
must be consulted before he is to be apprehended, *= to whom
that their deliberations may be right, they must send a summary
of the proofs, and the information of the crimes. This is ga-
thered from the Madrid Instruction.'' " If the inquisitors agree
a Pegna, Ibid. c. 7. ^ Catena, lib. 3. tit. 2, sect. 6.
«: Pegna, Com. 107- in 3 Part. Direct. loq.
d A. D. 1561. cap. 6.
B b 4
S76 HISTORY OF THE IXaUISlTION.
as to the apprehension, let them command what they have
decreed to be executed. But if it be a matter of great moment,
by reason of the quahty of the persons, or for other causes, let
them first consult the senate before they put their decree in
execution. But if they do not agree in their judgments, let the
matter be referred to the senate, that they may consider what
is proper to be done." But this very great and exquisite
caution must not be observed, when there is any fear of the es-
cape of the person accused, or if he is a manifest heretic. For
in such case they think it would be imprudent and dangerous to
wait for the answer of a superior.
In a city, where any noble persons, doctors, or religious, or
others of illustrious birth or dignity are to be sent to jail, the
commissary of the Inquisition, or some other officer, usually
goes to the houses of such persons, and takes them in a coach
and carries them to jail. But if there is no fear of their
escape, they are commanded to come to the holy office by a
special messenger.
)Vhen the criminal is apprehended, he must be well guarded,
and if there be need, put in irons, and thus carried by the
executor to the jails of the Inquisition, and delivered into the
hands of the jail keeper. The keeper must take him into his
custody, and use him according to the laws made about priso-
ners.^ If any one is to be brought from very distant places,
a In the Inquisition at Coimbra, a few years since, a clergyman rame to
the windows of the palace of the Inquisition, which face the street of St.
Sophia, and within the iron gates of the wjndow of the upper apartment,
loudly entreated, that for God's sake somebody would pick up the little bits
of paper, written on with brick-dust, which he was throwing into the street,
as they contained a narrative of his troubles, and the injustice he had suffer-
ed for fourteen years, in the secret prisons of the Inquisition j and he begged
also, th^from motives of charity, some one would represent his case to her
majesty, that she might give instructions, for investigating the cause of the
unmerited tortures to which he was continually subjected. This clergyman
had by chance escaped out of his cell, but some guards immediately followed
and pushed him from the grates of the window, as was observed by many
persons in the street; but no one dared to touch one of the little bits of paper
which lay undisturbed, till one of the officers of the Inquisition came out and
picked up all of them. A few days after this, the president of the Inquisition
at Coimbra, precipitated himself from a window and died instantly ; his cona-
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION S77
tliey do not think it safe for him to lodge in inns, or private
houses, because by this means he might easily make his escape ;
and therefore the executor is usually charged, to go to the
bishops of the place, if there be any, or to the secular judges,
that the criminal may be placed and kept in their jails. And
this the inquisitor signifies by his letters given to the executor,
to the magistrates, through whose territories the criminal is to
be carried, and exhorts them to give the necessary and conve-
nient assistance to the executor. And that no one may dare to
oppose him, and that the criminal may be kept in sure and
safe custody, they desire he may be attended with a proper
guard. But this caution is not necessary in the cities of Spain.
For as soon as ever the executor shews, that he is to apprehend
any one by command of the holy office, no one dares oppose
him. And if any one should, the mob would immediately run
together to lend an helping hand to the holy office, and so
over-power him, that unless he would undergo the severest
treatment, he would, of his o^vn accord, offer himself to be taken
up by the executor. All these things are largely settled by the
Toledo Instruction."
CHAP. XIII.
Of the Examination of the Prisoners.
WHEN the criminal is put in jail, he is brought before the
inquisitor.** The place where he appears before the inquisitor,
panioDS reported, that he did this from mental derangement, but many said
it was for fear of punishment from the grand inquisitor, for suffering the loujj
and cruel imprisonment of (his clergyman to transpire ^ from the whole can?
however, we may oonclude, that many others may be suffering the same mar-
tyrdomi whose existence it will never be possible to ascertain.
Vide Da Costa's Narr. v. i. 152.
- A. D 1561. Cap. 10, 12, and 13.
*» Iiiquig. de Goa. cap b.
378 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
is called by the Portugueze the Table of the Holy Office.
At the farther end of it there is placed a crucifix, raised up al-
most as high as the cieling. In the middle of the room there
is a table. At that end which is nearest the crucifix 'sits the
secretary or notary of the inquisition. The criminal is brought
in by the beadle, with his head, arms, and feet naked, and is
followed by one of the keepers.^ When they come to the
chamber of audience, the beadle enters first, makes a profound
reverence before the inquisitor, and then withdraws. After
this the criminal enters alone, who is ordered to sit down on a
bench at the other end of the table over against the secretary.
The inquisitor sits on his right hand. On the table near the
criminal lies a missal, or book of the gospels, and he is ordered
to lay his hand on one of them, and to swear that he will de-
clare the truth, and keep secrecy.
After taking this oath of declaring the truth, both of him-
self and others, the inquisitor interrogates him of divers mat-
ters.^ As, whether he knows why he was taken up, or hath
been informed of it by any one or more persons ? Where,
when, and how he was apprehended.? If he says that he
knows nothing of it, he is asked, whether he cannot guess at
the reason .? Whether he knows in what prisons he is de-
tained.? and upon what account men are imprisoned there.?
If he says he cannot guess at the cause of his imprisonment,
but knows that he is in the prisons of the holy office, where
heretics and persons suspected of heresy are confined, he is
told, that since he knows persons ,are confined there for their
profanation of rehgion, he ought to conclude that he also is
confined for the same reason, and must therefore declare what
he believes to be the cause of his own apprehension and con-
finement in the prisons of the holy office. If he says he cannot
imagine what it should be, before he is asked any other ques-
tions, he receives a gentle admonition, and is put in mind of
the lenity of the holy office towards those who confess without
forcing, and of the rigour of justice used towards those who
are obstinate. They also compare other tribunals with the
a Inquis. de Goa, c. 18. b Pegna, prax. Iriq. I. 2. c. 14.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S79
holy office, and remind him, that in otiiers tlie confession of the
crime draws after it iirmediats execution and punishment;
but that in the court of the inquisition, t'nose who confess, and
ai'e penitent, are treated -vith greater gentleness. After this
he is admonished in writing, and told, that the ministers of the
holy office never take up any one, or are used to appreliend any
one wituoLit a just cause, and that therefore they earnestly be-
seech him, and command and enjoin him exactly to recollect
and diligently to consider his actions, to examine his conscience,
and purc,c' it from all those offences and errors it labours under,
and for which he is informed against.
After this he is questioned with all the craftiness possible on
every subject, -which may be likely to criminate him, the in-
quisitors holding out the appearance of lenity or severity, as
the case may require. If he is induced to confess he is a peni-
tent. If he persists in denying the crimes charged upon him he
is a negative heretic ; of which hereafter.
■v*-v-wx-vwv-w*
CHAP. XIV.
What Arts the iNauisiTORs use to draw a Coiifessicmjrom the
Prisoners,
EXAMINATIONS and admonitions are repeated by the
inquisitors, as often as they think fit, for they are not bound to
any certain number.^ But in these examinations the inquisitors
use the greatest artifice, to draw from the prisoners confes -
sions of those crimes of which they are accused. And although
they say thai the inquisition makes use rather of prudence than
art, yet they suggest several orders and artifices which must be
used, and which they generally use in making inquisition.
First, they observe this exactly, that as often as the criminals
are judicially interrogated, they must so often touch the holy
a Pegua, Prax. 1. 2. c. 19.
380 HISTORY OF THE II^QUISITION.
scriptures, swearing that they will declare the truth, so that an
oath always precedes the deposition. The same also is ob-
served as to the witnesses. Yea, if the examination should be
broken off, and what follows should be only a continuation of
the former, they must first take an oath before they are suffer-
ed to proceed. Besides, the inquisitors always admonish and
exhort the criminals, to confess simply, fully, and truly, what-
soever they have done against the Catholic faith, and especially
to take care that they do not bear false wdtness either against
themselves, or any others. They must not give them occasion
to behave indecently or rudely, or to utter reproaches ; * nei-
ther must they promise them impunity or entire deliverance,
whilst they are endeavouring to draw a confession from their
mouths, lest they should prove liars, by promising what possi-
bly they may not be able to perform, or lest the criminals under
this hope should confess things which perhaps they never com-
mitted.
But if the prisoners do not confess those things of which
they are accused, as it may often happen, either because the
accusations are false, or because they do not remember things,
especially if at the distance of several years, and what was said
was not in the least premeditated, but inadvertently, and in
common discourse, they try every art to catch and ensnare these
miserable criminals, already tired out by then vile imprison-
ment, and in a friendly manner speak to them thus : " Do not
be afraid openly to confess, if you did happen to believe these
sort of persons, who taught such and such things, to be good
men.'' You beheved them, and willingly heard them, and
gave them somewhat of your substance, or received them some-
times into your house, or made confession to them, because
you were a simple man, and loved them, thinking them to be
good men, and knowing no evil of them. The same thing
might have happened to persons much wiser than you, and' so
they might have been deceived. I have pity on you, and see
your own simplicity hath deceived you, and though you are in
some measure faulty, yet they are more so who have instructed
a Pegna, Prax. 1. 2. c. 20. «» 100. com. 23.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 381
you. Tell me therefore the truth, for you see I know the
whole matter, that I may immediately free you, and shew you
favour." After this he interrogates him, not so much concern-
ing the fact, as the circumstances of it, that the person may be-
lieve that he knows the fact already.
Sometimes the inquisitor permits some person or other, who
is not unacceptable to the prisoner, to go to him, and converse
with him, and if it be needful to feign himself still one of his
own sect, but that he abjured through fear, and discovered the
truth to the inquisitor.^ When he finds that the prisoner con-
fides in him, he comes to him again late in the evening, keeps
on a discourse with him, at length pretending it is too late to
go away, and that therefore he will stay with him all night in
the prison, that they may converse together, and the prisoner
may be persuaded by the other's discourse, to confess to one
another what they have committed. In the mean while there
are persons standing at a proper place without the jail, to hear
and to take notice of their words, who, when there is need, are
attended by a notary.
This Eymeric taught was to be done in his time.^ But now
the person, who thus treacherously draws out any thing ac-
cording to his desire from his fellow prisoners, prays the jail-
keeper, when, according to custom, he is visiting his prisoners,
to desire that he may have an audience. For this is the me-
thod the prisoners take. And when he goes out of his jail to
give an account of his office, he discovers not only what he
heard from any of the prisoners, but also how they received
the doctrine proposed to them, whether with a cheerful or
angry countenance, and the like, if they refused to give them
an answer, and what they themselves thinlc of them. And the
accusations of such a wretch they look on as the best and most
unexceptionable evidence, although the person be otherwise one
of no manner of worth, credit, or regard.
These sort of persons they call flies, and, as Gonsalvius tells
us, they may be known and found out by this one thing, that
for the most part they thrust themselves into such sort of con-
a 107. •> Gonsalv. p. 95.
382 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
versations, without any one''s asking them, and begin very im-
pertinent]/ such discourses concerning doctrine. And there-
fore he advises, that if the prisoners act prudently, they will
let tliem talk themselves weary, without giving them any
answer.
They who have been lately in the prison of the inquisition
in Spain and Portugal, tell us of another method they make
use of to drav/ a confession from the prisoners, viz. The inqui-
sitor suborns a certain person, to go and speak to the prisoner,
and to tell him he comes of himself, and of his own accord, and
to exhort him to tell the inquisitor the truth, because he is a
merciful man, and such fine tales. This is now particularly
the custom in Spain and Portugal, as to those they call the
new Christians. If the prisoner affirms himself to be a Cathohc,
and denies that he is a Jew, and is not convicted by a sufficient
number of witnesses, they suborn one to persuade him to con-
fess. If he protests himself innocent, the other replies, that he
also hath been in jail, and that his protesting his innocence
signified nothing. Wliat, had you ratlier dwell for ever in
jail, and render your life miserable, by being ever parted from
your wife and children, than redeem your freedom, by con-
fessing the crime ? By this and other-like things the prisoners
are oftentimes persuaded to confess not only real but fictitious
crimes. And when their constancy is thus almost overcome,
the inquisitor commands them to be brought before him, that
they may make him a confession of their faults.
Here Gonsalvius justly wonders,^ how men can be of so
devihsh a temper, as voluntarily to hire themselves out to such
offices, and at so great an expense to themselves, who, in order
to obtain their desire, do not refuse to be prisoners Iv^ith others,
even for two or three months together, in a vile narrow jail, but
bear willingly what the prisoners themselves bear with the
greatest uneasiness, all the inconveniences of it, hunger, filth
and stench; and what is more wonderful, go out of one
jail into another, and then into a third, twice, thrice, four
times, always experiencing the same inconveniences, and
passing their whole lives in such a circle cf delights.
a GoEsalv. page 95.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S8S
After these examinations, if the prisoner confesses nothing,
he is carried back to jail, and there kept sometimes for a
whole year, before he is again brought up to the inquisitor.
In the mean wliile, if he desires an audience, to confess certain
matters, he may gently rap at the door of his jail. The
keeper being acquainted herewith by his officers, immediately
comes to him, and is desired by him to ask the favour of the
inquisitor of being brought before him.
If the criminal will not answer to the interrogatories judi-
cially put to him, or answers uncertainly and doubtfully, as, I
do not know, I do not remember, I have forgot ; or when he
answers as to the main fact, but refuses to answer concerning
the principal circumstances of the crime, if the circumstances
are such, which it is probable he may remember, he may be
put to the torture to make him precisely answer affirmatively or
negatively : because criminals are not apprehended for the
crime of heresy without legal proofs, i. e. more than half full
proof It is the same case if they pretend madness. Some-
times also they are humbled by imprisonment and fasting.
CHAP. XV.
How the Priscmers are allowed an Advocate, Phocuratoe,
and Guardian.
WHEN the process hath gone thus far, and all the inform-
ations and proofs relating to the cause, are taken in a summary
manner, and the criminal fully examined, if he confesses his
crime, there is no room for a defence, nor do they proceed to
the re examining of the witnesses. But if he persists in the
negative, and demands the depositions to be given him, whe-
ther he is presumed to be innocent or obstinate, he is admitted
to his defence, and all matters are prepared to form the process.
And therefore, because the criminal must be convicted by wit-
nesses, the witnesses must be re-examined. And that the cri-
minal may not seem to be denied his defence, lie hath an advo-
^84 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
cate and procurator allowed him. He is not, however, at
liberty to chuse the one or other, as he pleases, nor is it lawful
for any advocate to defend an heretic under pain of infamy.*
The inquisitors appoint him his advocate, and he is bound to
them by oath. The criminal may also, sometimes, if he de-
mands it, have a second advocate. The qualifications necessary
in such an advocate are these :^ — That he be a good man, not
suspected as to his honesty, skilful in the canon and civil law,
zealous for the faith, and not in the least tinctured with hereby,
and he is allowed to the criminal, according to the present cus-
tom in Spain, after he hath received three admonitions, freely
to confess the truth.
The advocates receive their stipend from the treasury, when
they defend the causes of the poor,'= which is usually very small,
but honourable. But if the criminals are not poor, the advo-
cates receive their pay out of their effects.''
The criminal also had formerly allowed him a procurator.*
But these procurators are now seldom allowed, because the ad-
vocates are sufficient, and exercise the office of procurators.
If the criminals are under twenty-five years of age, they are
allowed curators (a sort of guardians) by whose authority they
are defended, least, through unskilfulness or youth, they should
conceal. Or say any thing, which, if spoken or concealed, might
be of advantage to them.
CHAP. XVI.
How the Prisoners are interrogated hy the Inquisitor, whe-
ther they allow the Witnesses to be r'^htly examined, and
re-heard.
THE advocate being thus granted,^ and sometimes, if the
criminal demands it, the procurator also, the inquisitor usually
a Cap. Si adversus nos. de bzeret. b Direct, p. 3. com. 28-
c De Cathol, Instit. tit. 5. sect. 6, 7, 8. d Instruct. 1. c. 16.
* Pegna, com. 28. * ^ Ibid. cap. 4.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 885
asks the criminal, whether he allows the witnesses examined
to be well and truly examined, and legally re-heard. If he
answers, that he would have the witnesses heard over again,
and examined with his interrogatories, and thus convict them of
falsehood, the inquisitor orders him a copy of the articles
formed by the procurator of the exchequer, to the end that he
may form his interrogatories, and allows him three days to give
them in. If he answers, that he mil consider, and consult his
advocate and procurator, the copy of the articles formed by the
promo tor of the exchequer is given him, to assist him the better
how to resolve. If he refers himself to the disposition of the
law, it is the same thing as if he had answered, he would have
the witnesses re-examined. Because, according to law, the
proof of witnesses received in a summary manner, is not regu-
lar, unless they be fully re-produced when the party is cited,
and re-examined upon the interrogatories of the criminals, that
they may thus confirm their evidence and depositions. If he
answers, that he refers himself to the pleasure of the inquisitor,
the inquisitor must not accept it, least it should be afterwards
objected to him that he hindered the criminal from making a
legal defence, and therefore he refers him to his advocate or
procurator. If he answers, that he allows the witnesses, who
have deposed against him, to be well and truly examined, and
legally re-heard, but saves to himself the liberty of makmg
exceptions against persons and their depositions in drawing
out his defences, this is written down by the notary in the acts.
But although the criminal should thus allow the witnesses as
legally examined, the inquisitors must however take care, that
they be formally re-examined, especially when there is any fear
of their death, or long absence. In such a case, the witnesses
must be admitted, before the trial commences.*
• Simanca, sect. 15, 22.
f
G C
S86 HISTOKY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAP. XVII.
How the Promotor Fiscal eocliiUts the BUI of Accusation.
AFTER the inquisitor hatli received, as hath been saidj^*
information against the criminal denounced to him, the procu-
rator fiscal, in some inquisitions, presents in court, in presence
of the criminal, a bill of indictment, containing the heads of
the offences, of which the criminal is accused, and presents it
to the inquisitor. The form of this bill is not every where the
same. Eymeric gives this in his directory of the inquisitors :
" I N. fiscal of the office of the most holy inquisition, do
before you the reverend inquisitor, delegated judge in causes
of the faith against heretical pravity, criminally accuse N.
who being baptized a Christian, and accounted as such amongst
all persons, hath departed from the Cathohc faith, and hath
impiously gone over to the deadly heresy of the Manichees,
and other heretics, particularly such a one, and such a one ;
preaching, writing, composing, and firmly asserting many he-
retical, erroneous, scandalous, and greatly suspected opinions,
in approbation and praise of the aforesaid heresy and heretics,
whom he follows as his masters." Simancas gives us another
in these words: —
" I accuse N. who being baptized a Christian, beheves and
teaches many heresies, and especially this and that,''^ after men-
tioning which, the promotor fiscal concludes, with demanding
that N. may be punished as an obstinate heretic, and suffer the
most grievous punishments of heresy.
Lewis a Paramo gives us a larger form of this bill of indict-
ment, in his history of the inquisition.^
In the supreme court of the general inquisition at Rome,
the procurator of the exchequer gives in the points and articles
concerning the offences, instead of a bill of indictment, but
this must be done personally, as well as in the presence of the
« Pegna, com. 29. b Tit. de Accusationibus.
« Lib. 3. c[ii. 9. n. 21.
HISTOltY OF THE INQUISITION. 387
judge and of the person accused. A copy of this accusation is
usually given to the criminal, to which he must answer article
by article, if he undertakes to make a defence.
CHAP. XVIII.
How the Interrogatories given in hy the Criminals are formed
and exhibited.
IN order to prepare his defence, the criminal also puts in
his interrogatories, and desires of the inquisitor that the wit-
nesses may be interrogated upon them. But if they are im-
pertinent or deceitful, or tending to discover the informers, or
to intangle and puzzle the witness, or to conceal the truth, or
to discover such circumstances by which he might come to the
knowledge of the informer or witnesses, the inquisitor hath
power to set them aside.
But as Simancas tells us,* this is not the method in the Span-
ish inquisitions, where the criminals are not allowed to put in-
terrogatories to the witnesses of the promotor of the exchequer,
but the judge is obliged by office diligently to examine into
the credit, hfe, and manners of the witnesses. But the contrary
is observed in all the inquisitions in Italy, as Carena informs
us, and that it ought to be thus, he proves by this reason : — '*
" That by not giving the names of the witnesses, the defence
of the criminals at this tribunal is imperfect and maimed enough,
without introducing any other novelty ; but that the defences
of the criminal would be necessarily much more imperfect and
maimed, if the witnesses against him should not be suffered to
be interrogated by him."
In Italy,' it is usual for the criminal's advocate to demand
tJhat the witnesses may be examined and interrogated, concern^
ing their country, age, condition, state, employment. As, whe-
• Cafliol. Instit. t. 64. n. 10. b p. 3. t, 7. sect. U,
' Pcgna, I. 2. c. 31.
n r> Q
388 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
ther he is rich or poor, clergyman or layman, a religious, regu-
lar or secular, married or unmarried, a father or a son ? Whe-
ther he be a citizen or inhabitant of that city where the cause
is carried on? Whether he came to the place? Whether he al-
ways lived in it ? Whether he lives at his own or other person's
charge? Whether in no trial or case he never deposed upon
oath things which were not true, either for or against any
person ? Whether he was ever excommunicated, and on what
account, and in what place ? Whether he or his parents were
not declared infamous, interdicted, excommunicated, and inca-
pable to bear witness? Whether he confessed his sins this
year at Easter, to what confessor, and in what church ? Like-
wise, whether he hath taken the sacrament of the eucharisist,
from what priest, and whom present ? AVhether he was ever
under inquisition, accused or processed, for any crime or
crimes, what they were ? Whether he was absolved or con-
demned, and by what judge ? Whether any thing was said,
promised, forgiven, or granted to him on this account, that
he should bear witness against any one, or that he should say
in his examination any thing general or particular, and whether
he doth or hath expected any advantage, and what, by his
deposition ? Whether he doth not know N. what was the first
time, place, and occasion of his knowing him ? Whether he
hath often conversed with him, and concerning what matters,
and whether when he first knew him, the said N, was accounted
a good and Catholic Christian, a man of a good conscience, and
fearing God ? Then they proceed to the articles, and inter-
rogate the witnesses concerning the year, month, day, place,
and hour, where and when the aforesaid N. discovered heresy ?
Whether he spoke it as the sentiment of his mind, deliberately
and seriously, or only as repeating another's words ? What
the precise words were which he spoke ? And the like with
regard to the other articles.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 389
CHAP. XIX.
Of the re'examming the Witnesses, and the Punishment of
false Witnesses.
THE Avitnesses cited by the judges must be carefully exa-
mined and interrogated.* And first they are asked, whether
they know why they are summoned ? If they say they do
know or guess that they are summoned in the same cause in
which they liave already given witness before the same judge,
they are asked, if they remember what they deposed in the
said cause .? And whether it be true ? And whether they
will add, take away, change, or correct any thing .? Whatso-
ever they answer, must be faithfully written down by the
notary. Then they are examined again, without seeing their
former depositions, that the truth or falsehood may more evi-
dently appear from their consistency or inconsistency. Finally,
this confirmation of their testimony must be made before the
judges and secretary, and two religious and discreet persons.
For as the party concerned is not allowed to be present, two
persons of reputation must be present in his stead.
If the latter depositions do not agree with the former,'' the
former must be read over to the witnesses, and they interro-
gated what is the meaning of this difference in what they say,
and gently admonished to persist in the truth. Lastly, what-
soever they say must be written down, and if they contradict
themselves, or faulter, they must be sent into custody, and if
the case requires it, to be tortured and punished.
When a witness swears that he will conceal his evidence,*
and is afterwards convicted of discovering it before the publi-
cation of it, he may be condemned by the judges at their plea-
sure, either to do pubhc penance, or to pay a fine, or to ba-
nishment, or the pillory, or to be whipped ; and if the nature
of the case requires it, to the gallies.
^ Simanc. t.44. sect. 23 b Ibid. sect. 24.
' Ibid. tit. 64. »ect, 83.
C C 3
390 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
If the witnesses are evidently caught in falsehood, they may
be punished by the inquisitor, according to their merits and his
discretion.
Sentence is pronounced openly against false witnesses, because
they are brought into public view, in order that theu' villany may
be exposed. But the punishments enjoined are always compa-
ratively mild, least others should be intimidated from bearing
witness against future criminals.
CHAP. XX.
How the Prisoner hath a Copy of the Evidence, without
the Names of the Witnesses.
THE witnesses having been re-examined,^ a copy of the
proofs brought against the criminals is usually given to them,
that they may the sooner determine, whether they will give up
the cause, or stand trial, and m this case the following things
are observed in this court. First, that the depositions be
literally given to the criminal as made by the witnesses, that he
may fully understand what every witness hath deposed against
him, so that it is not sufficient to give them him in short.
Secondly, the depositions are not to be confoimded or mixed,
but each of them to be distinctly and separately from others
given him in writing, that the criminal may the better under-
stand them, and severally answer them, and thus be able the
better to defend himself Thirdly, the names of the witnesses
are not to be given him, nor their surnames, nor any circum-
stances by which he may discover who they are, because such
discovery might occasion great danger either to the witnesses or
the Inquisition, upon account of the power of the persons
accused, by reason of their family, riches, or mahce. The
supreme senate determined the same, with respect to the
answers of the witnesses to the interrogatories of the criminals,
* Pegna, p. 47.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. S91
ordering they should not be given them, if the witnesses were
in danger of being discovered hereby. For tlie same reason
they add the year and month, but not the particular day when
the witnesses affirm the crime to be committed. Thus also the
place is added in general, but not the particular house or room
where. All these things they carefully avoid, that the crimi-
nal may not by any means discover who are the witnesses or
informers against him. This they will in no wise suffer.
For as they generally say, secrecy is the very sinew of the
Inquisition. Hence it is easy to infer, that many of those
interrogatories which are formed by the advocates of the
criminals, are not allowed, because they must relate to such
circumstances, which, if known to them, would easily discover
to them the witnesses. However the advocates, bound to the
Inquisition by oath, must form them, that they may seem to do
something for the criminals, when in reality they do nothing,
and deceive the miserable prisoners, with the vain hopes, what
they will do in their defence, when nothing at all is done for
them ; for whilst the witnesses or informers are concealed from
them, they are deprived of the best and most necessary
means of their defence. However, this is strictly prohibited
by several edicts of the Popes, and instructions of the inqui-
sitors.^
And though the criminal insists, and demands, that he be
allowed to make his defence, according to the course of the law,
a The form of proceeding was an infallible way lo destroy whomsoovor the
inquisitors pleased. The prisoners are not confronted with their accusers,
and there is no informer ever so base but they listen to ; a public criminal,
an infamous person, a child, a prostitute, are good evidence, even a son may
inform against his father, a wife against her husband, in short, the prisoner is
obliged to accuse himself, to guess and to confess the crime l,ie is supposed to
be guilty of, and of which he is frequently ignorant. This strange manner
of proceeding struck a terror into the whole kingdom of Spain, a gemral
jealousy and suspicion took possession of all ranks of people, friendship and
sociability were at an end. Brothers were afraid of brothers, fathers of their
children. Hence silence is become the chaiacteristic of a nation, endowed
with all the vivacity natural to a warm and fruitful climate. The most art-
ful endeavoured to be bailiffs to the Inquisition, under the name of familiars,
chusing rather this servile oifice, than to be exposed to such cruelties.
Voltaire's Univ. Hist. v. 3. 177.
592 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
and by consequence that the names of the witnesses be shewn
him as well as their depositions, he is not to be heard. Those
who are called new Christians in Spain, never could obtain it,
though they used their utmost endeavours for it. Ludovicus
a Paramo tells us,^ that in the reign of Charles, who succeeded
his grandfather Ferdinand, the new converts offered 80,0000
pieces of gold to the king, if he would order the witnesses to be
made known in the tribunal of the Inquisition. And when the
young king, who was but 18 years old, was greatly tempted by
so vast a sum of money. Cardinal Ximenes, inquisitor general,
by setting before him the great danger of such witnesses, and
the damage that would hereby accrue to the church, wrought
upon him to despise that offer.
But when the person accused cannot particularly defend
himself upon account of the suppressing the names of the wit-
nesses, but can only conjecture in general, not being able to
make any tolerable guess, it is recommended to the prudence
of the inquisitor, to take such proper measures, as that he may
know, whether the said deponents and witnesses are the mortal
enemies of the persons accused or not.
And in order the more effectually to prevent all danger to
the witnesses, which may arise from their being known, Camil-
lus Campegius advises, not only to suppress their names, but
even all circumstances that may tend to point out or discover
them. For he says he hath oftentimes seen that the granting
such a copy hath given rise to enmities, hatreds, wounds and
death; and sometimes, that those under Inquisition, falsely
imagining a person to have deposed against them, who hath
not, nor said or did any thing against them, have notwithstand-
ing, through such a false persuasion, contrived not only greatly
to injure him, but even his destruction. Thus it happened at
Ferrara, and at other places, as he says he was credibly
informed. And therefore he advises the inquisitors, to proceed
very cautiously in this affair, and so to defend the Catholic
faith, as to secure the Hves of the witnesses. For he says there
are few to be found, who are willing to inform or depose in this
cause of heretics, and that if the safety of the witnesses should
» L. 2. t. 2. c. 6. n. 4. ]
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 39S
be endangered by the world, he imagines there would not be so
much as a single informer.
When any just exceptions are objected against the witnesses,
the cnminal is admitted to prove them. But his witnesses are
so cautiously examined, as if possible to prevent their knowing
who the witnesses against the criminal are. And, in order to
this, they are interrogated not only concerning the enmity or
conspiracy of the real witnesses against the criminal, but of
others also who are not evidences against him.
Since therefore they are so exceeding cautious not to disco-
ver by any means the informers or witnesses to the criminals,
it is evident they are not brought before, or confronted with
one another, that they may be heard against, and what they
say and answer be opposed to each other. Carena^ teaches us,
that persons are seldom confronted in the holy office, and that
it is never done in the supreme tribunal of the city, unless the
cause be fully known, and the cardinals supreme inquisitors in-
terpose by their decree, who usually determine, whether or no
any danger may accrue to the witnesses and criminal by being
confronted. But because sometimes it happens in the holy
office, that the criminal must necessarily be seen and pointed
out by the witnesses, this is done not by openly confronting
them, but by making the witnesses look through the crevices of
the door of some fastened room, where the criminal is put, in
company of some other persons ahke in their dress, stature, and
face. This Carena says was practised formerly in the Inquisi-
tion at Cremona, according to the command of the sacred
congregation, where a certain regular, who had contracted
matrimony, was thus viewed and pointed out, notwithstanding
his confession, that the sentence of the nullity of his marriage
might be more safely pronounced.
• P. 3. t. 7. sect. 6.
394 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
CHAP. XXI.
How the Articles and Witnesses foi' the Criminal are pro-
duced and ecoamined.
WHEN the criminal hath received a copy of the evidence
and proofs against him,* if he insists on his defence, a certain
term is granted him to exhibit the articles by which he would
prove his innocence. This term is not fixed to any precise
day, but left to the pleasure of the judge, who can grant him
more or fewer days, as he thinks fit. And because the
defence of the criminal consists of three parts, viz. in denying
the fact, or disabling the witnesses, or proving his good life
and behaviour, his being a good Christian or Catholic, the
articles to be proved are disposed into method, according to
the aforesaid division. But yet the prudent and Catholic
procurator or advocate must consider his oath, and both insert
in the articles the things which he beheved to be true, just
as they have been suggested to him by the criminal, he is to
defend, and continually admonish him simply to confess the
truth.
At the end of the articles produced by the criminal,'' the
names of the witnesses by which he would prove his innocence,
are put down, and the particular article upon which he would
have each witness examined, specified. For as it cannot easily
happen that any single witness should know all the matters
contained in all the articles, therefore to prevent the inquisitor,
or he to whom the inquisitor commits the examination, the
trouble of being forced to guess w]io knows the contents of such
and such an article, or of examining all the witnesses upon
every article, it is particularly shewn, that such a witness must
be examined upon such and such an article, and so of the rest.
By some he endeavours to prove, that the person who he ima^
gines hath deposed against him, is his mortal enemy; by others,
that he hath lived a good life, and so on. ^
^ Pegna, 1. 2. c. 48. b ibid. c. 49.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 395
If after the articles have been produced and admitted, the
criminal will add one or more additional articles to them, the
inquisitor may admit them as well as the first, because it is not
expressly prohibited by law. In forming these articles, a
skilful advocate or procurator must consider those things, which
may either remove or extenuate the crime, i. e. prove the false-
hood of the accusation, or extenuate the guilt by proper circum-
stances ; as, whether the person was mad or drunk when he
spoke the words which constitute his crime, &c.
CHAP. XXII.
Oftlie Defence of the Criminals.
AFTER the parties have prepared their proofs, Pegna says,«
a copy of the defensive process must be delivered to the crimi-
nal. But Carena observes, that for the space of twenty years,
during which he acted in the Inquisition at Cremona, he never
saw a copy of the defensive process given to the criminals in
that court, and he advises all the inquisitors, to act in the same
manner ; because sometimes the criminal produces in his defence
witnesses of a tender conscience, who rather make against him,
and for this reason inconveniences may arise from the grant of
this process. And this he says is the practice of the Spanish
Inquisition. But whatever the copy is which is gi'anted him,
he hath a term fixed him for making his defence, wdthin which,
if he thinks fit, he gives in his informations as to fact and law,
to prove his innocence.
Obstinate heretics are denied a defence,^ but criminals, riot
yet convicted, are allowed to make the best they can. The
first and principal defence of tliose who are innocent, is to deny
the crimes which are falsely objected to them. Such a one
must constantly persist in his denial of them, that he may not
* Cap. 57. ** Siinanc. Catlu Inst. c. 17. j
396 HISTORY OF THE INaiTISITION.
unjustly condemn, and give false evidence against himself.
Such a one however cannot prove directly by witnesses that he
did not say or do such a thing ; but when the place and time of
the crime, said to be committed, is assigned, he may prove that
he was not then and there present, and that therefore he did
not say or do any thing of which he is accused. And when
he hath proved this by several reputable witnesses, he is to be
absolved.
■v^%^»%'\/v>^-v^
CHAP. XXIII.
How the Inquisitor may he rejected.
THERE are other exceptions against the judge himself,*
and those are principally two, the first is the refusal of the
inquisitor. This refusal is sometimes reasonable and just,
sometimes frivolous and void. *But in this tribunal many
causes, which are sufficient to set aside other judges, are not
admitted, but only these, enmities, conspiracy against the cri-
minals, or something hke it, as a grievous contention, whence
enmity may easily arise. Lesser causes are never allowed. Or
if the inquisitor hath dealt hardly by the criminal, contrary to
the common course of the law." If the inquisitor apprehends
that the accused person will refuse him upon this latter account,
he may give a full deputation to some other person, before he
is acquainted \\dth his being rejected, after which such rejection
is void, and the deputation made stands good. If such rejec-
tion be presented to the inquisitor, he may amend his mistake,
and reduce the process to the condition -it was in, before the
a Direct, p. 3. n. 128.
* In Portugal, the ignorance of the inquisitors is absolutely proverbial, so
much so, that when any nobleman or rich person has occasion to converse
en the subject of bringing up his ions, he says, " As to my son, who is the
most stupid of his brothers, we must send him to learn divinity, or the canon
law, that he may become an inquisitor or a canon*"
Da Costa's Narr. vol. 1. 99.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 897
injury complained of; and thus the grievance being removed,
the reason of suspicion ceases, and the refusal of the inquisitor
becomes void.
If he rejects him as an enemy, •= or as a friend of his enemy or
accuser, Eymeric is of opinion, that the matter must be left to
arbitrators to determine it. But now the reason of such refusal
must be remitted to the supreme senate of the inquisition, that
the affair being summarily taken cognizance of, the inquisitor
refused may be rejected, or prohibited to judge in that cause,
or on the contrary, may be commanded to proceed. This is
determined by the Madrid instruction.^ " If any one of the
inquisitors shall be refused by any criminal, if such inquisitor
hath a colleague on the spot, he must then abstain from the
cognizance of such cause, and certify the senate of the matter,
and in the mean while let his colleague proceed. If he hath
no colleague, let him in hke manner certify the senate, and not
proceed in the cause, until the senate shall decree what ought
to be done, after having seen and examined the reasons of the
suspicion. The same must be done when all the inquisitors
are rejected.*" *
CHAP. XXIV.
Of the Appeal from the Inquisitor.
ANOTHER exception against the judge is, to appeal from
the inquisitor.'^ For although the emperor Frederick decrees,"*
" That all benefit of proclamation and appeal shall be wholly
denied to heretics, their receivers and favourers,'' yet sometimes
such appeal is allowed to the person accused. However, here-
tics are allowed no appeal from a definitive sentence, because
no one is definitively condemned for heresy, unless one that
hath confessed it, or who hath been legally convicted, according
to the laws of the inquisition ; and from such definitive sen-
s' Direct, com. 30. »> A.D. 15Cl,c. 52.
c Direct, n. 121, &c. com. 31. "* In 1. Commissi nobis, sect. 7.
398 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
tences there can be no appeal, in favour of the faith, and out
of hatred to heretics, least judgment should be protracted.*
But an interlocutory sentence is a quite different thing, and
from this criminals are allowed to appeal, when they think they
have been unjustly dealt with.
Simancas confirms the same :** " Heretics cannot appeal from
a definitive sentence, though they may from all interlocutory
sentences, if it doth not yet appear that the criminals are here-
tics. So that if a criminal be condemned to the torture, or to
purgation, to be bastinadoed, or to a fine, he may appeal, be-
cause it doth not appear that he is an heretic, but only sus-
pected ; nor doth he appeal from the law, but from the judges,
who have pronounced sentence according to their pleasure."
This appeal must consist of two parts. The grievance which
the criminal affirms he lies under, and the plea by v/hich such
grievance is proved.
Some grievances are capable of being remedied. As if the
inquisitor should not admit the accused person to make his
defence, or hath singly, and by himself, without the bishop
or vicar, commanded him to be put to the question. Other
grievances are irreparable, as if he hath actually made him un-
dergo the torture. And, therefore, when the accused person
alleges the grievances, and again and again demands letters of
appeal ;'^ the inquisitor, after such an appeal is exhibited to
him, must, within thirty days, examine the reasons of such an
appeal, and if, after having taken the advice of proper persons,
he finds that he hath unjustly aggi'ieved the accused person,
he must, at the term assigned, amend what hath been amiss,
remedy the grievances complained of, and bring the process to
its former state, and then proceed as before. For when the
grievance is removed, the appeal is void.
a Cap. Ut Inquisilionis, de haeret. I. 6.
b De Cathol. Inst. tit. 6. sect- 3.
e Apostoli. Those ApostoU were demissory letters, granted by ecclesiasti-
cal officials and judges, to those who appealed to Ihe pope at Rome.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 399
CHAP. XXV.
How they proceed against those who make their Escape.
THUS have we given an account of the method of pro-
ceeding against a criminal actually in jail.* But if he absent,
or hath made his escape, the process is formed against him
after this manner. When any one is informed against before
the inquisitor for being infected with heresy, and such person
is not present in the place where the inquisitor lives, but dwells
in some other place, within the bounds of the inquisitor's ju-
risdiction, he is said to be absent, but not a fugitive.
But when any one knows that inquisition is made against
him,^ or is actually imprisoned, and yet makes his escape, to
avoid the hands of the inquisitors, he is said to be a fugitive.
In this case, the inquisitor first enquires diligently, and with-
out noise, to what place he is fled, and where he hath con-
cealed himself; and if he finds out the place, orders him to be
taken up, and sent back to him. If it be within his own
jurisdiction, he may require the temporal lord to apprehend
him, and conduct him ^vithin his district. Yea, he may re-
quire the same from any other lord, whilst he hath him in
possession. If he be without his jurisdiction, he may never-
theless proceed against him, and require the inquisitor, in whose
jurisdiction he is, to cause him to be taken up, and sent back
to him, or send him his process, that he may do what justice
shall require.
If the inquisitor cannot find out the place to which the cri-
minal is fled, he cites him personally in the cathedral church
of that diocese to which he belongs, and in the parish church
of that city, where he dwelt before his escape, and, finally,
in his own proper house in which he commonly lived, person-
ally to appear within a certain term before the inquisitor,
to answer concerning the faith and articles of faith, under this
penalty, that if he doth not appear within the term assigned
• Direct, p. 3. n. 30. Com. SS. " Com. ISS.
400 HISTORr OF THE INQUISITION.
him, he shajl be excommunicated with the greater excommuni-
cation ; and if taken afterwards, must be punished by pubhc
whipping and closer confinement.
CHAP. XXVI.
How the Process is ended in the Inquisition.
AFTER the process is thus begun and carried on, it remains
that we now explain how it is finished.
When all the defences are exhibited, the criminal presses to
have his cause dispatched. This may and must be done either
by the imprisoned criminal himself, or by his procurator or
advocate, and that either by speaking, or by presenting a short
petition.
" After this, the judges with their assessors and counsellors,*
having examined the proofs, shall consider, and shall proceed
according to the merits of the causes to pass sentences, or to
interlocutories,^ and absolve the innocent, and leave the obsti-
nate to the secular judge, and condemn such as are suspected,
according to the nature of then- crimes, persons and proofs,
either to the question, or abjuration, or purgation, or impri-
sonment, or banishment, or to a fine ; or shall enjoin them to
purge and redeem their fault by fastings, prayers, and alms.
Simancas hath given us a brief account of the manner of
pronouncing sentence, which I shall here insert, because it
fully represents to us the method which is usually observed in
these cases.
" All the judges are obliged to read the sentences,* out of a
little book or brief, and must do it themselves, and not by
others, unless they are illustrious persons, or in some post of
great dignity. And, therefore, when the inquisitors have a
» Simanc. t. 44. sect. 26.
* Interlocutio is not a definitive sentence, but the determination of some
smaller matter iu a cause, till the principal cause is fully discussed.
«= Simanc.|t.'^60. sect. 1.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 401
cause before them of more than ordinary consequence, they
may pronounce sentence by others, wliich must be done before
the clergy and people, for instruction, warning, and terror. —
And this was formerly the custom in Spain.
" The form of a sentence of condemnation is this.' First
the nature of the doctrine or opinions asserted by the criminal
himself, is declared ; after this, the diligent enquiry that hath
been made into his crimes, the citations, admonitions, confes-
sions, legal proofs, the times given for repentance, his mind
hardened in his errors, his obstinate persisting in them, and all
other things, which may tend to shew that the process which
hath been carried on and observed against him hath been just,
are enumerated. All which particulars being laid down in their
order, then follows the sentence itself, formed as the nature of
the crime requires, according to the ecclesiastical rules, contain-
ing the condemnation of the opinions, authors, books, and
other matters.
" Besides,'' in the sentence of condemnation, the time must
be declared from which the criminal fell into heresy, that by a
bare inspection, the judge of the forfeited effects may kno^
from what day his effects are to be confiscated, which is pro-
vided by a certain letter of the inquisitor general, for this rea-
son, that there may be no need of looking over the whole pro-
cess on this account, in which there are several things which
ought to be kept secret. It is also provided by another letter
of the senate, that when the judges and the learned are dehbe-
rating about the sentence to be pronounced, they shall fix the
time of the heresy. This letter is printed amongst the instruc-
tions, and dated from Granada, A. D. 1499.
" The sentence, by which persons lapsed into heresy are re-
incorporated into the church, is in this form.'^ They are de-
clared to have been heretics or apostates, and to have incurred
the penalties established by law. But inasmuch as they say
they will return to the church with a pure heart, and faith
unfeigned, the judges absolve them from excommunication,
» Siraanc. t. GO. sect. 2. ^ Ibid. sect. 3 ^ Ibid. sect. 6.
Dd
402 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
and reconcile them to the church, if it be true what they say,
that tliey are unfeignedly and truly converted.*
'' But in a sentence of condemnation the criminal must be
declared an obstinate heretic, and his effects be confiscated, and
his opinions and writings must be condemned and anathema-
tized, and he must be moreover deprived of all ecclesiastical
heresies, public offices, and honours whatsoever, and, finally,
be delivered over to the secular court, to receive his due punish-
ment.^
" But if any one, after sentence of reconciliation, shall be
convicted of having concealed any heresies or heretics, or to
have boasted that he was innocent, and unjustly condemned,
he must be examined again as an impenitent ; nor mil the
sentence by which he was reconciled to the church, be of any
service to him, because it appears by this very thing, that it
was pronounced upon a feigned confession and pretended con-
version.^ Besides, if any new proof arises against the convert,
his cause must be tried over again, notwithstanding the sen-
tence of re-incorporation or absolution, or purgation, or ques-
tion pronounced before in the same cause.'^
" When the inquisitors diifer, and the cause is determined
by the senate of the holy inquisition, all must subscribe to the
sentence, even they who were of the contrary or different opi-
nion.* If there should happen to be in any province three
inquisitors, and one agrees with the bishop or his vicar, and
the two others differ from them, the cause must be remitted
to the senate. But if two agree with the ordinary judge, the
sentence must be immediately pronounced, without any men-
tion made of the difference about pronouncing such sentence.
All these things are more fully contained in several letters of
the senate.
"It is also the custom, that when the sentences against
heretics are publicly pronounced, to read those last of all, by
which the obstinate and impenitent are condemned; and
* 1 Instruct. Hispal. c. 10.
b Simanc, sect. 6. ^ Ibid. sect. 8
* 1 Instruct. Hispal. c. 13. 3 Instruct. Valdolit. c. 3.
e Simanc. sect. 10.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 403
after they have read over a summary account of the acts of
the process, to make a pause, and admonish the heretics before
all the people, that they would at length be converted, be-
cause as yet the time of mercy is not out.* If they say they
will be converted, they are to be carried back to jail, and ad-
mitted to penance if converted. But if they persist in their
obstinacy and impenitence, their sentence must be read, after
which they must be immediately seized on by the secular
judge, and being condemned to the flames, be directly burnt.
Lutherans are dealt with in a different manner, because they
are the worst, and the most pernicious of all heretics, and very
seldom truly converted ; on which accounts they are treated with
greater severity.
" In this order the sentences were pronounced in Spain
against heretics descending from Jews and moors, because
they could hurt only themselves, or those of the same race
with themselves ; for during the space of eight hundred years,
none of the noble or antient Christians were infected by them.**
But after that the pernicious heretics of our time are found to
have infected not only antient, but even some noble Christians
with their impiety, they are not admitted to be reconciled at
the last moment when sentence is to be pronounced, because
then they ask pardon rather through fear of immediate death,
than willingly and from the heart, and being thus but feigned
converts may do a great deal of mischief
«/««^'VW^'«/< -vx
CHAP. XXVIT.
How the Process is ended by Absolution.
HAVING said these things in general, it now remains, that
we distinctly'explain how every process is finished.
The first manner of ending a process in causes of tJie faith,
* Simanc. srct. 11. ^ Ibid. sect. 12.
D d '^
404 HISTORY OF THE I>3aUISITI0N.
is by absolution, when the criminal is not found guilty. And
this may happen two ways, either because he was really found
innocent, the informers and witnesses being found guilty of
falsehood, or because the accusation against him was not fully
proved.
If he is found innocent after the first manner, especially if
the witnesses have retracted their depositions, then he may be
pronounced innocent. And in this case, as Paramus tells us,*
the accused person, whose innocence appears, rides upon an
horse, amidst the applause of the people, crowned with laurel
and palm- branches, after the manner of a triumph.
If he is not found guilty, after the second manner, because
he is not convicted neither by his own confession, nor the evi-
dence of fact, nor by the legal producing of witnesses, and is
not otherwise found to be suspected, nor publicly defamed for
the aforesaid crime, he is absolved by the bishop and inquisitor
together, or by either of them separately.^
For that the prisoner cannot be condemned in such a case,*'
is expressly determined by the council of Biterre,"^ and by that
of Narbonne.* "But proceed to the condemnation of no per-
son, without his own confession,- or clear and open proofs ;
for it is better to suffer a crime to go unpunished, than to con-
demn the innocent."
In such a sentence of absolution there is no mention made
of the heresies or crimes, for which such person is accused or
informed against, because they are not proved. This hath
been provided for by the Madrid instruction,^ whether it be
pronounced upon a person dead or alive. " When he who de-
fends the memory and reputation of a person deceased, hath
legally maintained his cause, and the deceased person is to be
absolved from any farther trial, his sentence shall be pronounced
in the public act, because the edicts were published against
him. However, in this case, the statue of such deceased per-
son who is absolved in the public act, shall not be brought
forth, nor shall the particular errors of which he was accused,
» I 2. t. 3. c. 1, n. 12. Direct, p. 3. n. 141.
c Ibid. com. 121. J Cap. 11. « Cap. 23.
: ^ A. D. 1561. cap. 62-
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 405
be recited, because they are not proved. The same must be
observed with respect to those, who are personally apprehended
and accused, and absolved from farther trial, if they shall de-
mand it."
Not that they are wont to pronounce such criminal free
from heresy, but only to declare that nothing is legally done
against him, on account of which he may, or ought to be pro-
nounced an heretic, or any ways be suspected of heretical
pravity; and that therefore he is wholly released from his
present trial, inquisition and judgment. But they carefully
avoid putting into his sentence that he w^as innocent, or not
guilty, that if so be he should afterwards be informed against,
and the crinle legally proved, he may be condemned notwith-
standing the aforesaid sentence of absolution. But if it should
happen that any one is pronounced wholly innocent, and is
afterwards accused of the same crime, their doctrine is, that
notwithstanding his sentence of absolution, he may be again
judged and condemned ; because, in this crime no sentences
whatsoever can ever be accounted as an adjudged case, in favour
of the faith.
In the same manner also they are absolved who are accused
of receiving, defending, or otherwise favouring heretics or
heretical pravity, when nothing is legally granted against
them.
CHAP. XXVIII,
How the Process against a Person defamed for Heresy is
ended hy Canonical Purgati
120 n
WHEN the person accused is only fovmd to be defamed
for heresy, in any village, city, or province, and is not con-
victed either by his own confession, or the evidence of the fact,
or by the legal producing of witnesses, or any other legal proofs.
d3
406 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
and infamy only is precisely against him, he is not absolved,
but he is enjoined canonical purgation by the bishop and inqui-
sitor together, and not separately.^
" There is frequent mention made of canonical purgation,
in the papal law, and though in all other crimes it is grown
into disuse, yet in the crime of heresy it is now practised, and
is very common in the sacred court of the inquisitors.^ For
which reason Godofred praises Spain in these words. Persons
suspected of heresy are punished in the most religious king-
doms of Spain, triumphing especially in these times, and
worthy of singular praise, because it suffers not only no real
heresy, but even no suspicion of heresy to remain even a mo-
ment without a suitable censure."
In the cause of canonical purgation it is required, that cer-
tain witnesses (the number being determined by the inquisitor
according to the crime) shall appear in favour of the accused,
who, after having been solemnly sworn, declare his innocence
of the charges alledged against him ; and the accused himself
swears to his innocence, promising to continue in the behef of
the Cathohc faith: having performed this purgation he is
declared to be a person of good repute.
But as this purgation depends wholly on the pleasure of
other persons, it is a very deceitful and uncertain thing, and
therefore should not easily be enjoined criminals by die inqui-
sitor s.*= Thus the Madrid instruction.'^ " Canonical purga-
tion is, through the wickedness of men, a very dangerous
remedy, especially in these times, and therefore it is not much
used, and must therefore be seldom practised, and with great
caution." * Hence Simancas judges, that those who are born
of Jewish or Moorish parents, must not be compelled to this
purgation, because it would be the same thing as to throw
them directly into the fire. For who doth not think ill of
them, or at least doubt of their innocence ? And therefore he
thinks it would be better to compel them by abjuration, tor-
ments, or arbitrary punishments. But if they are at any time
» Direct, n. 144. com. 38. b Siuianc. t. 56. sect. 1.
c Pegna, in Direct, p. 2. com. 14. '^ A. D. 1561. cap. 47.
c Simanc. tit. 56. sect. 1.
HISTORY OF THE I^^QUISITION. 407
condemned to this purgation, and they cannot procure such
compurgators as are required, others are to be admitted, though
not altogether so fit, that he may not be wholly deprived of the
means of his defence. And finally, he again and again ad-
monishes the inquisitors not rashly or easily to condemn any
one to canonical purgation, for this reason, amongst others,
that it is enough to sink the criminal, if the witnesses answer,
that they do not know% or doubt, whether he swore true or
false. And indeed who would not be doubtful in this case,
who knows that no one is condemned to purgation who is not
vehemently suspected. And therefore, in his opinion they
only are to be" enjoined purgation, whose reputation is of high
concern to the Christian people, viz, bishops, priests, preachers,
and others of the same kind.
CHAP. XXIX.
How the Process is ended hy Torture.
WHEN the person accused is not found guilty, either by
his own confession, or the evidence of the fact, or legally pro-
ducing the witnesses, and when there is no such evidence to
support the suspicion, as is necessary to his being condemned
to abjure heresy, he is condemned by an interlocutory sen-
tence to the question and torture, that if he confesses nothing
when interrogated by torture, he may be esteemed as free
and innocent, and that if he confesses his errors he may be
converted and live. " For the same end,"" says Simancas,
'' Paul delivered the Corinthian to Satan for the destruction
of his flesh, diat his spirit might be saved." *
Royas however says,* that Ulpian spoke well, when he affirm-
ed, that credit should not always be given to the question, for
it is a very frail and dangerous thing, and oftentimes keeps
a Cathol. Instit. t. 65 sect 11. ^ Royas, p. 2. Assert. 31. sect. 295, 296.
D d 4
408 HISTORY »OF THE INQUISITION.
the truth from appearing. Some are fearful, who had rather
lie and speak falsehood instead of truth, than endure torments.
And yet in the crime of heresy, Roy as would have the judges
peculiarly disposed, and ready to put men to the torture, be-
cause it is a crime concealed in its nature, and there is often-
times great ^vant of proof Simancas adds, that in secret
crimes a judge ought to be more ready to inflict torture than
in others, and especially in heresy, which Hes hid in the heart,
and is more concealed than other crimes.^ Add to this, that an
heretic*s confessing, will be greatly profitable to himself and the
whole commonwealth.
The cases, in which they proceed to the torture in the pro-
cess of the inquisition, ai'e various. This however is a received
thing, that they are never to proceed to torture, unless there
be a defect of other proofs, and they think that the truth can-
not otherwise be found out. Hence they do not proceed to the
torture, till after the criminal hath a copy of his process, and
he hath answered to all the articles, and exhibited his defences,
and yet cannot make his innocence appear plainly to the judge,
when at the same time he cannot be fully convicted by wit-
nesses, or the evidence of the thing.
A copy of the proofs is not to be given, when the criminal
is found contradicting himself, faultering or trembling. For
such contradiction, faultering, or trembling, w^hen other exter-
nal proofs are wanting, may determine the judge to proceed to
torture upon any one of them. But others say that every va-
riation is not enough in order to the torture. Bernard Co-
mensis writes to the same purpose.
It is farther to be observed, that the judge must take care
that it be diligently and distinctly inserted at large by the
notary in the acts, whether the person interrogated answered
with resolution, or in a trembhng manner ; what signs he dis-
covered in his face, whether paleness or tears, or laughter, or
sweat, or trembling ; because, in case of an appeal, the superior
judge, who cannot look on the criminals and witnesses person-
ally, but only as they are described in writing, cannot come to
» Siraanc. tit. 65. sect. 51-
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 409
the knowledge of these particulars, unless they are described
at large by the first judge ; nor can the judge appealed to pre-
sume that there hath been any inconsistency, because he knew,
that if there had, it ought to have been expressed in the acts
transmitted to him. And this is the more necessary, lest the
judge himself, upon examination, should be proved to have
ordered the criminal to be tortured without proof. This incon-
sistency must be declared in presence of the inconsistent witness,
when the j udge intends to punish him on this account.
And this is what Campegius particularly recommends to the
vicars or commissaries of the inquisitor, or the other deputies
of the holy offices, that they let the inquisitor know how far
persons, under examination, are to be credited, which princi-
pally depends on their looks. He thinks the same ought to be
diligently observed, whether the inquisitor himself, or liis vicar,
makes the examination, with respect to those skilful persons,
whose advice they take, v>dio also ought to know these things.
But it depends wholly on the pleasure of the judge, whether
or no the person. accused shall be tortured or not, upon account
of such inconsistency, faultering, contradiction, trembling,
sweat, &:c.
If there are proofs sufficient for inquisition and arrest, but
not for the torture, a prudent judge may collect sufficient proofs
for the torture from such inconsistency, and the like.
But yet there is a case given, in which a person may be tortured
without any proofs and copy given, viz. when the person under
inquisition is present, and will not answer. For then he is to
be tortured not to extort a confession, but an affirmative or ne-
gative answer. Likewise, if a person under inquisition doth
not appear within the due term, and is thereupon declared
guilty of contumacy, and afterwards comes to purge himself
from such contumacy, he may, without any other proofs, be
tortured upon account of it.
The inquisitors sometimes shamefully and rashly proceed
to the torture of innocent persons, as will evidently appear by
one instance, not to mention more, given us by Gonsalvius."
" At the same time almost they apprehended in the inquisition
• p. 181.
410 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
at Seville, a noble lady, Joan Boliorquia, the wife of Francis
Varquius, a very eminent man, and lord of Higiiera, and
daughter of Peter Garsia Xeresius, a wealthy citizen of Seville.
The occasion of hor imprisonment was, that her sister, Mary
Bohorquia, a young lady of eminent piety, who was afterwards
burnt for hef pious confession, had declared in her torture, that
she had several times conversed with her sister concerning her
own doctrine. When she was first imprisoned, she was about
six months gone with child, upon which account she was not
so straitly confined, nor used with that cruelty which the other
prisoners were treated with, out of regard to the infant she
carried in her. Eight days after her dehvery, they took the
child from her, and on the fifteenth shut her close up, and made
her undergo the fate of the other prisoners, and began to ma-
nage her cause with theh' usual arts and rigour. In so dread-
ful a calamity she had only this comfort, that a certain pious
young woman, who was afterwards burnt for her rehgion by the
inquisitors, was allowed her for her companion. This young
creature was, on a certain day, carried out to her torture, and
being returned from it into her jail, she was so shaken, and
had all her hmbs so miserably disjointed, that when she laid
upon her bed of rushes, it rather increased her misery than gave
her rest, so that she could not turn herself without the most
excessive pain. In this condition, as Bohorquia had it not in
her power to shew her any, or but very little outward kindness,
she endeavoured to comfort her mind mth great tenderness.
The girl had scarce began to recover from her torture, when
Bohorquia was carried out to the same exercise, and was tor-
tured with such diabolical cruelty upon the rack, that the rope
pierced and cut into the very bones in several places, and in
this manner she was brought back to prison, just ready to ex-
pire, the blood imm^ediately running out of her mouth in great
plenty. Undoubtedly they had burst her bowels, insomuch,
that the eighth day after her torture she died. And when,
after all, they could not procure sufficient evidence to condemn
her, though sought after and procured by all their inquisitorial
arts, yet as the accused person was born in that place, where
they were obliged to give some account of the affair to the
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 411
people, and indeed could not by any means dissemble it, in the
first act of triumph appointed after her death, they commanded
her sentence to be pronounced in chese words : — ' Because this
lady died in prison, (without doubt suppressing the causes of
it) and was found to be innocent upon inspecting and diligently
examining her cause, therefore the holy tribunal pronounces
her free from all charges brought against her by'the fiscal, and
absolving her fmm any farther process, doth restore her both
as to her innocence and reputation, and commands all her effects
which had been confiscated, to be restored to those to whom
they of right belonged,' &c. And thus after they had mur-
dered her by torture with savage cruelty, they pronounced her
innocent."
When the sentence is pronounced by which the criminal is
condemned to the torture, according to the manner of the in-
quisitorial law and processes, it is immediately tobe notified to
the promoter of the exchequer, that he may either appeal from
it, or demand the execution of it, as it is contained in the letters
of the inquisition.^
Formerly the torture was inflicted by lay judges upon here-
tics or suspected persons, according to the constitution of Inno-
cent IV.^ But because by this means, secret matters were
oftentimes divulged, and great inconveniences to the faith arose
from hence, they afterwards thought it more convenient and
wholesome, that the whole cognizance and full discussion of
these crimes, which are merely ecclesiastical, should be confined
to the inquisitors. And as this could not oftentimes be done
without the question, it was therefore provided, that the inqui-
sitors and bishops might torture criminals for these offences.
And upon this account they had this privilege granted them,
that if at any time they should happen to contract any irregu-
larity, they should mutually dispense with each other. As ap-
pears from the rescript of Urban IV. beginning, Ut Negotium.
And this is the law now in practice.
The bishop and inquisitor, therefore, meet together, and by
an interlocutory sentence, pronounce that the accused person is
* Simaac. t. G5. sect. 53. b Pegna, in p. 3. com. 110.
412 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
to be put to the torture such a day and such an hour. Thus
the Madrid instruction* commands : " Let the inquisitors and
ordinary meet together, to pronounce sentence of torture, and
in the same manner be present at the execution of it, by reason
of the various cases that may happen under the torture." For
neither the bishop nor the inquisitor, nor the inquisitor without
the bishop, or his vicar, can put any one to the torture. But
if the bishop or his vicar, upon summons sent them, either re-
fuses or neglects to be present within eight days, the inquisitor
may proceed alone to the torture ; or if one be not within reach
of the other, if he be absent a great way off, then the other
may proceed by himself But what place may be said to be a
great way off, is left at the pleasure of the judge to determine.
However, the bishop and inquisitor may depute each other, or
signify their consent by letters, which must be done within eight
days after they are summoned. In the inquisition at Cremona, '»
the advocate of the exchequer is present at the torture, and the
' inquisitor there sits in the middle between the vicar general on
his right hand, and the advocate on his left.
As to the persons who may be tortured,^ although in all
other causes and crimes some persons are excepted, such as
doctors, soldiers, officers, Noblemen, and their sons, yet in this
most grievous and horrible crime of heresy, there is no privi-
lege to defend any one, but all may be put to the torture, even
clergymen, monks, or other religious. But to prevent excom-
munication, by grievously torturing or hurting them, and on
account of the dignity with which they are invested, they tor-
ture them more gently and mildly, unless the heinousness of
the crime, and the strength of the evidence requires otherwise.
As to such who are freed from being tortured for other crimes
upon account of their youth, or old age, or being with child,
they are not to be tortured for heresy. Persons under twenty-
five may be tortured for suspicion of heresy, but not if they
are under fourteen, but they may be terrified and beat. Nei-
ther is there any exception of place, although by ancient cus-
tom or municipial laws the torture is not otherwise to be in- .
a A. D. I5C1. c. 48. b Carena, p. 1. t, 9. num. 41.
«= Pegna, ibid. p. 642, 643.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 41 S
flicted there. Thus in the kmgdom of Aragon, no judge can
order any criminal to the torture, but yet in favour of the faith,
any persons, even though privileged, may be tortured for sus-
picions of heresy.
After the sentence of torture is pronounced, the officers pre-
pare themselves to inflict it." " The place of torture in the
Spanish inquisition is generally an under-ground and very
dark room, to which one enters through several doors. There
is a tribunal erected in it, in which the inquisitor, inspector,
and secretary, sit. When the candles are lighted, and the per-
son to be tortured brought in, the executioner, who was waiting
for the other, makes an astonishing and dreadful appearance.
He is covered all over with a black hnen garment down to his
feet, and tied close to his body. His head and face are all hid
with a long black cow^l, only two Httle holes being left in it for
him to see through. All this is intended to strike the misera-
ble wretch with greater terror in mind and body, when he sees
himself going to be tortured by the hands of one who thus looks
like the very devil."
Whilst the officers are getting things ready for the torture,
the bishop and inquisitor by themselves, and other good men
zealous for the faith, endeavour to persuade the person to be
tortured, freely to confess the truth, and if he will not,
they order the officers to strip him, who do it in an
instant.* Clergymen however must not be tortured by a
^lay officer or torturer, unless they cannot find any clergy-
men who know how to do it, or are willing, because it would
be in vain for the judges to order any clergyman or monk
to the torture, if there was no body to inflict it ; and there-
fore in such a case it is usual to torture them by lay
officers.
Whilst the per .-on to be tortured is stripping, he is persuaded
to confess the truth. If he refuses it, he is taken aside by
certain good men, and persuaded to confess, and told by them,
that if he confesses, he will not be put to death, but only be
. made to swear that he will not return to the heresy he hath
• Gonsalv. p. 65, 66. b Simanc. t. 65, sect. 50.
414 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
abjured. The inqnisitor and bishop promise the same, unless
the person be a relapse.
If he is neither persuaded by threatnings or promises to con-
fess his crime, he is tortured either more hghtly or grievously,
according as his crime requires, and frequently interrogated
durin"- the torture, upon those articles for which he is put to it,
beginning with the lesser ones, because they think he will
^ooner confess the lesser matters than the greater.
" The criminals are with great care and diligence to be
admonished by the inquisitors,^ and especially when they are
under torture, that they should not by any means bear false
witness against themselves or others, through fear of punish-
ments or torments, but speak the truth only. Nor may the
inquisitors promise pardon or forgiveness of the offence, to
compel the criminals to confess crimes which they have not
committed, out of their great zeal to inquire out the truth.
And such a false confession the accused person may safely
revoke."^
The inquisitors themselves must interrogate the criminals
during their torture,'' nor can they commit this business to
others, unless they are engaged in other important affairs, in
which case they may depute certain good and skilful men for
the purpose.*^ Although in other nations criminals are publicly
tortured, yet in Spain, it is forbidden by the royal law, for any
to be present whilst they are torturing, besides the judges,
secretaries and torturers. The inquisitors must also chuse pro-
per torturers, born of ancient Christians, who must be bound
by oath, by no means to discover their secrets, nor to report
any thing that is said.'^ The judges also usually protest, that if
the criminal should happen to die under his torture, or by rea-
son of it, or should suffer the loss of any of his limbs, it is not
to be imputed to them, but to the criminal himself, who will not
plainly confess the truth before he is tortured.® An heretic
may not only be interrogated concerning himself, but in general
» Royas, p. 2. Assert. 20. sect. 226. b Simanc. t. 66, sect. 54, nn.
c 1 Instruct. Hispal, c. 18. d Simanc. t. 65, sect. 66.
e Ibid. sect. 59.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 415
also concerning his companions and accomplices in his crime,
his teachers and his disciples, for he ought to discover them,
though he be not interrogated; but when he is interrogated
concerning them, he is much more obliged to discover them
than his accomplices in any other the most grievous crimes.* A
person also suspected of heresy, and fully convicted, may be
tortured upon another account, i. e. to discover his companions
and accomplices in the crime. This must be done when he
hesitates, or it is half fully proved at least that lie was actually
present with them, or hath such companions and accomplices in
his crime ; for in this case he is not tortured as a criminal, but
as a witness. But he who makes full confession of himself, is
not tortured upon a different account; whereas if he be a
negative, he m.ay be tortured upon another account, to discover
his accomplices and other heretics, though he be fully convicted
himself, and it be half fully proved that he hath such accom-
plices.'* The reason of the difference in these cases is this,*
because he who confesses against himself, would certainly much
rather confess against other heretics if he knew them. But it
is otherwise when the criminal is a negative.
Whilst these things are doing, the notary writes every thing
down in the process, as what tortures were inflicted concerning
what matters the criminal was interrogated, and what he
answered. If by these tortures they cannot draw from him
a confession, they shew him other kind of tortures, and tell
him he must undergo all of them, unless he confesses the
truth. If neither by this means they can extort the truth,
they may to terrify him and engage him to confess, assign
the second or third day to continue, not to repeat the torture,
till he hath undergone all those kinds of them to which he is
condemned.
The degrees of torture formerly used were five, which were
inflicted in their turn, and are described by Julius Clai'iis.**
*< Know therefore, says he, that there are five degrees of tor-
■ Simanc. t. C5, sect. 60. b Instruct. Madrid. A. D. 1661. c. 45.
e Royas, p. 2. Assert. 34.
'^ Pract. crim. sect, fin qu. 64 Versic. Nunc de gradibus
416 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
ture, viz. First, the being threatened to be tortured. Secondly,
being carried to the place of torture. Thirdly, by stripping
and binding. Fourthly, the being hoisted up on the rack.
Fifthly, squassation.
The stripping is performed without any regard to humanity
or honour, not only to men, but to women and virgins,^ though
the most virtuous and chaste, of whom they have sometimes
many in their prisons. For they cause them to be stripped,
even to their very shifts, which they afterwards take off, forgive
the expression, and then put on them strait hnen drawers, and
then make their arms naked quite up to their shoulders. As
to squassation, it is thus performed : ^ the prisoner hath his
hands bound behind his back, and weights tied to his feet, and
then he is drawn up on high, till his head reaches the very
pully. He is kept hanging in this manner for some time, that
by the greatness of the weight hanging at his feet, all his joints
and limbs may be dreadfully stretched, and on a sudden he is
let down with a jirk, by the slacking the rope, but kept from
coming quite to the ground, by which terrible shake, his arms
and legs are all disjointed, whereby he is put to the most
exquisite pain ; the shock which he receives by the sudden stop
of his faU, and the weight at his feet stretching his whole body
more intensely and cruelly.
In the next paragraph, Et Audivi, he gives a- more distinct
explication of this matter, and reckons up three degrees of tor-
ture. " The first is to terrify, which comprehends not only
threatnings to torture, but being carried to the place of tor-
mentSj the being stripped and bound ; unless such binding
should happen to be too severe and hard, and performed with a
twist, as is the custom of most judges. Thus it was practised
upon a certain physician of Olezo, who suffered more by being
bound, than others in the very torture. And therefore such
binding may be equalled to the torture itself. The second
degree is, to put to the torture, or to interrogate by torture.
This is done by hoisting a person up, and keeping him hanging
for a considerable time. The third is to torture by squassation,
a Gonsalv. p. 67. •> Ibid. p. 70.
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITION. 417
which is performed amongst us by one jirk of the rope. But
if the senate commnnds that tlie person be well or severely thus
tortured, they giv^ two jirks of the rope."*"* Antonius Drogus,
in his annotations on this place, says, " that you may have the
perfect modern practice, observe, that when the senate orders,
' let him be interrogated by torture,' the person is lifted or
hoisted up. but not put to the squassation. If the senate
orders, ' let him be tortvu'ed,"' ho must then undergo the squas-
sation once, being first interrogated as he is hanging upon the
rope and engine. If it orders, ' let him be well tortured,** it is
understood that he must suffer two squassatioiis. If it orders^
' let him be severely tortured,"* it is understood of three squassa-
tions, at three different times within an hour. If it says, ' very
severely ,"* it is understood that it must be done with twisting, —
and weights at the feet. In this case the senate generally
expresses the twisting, or any other particular manner which
they intend, and the judge may proceed to every severity not
reaching to death. But when it says, ' very severely even unto
death,"* then the criminaPs life is in immediate danger.""
The hke method of torture was formerly practised in the
Inquisition at Tholouse, as appears from several places in the
book of sentences. Thus^ at the end of the sentence of
William Sicred, jun. we read, " Nor would he judicially con-
fess concerning the aforesaid, till he was put in jail, and hoisted
up a little upon the rope."'"' And^ we read that William
Cavallerii, after a considerable time, revoked what he had
before confessed, saying, " that he confessed nothing concern-
ing heresy, but what was forced from him by the violence of
torment." And finally,^ in the sentence of Friar Bernard
Deliciosi, of the order of minors, amongst other things, this was
imputed to him as a crime, " that he justified those who were
apprehended for heresy, and condemned for it, and ordered to
perpetual imprisonment and other punishments, and that though
they were true Catholics, they had confessed heresy of themselves
and others, only through the violence of their torments, and
were unjustly condemned.'"*
• FoI.CT. » Fol 131. c Fol. U2.
E e
418 • HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
The author of the history of the Inquisition at Goa tells us/
that the torment now practised in the Portuguese Inquisition
is exceedingly cruel. " In the months of November and Decem-
ber, I heard every day, in the morning the cries and groans of
those who were put to the question, which is so very cruel, that
I have seen several of both sexes who have been ever after
lame. In this tribunal they regard neither age nor sex, nor
condition of persons, but all without distinction are tortured,
when it is for the interest of this tribunal.
The method of torturing, and the degree of tortures now
used in the Spanish inquisition, will be well understood from
the history of Isaac Orobio, a Jew, and doctor of physic, who
was accused to the inquisition as a Jew, by a certain Moor his
servant, who had by his order before this been whipped for
thieving ; and four years after this he was again accused by a
certain enemy of his for another fact, which would have proved
him a Jew. But Orobio obstinately denied that he was one.
I will here give the account of his torture, as I had it from his
own mouth. After three whole years which he had been
in jail, and several examinations, and the discovery of the
crimes to him of which he was accused, in order to his con-
fession, and his constant denial of them, he was at length
carried out of his jail, and through several turnings brought
to the place of torture. This was towards the evening. It
was a large under-ground room, arched, and the walls covered
with black hangings. The candlesticks were fastened to the
wall, and the whole room enhghtened with candles placed in
them. At one end of it there was an inclosed place hke a
closet, where the inquisitor and notary sat at a table, so that
the plaxie seemed to him as the very mansion of death, every
thing appearing so terrible and awful. Here the inquisitor
again admonished him to confess the truth, before his torments
began. When he answered he had told the truth, the inqui-
sitor gi-avely protested, that since he was so obstinate as to
suffer the torture, tlie holy office would be innocent, if he
should shed his blood, or even expire in his torments. When
a Cap. 23.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 419
he had said this, they put a Unen garment over his body,
and drew it so very close on each side, as almost squeezed him
to death. When he was almost dying, they slackened at once
the sides of the garment, and after he began to breathe again,
the sudden alteration put him to the most grievous anguish
and pain. Wlien he had overcome this torture, the same
admonition was repeated, that he would confess the truth in
order to prevent fai'ther torment. And as he persisted in his
denial, they tied his thumbs so very tight with small cords,
as made the extremities of them greatly swell, and caused the
blood to spurt out from under his nails. After this he was
placed with his back against a wall, and fixed upon a httle
bench. Into the wall were fastened httle iron pullies, through
which there were ropes drawn, and tied round his body in
several places, and especially his arms and legs. The exe-
cutioner drawing these ropes with great violence, fastened his
body with them to the wall, so that his hands and feet, and
especially his fingers and toes being bound so straightly with
them, put him to the most exquisite pain, and seemed to him
just as though he had been dissolving in flames. In the midst
of these tomients the torturer, of a sudden, drew the bench
from under him, so that the miserable wretch hung by the
cords without any thing to support him, and by the weight of
his body drew the knots yet much closer. After this a new
kind of torture succeeded. There was an instrument like a
small ladder, made of two upright pieces of wood, and ^ve
cross ones sharpened before. This the torturer placed over
against him, and by a certain proper motion struck it with
great violence against both his shins, so that he received upon
each of them at once five violent strokes, which put him to
such intolerable anguish that he fainted away. After he came
to himself, they inflicted on him the last torture. The torturer
tied ropes about Orobio's wrists, and then put those ropes
about his own back, which was covered with leather, to pre-
vent his hurting himself Then falling backwards, and putting
his feet up against the wall, he drew them with all his might,
till they cut through Orobio's flesh, even to die very bones ;
E e 2
420 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
and tills torture was repeated thrice, the ropes being tied about
his arms about the distance of two fingers breadth from the
former Avound, and drawn with the same violence. But it
happened, that as the ropes were drawing the second time,
they slid into the first wound, which caused so great an effusion
of blood, that he seemed to be dying. Upon this the physi-
cian and surgeon, who are always ready, were sent for out
of a neighbouring apartment, to ask their advice, whether the
torture could be continued without danger of death, lest the
ecclesiastical judges should be guilty of an irregularity if the
criminal should die in his torments. They, who were far
from being enemies to Orobio, answered, that he had strength
enough to endure the rest of the torture, and hereby preserved
him from having the tortures he had already endured repeated
on him, because his sentence was, that he should suffer them
all at one time, one after another. So that if at any time they
are forced to leave off through fear of death, all the tortures,
even those already suffered, must be successively inflicted, to
satisfy the sentence. Upon this the torture was repeated the
third time, and then it ended. After this he was bound up
in his own clothes, and carried back to his prison, and was
scarce healed of his wounds in seventy days. And inasmuch
as he made no confession under his torture, he was condemned,
not as one convicted, but suspected of Judaism, to wear for
two whole years the infamous habit called Sambenito, and
after that term to perpetual banishment from the kingdom of
Seville.
ifrnestus Eremundus Frisius, in his History of the Low-
Country Disturbances, gives us an account from Gonsalvius,^
of another kind of torture. There is a wooden bench, which
they call the Wooden Horse, made hollow like a trough, so
as to contain a man lying on his back at full length, about
the middle of which there is a round bar laid across, upon
whicji the back of the person is placed, so that he lies upon
the bar instead of being let into the bottom of the trough,
with his feet mych higher than his head. As he is lying in
a Page 10. *
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 42S
nature and age of the tortured criminal.* All which things
considered, if it appears that he hath sufficiently purged him-
self of all marks, let them absolve him from any farther process.
But if there be any reason and cause, upon considering the
aforesaid cu'cumstances, to think that the torture was not in-
flicted with due rigour, then let them inflict on |iim either a
light or vehement abjuration, or some pecuniary penalty. Al-
though this ought not to be done without great consideration,
and unless the proofs are not thought sufficiently purged off."
But if, when under the question, he confesses, it is written
in the process, after which he is carried to another place, where
he hath no view of the tortures, and there his confession made
during his torments is read over to him, and he is interrogated
several times till the confession be made. But here Gonsal-
vius observes,^ that when the prisoner is carried to audience,
they make him pass by the door of the room where the torture
is inflicted, where the executioner shews himself on purpose to
be seen in that shape of a devil I have described before, that
as he passes by he may, by seeing him, be forced to feel, as
it were, over again his past torments. The space of time
allowed between the torture and the ratification of the con-
fession, is determined by the Madrid instruction."^ " Twenty-
four hours after the torture the criminal must ratify his con-
fession, and if he retracts it, the remedies provided by law must
be made use of. And at the time when the torture is inflicted
the notary must write down the hour, as also the time of the
ratification, lest if such ratification should be made the next
day, a doubt may arise, whether it was after or before the
twenty-four hours. If the criminal ratifies his confession
made under torture, and the inquisitors are satisfied of his
good confession and conversion, they may admit him to re-
concihation, although his confession was made imder torture.
They must, however, prudently take care how they receive
such persons, and consider the nature of the heresies they
have confessed, and whether they have learned them from
others, or have taught them themselves to others, upon account
of the danger that may ensue hereby."
» Pegna, in Direct, p. 122 •> p. 73. o A. D. 1661, c. 63.
TE e 4
420 HISTORY OF THE INaUlSlTlON.
and lliis torture was repeated thrice, the ropes being tied about
his arms about the distance of two fingers breadth from the
former wound, and drawn with the same violence. But it
happened, that as the ropes were drawing the second time,
they slid into the first wound, which caused so great an effusion
of blood, that he seemed to be dying. Upon this the physi-
cian and surgeon, who are always ready, were sent for out
of a neighbouring apartment, to ask their advice, whether the
torture could be continued without danger of death, lest the
ecclesiastical judges should be guilty of an irregularity if the
criminal should die in his torments. They, who were far
from being enemies to Orobio, answered, that he had strength
enough to endure the rest of the torture, and hereby preserved
him from having the tortures he had already endured repeated
on him, because his sentence was, that he should suffer them
all at one time, one after another. So that if at any time they
are forced to leave off through fear of death, all the tortures,
even those already suffered, must be successively inflicted, to
satisfy the sentence. Upon this the torture was repeated the
third time, and then it ended. After this he was bound up
in his own clothes, and carried back to his prison, and was
scarce healed of his wounds in seventy days. And inasmuch
as he made no confession under his torture, he was condemned,
not as one convicted, but suspected of Judaism, to wear for
two whole years the infamous habit called Sambenito, and
after that term to perpetual banishment from the kingdom of
Seville.
ifrnestus Eremundus Frisius, in his History of the Low
Country Disturbances, gives us an account from Gonsalvius,^
of another kind of torture. There is a wooden bench, which
they call the Wooden Horse, made hollow like a trough, so
as to contain a man lying on his back at full length, about
the middle of which there is a round bar laid across, upon
whicji the back of the person is placed, so that he lies upon
the bar instead of being let into the bottom of the trough,
with his feet mych higher than his head. As he is lying in
» Page la. »
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 423
nature and age of the tortured criminal.* All which things
considered, if it appears that he hath sufficiently purged him-
self of all marks, let them absolve him from any farther process.
But if there be any reason and cause, upon considering the
aforesaid circumstances, to think that the torture was not in-
flicted witJi due rigour, then let them inflict on him either a
light or vehement abjuration, or some pecuniary penalty. Al-
though this ought not to be done without great consideration,
and unless the proofs are not thought sufficiently purged off."
But if, when under the question, he confesses, it is written
in the process, after which he is carried to another place, where
he hath no view of the tortures, and there his confession made
during his torments is read over to him, and he is interrogated
several times till the confession be made. But here Gonsal-
vius observes,^ that when the prisoner is carried to audience,
they make him pass by the door of the room where the torture
is inflicted, where the executioner shews himself on purpose to
be seen in that shape of a devil I have described before, that
as he passes by he may, by seeing him, be forced to feel, as
it were, over again his past torments. The space of time
allowed between the torture and the ratification of the con-
fession, is determined by the Madrid instruction. •= " Twenty-
four hours after the torture the criminal must ratify his con-
fession, and if he retracts it, the remedies provided by law must
be made use of. And at the time when the torture is inflicted
the notary must write down the hour, as also the time of the
ratification, lest if such ratification should be made tlie next
day, a doubt may arise, whether it was after or before the
twenty-four hours. If the criminal ratifies his confession
made under torture, and the inquisitors are satisfied of his
good confession and conversion, they may admit hlni to re-
concihation, although his confession was made under torture.
They must, however, prudently take care how they receive
such persons, and consider the nature of the heresies they
have confessed, and whether they have learned them from
others, or have taught them themselves to others, upon account
of the danger that may ensue hereby."
» Pegna, in Direct p. 122 »> p. 73. o A. D. 1661, c. 63.
E e 4
424 HISTORY OF THE INUUISITION.
I am not able to say what was the space of time between
the torture and the ratification of the confession made under
it, formerly in the inquisition of Tholouse, nor whether the
criminal was dismissed if he retracted his confession after
the torture was over. There is one instance only of William
Cavallerii, in the book of the sentences of the Tholouse inqui-
sition, who being in court, and not under the question or tor-
ture, but in a different place, and before different officers, and
three whole days after the torture was over, again confessed
the things he had before confessed under torture, and perse-
vered in them several times. But afterwards he retracted all,
saying, that he confessed through the violence of his torments,
who yet is said to be convicted by certain witnesses, somxe of
them single, of certain heretical facts. This person was pro-
nounced an heretic by a definitive sentence, and as such de-
livered over to the secular court. But upon this condition,
that if within fifteen days, each five of which were assigned
him as so many terms, he would confess his crimes, and with
a pure heart and faith unfeigned return to the ecclesiastical
unity, abjure all heresy, and swear simply to obey the com-
mands of the church and inquisitors, he should be absolved
from excommunication, and condemned to perpetual imprison-
ment.
If there be very strong evidence against the criminal, if new
proofs arise, if the crime objected to him be very heinous, and
the discoveries against him undoubted, if he was not sufficiently
tortured before, he may be tortured again, but then only
" when his mind and body are able to endure it."" ^
We read in the first Seville instruction.^ " That he who
afterwards retracts the confession extorted from him by tor-
ture, must solemnly abjure those errors of which he was de-
famed, and suffer some pecuniary penalty at the pleasure of his
judges, upon account of the infamy and suspicion yet remain-
ing against him." ^ But for all this the inquisitors oftentimes
order the question in this case to be repeated.
Skilful judges usually enter a protest in the acts of the pro-
» Simanc. t. 65. sect. 75, •» Cap. 15. *= Simaoc. sect. 80.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITlON. 425
cess, that they intend to carry on the torture some other day,
that they may be able to repeat it. But Royas says,"* some
criminals are so crafty, that he hath often actually seen them
immediately confess their fault when put to the torture, and
after twenty-four hours retract their confession when they
should confirm it, and when tortured again confess again, and '
retract? again, and repeat the same as often as they are tortured.
In which case, to prevent the process from being never finished,
he thinks they are to be punished with a very grievous arbi-
trary penalty, because of so many variations, whicli occasion
proofs and bad presumptions. For by the same reason any
one may be tortured again, he may be punished in an extraor-
dinary manner.
If he doth not persist in his first confession, and is not suffi-
ciently tortured, he may be put to the torture again, not by
way of repetition, but continuation of it; but they do not
agree how often it may be repealed, when the confession ex-
torted by it is retracted. Some aflSrm it may be repeated once
only, others that it may be often. Eymeric's opinion is, that
a person sufficiently tortured ought to be dismissed freely, if
he retracts what he confessed by torture. But Simancas says,^
that a criminal must not be condemned for a confession drawn
out by torture, unless he afterwards perseveres in it. It is
the same in law, if it be extorted by fear, or dread of impend-
ing torments. The confession is then said to be extorted
through fear of torments, when the criminal is carried to the
place in which the torture is inflicted, and there stripped of
his clothes, or bound, or so terrified by the judge, as that he
hath great reason to believe the torture will be inflicted. For
it is not enough if the judge frightens him but slightly in any
other place, unless it be such a fear as may affect a person of
resolution. Hence the Light of the Inquisitors says,^ " Al-
though the judge s^ys to the criminal, when he is out of the
place of torture, either confess, or I will order you to the tor-
ture, frightening him by this means as much as he can, upon
hearing of which he makes his confession, in such a case the
a Part. 2. Assert. 31. sect. .'iOO. ^ t. 65 sect. 67, 68, 69.
c 111 voce Tortuia. bect.44.
426 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITlON.
confession is not said to be made through fear of torments, be •
cause the terror itself is but sUght."
But if he persists in his confession, owns his fault, and asks
pardon of the church, he is condemned as guilty of heresy by
his own confession, but as penitent. But if he obstinately per-
sists in heresy, he is condemned, and delivered over to the
secular arm to be punished with death. If the accused person
is found to have fallen into heresy, or there is otherwise evi-
dence proved against them, upon account of which he is obliged
to abjure, as lightly or vehemently suspected of heresy, he
must not be tortured on this account; but if besides this he
denies some things not sufficiently proved, and there be proofs
sufficient to put him to the question, and he accordingly is tor-
tured, but confesses nothing, he is not to be absolved, but is to
be proceeded against according to the things proved, and must
be commanded to abjure either as suspected, or found guilty, as
the merits of the process require. Or if he confesses any thing
by torture, he must be forced also to abjure it.
CHAP. XXX.
How the Process is ended against a person suspected of
heresy y as also against one both suspected and defamed.
WHEN a person accused of heresy is found to be only
shghtly suspected of it, he is considered either as suspected
publicly or privately.* If he is publicly suspected, this was
formerly the manner of his abjuration. On the preceding
Lord's Day the inquisitor proclaims, that on such a day he will
make a sermon concerning the faith, commanding all to be
present at it. When the day comes, the person to abjure is
brought to the church, in which the council hath determined
he shall make his abjuration. There he is placed upon a scaf-
fold, erected near the altar, in the midst of the people, and is
a Direct, p. 3. n. 161, 162. com. 40.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 427
not allowed to sit, but stands on it that all may see him, bare-
headed, and with the keepers standing round him. The
sermon being made on the mass, to the people and clergy there
present, the inquisitor says publicly, that the person there
placed on the scaffold is suspected, from such and such appeiir-
ances and actions, of the heresy that hath been refuted in the
public sermon, and that therefore it is fit that he should purge
himself from it, by abjuring it as one slightly suspected.
Having said this, a book of the gospels is placed before him, on
which laying his hands he abjures his heresy. In this oath he
not only swears that he holds that faith which the Roman
church believes, but also that he abjures every heresy that
extols itself against the holy Roman and apostolic church, and
particularly the heresy of which he was slightly suspected,
naming that heresy : and that if he shall do any of the afore-
said things for the future, he willingly submits to the penalties
appointed by law to one who thus abjures, and is ready to
undergo every penance, as well for the things he hath said and
done, as for those concerning which he is deservedly suspected
of heresy, which they shall lay on him, and that with all his
power he will endeavour to fulfil it. After this abjuration the
inquisitor says to him, " son, thou hast purged away by this
abjuration, the suspicion, which, not ^vithout cause, we enter-
tained of you. Henceforth take heed to yourself, that you do
not fall into this abjured heresy ; for although if you repent,
you would not be delivered over to the secular arm, because
you have abjured as one shghtly suspected only, and not vehe-
mently, yet you would be much more severely punished than if
you had not abjured, and instead of being shghtly suspected,
would become vehemently so, and made to abjure as such.
And if you should fall again, you would suffer the punishment
due to relapsed persons, and be dehvered over without mercy
to the secular court, to be punished with death."
If he is vehemently suspected, he is placed in hke manner
upon a scaffold,^ and after he hath taken his oath upon the
gospels, his abjuration is delivered him in writing to read before
• Direct, p. 3. d. 166, and seq. com. 41.
4^>j HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. ^
all the people. Then the bishop admonishes him and injoins
him penance, and commands him to observe it, adding this
threatning, that otherwise he will become a relapse, and may,
and ought to be judged as an impenitent.'
a Gonsalvins* «ivos us some instances of t^l(^se punishments. " There was
at Seville a certain poor man, who daily maintained himself and his family
by the sweat of his brow. A certain parson detained hU wife from him by
violence, neither the Inquisition nor any other tribunal punishing this heinous
injury. As the poor man v^as one day talking about purgatory with
some other persons, of his own circumstances, he happened to say, rather
out of rustic simplicity, than any certain design, that he truly had enough of
purgatory aheady, by the rascally parson's violently detaining from him his
wife. This speech was reported to the good parson, and gave him an handle
to double the poor man's injury, by accusing him to the inquisitors, as hav-
ing a false opinion concerning purgatory. And this the holy tribunal
thought more worthy of punishment than the parson's wickedness. The
poor wretch was taken up for this trifling spei ch, kept in the inquisitors jail
for two whole years, and at length being brought in procession, was con-
demned to wear the Sambenito for three years in a private jailj and when
they were expired, to be dismissed, or kept longer in prison,. as the lords
inquisitors should think fit. Neither did they spare the poor creature any
thing of his little substance, though they did his wife to the parson, but ad-
judged all the remains of what he had, after his long imprisonment to the
exchequer of the Inquisition.
*' In the same procession there was also brought forth a reputable citiaen
of Seville, as being suspected of Lutheranism,t without his cloak and his hat,
and carrying a wax taper in his hand, after having exhausted his purse of 100
ducats towards the expences of the holy tribunal, and a year's imprisonment
in the jail of the Inquisition, and having abjured as one vehemently suspect-
ed, only because he was found to have said, that those immoderate expences,
and on these accounts the Spaniards are prodigiously extravagant, which w ere
laid out in erecting those large paper or linen buildings, which the common
people corruptly call monuments, to the honour of Christ now in heaven upon
Holy Thursday, and also those which were expended on the festival of
Corpus Christi, would be more acceptable to God, if they were laid out upon
poor persons, or in placing out to good persons poor orphan girls. Two young
students added to the number in that procession. One because he had writ-
ten in his pocket-book some verses made by a nameless author, so artificially,
as that the same words might be interpreted so as to contain the highest com-
mendation of or reflection upon Luther. Upon this account only, after* two
y#ars imprisonment, he was brought forth in procession, without his hat and
cloak, carrying a wax taper, after which he was banished for three years
from the whole country of Stviile, made to abjure as lightly suspected, and
♦ P. 192. t Ibib. p. 195
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 4^9
If he is violently suspected, although it may be that he is no
heretic, yet by the construction of the law he is accounted one,
and judged as such.
If he is found suspected of heresy, and also defamed, he is
condemned first to purge himself b}^ his compurgators, and after
he hath thus purged himself as a defamed person, he must ab-
jure as one suspected of heresy, whether it be lightly, vehe-
mently, or violently, according to the manner in which such
persons are dealt with, and he is enjoined penance, heavier or
lighter, according as his suspicion is greater or less. When
the sentence is pronounced, and committed to execution, it
may be dispensed with, mitigated, or commuted, as the affair,
or the amendment and humility of the penitent deserves it.
What the matter is of proceeding at this day in the Inquisition
general at Rome, against persons suspected of heresy, we have a
most clear instance, in the sentence pronounced against Galileus
Galilei, the celebrated astronomer, because he taught, that the
sun stood still in the midst of the universe, and that the earth
moved round it as about its proper center. From which it
appears, that opinions purely astronomical, and that have noth-
ing to do with religion, and which can neither be of any advan-
tage or disservice to piety, which soever side of the question is
defended, are a sufficient argument to the Roman inquisitors,
to render any one vehemently suspected of heresy, after the
prelates of that church have once determined on one side, and
to enjoin him a solemn abjuration, which itself is a very grievous
punishment in the Inquisition.
After all his laborious study, this philosopher was compelled
by the Inquisitorial powers, to invalidate the result of his resear-
ches in the following words : .
TIIK ABJIJRATION OF GALILEVH.
'• I Galileus, son of the late Vincentius Galileus, a Floren-
punished with a tine. The other underwent the same censure, only lor trans-
cribing the verses for liieir arttiit composition, excepting only that he
commuted his banishment for 100 ducats towards the expences of the holy
ribunal.'*
430 HISTORY OF THE IKQUISITION.
tine, aged seventy, being here personally upon my trial, and
on my knees before you, the most eminent and reverend the
lords cardinals, inquisitors general of the universal Christian
common-wealth, against heretical pravity, having before my^
eyes the most holy gospels, which I touch with my proper
hands, do swear that I always have believed, and do now believe,
and by the help of God, hereafter will believe all that, which
the holy Cathohc and apostolic Roman church doth hold, preach
and teach. But because, after I had been juridically enjoined
and commanded by this holy office, that I should wholly forsake
that false opinion, which holds, that the sun is the centre, and
immoveable, and that I should not hold, defend, nor by aay
manner, neither by word or writing, teach the aforesaid false
doctrine, and after it was notified to me that the aforesaid doc-
trine was contrary to the holy scripture, I have written and
printed a book, in which I treat of the said doctrine already
condemned, and produce reasons of great force in favour of
it, without giving any answer to them, I am therefore judged
by the holy office its vehemently suspected of heresy, viz.
that I have held and believed that the sun is the centre of the
world, and immoveable, and that the earth is not the centre,
but moves.
" Being therefore willing to remove from the minds of your
eminences, and of every Cathohc Christian, this vehement
suspicion legally conceived against me, I do with a sincere
heart and faith unfeigned, abjure, curse and detest the above-
said errors and heresies, and in general every other error and
sect contrary to the aforesaid holy church ; and I swear, that
for the future, I will never more say or assert, either by word
or writing, any thing to give occasion for the like suspicion;
but that if I shall know any heretic, or person suspected of
heresy, I will inform against him to this holy office, or to the
inquisitor or ordinary of the place in which I shall be. More
over, I swear and promise, that I will fulfill and wholly observe
all the penances which are, or shall be injoined me by this holy
office. But if, what God forbid, it shall happen that I should
act contrary by any words of mine, to my promises, protesta-
tions and oaths, I do subject myself to all the penalties and
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 431
punishments which have been ordained and pubhshed against
such offenders, by the sacred canons and other constitutions ge-
neral and particular. So help me God and his holy gospels,
which I touch with my own proper hands.
" I the abovesaid Galileus Gahlei have abjured, sworn,
promised and obhged myself as above, and in testunony of these
things have subscribed with my own proper hand this present
writing of my abjuration, and have repeated it word for word at
Rome, in the convent of Minerva.*
" I Galileus Galilei, have abjured as above, with my own
proper hand.""
CHAP. XXXI.
How the Process against an heretic confessed^ andpenitenty
ends, and first o^ Abjuration.
IF any heretic is informed against,^ and upon oath confesses
liis heresy judicially before the bishop or inquisitor, but pro-
fesses, that upon information of the bishop or inquisitor he will
depart from it, return to the bosom of the church, and abjure
that and every other heresy, he is not dehvered to the secular
arm, but differently punished according to the heinousness of
the crime. For in the first place all such persons are compelled
publicly to abjure their heresy in the church before all the peo-
ple ; but they are not permitted to excuse themselves, or in
any manner to testify their innocence, lest the people should be
offended by thinking them unjustly condemned. Before the
person who is to abjure, there is placed the book of the gospels,
and then he puts off his hat, falls on his knees, and putting his
hand on the book, reads, if he knows how to read, his abjura-
tion ; if he cannot read, the notary or some religious person or
clergyman reads for him, and making a pause, the person abjur-
^ 22nd Day of Julv, A. D- 1633.
b Direct, p. 3. n. 188, com. 44.
432 HISTORY OP THE INQUISITION.
ing repeats what is read ; then the notary goes on, and the
abjui'er always repeats his words, with a loud voice, so as to
be heard by all, till the whole abjuration is read over even to
the end.*
This abjuration is injoined all who return from heresy,^ and
even all suspected upon any account of heresy ; nor is any
one, though otherwise privileged, and of great dignity, ex-
cepted. Even boys of fourteen, and girls of twelve years old,
are compelled to it, according to the decree of the council of
Tholouse.*^
When the abjuration is made, because every heretic is
excommunicated, they are absolved from excommunication
upon this condition, viz. if they return to the unity of the Ca-
tholic faith with a true heart and faith unfeigned, and observe
the commands enjoined them ; which is expressly added, that if
they should not observe them, it may appear that they were not
absolved.
And in this manner all persons are forced to abjure, which
the church of Rome pronounces heretics, unless they are willing
to be delivered over as impenitent heretics to the secular arm
or court, but especially doctors, whom they call dogmatists,
dogmatisers, and arch-heretics. Bzovius, under the year 1479,'^
gives us a famous instance which happened in Spain. Peter de
Osma, who read theological lectures at Salamanca, had pub-
a Formerly, before persous violently suspected of lieresy abjured, the bishop
or inquisitor used thus to address to him. *' My son, we violently suspect
you of heresy, upon account of tliose things it is «leclared you have committed,
upon account of which you are by law to be condemned as an heretic.
Therefore consider and attend to what I say to you. If you will so de-
part from the said heresy or heresies, as to be willing now here publicly to
abjure them, and patiently to undergo the penance we enjoin you, the church
and we, as the vicars of Clirist, will receive you to mercy. But we will en-
join you a penance, which you may well bear, and absolve you from th« sen-
tence of txcomniunication, which you were under, that you may be saved,
and have glory in the future world. But if you will not abjure, nor submit
to penance, we will immediately deliver you to the secular arm, and so you
will destroy together both body and soul. Which therefore will you chuse,
to abjure and be saved, or to refuse to abjure and to be damned.
b Direct, p. 3. com. 40, c a. D. 1229. cap. 11.
<l Sect i).
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
lished a book, in wliich were several things contained contrary
to the doctrines of the church of Rome. The arch-bishop of
Toledo, then at Alcala de Henarez, where he generally resided,
did, by command of Pope Sixtus, after having consulted the
most learned men, and well considered the matter for a long
while, condemn his opinions, and put the author himself
under the infamy of an Anathema, unless he changed his senti-
ments. The sentence was pronounced June 23. Pope Sixtus
confirmed the sentence of the arch-bishop by a bull, and com-
manded him, that he should not omit to proceed against the
followers of Peter de Osma, as heretics, if they should refuse or
wickedly defer to abjure this heresy they are fallen into, or to
imitate the said Peter abjuring his errors and repenting, as they
had imitated him in his error.
CHAP. XXXII.
Of the Puniahment and wholesome Penances enjoined such as
abjure.
SUCH who abjure, and after abjuration are reconciled to
the church, are enjoined various punishments, and, as they call
them, wholesome penances. They are imposed by the inquisi-
tors at pleasure.* And thus the council of Narbonne hath
decreed,'^ " This indeed we so enjoin, not that you should im-
pose every where, or upon all alike, all the fore-mentioned pe-
nances, but that ye may, according to the discretion given you
of the Lord, so cautiously and providently dispense them, ac-
cording to the nature of the crimes and persons, places and
times, and other circumstances, that whether by punishing or
pardoning, the life of offenders may be amended, or at least that
it may appear who walks in darkness, who in the light ; who is
truly penitent, who feignedly converted ; and that no scandal
may arise ft-om hence to true Catholics, and that heresy may
» Extra.de haeret. c. Ab abolendani. sect. Prasenti. *> Cap. 5.
F f
434 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
not be defended or nourished through pretence of scandal, or
any other whatsoever.'*' But, as Carena advises,'' in this impo-
sition of punishment the inquisitors must be careful " always
to use clemency and mercy, not cruelty and severity.*" But he
adds, *' This must be understood with a grain of salt, viz. that
this clemency must not be shewn to an impenitent heretic ; for
after the inquisitors have used all their endeavours for his
conversion, they must by no means mitigate the punishments
of death, infamy, and others threatened against him by law.
For as to this, whilst he remains impenitent, take notice, the only
instance of true piety is to be cruel." They have also power of
commuting and mitigating them; because this imposing of
penance is not a definitive sentence, but rather an injunction,
and command or precept of purgation. It is otherwise, when
the inquisitor hath condemned any one as an heretic, and im-
poses penance on him as such, because that is a punishment
determined by the law, and which therefore doth not depend
on the pleasure of the inquisitor, and because by such con-
demnation he hath pronounced a definitive sentence, and so
ceases to be a judged And these penances in general are laid
upon any persons.
Sometimes the penitent is enjoined to make a pilgrimage,
with a black habit, which he must carry with the inquisitor *s
letters, to that place which he is to visit in his pilgrimage ; and
he is farther required to bring back letters testimonial of the
predicant friars, or others who dwell there, in witness of the
truth.
Secondly, some penances are honorary, attended with infa-
my to those who do them. Such are, walking in procession
without shoes, in their breeches and shirt, and to receive
herein pubHc discipline by the bishop or priest, to be expelled
the church, and to stand before the gates of the great church
upon solemn days, in the time of mass, with naked feet, and
wearing upon their cloak an halter about their neck. At this
time they only stand before the gates of the church, with a
lighted candle in their hand, during the time of solemn miass,
on some holy day, as the bell is ringing to church.
a P, 3. t. 19. sect. 13. ^ Zanchin. dehaeret. cap, 21.
HISTOKY OF THE INQUISITION. 435
Besides these, they now use the punishment of banishment,
and criminals are banished not only into such places as are
subject to the jurisdiction of the inquisitor, because all places
are subject to the same chief pontiff, by whom all the inquisi-
tors are delegated. To this may be added, the punishment of
being thrust into a monastery, which, though now seldom in-
flicted, was much more in use formerly. Bzovius gives us an
instance of it in the year 1479.^ " This year was condemned
at Mayence, John Rucard, of the Upper Wesel, D. D. and
compelled by the inquisitor to recant certain articles which he
was reported publicly to have preached at Worms. All his
writings were before his face thrown into the fire and burnt, and
he himself sent to do penance to the convent of Austin Friars
in that placCj where he died in a little while of grief" Bzovius
also relates the articles against him, most of which were against
the papal authority. The first of them deserves to be men-
tioned : — ^' That the prelates of the church have no authority
to ordain or add any thing to what Christ and his apostles
have ordained : yea, that neither apostles nor the popes have
received such power from Christ.'*
There is also another punishment of beating or whipping,
when criminals are condemned to be whipped with scourges or
rods. If they are religious persons, they are whipped in their
own monastery by other religious, in the presence of the notary
of the holy office. This punishment, Paramus being witness,^
Laurentius Valla sufifered, who being condemned for heresy at
Naples, was preserved from the fire by the king's favour, but
upon this condition, that after he had publicly recanted and
damned the things he had uttered, he should atone for his
crimes by whipping. And accordingly, in the convent of the
predicants, being led round the cloisters with his hands tied,
he was whipped upon his shoulders and back, by the rehgious
of the house.
But the most usual punishment of all is, their wearing crosses
upon their penitential garments, which was not only formerly
in use, but is now frequently enjoined penitents in SpAin and
* Sect. 8. b L. 2. t. 3. c. 4- n. 31.
F f 2
436 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
Portugal. And this is far from being a small punishment. —
Because sucli persons are exposed to tlie scoffs and insults of
all, which they are obliged to sw^allow, though the most cruel
in themselves, and offered by the vilest of mankind, for by these
crosses they are marked to all persons for heresy, or as it is now
in Spain and Portugal, for Judaism. And being thus marked,
they are avoided by all, and are almost excluded from all hu-
man society. We have an instance of this in the book of sen-
tences of the Tholouse inquisition,^ in one Arnald Ysarni, of
Villemaur, who had thrown off his crosses, and being afterwards*
again apprehended, gave this reason for doing it before the
inquisitor : " Because by wearing his crosses, he could find no
persons and place, where he could get his hving, and that
therefore he stood for ten years without them at the Moyssac,
and got liis livelihood by going and coming with the ships to
Bourdeaux.
These crosses are put on those who have believed heresies,
aiid sometimes on those who have been dogmatisers, but who
immediately, upon their being found out and informed against
before the bishops and inquisitors, depart from their errors,
and consent to abjure diem. Such are more gently dealt with,
and it is easier to have a dispensation as to their penance. For
either they are to wear their crosses only for a time, or if they
are enjoined them for their whole life, after they have worn
them for some years, in another sermon or act of faith, they
leave them off again, or if they are in an ill state of health, or
if the penitent be remarkably humble, and truly converted.—
But such a dispensation is the more difficult to be obtained, because
the publicly wearing these crosses may make great satisfaction
in behalf of those who carry them, yea, it may be greatly
meritorious in them, because of the great degree of shame which
such persons endure, and may be, and is a considerable warning
to others.
He who throws off, or conceals this garment, is to be punished
as an impenitent.'* Nor can the inquisitors themselves, now in
Spain, moderate the time which they have fixed for the wearing
* Fol. 177. *» Simanc. t. 47. sect. 11, 12,
HISTORY OF THE IXaUISITIOX. 437
It ; both because their office is discharged after they have pro-
nounced from the tribunal, and because this matter is reserved
to the inquisitor general and council.^
This habit of the penitents, and sackcloth of condemned he-
retics, is to be hung up in the church of that parish where they .
dwelt, that these sort of ensigns may be a monument to keep
up the everlasting remembrance of their impiety ; for the names
of the heretics, and the reasons of their condemnation, are to be
inscribed and renewed on tliem ;•' viz. after the example of
Moses, " who made broad plates for a covering of the altar,
of the censers of the two hundred and fifty men who had offered
incense to the Lord, that they might be a memorial and a sign
to the children of Israel-"" If any one steals these ensigns,*^ it
is the common opinion, that he is to be punished at the plea-
sure of the judges,^ not as a thief or sacrilegious^person, but as
a contemner of religion and the judges, and must therefore be
whipped, or fined, or banished.
Finally, the most grievous punishment is the being con-
demned to perpetual imprisonment, there to do wholesome pe-
nance with the bread of grief, and the water of affliction. This
a 4 Instruct, cap. 9. " Simanc. t. 4T. sect. 13.
c Madrid. Instruct. A. D. 1561. cap. 81.
d Numb. xvi. 39, 40. ^ Simanc. t. 47. sect. 14.
f " Souza relates the case of a man, whom the inquisition ordered to be
burnt, for being accused of stealing a sacred vase from a church. No other
proof was alleged against this unhappy victim, than that he was seen to pass
near the church, at the time of the night when the theft was supposed to
have been committed. He solemnly protested, however, in his last moments,
that he died innocent, and a believer in the creed of the Catholic faith. On
this case of horror being made known at Rome, it was even there considered
highly improper, thai the inquisition of Lisbon should have burnt the man
alive in such a case, and particularly under the circumstance of his declaring
at the very period when the approaching tortures of his death were most
likely to excite despair, that he wished to live and die in the Catholic faith.
Some years after a criminal being condemned to be hung at Gillicia, in
Spain, for murder, he made a solemn declaration at the gallows, that he was
the individual who committed the theft of the sacred vase, in Lisbon, of
which the other, who had been burnt alive, was wholly innocent."--Souza
Eurepa Portngueza A pp. to reign of King Emanuel, in Da Costa's Nana-
tive, vol. 1. 124.
f f 3
438 HISTORY OF THE INQ.UISITION.
is usually enjoined on the believers of heretics, and such as are
with difficulty brought to repentance, or who have a long while
denied the truth during the trial, or have perjured themselves.
For because such persons do not seem to be voluntarily and
willingly converted, they will not allow them their liberty, lest
being feignedly converted, as may be easily presumed, they
should corrupt others.
The inquisitors have, however, the power of remitting the
sentence of immuration, or perpetual imprisonment, except in
Spain, where the inquisitor general only can remit their punish^
ment ; in which they are to be guided by the humility and
penitence of the prisoner. This is commonly done at the end
of three years, unless it is declared in the sentence, that it is
never to be remitted ; in which case it may be remitted at the
end of eight years. These remissions must be granted with
the advice of the diocesan, and may also be obtained with
money.
Besides this condemnation to perpetual imprisonment, such
persons are also enjoined other penances, viz. sometimes to
stand in the habit marked with the cross, at the door of such a
church, such a time and so long, viz. on the four principal fes-
tivals of the glorious virgin Mary of such a church, or on
such and such festivals, at the gates of such and such churches.
Concerning this there is a decree extant of the council of Bi-
terre,^ where, after commanding that penitents should be pre-
sent at divine service on Sundays and festivals, this is added,
" That on the mass of every Sunday and festival, between the
epistle and the gospel, they shall publicly present themselves
witli rods in their hands, stripped of their outward garment,
and with their veil or hat off, to the priest celebrating mass in
the presence of the people, and there, after having received
discipline, tTie priest shall declare, that they suffer this discipline
for heretical pravity.'' Sometimes, before they are shut up in
prison, they are publicly exposed, viz. being clothed with the
habit of the crosses, they are placed upon an high ladder in the
gate of some church, that they may be plainly seen by all,
a Cap. 2C.
HISTORY OF THE INaUTSlTION. 439
where they must stand till dinner time, after which they must
be carried, cloathed in the same habit, to the same place, at the
first ringing to vespers, and there stand till sun set; and these
spectacles are usually repeated on several Sundays and festi-
vals in several churches, which are particularly specified in
their sentence.
They are now also condemned to the punishment of the
galhes,^ because the ancient practice of immuration is at this
time seldom used. Others, who will not depart from their
errors, are ordinarily condemned to perpetual and strict impri-
sonment, and to iron fetters and chains, where they are daily
allowed the bread of grief for meat, and the water of affliction
for their drink.
The inquisitors may also increase these penances, if the con-
verted persons want devotion, or are malicious and quarrel-
some, because these things shew that their mind and soul is
far from being obedient to the law of God, or the commands
enjoined them.
* 'V«^'VW«%-V'«^
CHAP. XXXIII.
WJien and how Jar any cnie is to be admitted to Penance.
IT is a very important and difficult question amongst the
popish doctors, and very intricate, at what time, and how peni-
tent heretics are to be admitted. Simancas uses many distinc-
tions in the solution of this question. *» For either he is a con-
cealed heretic, discovered by no one, and accuses himself to
the inquisitors, and plainly confesses his errors. Such a one,
\vithout doubt, is to be received, and ought not to be enjoined
public penance, but is to be secretly absolved. Or he hath
been pubHcly an apostate or heretic in another kingdom,'^ and
before any one gave evidence against him, he voluntarily re-
turns to a sound mind, and asks pardon and absolution from
a Pegoa, p. 528. b tit. 47, sect. 27. < Sect/ 28.
440 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
the inquisitors. Such a one also is to be admitted, but he must
publicly abjure his errors, and do wholesome penance. But he
must not suffer the punishment of imprisonment, nor wear the
habit of penitents/
" Or he comes to the inquisitors through fear of impending
proofs,^ and discovers his confederates in wickedness, and fully
confesses his errors; and such a one also, though witnesses
come in against him, is to be reconciled to the church, but is
more gently to be dealt with ; for he must not be condemned
to perpetual jail, nor wear, for any considerable time, the peni-
tential habit. Or he is already apprehended,'^ and thrown into
prison, and then confesses his heresies, and then his confession
is said to be voluntary. He also, who upon admonition, con-
fesses his heresies/ before the evidence of the witnesses is shewn
him, is to be kindly received, and not condemned to perpetual
jail, because he confesses before he is convicted by witnesses.*
Or he confesses after the accusation is pubhshed,^ and is then
to be admitted, but punished more severely ; because he would
not confess before he was informed, and made fully to under-
stand by the accusation, of what heresies he was accused. Or
he confesses after being convicted by the witnesses,^ i. e. after
the publication of the evidence. For although such a one doth
not seem to return voluntarily, who is scarce persuaded at
length to confess his errors, and beg pardon, after being tired
out with the dismal jail, after several admonitions, after ac-
cusation, the publication of the evidence, six hundred per-
juries, and several months, yet, inasmuch as being in
prison,'' he confesses of his own mind and will his errors,
without being compelled by violence, he is adjudged to confess
voluntarily. Farther,^ they think that he also confesses volun-
tarily, whose confession is violently, i. e. by torture, drawn from
him. F^ although the first confession is drawn from him by
torment, yet is it not sufficient to the proof or condemnation,
unless he afterwards confirmsit by a voluntary confession. And
a 1 Instruct, cap. 8 . »> Siraanc. tit. 47. sect. 29.
• Ibid. sect. 30. ^ Ibid. sect. 31. « 1 Instruct, cap. 11.
( Simauc. sect. 32. g Ibid. sect. 38.
* Ibid. sect. 44. ' Ibid, sects. 45, 46.
HISTORY OF THE I^JQUISITION. 441
therefore, when the criminal ratifies of his own accord the ex-
torted confession, they say he is not to be looked upon as acting
herein unwillingly, nor his confirmation as extorted by force,
but that it is altogether voluntary, and that tlierefore if the
confession be just that such a one is to be admitted: and it is
then accounted just, when the penitent testifies it with tears,
groans, and humihty.
" It is also farther inquired,* whether a person is to be re-
ceived to the bosom of the church after the definitive sentence,
even till he is delivered to the secular court. Here the laws
determine that penitents may be admitted till the definitive
sentence, but that afterwards there is no place for pardon and
mercy."
Notwithstanding, after sentence pronounced, there is no far-
ther place for pardon : yet there is one instance of Stephana de
Proaudo, extant, in the book of the sentences of the Tholouse
inquisition, who, being judged an heretic the day before, and
left as an heretic to the secular court (from w hence it appears
that it was not then usual for those w ho were left to the secu-
lar coiu't to be burnt the same day, on which the sentence is
pronounced, as is now practised in Spain and Portugal) seeing
on the following day, viz. Monday, that the fire in which she
was to be burnt w^as made ready, said, on that very day that
she was willing to be converted to the Catholic faith, and to
return to the ecclesiastical unity. And when it was doubted
whether she had spoke this feignedly or sincerely, or through
fear of death, and was answered, that the time of mercy was
elapsed, and that she should think of the salvation bf her soul,
and fully discover whatsoever she knew of herself or others
concerning the fact of heresy, which she promised to say and
do, and that she would die in the faith of the holy church of
Rome ; upon this the inquisitor and vicars of the oishop of
Tholouse, called a coimcil on the following Tuesday, and at
length it was concluded, that on the following Sunday she
should confess the faith of the church of Rome, recant her
errors, and be carried back to prison, where it would be proved
■•>■ Sijuanc. sect. 46.
442 HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION.
whether her conversion was real or pretended ; and so strictly
kept, that she might not be able to infect others with her
errors. Eymeric also gives us an instance at Barcelona in
Catalonia,* of three heretics impenitent, but not relapsed, who
were dehvered over to the secular arm. And when one of
them, who was a priest, was put in the fire, and one of his
sides somewhat burnt, he cried to be taken out of it, because
he would abjure and repent. And he was taken out accord-
inglv. But he was afterwards found always to have continued
in his heresy, and to have infected many, and would not be
converted, and was therefore turne<l over again as impenitent
and relapsed, to the secular arm, and burnt.
The author of the History of the Inquisition at Goa,^ gives
us another instance of a very rich new Christian, whose name
was Lewis Pezoa, who, with his whole family, had been accused
of secret Judaism, by some of his enemies, and who, with his
wife, two sons and one daughter, and some other relations that
lived with him, were all thrown into the jail of the inquisition.
He denied the crime of which he was accused, and well refuted
it, and demanded that the witnesses who had deposed against
him, might be discovered to him, that he might convict them
of falsehood. But he could obtain nothing, and was con-
demned as a negative, to be dehvered over to the arm of the
secular court ; which sentence was made known to him fifteen
days before it was pronounced. The Duke of Cadaval, an
intimate friend of the Duke d'Aveira, inquisitor general, had
made strict enquiry how his affair was like to turn. And
understanding by the inquisitor general, that unless he con-
fessed before his going out of prison, he could not escape the
fire, because he had been legally convicted, he continued to
intreat the inquisitor general, till he had obtained a promise
from him, that if he could persuade Pezoa to confess, even
after sentence pronounced, and his procession in the act of
faith, he should not die, though it was contrary to the laws
and custom of an act of faith. Upon that solemn day there-
fore, on which the act of faith was to be held, he went with
• Eymeric, n. 2©4. . ^ Cap. 38.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 44S
some of his o^n friends, and some that were Pezoa's, to the
gate of the inquisition, to prevail ^nth him, if possible, to
confess. He came out in the procession, wearing the infamous
Samarra, and on his head the Carocha, or infamous Mitre. His
friends, witli many tears, besought him in the name of the
Duke de Cadaval, and by all that was dear to him, that he
would preserve his life, and intimated to liim, that if he would
confess and repent, the said duke had obtained his life from
the inquisitor general, a^d would give him more than he had
lost. But all in rain, Pezoa continually protesting himself
innocent, and that the crime itself was falsely invented by his
enemies who sought Iiis destruction. When the procession was
ended, and the act of faith almost finished, the sentences of
those who were condemned to certain penances having been
read, and on the approach of evening, the sentences of those
who were to be delivered over to the secular court being be-
gun to be read, his friends repeated their intreaties, bv which
at last they overcame his constancy, so tliat desiring an audi-
ence, and rising up, that he might be heard, he said, *' Come
then, let us go and confess the crimes I am falsely accused of,
and thereby gratify the desires of my friends.'' And ha^ang
confessed his crime he was remanded to jail. Two years after
he was sent to Evora, and in the act of faith walked in pro-
cession wearing the Samarra, on which was painted the fire
inverted, according to the usual custom of the Portuguese
inquisition ; and after five years more that he was detained in
the jail of the inquisition, he was condemned to the gallies for
five years.
.■fc'%'»%^'W'»-V»
CHAP. XXXIV.
How the Process ends against a relapsed Penitent.
IF the accused person is found a relapse by his own con-
fession, but penitent,* professing that he beheves in a Catliohc
» Direct, p. 3. n. 197. coiu.4.5.
444« HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
manner, and is willing to return to the unity of the church,
the bishop and inquisitor send to him two or three good men,
and especially rehgious, or clergymen, zealous for the faith,
neither suspected by, nor ungrateful to him, who, upon some
convenient hour go to him, and after discoursing with him in
the first place concerning the contempt of the world, the mi-
series of this present life, and the joys and glories of paradise,
do afterwards, in the name of the bishop and inquisitor, dis-
cover to him, that inasmuch as he is relapsed, he cannot escape
temporal death ; and that therefore he ought to be careful of
the salvation of his soul, and prepare himself for the confession
of his sins, and the reception of the sacrament of the eucharist.
And these admonitions they repeat till he hath confessed his
sins, and humbly desu-es that the sacrament of the eucharist
may be given him, because the ecclesiastical sacraments are
not to be denied to a relapsed penitent, if he humbly desires
them.' After having received these sacraments, and by this
means being, in their opinion, rightly prepared for salvation,
the bishop and inquisitor order the ballive of the place, or the
chief magistrate of the secular court, to be ready with his at-
tendants such a day or hour, in such a street or place, to re-
ceive from their court such a relapse, which they will deliver
to him ; and that on the same day, or the day before he shall
make proclamation by" the crier throughout the city, in all the
usual places and streets, that on such a day, hour, and place,
the inquisitor will make a sermon for the faith, and that he
and the bishop \vill then condemn a certain relapse, by deliver-
ing him over to the secular court.
If the person to be dehvered over to the secular court is in
holy orders,^ a pnest, or of any other degree, he is, before he
is turned over, stripped of the prerogative of the whole ecclesias-
tical order, or, as they call it, degraded, that being deprived of
every dignity that might exempt him from the secular power,
he may be delivered over to it.
This degradation is twofold, one verbal, the other actual.
The verbal is, when the bishop pronounces sentence against a
* Cap. Super eo de haeret. lib. 6.
*» Direct, n. 198.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 445
clergyman, by which he deprives him of all clerical orders, or
rather of the ministry or execution of those orders, which is
more properly deposition. The actual is, when the clergyman
is not only deprived by sentence, but also deprived actually
and personally, stripped and despoiled of his ecclesiastical
orders; and this takes place in the crime of heresy, when the
person is to be delivered over to the secular court. But if he
is only to be perpetually imprisoned, they only make use of
verbal degradation.
After the degradation is performed, sentence is pronounced
against him as a relapse, and he as such, although penitent,
is cast out of the ecclesiastical court, and delivered to the
secular arm. But they generally add this clause to such
sentences, by which a relapse, or impenitent heretic, or any
other, is delivered to the secular arm. " Nevertheless, we
effectually beseech the said secular arm, that he will moderate
his sentence concerning you, so as to prevent the effusion of
blood, and danger of death ; ^ where, after it is commanded
that a clergyman degraded shall be delivered to the secular
court, it is added, " For whom, nevertheless, the church ought
effectually to intercede, that the sentence may be moderated,
so as to prevent danger of death, viz. lest the inquisitors, when
they dehver criminals to the secular judges, should seem to
consent to the effusion of blood, and thereby become irre-
gular.
When this sentence against a relapse is concluded, the
bishop and inquisitor do not shew it to the criminal, lest he
should be enraged against them ; ^ but they send to him certain
good men, especially religious or clergymen, not unacceptable
to him, who discover to him the sentence to be pronounced
against him, and the death to be inflicted on him, to confirm
him in the faith, to exhort him to patience, to accompany him
after his sentence, to comfort him, and pray with him, and not
to depart from him, till he hath returned his spirit to his Cre-
ator. But they must diligently take care, that they do not
a According to Cap. Novimus, de verb. sign,
b Lib. Catenat. n. 200.
446 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
say or do any thing by which the death of the relapsed person
may be hastened, viz. by exhorting him when condemned, to
offer his head to the executioner, or to go up the ladder, or
to say to the hangman so to direct his sword, as to strike off
his head at one blow, and not at several, or to say or do, or
persuade to any things of like kind, by which his death would
be sooner effected, although the same would have happened,
although these words or actions had never been ; because
they contract irregularity by these things. Who would not
believe that these men detested with all their soul every effu-
sion of blood, who so effectually intercede for the condemned,
and are so extremely careful not to say or do any thing by
which their death may be hastened ? Here some think, that
such penitents relapsed ought to be allowed ecclesiastical burial,
as well as all other Catholics. But this is contrary to law and
custom, because their bodies are burnt with fire. In this re-
spect, however, they are dealt more favourably with than the
obstinate and impenitent, inasmuch as these latter are burnt
alive, whereas the others are strangled before they are burnt,
which, as Simancas says,* is more humane, and leads to re-
pentance.
CHAP. XXXV.
flow the Process ends against an impenitent Heretic,
and impenitent Relapse.
TW the accused person be an impenitent heretic, but not
relapsed,'' he is kept in close imprisonment, and put in chains,
that he may not escape and infect others ; nor is any one allow-
ed to come to him, or to speak with him, except the keepers,
who must be good men, and not suspected concerning the faith,
nor easy to be deceived. In the mean while all methods must
be used for his conversion, according to the decree of the coun-
* Tit. 47. sect. IT. ^ Direct, p. 3. n. 201. com. 46.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 447
cil of Biterre.^ " Those who will not be converted, be slow,
as you conveniently can, to condemn them, admonishing them,
frequently by yourselves and others to confess ; and if they
are finally obstinate in their wickedness, cause their errors to
be publicly declared, in detestation of them, and leave them
thus condemned to the secular powers present, or their ballives,
according to the apostolic command." Herewith the Madrid
Instruction ^ agrees. " When the criminal is negative, and
hath been legally convicted of the crime of heresy of which he
was accused, or continues obstinate, it is evident from the law
that he ought to be delivered to the secular court. However,
in such a case, the inquisitors ought greatly to endeavour his
conversion, that at least he may die in the grace of God. And
here they must do all they can consistent with piety.'' So that
the bishop and inquisitor frequently, sometimes both together,
sometimes apart, must cause him to be brought before them, to
refute his opinions, and persuade him into the faith of the
church of Rome. If he doth not submit to their information,
ten or twelve persons are sent to him to instruct him, learned
men, clergymen of different orders, and secular lawyers, who
frequently converse with him, to shew him that his opinion is
contrary to the sacred scripture, and the decrees of the church
of Rome. If he is not converted, he is not immediately deliver-
ed to the secular arm, though he desires it,*= but is kept in chains
^ Cap. 17. b A. D. 1561. c. 43.
« As liberty is sweet on any terms, and even the gallies themselves are a
paradise when compared to the dreary cells of the Inquisition, where every
kind of rigonr is put in practice, which can render life a burden without any
interval, or the least alleviation, nothing is more natural than for one confined
in such a piison to wish with the utmost anxiety for the next anto da fe, which
though a bitter remedy, is the only one which can afford him any prospect
of relief . But even this miserable comfort is denied him. The wretch sits
.sighing and pining away within his gloomy dungeon, in expectation of the
solemn day, when he shall be permitted to be hold once more the light of the
sun, to breathe fresh air and cheer his eyes, with the sight of his dear friends
and relations. The long wished for day at length comes, it passes away and
the wretch still remains in the same doleful situation. Still he flatters uim-
self, that his judges though hitherto so inexorable will at last beghi to relent,
and touched with his unutterable distresses vouchsafe to call him before their
nwful tribunal, if not to acquit him, at l^ast to acquaint him Tvith the cause
448 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
a long whiles half a year, or a whole one, in a hard and close
jail, that by the misery and distress of his imprisonment, his
constancy may be overcome. In the mean while he is frequent-
ly admonished, that if he persists he must be burnt, and after
this life burn in hell fire for ever. But if he is not moved by
this calamity, he is removed into a somewhat more comfortal \e
jail, and used in a little kinder manner, l^hey also make use
of promises, that if he will turn, he shall experience the mercy
of the judges. If they can neither prevail with him by this
means, they suffer his wife and children, especially his little
ones, if he hath any, and his other relations, to come to him, to
break his resolution and constancy. But if after all these
methods used he persists in his opinion, the bishop and inquisi-
tor prepare to deliver him over to the secular court. When
therefore the sermon concerning the faith is held, the inquisitor
causes his faults and heresies to be read over by the notary, or
some other clergyman, and then asks him whether he will de-
part from his heresy and abjure them.? If he consents to
abjure, he is admitted ; and having made his abjuration, he
of his detention. Another anto comes, and more than a year elapses, before
he can obtain a favour, which in secular courts is never refused to the vilest
miscreants, that of being heard ; and then perhaps at a time when he is
least prepared for such an audience, having almofet laid aside all hopes, he
is ordered to make his appearance at a moment's warning, not to give him the
slightest information, but only to press him to acknowledge a crime, every
circumstance whereof they conceal from him and which he cannot charge
himself with, though they laid before him the names and depositions of his
accusers. He answers as he had always done, that he is not conscious of any
offence which falls under their lordships cognizance, they repeat the same
interrogatories several times over, and he still returns the same answer, upon
which they send him back to his cell.
Thus they keep the prisoner in a state of suspence, more dreadful, if pos-
sible, than his approaching doom, which he has not the least item of, till the
very eve of another anto. When these merciless judges order him to be put
on the rack, to extort from his own mouth what cannot be proved by wit-
nesses. Where in the extremity of anguish, when the tender frame is torn as
it were in pieces, when it feels at every pore the sharpest pangs of death,
and the agonizing soul is just ready to leave its mansion, the ministers of the
holy office look on without emotion, and* calmly advise the poor forlorn
creature to confess his guilt that he may obtain pardon.
Letters on the Inq. &c. 50.
HISTORY OF THE I>rQUISITION. 440
was condemned in the times of Eymeric to perpetual imprison-
ment, because he A\'as believed to abjure rather through fear of
death than the love of truth. And if he was a cleric, he was
degraded from his orders, by a verbal degradation only, i. e. he
was defK)sed from the function of his ministry.
But if in this condition he will not repent and abjure his
opinions, as is commonly the case with such persons, he is con-
demned as an obstinate heretic, and as such delivered over to
the secular court.^ And whilst the secular court is performing
its duty, some good men, and zealous for the faith, may attend
him, and persuade him to the Catholic faith, and exhort him as
yet to turn from his errors. And it is the opinion of Eymeric,
th^t if even then he will be converted, he may be admitted to
repentance. But Pegna judges it more safe, not to receive him
by any means, although he promises a thousand times his con-
version ; both because it is provided for by no law, and because
experience shews us that persons thus received, seldom or ever
become good.
If an heretic impenitent or relapsed be present, the bishop
and inquisitor, in presence of the magistrate of the secular
court,^ declare him impenitent, or relapsed, cast him out from
the ecclesiastical court, and leave him to the secular arm, or to
the jurisdiction of the secular court. And the secidar court,
which is in that place, receives him ai one left to their court
and arm. If he be absent and fugitive, he is by sentence
declared impenitent or relapsed, and cast out from the ecclesi-
astical court, and left to the secular arm ; and whenever the
secular court can lay hold of him, he is punished as one ©bnoxi-
ous to that court, according to the nature of his crime.^
If the accused person be an heretic impenitent and relapsed,**
all remedies are to be made use of for his conversion, and he is
closely and carefully confined, and no one admitted to him.
But he cannot escape death. And therefore they exhort him,
a Cap. ad abolendara, sect. Piaesenti, Extrav. de haeret.
^ Cap- Excomniitnicamus, 1, 2. Extrav. de hapiet.
'^ Cap. hd abolendara, sect. Praesenti, Extra v. de h»jet.
<* Direct, p. 3- n. 205.
G g
450 HISTORY OF THE INaUlSlTION.
inasmuch as he cannot avoid the punishment of death, to con-
sult at least the salvation of his soul, to confess and receive the
sacrament of the eucharist. Behold the amazing charity of
these reverend lathers, who when they deliver a penitent crimi-
nal to death, are so solicitous about the salvation of his soul !
But whether he repents or not, he is delivered to the secular
court, with a very earnest intreaty, so to mitigate their sentence
concerning him, as to prevent the effusion of blood, and danger
of death.
CHAP. XXXVI.
How the Process ends against a Negative Heketic con-
victed.
IF the person accused be found in heresy either by the
evidence of the fact,^ or the legal production of witnesses, and
yet he doth not confess it, but persists in denying the crime
laid to his charge, he is at this day called a convicted negative
heretic.^
» Direct, p. .^. n. 207. com. 48.
* Thus the council of Biterre hath thus determined.* ** As to those who
are criminals, and contemn to appear witiiin the time of grace, ormaJicionsly
suppress the truth, let each of them be cited by name in tlieir turn ; and if
they will not confess the trnth found against them, read over to them the
beads of the matters in which they are found criminal, and discover to them
the depositions of the witnesses, and granting them competent times, and
allowing them the liberty of defending themselves, receive candidly their
legal exceptions and replications. And if they fail in their defence, assign
them a competent peremptory time for their sentence, and condemn them,
unless they will of their own accord confess the crime proved against them.
For they are not to be received to mercy whilst they persist in tiieir denial,
how much soever they submit themselves to the will of the church." Thus
also the council of Narbonne.f " But if any one is not afraid obstinately to
deny his faults, upon account of which he may be judged a believer of here-
tics, or an heretic, and which is fully proved by witnesses, or other proofs, as
• Cap. 6, 7, 8, 9. t Cap. 26.
HISTORY OF THE INaUISITION. 4:51
Carena observes/ that it sometimes happens, that a negative
heretic, given over by the inquisitors to the secular arm, cites
and challenges them to the Valley of Jehosaphat, or the Tri-
bunal of God. But if it appears to the judge that he hath
proceeded justly in the condemnation of a negative heretic,
Jie ought not to be afraid of his citation. But if the judge
should not be certain of the justice of his sentence, but per-
ceived again disturbance in his mind when he pronounced it,
then it is his duty more maturely to enquire into all circum-
stances, that the former sentence may be either revoked or
confirmed. In the mean while they say, that if such citation
and appellation be made not through hatred and revenge, but
with a good design, that his innocence may appear, and his
family be preserved from infamy, it is lawful.
Because negatives constantly deny the crime of heresy, and
profess that they are, and always were Catholics, and are wil-
ling to die in the faith of the Catholic church, they are first
strangled before they are burnt. But Souza says,'' that heretics
convict and negative, if after they are delivered to the secular
judge, they do not confess before him the Cathohc faith, are
burnt ahve ; because, as it appears that they are heretics, so
by being silent when they ought to answer, they are looked
upon as obstinate. Thus it was actually judged by all the
judges of the council of supphcation in the city of Lisbon,*^
when, in an act of faith then celebrated, three men, Hebrews
by birth, and called new Christians, were delivered over by the
inquisitors to the secular court for Judaism, of which they were
convicted ; who, persisting in the negative, affirmed before
the inquisitors that thev were Christians. And being brought
before the secular judges, and interrogated concerning the
faith, would make no answer ; upon which they were delivered
over to the officers to be burnt alive, and were accordingly
burnt alive.
long as he persists in this denial, though otherwise he may pretend conver-
lion, he is, without doubt, to be accounted au heretic. For he is evidently
impenitent, vulio will not confess his sin.
* p. 2. t. I. sect. 10. b I. 3. (. 6. sect. 11.
c A. D. 1629, the second Sunday of September, and twelfth day of that
month.
r, cr a
452 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
CHAR XXXVII.
Horc the Process ends against a Fugitive Heretic.
IF the accused person be a fugitive, or hath fled or escaped
from the inquisition, after he is waited for a competent time,*
he is cited by the bishop or inquisitor ^ in the cathedral church
a Direct, p. 3. n. 212. com. 49.
b The licentious character so largely applied to the Romish clertjy has
not been wanting in those fleputed to the office of inquisitors. Whilst by
the very constitution of their authority tliey are placed in a great degree
above the laws; they possess, in addition to their ecclesiastical revenues,
opportunities of amassing enormous wealth from the wreck of those whom
they condemn, and besides, such unbounded power as to command any ob-
ject of desire, or to gratify any purpose of revenge. With such temptations
therefore it is no wonder if the inquisitor should become voluptuous, aud
that possessing the authority he should assume the vices of the oriental
monarchs. M. Lavallee, in his ** Histoire des Inquisitions Religieuses,"
relates the following circumstance : A gentleman, who was then (1809)
residing at Paris, having business in Lisbon some years before the
French revolution, and being about to go thither, took with him, from a
nobleman at Versailes, a letter to the chief inquisitor at Madrid, through
which he passed. On his arrival in that city, being fatigued, and at the same
time unwilling to impede his journey, he fulfilled the ceremony of delivering
the letter to the inquisitor by the hands of his servant, excusing himself on
those grounds from doing himself the honour of a personal attendance.
The grand inquisitor, however, came himself to his hotel, and with gr«at
politeness prevailed on him to spend the evening at his residence The
gentleman repaired to his appointment, and was lost in astonishment at the
splendour of the saloons, furniture, and attendants. After some noblemen
who were present had withdrawn, the inquisitor offered his guest a sight of
his bed-chamber j this surpassed any thing he had ever seen for sumptuous
degance. The walls were hung with most exquisite paintings, from the
heathen mythology ; the floor of the finest marble, and so constructed as to
admit the growth of orange trees, and a crystal stream, which, imparting a
delicious coolness, rolled off through basons of porphyry, in subterranean
channels, whilst the bed was adorned with such tasteful drapery, as to give
to the whole the air of royalty. As soon as the visitor had inspected with
admiration the various embellishments of this splendid retreat, which he was
the more surprised to find where he had rather expected to have seen the
rigid tokens of inquisitorial devotion, he prepared to withdraw. But the in-
quisitor prevented him, expressing surprise that he should so soon appear
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. ' 455
of that tliocese where he hath offeiKied, and in other churches
of tliat place where he hved, and particularly tVom whence he
made his escape, personally to appear on a certain day in such
a cathedral church of such a diocese, there to hear, upon a
certain hour, his definitive sentence before them, to which
they add, whether he apj)ears or not, that they will proceed
against him to a definitive sentence, as law and justice require.
This citation is fixed upon the gates of the catliedral church.
In this citation some delay is granted, viz. of thirty days, and
that is peremptory, so that this single one serves for three, in
which the criminal is cited to all and singular the proceedings
of his trial. «
If the criminal doth not appear, his contumacy is complained
of in the several terms of the edict, and the fiscal of the inqui
sition puts in his bill of accusation, after which the process is
carried on according to course of law, observing the custom
and laws of the holy office. When all this is finished, if the
crime really appears, sentence is pronounced against the
criminal whenever the process is rightfully and legally de-
termined. If he hadi been informed against for heresy,
he is declared an obstinate heretic, and as such left to the
seculai' ai'in. If informed against as one suspected of heresy,
and if excommunicated, because he would not appear, and if
remaining under the sentence of excommunication for a year,
he is not pronounced an heretic, but condemned as though
he was one. But if upon the expiration of the year he ap-
pears, he is heard as far as relates to the excusing his crime,
and testifying his innocence ; but not in order to recover his
effects, unless he can make his innocence, or some other just
fatigued, then making a signal, a Dominican appeared (his contidential mi-
nister) who conducted the traveller into a splendid saloon, lighted by a pro
fusion of wax candles, here a mngnificent sapper was prepared, to which aat
down ;he gland is quihitor, his visitor, &i\ ladies of great beauty and accora-
plisUments, and some monks, who were peculiar favourites. The cTening
was spent wi:h the gieatest gaiety, whilst music, poetry, singing, and agree-
able conversation protracted the stay of the company until sunrise. At
length the trav^ Ikr took his le^ve, greatly pleast-d with tke courtesy of his
highness, and admiring the method of reiaxatiou he had cheien, after the
studies and fatigue devolving on him from the holy office.
454 HISTOHY OF THE INaUISITIOX.
impediment legally appear. If he is in sacred orders, he is
first degraded, by a verbal degradation only, because he can-
not be actually degraded, inasmuch as he is absent. But Ey-
mericus thinks, that the person, thus degraded, is not to be left
to the secular arm, but that if he will repent, he may freely,
and without the question be admitted to mercy and abju-
ration.
And lest the sentence against fugitives may seem to be pro-
nounced in vain,* it is usually published before all the people,
and the image, or as they commonly call it, the statue of the
absent person is publicly produced, on which there is a super-
scription fixed, containing the name and surname of the ab-
sent obstinate person who is condemned, which statue is deli-
vered to the secular power, on which he executes the sentence
and penalty of burning, as he would do upon the absent per-
son himself, if he were present, unless he would turn, or upon
a person otherwise relapsed. Thus, as Lewis a Paramo tells
us,'' the statue of Sigesmond Malatesta was burnt at the
gates of St. Peter ; and the statue of Luther, after he had
been cited, and did not appear, was also burnt, together with
his books, at the command of Leo X. by the bishop of AscoU,
and Silvester Prieriates.
When this custom of burning the statues of absent criminals
began, is uncertain. Pegna believes it not to be very antient,
because neither Eymeric, who, with great diligence, hath treat-
ed of every thing relating to practice in this crime, nor any
other of the antients, who have written of the order of pro-
ceeding against heretics, have mentioned this custom ; nor is
there to be found any single trace of it in the Vatican copy,
nor in that of the most illustrious Cardinal Sirletto, where
there are many things, and even the most minute things con-
cerning the method of judging and punishing heretics. But
yet he thinks it very commendable, and proper to strike terror,
and therefore altogether fit to be used.
• Pegna, ibid. p. 674. b 1. 2. t. 2. c. 1. n. 6.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISLTION. 455
CHAP. XXXVIII.
Of the Method of proceeding against the Dead.
PROCESS is also carried on against the dead for the crime
of heresy. "* Now it mav happen several ways, that a person
may be judged an heretic after death. First, If before his
death the inquisition against him was begun, and liis crime
appeared either by his own confession, or the e\ndence of the
fact, or the legal proof of witnesses, and the criminal dies
before the process is ended, cither confessed and impenitent,
or negative or relapsed. Secondly, If being in jail for heresy
he kills himself, for by thus destroying himself he seems to
confess the crime. Thirdly, If, though when alive, his heresy
did not appear, and he was not accused' of it, yet, if after his
death, it at any time appears that he died an heretic, either
by the depositions and attestations of others, or by facts, or
deeds, or books composed by him, or by any other legal rea-
sons. This process is carried on against the dead before this
tribunal, chieily for rhese three ends ; that their memory may
be condemned, that the heirs of the dead, or any other pos-
sessors of their effects, may be deprived of them by the fiscal;
and finally, that the dead bodies may be taken up, cast out
of hoi V ground and burnt, as it is determined by the first
instruction of Seville.
There was also an edict in England against the dead bodies
of Bucer and Fagius.'* For when Cardinal Pool, the pope's
legate in England, went, after queen Mary's inauguration, to
the university of Cambridge, to restore all affairs tliere, they
began the process of taking up the dead bodies of Bucer and
Fagius. The dead persons were cited by a first and second
edict,"= and several witnesses produced against them once and
again. When no one appeared, who would undertake their
defence, they were at last condemned for contumacy, and on
* Direct, p. 3. qn. 13. com. 92.
»» Bzoviu», A. i>. 1556. >ert. 36. E. Tliuan.
c Hist. Con. Tiid. 1. b. p. 461.
4^6 HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION.
the said day, sentence was pronounced before all the orders of
the university, and their dead bodies were ordered to be dug
up, and dehvered to the queen's officers. After some few days,
whilst the sentence was sent to London, an order came from
the queen, that the punishment should be inflicted. Finally,
on the sixth of February, the bodies were dug up, and a large
stake fixed into the ground, in a certain part of the market-
place prepared for that purpose, to which the bodies were tied,
and a large pile of wood placed round them to burn them.
After this, the chests were set up on end, with the dead bodies
in them,* and fastened on both sides with stakes, and bound to
the post with a long iron chain. After the pile was set on fire,
they threw a great number of the books of the protestants
into it, which they had gathered together, which were soon
consumed by the spreading flames. Not long after this, Brookes,
bishop of Glocester, dealt in the same manner at Oxford, with
Catharine, the wife of Peter Martyr, who, dying about four^
years ago, was buried in Christ Church, near St. Frideswide's
rehcs, who was held in great veneration in that college. For
being convicted that she had embraced her husband's heresy,
she was condemned, her dead body taken up, carried upon
shoulders, and thrown upon a dunghill. *=
Besides this, the statue of such deceased person is now
brought forth' in public, on which the name of the person,
• They were buried, as Fox tells us, in chests.
k Fox says, two years.
e Fox assures us, that Brookes, bishop of Glocester, Nicholas Ormanet,
R. Moi wen, president of Christ Church college, Cole and Wright, coming to
Oxford as the cardinal's visitors, summoned before them .ill that had any
acquaintance with her or her husband, and ministered an oath to thera, that
they should not conceal any thing that was demanded of them j and that be-
ing examined, their answer was, that they knew not what religion she was
of, because they did not understand her language. But that notwithstand-
ing this, the cardinal, by his letters, ordered the dean of Frideswide to dig
her up, which the dean accordingly did that evening, and buried her ^ in a
dunghill. After this, in queen Eliiabeth's reign, she was, by order of Par-
ker, archbishop of Canterbury, Grindal, bishop of London, and otheri, the
queen's high commissioners, taken up out of .the dunghill, and buried in her
former place, and her bones mixed with those of Frideswide, that they might
never. after wards know one from the other.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 457
whose memory is to be condemned, is written iu large charac-
ters, and before which all the erroneous or heretical articles,
and all the heretical deeds or works, which have been legally
proved against the deceased, are recited in the same manner
in which they were done, as though the deceased himself was
living and present. This statue is dehvered to the secular
court, which the secular judge afterwards burns, as he would
have burnt the deceased, if he had been living, and died obsti-.
nate.
•%•■** V'%'V%/%'V%'V>'
CHAP. XXXIX.
Of the Manner of 'proceeding against Houses.
IN order to beget in the common people a greater abhor-
rence of the crime of heresy, they are used to pull down and
level with the ground, the houses or dwellings, in which the
heretic, or arch-heretic, holds conventicles and congregations.
Of this we have several instances in the book of the sentences
of the Tholouse inquisition.
If the owner of the house is not condemned of heresy, but
heretics have committed such things in an house that did not
belong to them, without the knowledge of the owner, the house
is to receive no damage. But if he knew it, or ought to have
known it, it is confiscated, and being confiscated, remains sub-
ject to the pleasure of the inquisitor. The materials of such
houses go to the exchequer, or are decreed to be applied to
other pious uses. The ground on which such house stood
must not be shut in, but must always be uninhabited, that as
it was formerly a receptacle of wicked wretches, it may from
henceforth become a place of filth, and made a dunghill
and stench.* Excommunication also is threatened against all
those who shall presume to rebuild it, or to inhabit or inclose
it, or shall knowingly give any advice or assistance to it.
• Lib. Sent/fol.-2.
458 HISTORY OP THE INQUISITION.
Sometimes also the ground on which the house stood, is
sprinkled over with salt, to denote its barrenness, at which
time certain curses and imprecations are uttered. And finally,
that there may be a perpetual monument of its infamy and
just punishment, a soHd stone, or a marble pillar four or five
feet high, is erected in this last age, in the said ground, with
certain larga characters cut on it, containing the name of the
owner of the house, shewing the reason of its being destroyed,
and signifying the time, viz. under the reign of what pope,
emperor, or king, the matter was transacted. In the former
age there was a famous monument erected on this account in
Spain, in the noble city of Valladolid, where Austin Cazzalla,
although converted, and penitent, was, A. D. 1559, delivered
as a dogmatist to the secular court, and his house pulled down,
on the ground of which there was a little pillar erected, con-
taining an account of the affair.
CHAP. XL.
How the Sentences are pronounced, and the condem^ied Persons
delivered over to the secular Arm.
THE inquisitors are commanded to pronounce the sentences
against heretics,* and to leave the condemned persons to the
secular powers present, to be punished according to their de-
sert. "^ Although this command requires the secular judge to
be present at the pronouncing sentence, yet the sentence of
condemnation against heretics, pronounced when the secular
judge is absent, is valid, provided there be all other things
essential to it. For the laws do not so require the presence of
the secular judge or his officers, as though nothing profitable
could be transacted without him, but only that they, as ser-
vants, should put in execution the sentence pronounced ; for
^ Direct. 3 p. com. 48.
^ Cap. Excommnnicamus, 1. in piincip. de Iiaeret Cap. Ad Abolendam.
sect. lUos. and Cap. Noviiuus, de verb, signific.
HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION. 459
every other act is forbidden them in this crime, which is merely
ecclesiastical.*^ And if the presence of the secular judge was
necessary in pronouncing sentence of condemnation against im-
penitent or relapsed heretics, he might easily, by this means,
hinder the office of the inquisition, by denying his presence,
either fc^ no reason, or for a feigned and pretended one. So
that when the inquisitor and bishop have pronounced sentence
upon tlie criminal, it shall be valid, though the secular magis-
trate cannot, or will not, be present ; and it shall be sufficient
to intimate to him, by some legal person in writing when there
is need, and which is the safest method, that such a person is
juJu^ed to be an obstinate heretic, and impenitent or relapsed:
and, the secular magistrate, though not present at the sentence,
shall be obliged to give credit to such an intimation, and to put
to death the heretic delivered over to him, unless he vnil be
most grievously punished as a favourer of heretics, and hinderer
of the holy office. Nor must he have any copy of the pro-
cess.
Also, in the same chapter Novimus, it is commanded, that the
church sh 
