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7 zyxwvutsrqpo The Inquisition The general impression that the Inquisition in Spain was a product of the reign of the Catholic Monarchs is erroneous. The reason for this error is not hard to discover; the majority of the books dealing with the Spanish Inquisition begin with the fifteenth century, as though it emerged at that time without any antecedents. In fact, there were two Inquisitions in Spain, the earlier one centered in Aragon-Catalonia, and the fifteenth-century "Spanish" Inquisition. Yet another misconception shared by many, including not a few scholars, is that the Inquisition was established and run by "the Church." Thus, a recent translator of Eimeric's Manual for Inquisitors asked, but did not attempt to answer, "Why did thezyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA Roman Inquisition [his emphasis] last longer in Spain than elsewhere?"1 The question reveals several erroneous assumptions: (1) that there was a "Spanish Inquisition," (2) that it was "Roman," i.e., directed from and controlled by the Church in Rome, an opus romanum, as he calls it; and (3) that the Inquisition lasted longer in medieval Spain than elsewhere (ignoring, for example, Italy). Even the Spanish Inquisition of the fifteenth century, as we shall see, can scarcely be called "Roman," for it soon achieved a complete independence of the Church and even a defiance of the papacy. zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUT Origins of the Inquisition The original Inquisition was established by a bull of Alexander III at HI Lateran, the ecumenical Church council, in 1179, attended by the bishops of Tarragona, Gerona, Barcelona, Vic, Tortosa, Lerida, and Seu d'Urgell, from the kingdom of Aragon-Catalonia. The purpose of the Inquisition was solely to act against Christian heretics who were deemed to be corrupting the faith from within. 204 zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA The Inquisition In Spain, the first secular act (initiated not by Church authorities) was a document of Alfonso II (1194) of Aragon-Catalonia against the Waldensian heretics. In 1197 at the council of Gerona, Pedro II confirmed this act and added, for the first time, the penalty of burning at the stake.2 Throughout the thirteenth century, also, the Inquisition was concerned with Christian heretics, primarily the Albigensians. Three papal delegates met in Montpellier in 1206 and nearly gave up all efforts to convert the Albigensians, when the (Spanish) bishop of Osma, Diego de Azevedo, arrived on his return from Rome. He urged the legates rather to give up their wealth and preach in a state of poverty to the common people, using his subprior Domingo de Guzman as the example they should follow. From this memorable meeting emerged the Dominican Order, or the "preaching" friars , which also took control of the Inquisition. However gentle the bishop's urging was, a crusade was proclaimed against the Albigensians.3 The Jews, therefore, had no role whatever in the activities of the Inquisition . True, the Church had concerned itself with the possibility of conversion of Christians to Judaism, or the possibility of converted Jews relapsing to their former religion. Gregory I had already set down the rule which was to become canon law that baptism could not be by force. However, Innocent III in 1201 modified that rule considerably. While admitting that baptism by force could not be sanctioned, he noted that baptism is a sacrament, which automatically takes effect, and thus once a Jew has been baptized he must be considered a Christian and must remain so, even where force was used. Nicholas III, in 1278, took the next crucial step in deciding that those who through fear, even if not absolutely coerced, were baptized and then returned to their "Jewish blindness" should be handed over to the secular authorities to be condemned to death (this was confirmed in 1378 by Nicholas IV).4 Menendez Pelayo claimed to find the law that any Christian who became a Jew would be burned already in thezyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONML Furs (law code) of Valencia (1240). It is not there, however, but is instead in the Fuero real written for Alfonso X of Castile-Leon. The immediate source appears to be a forgery, the Fuero juzgo, purporting to be a translation of the Visigothic code of law. Similarly, the Siete partidas, largely written by Ramon de Peiiafort, a canonist, for Alfonso, proclaimed the death penalty for any Christian "so unfortunate as to become a Jew," or who "sometimes becomes insane" and converts to Islam.5 Llorente also provided some false information concerning the origin of Inquisition activities in Aragon-Catalonia, citing documents of 1225 and 1228. However, the...

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