Before proceeding with the history of the modern Spanish Inquisition, we shall give here some account of the government of the old tribunal, and the proceedings of the ancient Inquisitors. "The first Inquisitors had no fixed salary," says Llorente; "the Holy Office was founded on devotion and zeal for the faith; its members were almost all monks, who had made a vow of poverty, and the priests who were associated in their labours were generally canons, or provided with benefices. But when the Inquisitors began to make journeys, accompanied by recorders, alguazils, and an armed force, the Pope de creed that all their expenses should be defrayed by the bishops, on the pretence that the Inquisitors laboured for the destruction of heresy in their dioceses. The expenses of the Inquisition were afterwards defrayed by the fines and confiscation of the condemned heretics; these resources were the only funds of the Holy Office; it never possessed any fixed revenue."
No sooner was an Inquisitor appointed by the Roman Pontiff, than the magistrates of the place were commanded to arrest all persons suspected of heresy, to furnish the Inquisitor and his attendants with lodgings, and to protect them from every insult. One of the first acts of the Inquisitor, was to publish an order, requiring all heretics voluntarily to confess themselves to be such, and promising them absolution, accompanied by slight penance, provided their confession was made within a stated period. Those who were accused, and did not appear within the time prescribed, were shortly afterwards arrested and lodged in the Inquisition. The examination of the accused person soon followed, and his answers were compared with the testimonies of the informer and witnesses against him. If he confessed himself to be guilty of one heretical word, he was immediately asked to abjure all his errors, as the admission of one was considered an acknowledgment of all the crimes laid to his charge. If he consented, he was reconciled, after un dergoing various penances; but if he refused, he was delivered over to the secular judge as an obstinate heretic. When an accused person denied all the charges, he was furnished with a copy of the process, but the names of the accuser and witnesses were carefully concealed. Many questions were asked at his examination; such as, if he had any enemies; if he knew their motives for hating him; if he suspected any particular person of wishing to ruin him, &c. In the event of his still denying the charges, notwithstanding he was convicted or strongly suspected, he was tortured to make him confess his heresies. If the crime imputed to the accused was not proved, he was acquitted, but still the name of the accuser was withheld. [4]
On the union of the several kingdoms of Spain, by Ferdinand and Isabella, the boundaries of the Inquisition were extended, and its privileges enlarged, in every corner of their dominions. At that period it was principally intended to prevent the relapse of the Jews and Moors who had been, or pretended to be, converted to the Romish faith. In Seville, especially, many of the Jews, not withstanding their profession of Christianity, still continued to practise in secret their ancient rites, which having come to the ears of the archbishop, great numbers of that unhappy nation were arrested in 1481, and thrown into dungeons. [5] After a tedious examination, in some cases by torture, the Inquisitors condemned some of them to the stake, and others to perpetual imprisonment. "By divers ways and means," says Bernaldez, "Inquisitors began to arrest men and women, the most guilty, as well as the most honourable, some from among the magistrates, jurists, bachelors, and lawyers, and also men of great reputation. These they sentenced to be burnt with fire, and brought for the first time, to be consumed on the platform, (a burning place which they had constructed in a field in the vicinity of the city,) six men and women, whom they cast into the flames. A few days afterwards they burnt three of the principal, that is, the richest, persons in the city, viz: Diego de Susan, a great rabbin, whose property was said to be worth ten millions; the others were Manuel Sauli, and Bartholomew Toralva. Pedro Fernandez Benedeba, steward of the church of the dean and chapter, was next arrested, who was one of the principal of them, and had in his house arms to equip a hundred men; also Juan Fernandez Abalasia, who had long been a chief justice, and was a great lawyer, as well as many other principal persons, and very rich, whom they also burnt. At this all the confessed heretics were alarmed, and cast into great consternation, and fled from the city and archbishopric; but an injunction was laid for no one to abscond from Seville under the penalty of death, and guards were placed at the gates of the city; in short, they arrested so many, that there was no place to put them in, and many fled to the estates of lords, to Portugal, and to the country of the Moors." [6]
This persecution of the Jews and Moors at Seville, was followed in every other province of the kingdom of Spain. Encouraged by Ferdinand and Isabella, the Inquisitors daily dragged several miserable victims before their tribunal; and summarily consigned to the rack all whom they suspected, and to the flames those whom they pretended to have convicted, of still adhering to the Jewish faith. But even this was not enough. In 1482, the Inquisitors appointed a particular time for all the Jews to appear before them, and make confession of their errors. Alarmed for their safety, seventeen thousand appeared on the day appointed, who having pretended to embrace the Christian religion, were pardoned. But many others refusing to act in the same hypocritical manner, were seized and lodged in prison. Having been put to the most excruciating tortures, numbers of these unhappy persons abjured Judaism, and were consigned to the flames, some of them acknowledging Christ, and others calling on the name of Moses! Such indeed was the satanic zeal which animated the Inquisitors, that in the short space of forty years after the Inquisition had been established in Seville, four thousand persons were burnt in that bishopric alone! A hundred thousand were reconciled and banished in Andalusia; [7] and the bones of multitudes, which were dug out of their graves, were burnt, their property confiscated, and their children disinherited.
In 1483 the famous, or rather infamous, Thomas de Torquemada was appointed Inquisitor-general of Arragon—a man every way fitted for increasing the prerogatives and revenues of the holy office. He first created four inferior tribunals—at Seville, Cordova, Jaen, and Villa Real; and then persuaded Ferdinand to create a royal council of Inquisition, at the head of which was placed Torquemada himself, who was assisted by two eminent counsellors. In order to arrange laws for the new council, Torquemada convoked a junta, composed of the Inquisitors of the four tribunals above mentioned, the two assistants, and the members of the royal council. This assembly was held at Seville in 1484, and published a code of laws consisting of twenty-eight articles, [8] which were the first laws of the Spanish Inquisition. The tyranny, extortion, and cruelty of the various tribunals, excited the indignation of the Jews, and plans were formed, in Arragon especially, to assassinate the Inquisitors, and free the country from their iniquitous yoke. These plans, however, being frustrated, still greater cruelties were inflicted on that unhappy people. From time to time additional laws were made, all tending to abridge the liberty of the people, and to advance the authority, and increase the revenues of the Inquisition. The severity of these laws obliged more than a hundred thousand families to emigrate to other kingdoms.
In order to avert the danger which threatened