The Spanish Inquisition, 1478-1614

"With very few exceptions the rich inquisitorial sources collected here have, until now, been available only to specialists with a knowledge of early modern Spanish.  The Spanish Inquisition, 1478–1614: An Anthology of Sources fills a gaping hole in the English-language literature, making these previously inaccessible documents available to a much wider reading public. . . . With a strong Introduction and supporting material for each document, this source reader provides a wealth of material for classes on late medieval or modern Europe; Spain and Latin America; Western civilization; or the history of Western religions.  This reader will also be valuable to seminars on subjects such as witchcraft, early modern legal history, and women's history."
—Benjamin Ehlers, University of Georgia

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26528g

An Anthology of Sources

Edited and Translated by Lu Ann Homza

2006 - 320 pp.

Ebook edition available for $15.50, see purchasing links below.

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Cloth 978-0-87220-795-0
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This collection of previously untranslated court documents, testimonials, and letters portrays the Spanish Inquisition in vivid detail, offering fresh perspectives on such topics as the Inquisition's persecution of Jews and Muslims, the role of women in Spanish religious culture, the Inquisition's construction and persecution of witchcraft, daily life inside an Inquisition prison, and the relationship between the Inquisition and the Spanish monarchy.  Headnotes introduce the selections, and a general introduction provides historical, political, and legal context.  A map and index are included.

Reviews:

"Those of us who teach the history of early modern Spain to undergraduates have long lamented the lack of primary sources in English translation.  Lu Ann Homza has gone a long way toward filling that gap with this excellent anthology of sources.  Homza provides a judicious selection of documents that chronicle the Spanish Inquisition from its establishment by Ferdinand and Isabella in 1478 to root out crypto-Jews to the expulsion of the Moriscos carried out under Philip III between 1611 and 1614.  She recovers many voices from late fifteenth-, sixteenth-, and early seventeenth-century Spain, of defendants, witnesses, politicians, and the ecclesiastical judges whose zeal for religious orthodoxy and correct legal procedure rendered this one of the most famous, if often misunderstood, judicial institutions in European history.
    "Homza begins the volume with a helpful, clearly written introduction that explains the inner workings of the Inquisition and traces its Roman and medieval antecedents. . . . [She] has succeeded in compiling an anthology that is both erudite and accessible, and available at a refreshingly low price.  Thus, students as well as teachers and scholars will welcome this significant contribution to the religious and legal history of early modern Spain."
—Jodi Bilinkoff, The Catholic Historical Review

"With very few exceptions the rich inquisitorial sources collected here have, until now, been available only to specialists with a knowledge of early modern Spanish.  The Spanish Inquisition, 1478–1614: An Anthology of Sources fills a gaping hole in the English-language literature, making these previously inaccessible documents available to a much wider reading public. . . . With a strong Introduction and supporting material for each document, this source reader provides a wealth of material for classes on late medieval or modern Europe; Spain and Latin America; Western civilization; or the history of Western religions.  This reader will also be valuable to seminars on subjects such as witchcraft, early modern legal history, and women's history."
—Benjamin Ehlers, University of Georgia

"[Homza's] selections are useful in teaching the historical method, because the texts force us to assess their truth, confront gaps in the documentation, and consider the differences between the religious beliefs of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and our own.  The book is highly recommended to students of early modern Spanish history and its institutions."
—Frank A. Domínguez, Sixteenth Century Journal

"Wonderful selection of all the important types of Inquisitionist records, with excellent short explanations.  Homza gives English readers access to extremely important documents that have not been available so far."
—Moshe Sluhovsky, Department of History, Brown University

"Despite the enormous and still growing attention to, and interest in, Inquisition history, there was an almost complete lack of source materials in English.  This collection helps fill that gap, and Professor Homza seems to have done so in expert fashion."
—Wietse de Boer, Department of History, Miami University

"This anthology of texts, translated into English with skill and deep insight into the subject matter, makes a significant selection of original source material available to a wider reading public and as such fills an important gap in the literature available on the Spanish Inquisition.  The volume begins with an excellent historical overview of the Inquisition, drawn from the latest research.  This is an indispensable text."
—Helen Rawlings, University of Leicester



Contents:

Acknowledgments.
Introduction.
Note on Translations.
Selected Bibliography.
Map of Spain during the Inquisition.

THE FIRST YEARS OF THE INQUISITION:
Document 1: Recollections of the Reign of the Catholic Kings, Written by Bachiller Andrés Bernáldez.
Document 2: Establishing the Inquisition in the Kingdom of Aragón.

THE INQUISITION'S FIRST TARGETS: JUDAIZING CONVERSOS IN CASTILE, 1484-1513:
Document 3: Inquisition Proceedings against Isabel, Wife of Bachiller Lope de la Higuera, 1484.
Document 4: Inquisition Trial of Pedro de Villegas, 1483–1484.
Document 5: Inquisition Trial of Marina González, 1494.
Document 6: Inquisition Trial of María González, Wife of Pedro de Villarreal. Ciudad Real, 1511–1513.

CODIFICATION:
Document 7: Gaspar Isidro de Argüello. Instructions of the Holy Office of the Inquisition, Handled Summarily, Both Old and New, Part I.

THE ALUMBRADOS IN CASTILE, 1525–1532:
Document 8: 1525 Inquisition Edict on the Alumbrados.
Document 9: Letter from Friar Francisco Ortiz to Inquisitor-General Alonso Manrique, April 9, 1529, Composed inside the Toledo Tribunal of the Inquisition.
Document 10: Testimony by Francisca Hernández, June 2, 1531.
Document 11: Summary of the Prosecutor's Accusation against Antonio de Medrano. Toledo Tribunal.
Document 12: Excerpts from the Trial of María de Cazalla, 1532–1534.

PONDERING WITCHCRAFT:
Document 13: Deliberations on the Reality and Heresy of Witchcraft, 1526.

THE INQUISITION AT MID-CENTURY: BLASPHEMERS, HYPOCRITES, AND PROTESTANTS:
Document 14: Trial of Catalina Díaz, Wife of Juan Becervil, for Blasphemy. Penanced May 17, 1543.
Document 15: Trial of Diego de Almodovar, Penanced for Blasphemy, 1545.
Document 16: Heresy and False Sanctity of Magdalena de la Cruz, 1544–1546.
Document 17: Letters from the Suprema, Inquisitor-General Fernando de Valdés, and Philip II on Protestants in the 1550s.
Document 18: Documents Pertaining to the Trial of Archbishop Bartolomé Carranza.
Document 19: Prohibited Books.

STRUCTURE, PROCESS, ROUTINE:
Document 20: Gaspar Isidro de Argüello. Instructions of the Holy Office of the Inquisition, Handled Summarily, Both Old and New, Part II: The "New Instructions" of 1561.
Document 21: Excerpts from the Visitation Records of the Prison in the Tribunal of Córdoba, 1569.

THE MORISCOS:
Document 22: Auto de Fe Celebrated in Granada, March 18, 1571.
Document 23: Letter from the Granada Tribunal to the Suprema, December 12, 1574.

THE INQUISITION IN THE LAST DECADES OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY:
Document 24: Scandalous Propositions. Friar Juan Bautista de Cubas, Monastery of San Lorenzo el Real. Penanced, 1581.
Document 25: Sentence of Catalina Muñoz for False Sanctity, 1588.
Document 26: Auto de Fe Celebrated in Granada, May 27, 1593.

Index.

 

About the Author:

Lu Ann Homza is Associate Professor of History, College of William and Mary.