The Spanish Inquisition
The origins, activities, tragedies, myths, and legacies of this infamous institution.
"No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!" is a hilarious Monty Python sketch that proves the adage that comedy = tragedy + time. In its time in early modern Spain, the Inquisition was infamous for its activities against Spanish Jews, Muslims, Christian converts from both groups, as well as heretics, Protestants, and other perceived enemies of the Spanish crown. There is no doubt the the persecution, expulsions, torture, trial and execution of members of these groups resulted in horrific tragedy and suffering. But we will also look at the extent to which some of the reported atrocities of the Inquisition may have been exaggerated by Protestants as part of a program of anti-Catholic polemics.
I have to say, I wasn't expecting this lecture...
Nobody was
Nor today's reflection of it, "Deniers!"
Hope you watched it whilst sitting in the Comfy Chair.
..beat me 2 it!-
I have to say I clicked on this just to see if anybody had made a comment similar to this. Also to see the nice red uniforms.
Could you please help me find your lecture on the medieval inquisition? I am really enjoying your lectures. Thank you so much for all the work you do on them to share with us.
Thank you so much for this presentation. That fact that you come in with context and all its multi-layered facets, makes it a rich presentation. It's also disturbing to see how humanity is, once again, repeating its past with all this us-versus-them thinking, Sigh. Here's hoping we'll wake up and start some meaningful dialogue on how to move forward TOGETHER in our diversity.
26:30 thanks for the Muslims
I lecture about how the Spanish Inquisition totally decimated the Chinese restaurant , gambling and brothel businesses in Spain. It was a dark time
One of the better presentations ive seen.
Basically the politics behind the Spanish Inquisition. Which is very interesting.
Despite the years, decades, centuries of defamations, the Spanish Inquisition is largely unknown. First, we must remember that Spain was the last European country to install it, the others had done so before. It happens like with the expulsion of the Jews that everyone knows that in Spain it was in 1492 but they forget that ALL the other territories had expelled them before, several times like England. In fact, Spain is praised for this and considered a sign of modernity for taking the same measure as other European states. It is curious how Spain is now falsely accused of expelling the Jews but at the time the Spaniards were called dirty bloods, Judaizers, etc. The point is to denigrate Spain if it expelled the Jews or if it did not. On the other hand, the Anglican, Calvinist, and Protestant inquisitions were authentic lynchings without any procedural guarantee with atrocious torture, while the Spanish Inquisition was born ex novo, from scratch, and avoided committing the errors so common in its time in all courts, civil and religious. Few know that the Spanish Inquisition was a MONUMENT OF PROCEDURAL LAW ahead, at least a century, of the other courts of its time, civil and/or religious. Today almost everything is known because almost 100% of its files are preserved, with all the trials, sentences, accusations, name of judge, accused, witnesses, investigation, etc. The Spanish inquisitorial court was, but by far, the most just, clement and humane court of its time and even some later ones. It was the Spanish inquisition that revolutionized procedural law and today we enjoy: - defense attorney - forensic doctor - abolition torture - power of the prisoner to challenge the judge - witness protection program, etc. It is because the Spanish inquisition invented and implemented them. Today any modern and civilized court uses the protocols, methods and procedures invented and implemented by the Spanish Inquisition. Their conviction rate was barely 2%, of 100 cases heard, less than 2% were convicted, and the vast majority of their sentences were small alms, saying a few prayers, making a pilgrimage to a nearby hermitage, etc. The famous "Galileo" case is a good example, Galileo is sentenced to say some prayers for a period of time. When the deadline expired, Galileo, like the good Catholic that he was, continued praying them, voluntarily, until death in the bed of his house. He did not spend a day in jail. The spirit of the Spanish Inquisition was rigor in the procedure, seeking the truth and defending the prisoner. When he was sentenced, it was with the intention of saving the immortal soul, not of punishing the prisoner. That is why the death penalty was almost voluntary because in case of repentance, feigned or not, the sentence was commuted. Although it had certain unwanted effects because in Spain the Inquisition generalized blasphemy, any thief, criminal, etc. When he was arrested, he blasphemed in public so that his case could be investigated by the inquisition, much more fair and benevolent than the civil courts. When the witch "fever" invades Europe, it also reaches Spain and an inquisitor is sent (inquisition = investigate) and after months of work, interrogations, etc. deduces that there is NO such witchcraft or devils and in Spain not one more woman is burned while in the rest of Europe tens of thousands of women were burned, without trial, without defense for a simple complaint under atrocious torture and suffering, something that has never been He met in Spain thanks to the Inquisition. For example, at that time Calvin, in a town like the then Geneva (15,000 inhabitants) executed 500 people in a few years and imposed a brutal dictatorship determining what and when should be eaten, suppressing music and dancing and dozens of tyrannical measures. But Hollywood, Netflix, Disney, HBO, Marvel, National Geographic, BBC, etc. They remind us, daily, how frighteningly bloodthirsty and irrational the SPANISH Inquisition was, the others are not even mentioned, being much more brutal, inhuman, torturous and backward. But the Spanish woman is the evil one that TV says, that the figures of defense lawyer exist (a true revolution), forensic doctor (to treat prisoners), witness protection, being able to challenge the judge, suppress torture, etc. That... doesn't appear in the anti-Spanish "historical" series, that is, all of them.
1:38:45 that’s not what Invincible Ignorance means. It’s talking about people who never hear the gospel due to among other things geography. It isn’t a slander it’s slack given to such people.
Was the number of people given the death penalty during the Spanish Inquisition really a big number? In comparison, the Spanish Inquisitions there was an average of 14 people who receiving the death penalty per year, verses 17 people legally executed in the USA in 2020. .... Also side note: False charges were discouraged by laws making the one bringing charges legally accountable. I wish we had this law today, we sort of do by perjury laws, but this was a specific law discouraging false charges, while protecting people from false accusations. , The few thousand who received the death penalty in the Spanish Inquisition is well documented data from over 300 years. It works out to be an average of 14 people / per executed by death penalty per year during the 300 year Spanish Inquisition. Which means the USA has a higher death penalty execution yearly average. A total of seventeen death row inmates, all men, were executed in the United States in 2020, sixteen by lethal injection and one by electrocution.
It's totally absurd to be tortured because you have a different view. You are not harming anybody.
@aku7598 Sanctuary Do you recall that people ran to the Church screaming sanctuary against secular authorities. People weren't tortured for having a different view
Yeah more people were put to death by the state *in a single week* in 1937 Russia or 1794 France. It has to all be put into perspective
Thanks for the story, lots of information
About words in the Spanish Inquisition Seal:"The phrase "exurge Domine et judica causam tuam" has its origins in Psalm 74:22-23 of the Latin Vulgate Bible. It is a plea to God for intervention and justice in a particular cause or situation. The phrase can be broken down as follows: - "Exurge" is the imperative form of the Latin verb "exurgere," meaning "to arise" or "to stand up." Here, it is used as a direct command, urging God to rise or awaken. - "Domine" is the vocative form of the Latin noun "Dominus," which means "Lord" or "Master." It is a direct address to God. - "Et" means "and" in Latin. - "Judica" is the imperative form of the Latin verb "judicare," meaning "to judge" or "to decide." It is another direct command, asking God to judge or pass judgment. - "Causam tuam" translates to "your cause." It refers to the specific matter or cause that the supplicant is asking God to judge or intervene in. Overall, the phrase can be understood as a passionate plea for God's intervention and judgment in a particular situation or cause, seeking divine justice and resolution. It is often used in religious and liturgical contexts as a call for divine assistance and guidance."
The lecturer paints a lovely picture of Islamic Spain! Tolerant, prosperous, high culture. A commonly held belief but, if true, it might be the only Islamic society ever to rise to such goodness. Tricky to fact-check a slave-state that's been gone for 500 years but a few brave historians contradict the view. For example, see "The Myth of the Andalusian Paradise" by Dario Fernandez Morera.
He is quite balanced and he mentioned that the Almohad dynasty was much less tolerant of non Muslims.
Muslims rule Spain for 800 years. Muslims ruling in a multi-faith state, so Jews and Christians can practice their faith, they also had them in high political places based on skill, and Europeans went to study medicine, science, architecture, etc went to study in Spain. Muslim Spain inspired the European Renaissance - when all the texts got translated from Arabic to Latin. Jewish scholarly work flourished under Muslim Spain (Al Andalus). They became wealthy, enjoyed religious freedom. First time Quran was translated into Latin was in Toledo, Spain. Martin Luther the father of Protestant faith was inspired to cut ties with Catholic sect after reading translation of Quran in Latin 400 years later.
When the christians took over Spain again, many jewish people fled to Morocco and Algeria (which were, and still are Muslim countries)… they had the right to continue practicing their religion, trade, etc. One clarification on the tax on non-muslims, it’s very true, but muslims also paid a religious tax, that non-muslims didn’t have to pay
Your context is brilliant, much appreciated.
Wow- mind just blown regarding the difference in history presenting colonialism in N. America as connected mostly to desire for 'freedom' vs. Spanish/Portuguese colonialism being portrayed as greed(as well as anti-Semitism inherent in that view). 👍 Kudos!
Could somebody link the medieval inquisition lecture he mentioned in the beginnning?
39:35 you're looking for the word 'genius'.
If I had a nickel for every comedy skit or movie scene that I've seen about the Spanish Inquisition I would have two nickels. Which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.
Can you do a lecture on the Protestant Inquisitions of the 16th and 17th centuries? Also the Muslim Inquisition in the 9th - 11th centuries in Islamic Spain?
you just did
Not real
@@Nalololol It happened.
A protestant inquisition? But protestants, by the nature of their teachings and understanding of religion, could not have an inquisition.
I could totally go for a nice roast pork/pernil. I guess I’m descended of conversos
Excellent
Why is the entire discussion about Jews? Presumably there would have been vastly more Muslim convertos?!?!?
Remember the moors were black so they didn't accomplish anything of significance...
@@TehutiofNewKmt No, the Moors were North African? This of reducing race to color is extremely stupid and extremely American. It does not work like that. Skin color is a phenotype, it is not race. Its just a reflection of how far away from the equator your ancestors lived. Something like the Sahara desert had a much greater impact on race than distance from equator. The Sahara desert is so forbidding that it prevented geneflow across the desert and hence made greater genetic differences between people north and south of it. While the North Africans were always taking part in the gene flow in the Roman Empire and of the Phoenecians and other such Mediterranean cultures. They even got some geneflow from the age of migrations. Not to mention everything that happened in Iberia.
@martinan22 but murica!
Beautiful
The Jews not only did welcome the troops of Tarik, but they also made militias to secure the cities that the Muslims of Tarik conquered.
Those things were never taught to me when I was in school. It was made to seem as if it was unwarranted and unjustified witch hunts of heretics and actual witches. There were no mentions of conversos or morranos made that I remember. It was made to sound like the Church and Crown were acting for no reason at all except for religious zealotry instead of pragmatism.
@@notsocrates9529 The story of the El Andalous the "multicultural paradise" was mostly written by Jewish historians in de 1930ties as part of the culture war, that is still going on.
The one nobody expected
1:11:30 where can I get that map
Where is the Medieval Inquisition lecture. I would like to see it.
Does it not show up in a search?
@@solgato5186 I can't find it either.
@@yohei72 Oh well, maybe there isn't one.
It's a nice story in the story of the Republic of the Netherlands, the guys who embedded colonialism into law, just before they sailed to new york; not as an article but as an concept by not excluding certain practices. Fun fact: It's more an endless war between langauges & companies then it is against religion. However, religion always choices the side of the kings. Just like Socrates did. The unhappy people are a result of being more progressive than the system; that's business & selfexploring. The system always responds repressive. i'm from the Dutch perspective, with some Belgium, Luxemburg, German, France, Scandinavian & Scottish perspective blended for a better picture. It's in the times most of the real arosticracy dies out and fake contracts have springtide.
The thumbnail pic is actually the Roman Inquisition (Papal States), not the Spanish.
Great 👍
Did Galileo get off easy compared to "Deniers" then and today?
Understood that the lecture is on the SI, never saw a good prof that presented anything in this lecture that they did not know so much of "what something" is xalled, or tried so hard to simplify it so much>
Based on the challenge of parsing your comment, we're lucky you didn't give the lecture. 😂
Right I read that three times trying to figure out what it was saying till I gave up and read your comment.
Is this about inquisition or Jews?
11.45 "I just picked them because they look so protestant." They're not, this is Rembrandt depicting the sampling officials of an Amsterdam drapers guild, two of who were catholic, one mennonite, one remonstrant and one Dutch reformed. This is what the religious tolerant looked like. What a weird layer of irony, isnt it? Appearently the lecturer has missed the entire 16th and 17th century and the latter's prime economic superpower, because the Dutch declared independence from the Spanish Empire in 1581 because that had sent the Spanish Inquisition on them to root out protestantism. No exaggeration needed for the horrors, it's all well documented. The Dutch wanted religious tolerance, the cathollics too, and codified the freedom of conscience in the Union of Utrecht in 1579, and stating in their DOI of 1581 that it was not for a king to decide how to serve got and that the people had the inalienable right to no longer recognize their king if he had become a tyrant, which he had and therefore had left the throne of the Netherlands. This is called the 80-years war and was in fact not a war of religion but a war for independence and religious tolerance. This was why the "Portuguese" jews fled catholic religious prosecution in Spain and were welcomed in the Dutch Republic, were they could build the largest synagogue in the world, unlike the catholics who were not allowed to show off while their religion was trying to annihilate the Dutch Republic and all it's non catholics. Many of those jews were actually Spanish, but Spain was evil and that had a bad ring to it so they were all called Portuguese or Sephardic jews. A few years later the Azkhenazi jews arrived from Germany. Government was protestant controlled and the jews were no threat to the religious tolerance by nature of their religion. Simon Schama suggests that the Dutch saw themselves as the new chosen people in their garden of Eden carved out of the North Sea, and brothers to the Old Testament's chosen people. Anyway, they got filthy rich together in this modern, multireligious, multi-etchnic, multiracial, free and modern captialist society. What a weird layer of irony. So the Spaniards were persecuting jews, they were welcomed by Northern European protestants and it was the Northeren European protestants who were appropriating an anti-jewish stereotype to project it onto the Spaniards? That's not a stretch, that's BS. This is projecting typical American/Anglo racism and antisemitism onto European protestants. Spain simply was very bad, an evil empire. Greedy, bloodthirsty, intolerant, racist, cruel, indifferent, aggressive, imperialist, and even the British were significantly better. That's what I call weird layers of irony. No matter how much I dislike protestantism as a former catholic, it's them who gave us freedom of religion and defended it against totalitarian theocracy both catholicism and islam tend to strive for. Catholicism has been forced to behave the past centuries, islam still doesn't do freedom of religion. Either this man knows and understands **** about history or purposely distorts it to get some political message across.
Didn't the Dutch get "filthy rich" through a centuries-long campaign of greedy, bloodthirsty, intolerant, racist, cruel, indifferent, aggressive, imperialism in Africa? What a weird level of irony...
@@twcavedo3164 Not really in Africa, the Dutch stripped out what is now Indonesia. There is too little talk about what happened there, and there are many things that should be talked about.
No, the "Spanish" did not send the Inquisition. It is incredible that in the 21st. century you are still spouting war propaganda as if it was the truth. "The horrors" cannot be documented, because the Spanish inquisition was never in the Netherlands. The Netherlands were SO tolerant that the Catholic church could not go back to the country until 1853. Guess how they kept Catholics out? Read about it, there are enough accounts of martyrs. How many Jews were state officials in the Netherlands? Nobles? What trades were they allowed to work on? How many mixed marriages were there in that time? Try to find out. Jews were at best second class citizens until the 19th century. Religious tolerance my a**! Your blind nationalism is showing.
@@MitzvosGolem1 No, there have been frictions and wars, but freedom of religion started with the Protestants and the catholics fought for absolute theocracy.
It was a civil war, and hatred of Spain is fundamental as the founding myth of the Dutch. But that is the past and Holland no longer exists, they are now a colony of Morocco.
The picture of the cardinals has Pope Leo X in the middle. He was Pope when Martin Luther broke away.
I enjoy the lectures but I could do without the questions and comments from the audience during them.
"Deniers!" It's back "Chosen Ones" ideologies
We versus you'll; alive and well and still breathing to this very day.
Concerning the topic of US versus Them: it backfired „perfectly“ when you look at the Nazi tyranny in the 20th century. Me as a German i really wondered. how my German fellow and well educated folks could go on so long so far down the road with the Nazi ideology until 1945. You must know that the last year of the war caused nearly 50% of all the casualties. What really struck me lately was the the clear conclusion after so many years of trying to find out the real reason that it was the plain idea among most of the Germans at that time that they were trapped in this vicious and sick logic of US or Them! That most of the Germans were in 1944-45 really believing that „they“ will wipe out “us“ as a people, as a culture and as a state completely and forever! No matter wether it was the Russians or the western Allies… the Germans were hammered with that Nazi Propaganda and that logic over years and years and they couldnt even think otherwise…. Thats why they were fighting and believing that racist crap to the very end, since the implied it over all the other peoples and primarily the Jews at the first place for so many years ans waging this terrible wars and the holocaust. When this conclusion came to my mind i was devastated for a few days since this mechanism is so simple and stupid and so old and still around…. thought its so obvious! Diversity and tolerance, respect and sympathy for each other is the only solution! Thanks for this wonderful lecture my dear Mr. Hamer!
Buggers
But the Spanish Jews fled to Northern Europe. The Netherlands specifically. That’s a big part of why the Dutch were successful. The Jews who fled from catholic spain helped invent the stock market and the corporation.
🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏👏👏👏👏👏👌👌👌👌👌👌
I liked your lecture even after you started talking about US politics. As a conservative Republican I find it amusing to be placed in the 'other' category by the members of your group.
Spain was created in 1784. Aragon is called after the roman empire region of hispania terraconensis. Hence, the inquisition was used to spread castilian language badly called spanish. In fact, the people that call spanish as castilian language are the direct ancestors of inquisition times and narrative, which indicates nothing has changed much.
Oh my GOD! Another nationalist fanatic.
@@zaphodtrillian5237 I have, and every single sentence is wrong. Xavi Sanchez is a Catalan nationalist, and from his writing I would guess he is a Catalan supremacist.
Haha you are funny... you cite inqusition how they knew that people liked inqusition torture more then the Kings... haha
Nice information but haven't you gone off topic? I thought this was on the inquisition. Disappointed.
Codex Theodosius 16.5.40 - sanction - REVELATION 13. "The others" in the Edict of Thessonolica were the original MESSIANIC ECCLESIA or Disciples of the New Testament community. From constatine to pope sixtus III= REVELATION 13
aristotle was basically a slave? That has to be the dumbest comment yet in this series
"One of the things that happened in Europe by creating these kind of aggressive identities, it fuelled an aggressive state that ultimately became imperialistic" (1:35:00) Yea! Because its not like Umayad Muslim rule in western Europe was imperialistic or anything? Its not that it was established by aggressive violence and expansionism and imperialism? These things only go one way. When Europeans push back its "aggressive imperialism", when non Europeans attack, subjugate and displace Europeans, silence.
w on the moon
There is no chance that those numbers are final numbers. Who are your sources? Spanish inqusition? :)
I don't expect so.
Were they barbaric?
I take offense, and I am greatly offended the way you laugh and make the inquisition as fun and games, there were many people who were hurt by the inquisition, and you should have some respect for them
Too soon?
It is is astonishing how blinded people from Western Europe are about Islam. West developed while people living in the border of empire served as human shield to defend that Europe from Islam. While in Italy, Austria, Germany art and culture developed, people in Balkans served as dogs fighting with Islamist Turks and their allies. If you want to see level of culture, just go visit all places in Balkans that are left under influence of Islam, like Albania, Bosnia. If you travel to Istambul, you will see great Hagia Sophia, which was not built by Muslims, but taken over and converted. In fact most of great architecture in Istambul are from Byzantine, Christian times. Spain is little bit different because it was far from the core of the events, not because of "nice" Islam. When France and Germany are turned into sharia states, you will realize how fooled you were by that lie you believed yourself into.
I'm not particularly fond of islam and I know the Hagia Sophia was build as a christian church, but there some pretty nice architecture done by muslim cultures.
Go soak your head, bigot.
This sort of stereotype of Muslims as an uncivilized "enemy within" is exactly the sort of propaganda that led to the genocidal slaughter of Muslims in the Bosnian War by forces from Serbia (where I presume the commenter is from based on his name). People reading this should realize the sinister and very recent history behind claims like this. If France and Germany are turned (again) into killing grounds by right wing nationalists, they'll realize how fooled they were by the lies of people like Bogdan here.
Islam is of Ishmae. is of Ibram ... Muslim is of Esau-Edom aka Esau-ite, Edom-ite, I Do Mean, Iewe, Jew, State of Isn'trael ... Muslims are Jews Genesis 36:3 ...
Only rabbinacal Judaism was allowed. Not Karaite Messianic Jews. They are hiding history from you. The original MESSIANIC ASSEMBLY was called "the Sect of the Nazarenes" - Ephinasius