The Inquisition In The Spanish Dependencies

The Inquisition was a tribunal in Spain and its colonies that was used to persecute Christians who did not agree with the Catholic Church. The Inquisition was first established in the sixteenth century, and it continued to operate until the nineteenth century. The tribunal was used to investigate and punish Christians who did not agree with the Catholic Church. Some of the individuals who were entrusted with implementing the Inquisition abused their power, and the Inquisition in the Spanish colonies prevented the efficient running of governmental administrations. The consequences of the Inquisition include the expulsion of Jews from Naples, the exclusion of new Christians from the Church in Mexico, and the mysticism practiced in New Granada being considered a grave threat to the Catholic Church.

Henry Charles Lea's account of the Inquisition in Italy, Spain and South America was first published in 1908. Drawing on primary source material, the American historian gives a detailed account of the workings of the Inquisition and its individual tribunals in Sicily, Naples, Sardinia and Milan. He also describes the Inquisition in Malta, the Canary Islands, Mexico, Peru, New Granada and the Philippines. According to Lea the Inquisition persisted from the sixteenth right up to the nineteenth century. He demonstrates how some of the individuals entrusted with implementing the Inquisition abused their powers, and how the Inquisition in the Spanish colonies prevented the efficient running of governmental administrations. He focuses on some of the consequences of the Inquisition: Jews were banished from Naples, there were moves to exclude new Christians from the Church in Mexico, and the mysticism practised in New Granada was considered a grave threat to the Church.