Claim: In 1517, English merchants were given preferential merchant status-including the right to bear arms in the region, and were also brought under the watch of the Spanish Inquisition (which intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms).
Evidence: In 1517, English merchants were given preferential merchant status-including the right to bear arms in the region. In addition to triggering the English Reformation and the break from the Roman Catholic Church, it also brought every English merchant in Spain under the watch of the Spanish Inquisition. It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms and to replace the Medieval Inquisition, which was under Papal control.