Spanish Inquisition

The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition, commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition, was a tribunal established in 1478 by King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile, the monarchs of Spain. It was intended to maintain orthodoxy in their kingdom, and to replace the medieval Inquisition which was under Papal control. However behind this ostensible well-meaning goal, the Inquisition was rife with corruption; sadistic fanatics, the Inquisitors were known for their unnecessary and extreme acts of violence towards non-Catholics, or even Catholics who dared to speak out against them.
==History==
The establishment of the Spanish Inquisition was authorized in 1478 by Pope Sixtus IV at the request of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, the King and Queen of Spain, permitting them to appoint priests as inquisitors.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1478
The first auto-da-fé (act of faith) was held in Seville in 1481, during which six people were burned alive. From there, the Inquisition grew rapidly in the Kingdom of Castile.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1481 In 1483, the Supreme Council of the Inquisition was established to supervise all tribunals. That year, all Jews were from Andalusia and a new court was formed with a 30-day grace period for Jews to renounce their religion if they wished to remain. Torture was used to extract confessions from those suspecting of relapsing, and those found guilty of doing so were burned.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1483
The first Inquisitor General was Tomás de Torquemada, who in 1491 was persuaded by then-Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia to arrest a number of supposed heretics—in truth, Spanish Assassins—upon being given a list of supposed heretics. After the Assassin Luis de Santángel requested the Italian Assassin Ezio Auditore's aid, Ezio traveled to Spain to free his fellow Assassins and killed several Inquisitors, namely, Gaspar Martínez, Pedro Llorente, and Juan de Marillo. However, Ezio spared Torquemada in the mistaken belief that he was not a Templar and had been manipulated by Rodrigo into arresting the Assassins. This unfortunately allowed Torquemada to continue his acts of cruelty as Inquisitor General.Assassin's Creed II: Discovery
By 1492, tribunals existed in eight Castilian cities. That year, the formally expelled all Jews from Spain. Tens of thousands were baptized in the three months before the deadline for expulsion. Around 40,000 left the country.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1492
The Spanish Assassins eventually killed Torquemada in 1498,Assassin's Creed II – Glyphs while Luis began poisoning Queen Isabella in an attempt to end the Inquisition, having learned that Cesare Borgia, with the Church's backing, had been threatening her to facilitate the Inquisition's spread into Portugal. The Italian Assassins sent by Ezio continued Luis' work following his death. Regardless, Manuel I of Portugal chose to allow the Inquisition into his country and opted to banish the Jewish population. The Assassins helped many flee to Constantinople and assisted those who could not to fight for themselves.Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy – Contracts
The Ottoman Empire's Sultan Bayezid II accepted the influx of refugees, knowing that the intellectuals among them would ultimately benefit his empire. Hoping to spread their influence and weaken the Ottoman Empire, the Templars hid saboteurs and dissidents in the crowds; however, the Italian Assassins thwarted this plan, eliminating the Templar agents and ensuring the refugees were welcomed.Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood 
In 1558, the Inquisition presided over trials against Lutheran groups and autos-da-fé were held, some presided over by members of the royal family. Over 100 executions took place, virtually putting an end to Spanish Protestantism.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1558 By 1562, more acts, such as disrespect to church images and eating meat on forbidden days, were deemed as heresy. Approximately a dozen Spaniards were burned alive on accusations of having violated these acts.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1562
In 1570, following an of Moorish Muslims forcibly converted to Christianity, the Inquisition turned its attention to Islam. In 1609, King Philip III ordered the expulsion of the Moriscos and an estimated 300,000, roughly 4% of the total Spanish population, were forced to leave the country. During this period, the Inquisition began burning people for offenses including witchcraft, blasphemy, bigamy and freemasonry.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1570-1613
By the 1720s, increasing numbers of licenses to possess and read prohibited texts were granted as new ideas poured into Spain and inquisitorial activity began winding down. Leading figures of the Spanish Enlightenment pushed for the abolition of the Inquisition and foreign Enlightenment texts proved popular among members of the nobility and government.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1720's In 1789, during the French Revolution, the Council of Castile, fearing that revolutionary ideas would penetrate Spain's borders, reactivated the Holy Office responsible for the persecution of French works. A new Inquisition edict was passed banning seditious French papers, but it did little to stem the material crossing the border.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1789
The Inquisition was first abolished when Napoleon Bonaparte appointed his brother Joseph as King of Spain in 1808.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1808 However, the Inquisition was reconstituted by Ferdinand VII when he was restored to the throne in 1814.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1814 The Spanish Inquisition was definitively abolished on 15 July 1834 by a Royal Decree signed by Regent Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies, Ferdinand VII's liberal widow.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1834
==Gallery==
The Inquisitions Army.jpg|The army led by Torquemada and Ojeda
==Appearances==
*Assassin's Creed II 
*Assassin's Creed II: Discovery 
*Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
*Assassin's Creed (film)
*Assassin's Creed: The Official Movie Novelization
*Assassin's Creed: Rebellion
*Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple 
==References==
Category:Templar conspiracies
Category:Templar-affiliated groups
Category:Assassin-Templar War
Category:Inquisitions
fr:Inquisition espagnole