Abridgment of the Book of Acts and Monuments by Timothy Bright, Volume 1 · Book 7 · Account 4
The execrable Inquiſition of Spaine.
IT firſt began by Ferdinandus and Elizabeth his wife,Of the execrable Inquiſitiō of Spaine. and was inſtituted againſt the Iewes, which after their Baptiſme, profeſſed their owne ceremonies: but now it is practiſed againſt the profeſſors of the Goſpell. The Spaniardes, eſpecially the great diuines, doo hold, that the holy Inquiſition can not erre: and that the Fathers of the Inquiſition can not bée deceiued. By the order of the Inquiſition, the party called in queſtion, if any thing be ſuſpected or pretended, is incontinent commaunded to a horrible pryſon, and there they find out crimes againſt him at leaſure. In the meane time no man liuing ſo hardy (not the father for the child) as to ſpeake for him: for if he do, he is alſo taken, and caſt into priſon: neither is it permitted for any one to enter into the priſon, but there he endureth alone, where he can not ſée ſo much as the ground, and where he ſuſtaineth moreouer whippings, rackings, irons, tortures, &c. Sometimes they are brought foorth, and ſhewed in ſome high place, for an open ſpectacle of rebuke and ſhame: and thus are ſome of them deteined many yéeres, & murthered by long tormentes whole daies together:Torments whole dayes together. during all the time what is doone in the priſon no mā knoweth, but only ye holy Fathers and the tormentors: all is doone in ſecrete: the accuſer ſecrete, the crime ſecrete, the witneſſe ſecrete, neyther is the poore priſoner euer aduertiſed of any thing: if hée can geſſe who accuſed him, wherefore and whereof, hée may bée pardoned peraduenture of his life, but this is very ſeldome, and yet is he not ſet at libertie, before hée hath endured long time infinit torments: and this is called their Penitence: and ſo he is let go, yet not but that hée muſt weare a garment with yellow coulours, for a note of publike infamie to him and his whole race. And if he can not geſſe right, ſhewing to the iudge by whom he was accuſed, and whereof, incontinent the horrible ſentence of condemnation is pronounced againſt him, to be burned for an obſtinate heretike: yet ſo the ſentence is not executed till he hath endured impriſonment, in ſome hainous priſon.
Thrée ſortes of men, moſt principally bée in daunger of theſe Inquiſitours.Three ſortes of men in danger of the Inquiſition. 1. They that bée greatly rich, for the ſpoyle of their goods. 2. They that bée learned, becauſe they will not hauehave their ſecrete abuſes eſpied. 3. They that begin to increaſe in honour, and dignitie, leaſt beyng in honour they ſhould worke them ſome ſhame. This Inquiſition the King & Princes are bound by oth to mainteine with all their power.
1559 28. martyrs in the towne of Validoly.Anno one thouſand, fiue hundred, and fiftie and nine. The 25. day of May, in the towne of Validoly, where commonly the councell of the Inquiſition is wont to be kept, there were eight and twentie godly Chriſtians (ſauing one Iew) that did ſuffer for the teſtimonie of the truth, whereof 14. were burned, and the reſt had their goods confiſcate, and a note of diſhonour layd vponupon them, for the name of Ieſus. They which were burnt, and their goods confiſcate, were D. Cacalla, Cacalla M.ſomtime an Auguſtine frier, prieſt of the towne of Validoly, and ſometime preacher to Charles the fifth, a man of great learning,A Chriſtian ſtocke. Iohn de Biuero prieſt of Validoly, and brother to Cacalla, Dame Blaunch, ſiſter vntounto them, Frauncis de Biuero, brother vntounto the Dame, Conſtance de Biuero, an other Siſter, Dame Leoner de Biuero, her couſin: being already dead long before at Validoly, ye mother to the fiue aforeſaide, aboue her coffine, was her picture laide, which was condemned with her dead corpes, to be burned for an heritike. Moreouer, her goodes being confiſcate, her houſe, was adiudged vtterly to be raſed, and caſt downe to the grounde: and for memoriall thereof, a marble ſtone to be ſet vp in the place: wherein the cauſe of her burning ſhould be engraued. After theſe, were condemned M. Alfonz Perez, prieſt of Valence, Chriſtoph. Del citizen of Samora, Chriſtopher de Padilla, Anthony de Huizuelo, Katherine Roman, Frauncis Erreni, Katherin Ortega, Iſabel Strada, Iane Valeſques, and a certaine Smith. They were all firſt ſtrangled, ſauing Anthony Huizuelo: who was burned aliue, becauſe he did with more vehemency, deteſt the Pope, then the reſt. They which had their goodes confiſcate, were theſe: Don Petro Sarmiento, knight of the order of Alcantara, dwelling at Valence, & ſonne of the marques de Poza, was iudged to beare a SanbenitaSanbenita. all his life, and cōdemned to perpetuall priſon, with loſſe of his order, & all his goods: to whō it was moreouer enioyned, neuer to weare any more gold, ſiluer, precious ſtones, &c. Dame Mencia his wife was adiudged to the ſame puniſhment. Don Louis de Ropas, ſonne and heire of the the marques of Poza, through great ſuit made for him, was condemned only to weare a Sanbenita vntounto the town-houſe, and his goods to be confiſcat. The ſame iudgement was alſo giuen of dame Anne Henriques, daughter of the marques Alcauſes, & mother to ye marques de Peza, and wife to Lorde Alphonſus de Fonſeca.
Dame Iane de Silua, wife to Iohn de Biuero, brother to Doctor Cacalla, was enioyned to beare a mantle all her life, for penance: & her goods confiſcate. The like did Leonard de Liſuers, wife to Huizuelo, Doct. of diuinity ſuffer. Item, Marina de Saiauera, wife of Ciſneras de Sareglio. Itē, Daniel Quadra, born at Pedroſa: al which 3. were condemned to perpetual priſon wt their mantels, & cōfiſcation of al their goods: dame Mary de Roias was iudged to beare her mantel to the town houſe, and her goods confiſcate. Anthony Dominicke de Pedroſa was condemned to thrée yeares impriſonment, clothed with a Sanbenita, and his goods cōfiſcate. Anthony Baſor an Engliſhman, was enioyned to beare his mantell to the Towne houſe, and was thruſt into a cloyſter for one yeare, there to be inſtructed. There was a Iew likewiſe burned at that time for reuolting from his chriſtē dome to Iudaiſme.
It is reported, beſydes theſe aforeſaid 37. other priſoners yet remained at Validolie, reſerued to another tragedy of that bloudy Inquiſition.
Beſides Spaine, Naples alſo, and Cicill are ſubiect to to this barbarous Inquiſition: in which kingdome of Cicill, it is credibly reported, that eueryevery thirde yeare a certaine number are brought out to martirdome: Sometime twelue, ſometime ſixe, ſometime more or leſſe: among whō an. 1559. One comming from Geneua to Cicill. vponupon zeale to doe good, was condemned to the fire: and as hee ſhould take his death, was offered by the hangman to bee firſt ſtrangled, but hee refuſed the ſame, ſaying he woulde féele the fire, and ſo endured ſinging with all his might vntounto the Lorde, till he loſt both life, and voice, by force of the fire.