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> torturing people to death No, the Spanish Inquisition strictly forbid torturing people to death (death only happened when people were condemned to it). There
by diegocg 5y ago
> torturing people to death
No, the Spanish Inquisition strictly forbid torturing people to death (death only happened when people were condemned to it). There were, in fact, regulations that required to not provoke any bleeding (even just a drop) during the torture -you can cause severe damage without bleeding of course-, and the process had to stop if it happened. A person was dedicated to oversee the entire process and stop it in these cases.
What people often misses is that these tortures weren't anything special at the time. The right to not be tortured is quite modern. The Inquisition just took a look at what the existing institutions were doing, and imitated it (regulating the entire process in the way: there were only three types of torture methods allowed, for example)
The Inquisition wasn't an unified entity either - Galileo was condemned by the Roman Inquisition, but the Spanish Inquisition didn't have any problem with his theories and didn't forbid his books.
- hutzlibu 5y agoSorry, but for me burning to death is torturing to death. And I am aware, that the real inquisition was much more restrained, than their image - but it doesn't change anything for the better, of what they did. They represented the highest authority in terms of what was allowed to be thought and said. And they did use tortue and execution to cement their authority. Basically killing scientists for doing science. And stopping people to become scientists in the first place, as everyone knew what happened to free thinking scientists. Rather work your field, peaseant - or pray your prayers low monk. I cannot see anything positive in that institution.
- anthk 5y agoThat's false. More like confronting Catholicism, but even monks did science. How do you think cathedrals were built in Middle Ages? Weapons? Armory? Trebuchets? Astronomics to sail to "The Indians"? Monks were very faith-obsessed but not ultimately dumb to power. Also, the School of Salamanca (around Don Quixote era) was the roots of Humanism.
- hutzlibu 5y agoDid I say no science happened? I said it was blocked a lot. Because when every research that you do, has to align to the literal words of a big book, under the explicit threat of burning at the stake - it is surprising, how much progress was possible despite of it.
- anthk 5y agoOFC, but it wasn't just an empire made of castles, churches and hamlets.