Trials and Punishments of the Inquisition

The use of torture was only used in the case of a repeat heretic, one who has already been tried, found guilty, served their punishment and then proceeded to commit heresy again. Torture was approved as a method by Pope Innocent IV’s bull Ad extirpandum in 1252, but inquisitors were not allowed to torture heretics themselves. A heretic had to be turned over to secular authorities to be tortured or killed. Torture was used to get heretics to confess to their heresy. The most popular tortures were flogging, the rack, putting feet into hot coals and tying the hands behind the back and lifting them up with rope attached to the wrists and a pulley called the garrucha, used mainly in Spain and Italy. Confessions given under torture had to be re confessed outside of torture to make sure the confession was not given just to make the torturers stop the torture. If the heretic refused to give confession, then he would be tortured again.

Burnings were also only used in the case of a repeat heretic. The heretic would be told the day before the execution took place. Often multiple people were burned on the same day. These were always held in public and many people often showed up to watch. It started with reading the charges brought against each heretic. This was the longest part of the ordeal. The heretics were given a last chance to confess. If they did they were garroted to death before having their bodies be burned. Garroting is fastening somebody to a chair or vertical board with a ring of malleable metal or rope around their necks. At the back of the chair or board is a crank that when turned tightens the metal or rope until the victim is strangled to death. This causes less pain than being burned alive. The ones who refused to confess were burned alive at the stake. As further punishment, already burnt corpses would be placed next to others who had not been burned yet.

While the tortures and burnings may seem cruel, it is important to remember that heretics were given many chances to confess and be forgiven before they were killed. Those who did not seemed intent on killing themselves. Also only one third of all cases ended with some sort of punishment being given, even less being tortured or burnt which comes to a very small amount. With all the chances given by the Inquisition to heretics to repent it is clear that they were merciful and only punished the few to help save the many people who could have been swayed away from faith by a heretic. The cruelty portrayed to be common in the Inquisition is completely false, it should instead be thought of as a group dedicated to saving the public, not burning it.

The garrucha being used by the Inquisition

Torture on the rack

A mass burning with spectators