Book description
Everybody has heard of the Inquisition. It was an institution that
pursued heretics, philandering priests and sexual deviants in Europe,
Africa, Asia and Latin America for a period of over 350 years, changing
its focus with the times and enduring stubbornly into the nineteenth
century. Today the word implies dread, fear and a withheld threat of
torture. But who were its targets? Why did it provoke such fear? How and
where did it operate? Why was it founded, and why did it last for so
long? Toby Green's incredible new book brings an extraordinary 350-year
period vividly to life by focusing on the hitherto untold stories of
individuals from all walks of life. Because the Inquisition touched
every aspect of society, it changed the world: people attending church
had to look suitably devout, or they might be denounced; a curse at a
game of cards, thrown out in the heat of the moment, could bring an
investigation; stripping fat from a leg of lamb was enough to excite
accusations of being a Jew. A secret police and a thought police, the
Inquisition produced a permanent state of fear. This history, though
filled with stories of terror and the unspeakable ways in which human
beings can treat one another, is also one of hope and ultimately of the
resilience of the human spirit. Instead of being cowed by their fear,
countless people rebelled in small and big ways, paving the way for a
more inclusive society. The story of the Inquisition is not, then, one
to be hidden and avoided; it deserves to be told in all its human
richness and complexity.
Toby Green is the author of three previous books and his work has
been translated into six languages. He has travelled widely in Africa
and Latin America, and now lives with his wife and daughter in the
West Country.
