Q 01/05

Which pope authorised the Spanish Inquisition in 1478?

A) Alexander VI

B) Sixtus IV

C) Innocent VIII

D) Julius II

Answer · why

B) Sixtus IV

His bull Exigit sincerae devotionis affectus let the monarchs appoint their own inquisitors, taking control away from Rome.

Q 02/05

Which two monarchs, the "Catholic Monarchs", appointed the first Spanish inquisitors in 1480?

A) Charles V and Isabella of Portugal

B) Philip II and Mary Tudor

C) Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile

D) Alfonso X and Violant of Aragon

Answer · why

C) Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile

Isabella had become convinced during a stay in Seville that Andalusian conversos were secretly practising Judaism.

Q 03/05

Who was the Spanish Inquisition originally intended to identify?

A) Heretics among converts from Judaism and Islam

B) Protestant preachers from Germany

C) Witches in the Basque country

D) Freemasons in the royal court

Answer · why

A) Heretics among converts from Judaism and Islam

Protestants, witches, blasphemers, bigamists and Freemasons were all added to its targets much later.

Q 04/05

Where and when was the first auto de fe with executions held?

A) Toledo, 1492

B) Seville, 1481

C) Zaragoza, 1485

D) Madrid, 1680

Answer · why

B) Seville, 1481

Six people were burned alive, and thousands of conversos fled in terror, hurting commerce and royal revenues.

Q 05/05

Who was the first Grand Inquisitor of Spain?

A) Tomás de Torquemada

B) Diego de Deza

C) Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros

D) Fernando de Valdés

Answer · why

A) Tomás de Torquemada

A Dominican friar and confessor to the monarchs, his name became a byword for religious fanaticism.