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

Sixtus IV, the pope who built the Sistine Chapel, let the Spanish crown rather than Rome name the inquisitors; when he condemned their abuses in 1482,...

Q 02/05

Which two rulers, known as the "Catholic Monarchs", appointed the first Spanish inquisitors in 1480?

A) Philip IV and Mariana of Austria

B) Philip II and Mary Tudor

C) Ferdinand and Isabella

D) Alfonso X and Violant

Answer · why

C) Ferdinand and Isabella

Ferdinand and Isabella held the pope's licence for almost two years before using it, then named two friars who began work in Andalusia within months.

Q 03/05

Which kingdom set up its own inquisition on the Spanish model in 1536?

A) France

B) Portugal

C) England

D) Scotland

Answer · why

B) Portugal

Portugal's king had lobbied Rome for it for years, and it pressed converts' families so hard that many later crossed into Spain to get away from it.

Q 04/05

In which city did the Spanish Inquisition hold its first auto de fe, burning six people in 1481?

A) Córdoba

B) Seville

C) Valladolid

D) Zaragoza

Answer · why

B) Seville

Seville held it on 6 February 1481, burning six men and women; thousands of converted families fled the city, and nobles sheltering them were ordered ...

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

Tomás de Torquemada, the queen's confessor, made his name a byword for fanaticism; by 1494 his age and the complaints reaching Rome led the pope to ap...