Portugal possessed several foreign provinces, among which was Goa, on the Malabar coast of India. Francis Xavier, A.D. 1545, signified to King John III., “that the Jewish wickedness spread every day more and more, in the parts of the East Indies subject to the kingdom of Portugal; and therefore he earnestly besought the king, that to cure so great an evil he would take care to send the office of the Inquisition into those countries.” Upon this, Cardinal Henry, then inquisitor-general in the kingdom of Portugal, erected the tribunal of the Holy Inquisition in the city of Goa, the metropolis, and sent into those parts inquisitors, and other necessary officials, who should take diligent care of the affairs of the faith. Alexius Diaz Falcano entered upon his office, as inquisitor at Goa, A.D. 1541. And from that period this tribunal has continued, so that by its intolerance, victims, and cruelties, it has brought the province to the lowest stage of degradation, and a burden as well as a disgrace to Portugal.
On several occasions, general indulgences were granted to the Hebrew converts in Portugal, in hope of reconciling them fully to the papacy. The first was by Pope Clement VII., A.D. 1535; and this was confirmed by Pope Paul III., A.D. 1536. The second was issued by the same pontiff, A.D. 1547; at the same time the inquisitors were required to proceed with greater vigour against judaisers in that kingdom. Still he granted a general pardon to the new converts and their children.
Sebastian, king of Portugal, on the occasion of his preparation for his unfortunate expedition into Africa, in which he fell, granted to the descendants of the Jews, A.D. 1577, for a large sum of money, that their effects should not be confiscated for ten years. This pretended liberality, though sanctioned by Pope Gregory XIII., was contrary to the advice of Philip II., his uncle, the king of Spain; but upon the defeat of the king’s army by the Saracens, the same year, Cardinal Henry, the king’s great uncle, succeeding him on the throne, immediately recalled the said grant, with consent of the Pope, declaring, as the reason of this revocation, “that after the most mature consultation of learned men, they all agreed that he was bound to make such revocation, because the good of the faith required it.”
Cardinal Henry dying in the year 1580, the crown of Portugal fell to Philip, king of Spain; and the new Christians, as the conforming Jews were called, offered him a large sum of money, on condition of his obtaining for them a general indulgence from the Pope; but his divines declared, “that God was greatly offended with such money; and that he could not reasonably expect any prosperous success from it.” So Philip disregarded their offers of money, though he was engaged in an expensive war with England and France.
These Jewish Christians in Portugal continued for many years to endeavour, by repeated entreaties, to procure the abolition of the Inquisition, or at least the mitigation of its laws and policy. But they were only deluded by empty words and flattering promises: for they have remained liable to the penalties ordained against heretics, and to the terrors of the Inquisition, on being accused, as being in every way opposed to the principles and doctrines of Rome.
Charles V., the famous emperor of Germany and king of Spain, was the great supporter of the Inquisition in the Netherlands. These provinces, comprehending Belgium, Holland, and several adjacent countries, he inherited from his father. At an early period, many of their divines procured the writings and embraced the doctrines of Luther; and, therefore, the Inquisition was introduced there, A.D. 1521, by Francis Vander Hulst, chancellor of the emperor in Brabant, and Nicolas Van Egmont, a Carmelite friar. These were appointed inquisitors-general; and their characters and policy we learn from the celebrated Erasmus. He says, in a letter to the archbishop of Palermo, A.D. 1524, “Now the sword is given to two violent haters of good learning, Hulst and Egmont. If they have a spite against any man, they throw him into prison; here the matter is transacted among a few, and the innocent suffers barbarous usage, that they may not lose anything of their authority; and when they find they have done entirely wrong, they cry out, ‘We must take care of the faith.’” In another letter to a friend, he says, “There reigns Egmont, a furious person, armed with the sword, who hates me twice more than he doth Luther. His colleague is Francis Hulst, a great enemy of learning. They first throw men into prison, and then seek out for crimes for which to accuse them. These things the emperor is ignorant of, though it would be worth his while to know them.”
Many followers of Christ, therefore, suffered under these cruel inquisitors by various torments, and the Emperor Charles endeavoured to establish the Inquisition in the Netherlands, after the manner of its operations in Spain. For this purpose he published an edict against heretics; commanding all magistrates, when required by the inquisitors, and at the request of the bishops, to proceed against any in the affair of heresy, and to afford their utmost countenance and assistance in the execution of their office, discovering and apprehending those who might be infected with heretical pravity. This decree authorised them to proceed against transgressors by execution, whatever their dignity or privileges.
Terror filled the minds of the people on learning the character of this edict, and the most gloomy apprehensions excited many to prepare to emigrate from Antwerp. The magistrates, therefore, assembled the chief merchants and traders, to ascertain from them what losses had been sustained by the city, and what further damage was expected from the establishment of the Inquisition. They declared their minds; and a memorial was prepared and laid before Queen Mary, sister of Charles V., and at that time governess of the Netherlands, showing largely, from the edict of the emperor, from the instructions of the inquisitors, and from the privileges of Brabant, how many evils appeared to threaten the city and the whole country. They besought her to intercede with the emperor, that so rich and flourish a city might not be ruined by the operations of the Inquisition. The several orders of Brabant united with those of Antwerp; and the queen was prevailed on to undertake their cause. She at once proceeded to Augsburg, where she obtained another edict, allowing the ecclesiastical judges to demand some persons from the imperial courts to join with them in proceeding against any one accused of heresy. This did by no means meet the case; it was, therefore, received at Antwerp under protestation, that this edict should not derogate anything from the statutes and privileges of the citizens. Still they were ill at ease, such was the dread of the cruelty which had been known of the inquisitors; especially as they saw that those who were privately commissioned by the pope and the emperor to the office of inquisitors, acted as such by themselves, and by their commissaries. For several were shortly condemned as heretics, in many cities; of whom some were beheaded, others hanged, or burned, and some tied up in sacks and drowned!
King Philip succeeding his father, was appealed to against these enormities, and petitioned to grant religious toleration in the Netherlands. But superstition held the mind of the royal fanatic; and he prostrated himself before a crucifix, solemnly imploring—“I beseech the Divine Majesty, that I may never suffer myself to be, or to be called, the lord of those who deny Thee, the Lord!”
Resolved to annihilate the reformation in the Netherlands, Philip converted the three bishoprics into archbishoprics, and established seventeen bishoprics, with a court of inquisition, under the direction of Cardinal Granvile. The Prince of Orange, Count Egmont, and Count Horn remonstrated with the Duchess of Parma, against the Inquisition and Cardinal Granvile. This was in vain. The executions of the Inquisition became more frequent and more rigorous than before; and a general combination was resolved on, to procure a redress of the common grievances. The Duchess of Parma remonstrated with Philip; but the infatuated monarch was deaf to every argument; and the only concession which he made was, that, for the future, heretics, instead of being burnt, should be hanged.