A History of the Inquisition of Spain; vol. 1Lea, Henry Charles
History
A History of the Inquisition of Spain; vol. 1
Lea, Henry Charles
Inquisition -- Spain
Whether formal delegations of the appointing power were subsequently
made does not appear, but practically it continued with the
inquisitor-general, subject to an uncertain co-operation of the Suprema,
whose members countersigned the commissions, while, with the subordinate
positions in the tribunals, the inquisitors were sometimes consulted,
their recommendations received attention and their remonstrances were
heard. The various factors are illustrated in a letter of the Suprema,
August 24, 1544, to the inquisitors of Saragossa who had furnished a
statement of the qualifications of various aspirants for the vacant post
of _notario del juzgado_. In reply the Suprema states that its
secretary, Hieronimo Zurita, had recommended Martin Morales; it had
advised with the inquisitor-general who had appointed him, but it will
bear in mind Bartolomé Malo and will give him something else.[747]
So far as I am aware, Philip II never interfered with this exercise of
the appointing power. That he threw the whole responsibility on the
inquisitor-general and disclaimed any concurrence for himself is
apparent in a series of instructions, May 8, 1595, to the new
inquisitor-general, Geronimo Manrique. He orders him to observe the
utmost care to select fit persons for all positions without favoritism
and, although it is his duty to appoint inquisitors and fiscals, he
should communicate his selections in advance to the Suprema, as his
predecessors had always done, because some of the members may be
acquainted with the parties and prevent errors from being made.[748]
That a supervisory power, however, was still recognized in the crown is
seen in a consulta of June 21, 1600, presented to Philip III, by
Inquisitor-general Guevara, lamenting the unfitness of many of the
inquisitors. With the habitual tenderness manifested to unworthy
officials he did not propose to dismiss them but to make a general
shifting by which the best men should be made the seniors of the
tribunals. To this the king replied with a caution about discrediting
the Inquisition and a suggestion that the parties shifted should be made
to ask for the change; he also called for their names and the reasons,
because he ought to be informed about all the individuals.[749]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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