The Spanish Inquisition: A Historical Revision

Kamen, whose lifelong study of Spain in the 15th through 18th centuries most recently yielded his biography of Philip II, now reconsiders one of his earliest books. Well received when originally published in 1966, ""very much in it has been superseded by subsequent research,"" as Kamen notes in his preface. Combining his own thorough study of the Inquisition's voluminous written record and recent scholarly works such as Benjamin Netanyahu's enormous The Origins of the Inquisition in 15th Century Spain, Kamen has fashioned an extensive survey that dispels some very old stereotypes. Without minimizing its disastrous effects on Spain's Jewish population, Kamen convincingly argues that the Inquisition was not as malevolent--or active--as its reputation. Due to Spain's geographic diversity and its longevity, (from the late 15th century until 1820), there was no single Inquisition; in fact, ""over long periods of time and substantial areas of the country, it quite simply did nothing."" By putting the Inquisition in the context of its historical period, Kamen shows that its much-feared torture chambers may have been more merciful than those in the rest of Europe, and that far fewer people died than had been estimated previously. Readers with only a vague knowledge of the Inquisition should find this a good place to start, even if its thematic (rather than chronological) organization may get confusing at times (the nuts-and-bolts chapter ""How It Operated"" appears halfway through the book). As to why the Inquisition started and how it continued for so long, Kamen offers no new grand conclusions, since ""no answer can match the complexity of the questions."" (Mar.)