The Inquisition in New Spain, 1536-1820: a documentary history

Abstract

This collection of documents pertaining to the Holy Office of the Inquisition for New Spain makes an important contribution to readers' understanding of the efforts to maintain social control and religious conformity in multiethnic New Spain. Edited and translated by [John F. Chuchiak IV] (Missouri State Univ.), the 50-plus sources are divided into three sections. Section 1 focuses on the establishment of the Inquisition and the regulations governing it.

50-0616 BX1740 2011-22947 CIP The Inquisition in New Spain, 1536-1820: a documentary history, ed. and tr. by John F. Chuchiak IV. Johns Hopkins, 2012. 428p bibl index afp ISBN 9781421403861 pbk, $70.00

This collection of documents pertaining to the Holy Office of the Inquisition for New Spain makes an important contribution to readers' understanding of the efforts to maintain social control and religious conformity in multiethnic New Spain. Edited and translated by Chuchiak (Missouri State Univ.), the 50-plus sources are divided into three sections. Section 1 focuses on the establishment of the Inquisition and the regulations governing it. Section 2 consists of documents that pertain to the Inquisition's procedures and operations. Included are rules for the administration of torture and regulations governing life in the Inquisition's prisons. The sources in the final section deal with trial proceedings and the testimonies of accused persons and their accusers. They demonstrate clearly the reach of the Inquisition into the religious and social affairs of the occupants of New Spain. The emphasis is on questions of blasphemy, gambling, sorcery, sexual behavior, cryptoJudaism, and other forms of heresy. In many respects, this is the most important part of the book. All of the sections are prefaced by short but helpful explanations. Included is an excellent introduction that offers a concise review of the origins of inquisitorial procedures in early modern Europe and of the creation of the Inquisition in Spain and its extension to New Spain. Readers will find the glossary of terms especially helpful. Notes and bibliography complement the documents. This book supplements The Spanish Inquisition, 1478-1614: An Anthology of Sources (2006), edited and translated by Lu Ann Homza. Summing Up: Recommended. HH Graduate students and researchers/faculty.-L. B. Gimelli, emeritus, Eastern Michigan University