Roman Inquisition (Timpson, The Inquisition revealed, 1851)

Text: "I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;" "And he [the little horn] ... shall wear out the saints of the most High, ... and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time." Daniel 7:21,25

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   Many were the victims of that atrocious court, sacrificed with fiendish cruelty in the secret dungeons of the Holy Office. Appalling proofs of this were discovered on the opening of the Inquisition, on the flight of the pope, in February, 1848. The celebrated Father Prout, a Roman. Catholic priest, present on the occasion, in a letter to the London Daily News, therefore, describes the scenes that were witnessed by the citizens, at the opening of the dungeons of the Inquisition. "In one part," he states, "you see a quadrangular court, surrounded by strongly barred dungeons; in another, a courtyard, along which extends a triple row of cages, resembling the port-holes of a three-decker; in another, skeletons in recesses; in another, a vault full of skulls, and piles of scattered human remains, directly under a perpendicular shaft four feet square, which ascended perpendicularly to the floor of the building above, and was covered there with a trap-door; and in another, two large subterranean lime-kilns, if they may be so called, shaped like a bee-hive, in masonry, filled with layers of calcined bones, forming the substratum of two other chambers on the ground floor, in the immediate vicinity of the very mysterious shaft above-mentioned. These horrible sights may be seen by every one in Rome. To-morrow," says Father Prout, "the whole population of Rome is publicly invited by the authorities to come and see, with their own eyes, one of the results of entrusting power to clerical hands."

   Father Prout is believed also to have written the following paper, which was published, as a "Memorial regarding the tribunal of the Holy Office, at the time of its suppression in February, 1849:"—

   "In consequence of a decree of the Roman Constituent Assembly, by which the suppression of the tribunal of the 'Holy Office' was resolved, the government ordered that the fathers of the Dominican order, then inhabiting that vast locality, should remove to the convent called 'Delia Minerva,' the chief seat of their order. They were in number eight, exercising the functions of commissary, chancellor, &c. The doors were then carefully sealed by the Roman notary Caggiotti, to prevent the abstraction of any object, and a keeper was appointed to the premises. These precautions taken, the inventory was commenced. The first place visited was the ground-floor of the edifice, where were the prisons, and the stables, coach-houses, kitchens, cellars, and other conveniences for the use of the assessor and the father inquisitors. This part of the building was to be immediately prepared for the reception of the civic artillery, with the train belonging to it.

   "Some new doors were opened in the wall, and part of the pavement raised; in this operation, human bones were found, and a trap-door discovered, which induced a resolution to make excavations in certain spots pointed out by persons well acquainted with the locality. Digging very deep in a place, a great number of human skeletons were found, some of them placed so close together, and so amalgamated with lime, that no bone could be moved without being broken. In the roof of another subterranean chamber a large ring was found fixed. It is supposed to have been used in administering the torture. It still remains there. Along the whole length of this same room, stone steps, rather broad, were attached to the wall—these, probably, served for the prisoners to sit or recline on. In a third under-ground room was found a quantity of very black and rich earth, intermingled with human hair, of such a length that it seemed women's rather than men's hair; here, also, human bones were found. In this dungeon a trap-door was formed in the thickness of the wall, which opened into a passage in the flat above, leading to the rooms where examinations were conducted. Among the inscriptions made with charcoal on the wall, it was observed that many appeared of a very recent date, expressing in most affecting terms the sufferings of every kind endured in these chambers. The person of most note found in the prison of the Inquisition was a bishop named Kasher, who had been in confinement for upwards of twenty years. He related that he had arrived in Borne from the Holy Land, having in his possession papers which had belonged to an ecclesiastic there. Passing himself for that person, he succeeded in surprising the court of Rome into ordaining and consecrating him a bishop. The fraud was afterwards discovered, and Kasher, being then on his way to Palestine, was arrested and brought to the prison of the Holy Office, where he expected to have ended his days—less, as he expressed himself, to expiate his own fraud, than the gross blunder of the church of Rome, which had no other means of concealing his character of bishop, its own absolute laws preventing his being deprived of it.

   "The inventory of the contents of the ground flat being finished in a few days, it was then thrown open to the impatient curiosity of the public. The crowd that resorted to the scene was very great, and the public indignation rose so high, that there was a loud and general cry for the destruction of an edifice of such detestable memory. This feeling was so strong, that on a Sunday afternoon, in March, faggots were thrown into the cellars and other under-ground rooms, with the intention of setting fire to the building; and this would have been accomplished, had not a battalion of civic guards rushed to the spot from the Piazza di S. Pietro. To the truth of all that is here related, thousands, both Italians and foreigners, who visited the place can testify; and there exists also a detailed account of everything, written and solemnly attested with legal forms.

   "Passing to the upper flat, the attention of the government was especially directed to the chancery and the archives; the first containing all the current affairs of the Inquisition; the second jealously guarding its acts, from its institution until now. Before commencing the catalogue of the contents of the chancery, it was resolved to remove such papers as might disturb or compromise the tranquillity of those persons who had relations with the Holy Office.

   "Attention was especially directed to the book called 'Solecitazione,' (containing reports,) and to the correspondence. This was done by order of the government, which thereby gave another proof of that moderation which its enemies deny to it. It appears, from a careful examination of these documents, which remain for the inspection of such as desire proofs, that the past government made use of this tribunal, strictly ecclesiastical in its institution, also for temporal and political objects, and that the most culpable abuse was made of sacramental confession, especially that of women, rendering it subservient both to political purposes and to the most abominable licentiousness. It can be shown, from documents, that the cardinals, secretaries of state, wrote to the commissary, to the assessor of the Holy Office, to procure information as to the conduct of the suspected individuals, both at home and abroad, and to obtain knowledge of state secrets by means of confession, especially those of foreign courts and cabinets. In fact, there exists long correspondences, and voluminous processes, and severe sentences, pronounced upon La Giovine Italia, La Jeune Suisse, the masonic societies of England and Scotland, and the anti-religious sects of America, &c. There is an innumerable quantity of information and processes on scandalous and obscene subjects, in which the members of regular religious societies are usually implicated.

   "Passing from the chancery to the archives, which is in the second floor, it appeared, on first entering, as if everything was in its usual place; but on further inspection it was found, with much astonishment, that though the labels and cases were in their places, they were emptied of the packets of papers and documents indicated by the inscriptions without. Some conjecture that the missing packets have been conveyed to the convent 'Della Minerva,' or were hidden in the houses of private persons; while others suppose that they were burnt by the Dominican fathers. This last hypothesis receives weight from the circumstance that in November, 1848, shortly after the departure of the Pope from Rome, the civic guard came in much haste to the Holy Office, from having observed great clouds of smoke issuing from one of the chimneys, accompanied by a strong smell of burnt paper. But whatever were the means, the fact is certain, that, in the archives of the Inquisition, the most important trials were not to be found; such, for instance, as those of Galileo Galilei, and of Giordano Bruno, nor was there the correspondence regarding the reformation in England, in the 16th century, nor many other precious records. There remains, however, nearly complete, a collection of decrees, beginning with the year 1549, down to our own days. They were divided year by year, each volume containing the decrees of one year. Of these, of all that was contained in the chancery and archives of the Holy Office, a catalogue has been taken, with every legal formality of certification. It ought to be added that, after the above-mentioned threat of setting fire to the Holy Office, it was unanimously decreed by the Assembly that, instead of destroying that vast edifice, it should be portioned into dwellings for poor families of Rome. In consequence of this decision, the government was obliged to remove all the papers in the chancery and archives, along with three libraries existing in the Holy Office, to the Palazzo dell Apolinare, which was the residence assigned for the Minister of Finance.

   "Of these three libraries one was private property, the other two belonged to the Inquisition. It must not be omitted to notice that the Holy Office had its independent revenue, arising from gifts of state property, chiefly bestowed by Sixtus V. and Pius IV., amounting clear to about 8,000 scudi. This sum was chiefly spent in paying the monks attached to the Inquisition, some of whom received considerable salaries. In the above income is not included the money exacted from prisoners as board; the account of what was paid, for example, by the famous Abbess of Monte Castrelli, was found to be 3,000 scudi. The authorised paid agents of the Holy Office, called 'Patentali,' were well remunerated; indeed, this was a system by which many persons were demoralised and corrupted, whose birth and education should have removed them far from such a base and guilty traffic, but who were tempted, perhaps, by necessity.

   "To conclude, in a few brief categories we may sum up the results of this inquiry:—

   "1. That the court of Rome availed itself of the tribunal of the Holy Office for temporal and political ends.

   "2. That to succeed in its purposes, the Holy Office had especially recourse to confession, of which it made the most enormous and abominable abuse, not only violating secresy, but tampering with its integrity.

   "3. By means of confession, the most odious licentiousness was insinuated in the confessionals. With this branch, the Holy Office occupied itself with extraordinary diligence, but without finding a remedy for the causes of such scandal.

   "4. That the Holy Office corrupted all classes, buying information and secrets.

   "5. That the ecclesiastical nuncios at foreign courts are in constant correspondence with the Holy Office, and from possessing means of procuring intelligence quite peculiar to themselves, keep the court of Rome informed of the most hidden political secrets."

   Enormous as the abominations are which are thus testified concerning the Inquisition, they are only identical with what are recorded in the former part of this work; and this testimony is confirmed by the following paragraph in a letter from a friend at Rome, April 3, 1849, addressed to the Rev. E. Bickersteth:—

   "The day before yesterday, the palace of the Inquisition was opened to the public. People crowded to see that horrible place, where so many good Christians have been tormented, under the pretext of being heretics. There were then seen the horrid dungeons where the victims of the papacy have been incarcerated.

   "It seems that the inquisitors, in hopes of an intervention to bring back the Pope and cardinals to Rome, did not take sufficient care to remove certain objects which might betray their cruelty to the people. There were then to be seen in the lower dungeons, which are the worst, the squalid remains of the dresses, not only of men, but of women and children. On the walls are to be read expressions of grief written with charcoal, and some with blood. A trap-door was to be seen, and a burial with human bones. But a subterranean cave occasioned special horror, covered with remains of bones and earth mixed, including human skulls and skeletons of different forms and sizes, indicating persons of different ages. The only things which have not been found, with the exception of some things which might have been used for the purpose, are the instruments of torture, which were used to make the guilty confess. It seems that these they have been careful enough to destroy, if indeed they may not be found walled up in some corner; and for this end the government have determined to have the walls broken into, to discover what may be hid there. All who have seen those remains of clothing and bones, feel justly indignant at the inhumanity of those assassins, who, under the cloak of religious zeal, permitted every kind of cruelty. Would that those who wish to excuse that hellish tribunal, and who do not believe what others say to be truth, would come and see them with their own eyes. I wish that the friends and defenders of popery in England would come and touch these things with their own hands, and then tell me of what papal ministers are not capable, when they have the heart to perpetrate such barbarities. I shall urge the government to leave this place in statu quo for some time, so that my friends among the English may verify, with their own eyes, all that they hear said concerning this 'Palace of the Inquisition.'"

Timpson, Thomas, The Inquisition revealed; in its origin, policy, cruelties, and history, with memoirs of its victims in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, England, India and other countries, London: Aylott and Jones, 1851, pp. 325-334.

Online Source: archive.org/details/inquisitionrevea00timsiala

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