The development and practice of the Inquisition in medieval Europe

The persecution of so-called heretics, who were considered a deviant from the church faith in the historical context, played an important role in the Middle Ages. Beginning in the early 13th century and into the late period of medieval society, the activities of the church inquisition shaped religious and social life in large parts of Europe. this oneSystem based on fighting heresy was used with increasing severity by the church authorities, but at the same time it also showed great weaknesses in implementation and in dealing with the persecuted. The practice of the Inquisition was characterized by changing arbitrariness, bureaucratic arbitrariness and social insecurity. The following will show how theInquisition developed during the Middle Ages, which methods were used and what impact it had on society. It becomes clear that the system of persecution was more determined by political and religious interests than by consistent justice.

The beginnings and the organizational development

The systematic persecution of heretics began in Europe after the year 1240, initially mainly in southern France, in the region of what is now Languedoc. At this time, the church bishops were often overwhelmed or unable to fulfill the task independently in their task of identifying heretics and punishing heretics. This condition led to the churchresorted to papal representatives, who were usually recruited from the ranks of the Dominicans. These were sent as inquisitors in order to systematically search for dissenters from faith on behalf of the Pope, to interrogate them and to carry out the respective penalties in the case of convictions. The actual procedures and decisions within the Inquisition hardly allow forRecognizing a uniform pattern, rather the practice was characterized by great variability. There were cases of brutal hardness as well as negligence, and in some cases corruption was also observed among the guardians guarding the prisoners. The penalties imposed ranged from harsh violence to milder measures, with church dignitaries sometimestried to mitigate the penalties. For example, confiscations, expropriations and confiscations of property were often revoked or reduced. Little is known about the exact results of the numerous processes and procedures, so that only individual examples can give an impression.

Examples from the Inquisition Practice

A significant example is the work of the inquisitor Petrus Seila, who condemned a total of 650 people in nine locations in 1241 and 1242. However, these were by no means death sentences or lengthy prison sentences, but rather repentance measures. Seila called on those affected to undertake pilgrimages to Constantinople to take the war in the Holy Landsupport or wear crosses sewn on the clothes. The nature of the convictions was described by historians as a form of confession in which those affected showed their repentance instead of suffering cruel punishments. For the years between 1245 and 1256 only fragmentary records exist, but it contains extensive testimonies of the practice of the time.document. In the years 1245 and 1246 alone, the statements of 5605 witnesses were recorded, which is an exceptionally comprehensive survey. Entire communities were used to testify and all recorded in detail. Another example is the Inquisitor Bernhard von Caux, who pronounced a total of 207 judgments in the summer of 1246. 23 people were imprisoned,while 184 people were sentenced to carry crosses. Not a single death sentence was imposed. For the years 1249 to 1257, there is another list of 306 convictions, including 239 prison sentences and 21 death sentences. The register of the later inquisitor Bernhard Gui, who lived around 1261 to 1331, is particularly important. For the period from March 3, 1308 to June 19, 1323It documented a total of 907 cases, which include 633 penalties. These range from penitential pilgrimages, wearing yellow fabric crosses, prison sentences to burns and death sentences. Overall, it can be stated that the penalties were very different and the practice of the inquisition was by no means arbitrary. A French historian and expert in the Inquisition systemsummarizes that the inquisitors only imposed prison sentences in a fraction of the cases and were only burned in a very small proportion of the cases. The number of people burned is usually given as about one percent, but this information is only an approximate orientation and does not allow any reliable overall statements.

Persecution of the Cathars in Languedoc and their meaning

In connection with the investigations into the persecution of deviant and heretics in the context of the Holy Year 2000, new figures on the inquisition in the Languedoc area were also published. Here the movement of the Cathars is estimated at five to eight percent of the population. Especially in the city of Albi, which in the late 13th and early 14th century a significant onehad influence, a total of 58 known Cathars were punished between 1286 and 1329. With a population of around 8,000 to 10,000 people, this corresponds to about 0.7 percent of the population. A French specialist for the Middle Ages summarizes that the Inquisition in Languedoc probably did not carry out mass persecutions. It is estimated that in the periodFrom about a hundred years between 15,000 and 20,000 people in the Inquisition area attracted attention, which accounts for at most 1.5 percent of the total population in this region. In the end, the persecution of the Cathars was by no means a large-scale, systematic eradication, but rather a reaction to the advent of fanaticism, which was caused by military forcecould be difficult to contain. The important historian for the Middle Ages points out that the Cathars’ persecution was above all an attempt to suppress a dangerous movement with the means of violence, although these means themselves were extremely questionable and are difficult to justify today. The consequences of these measures were devastating, but the movement itselfwas ultimately overcome not by military force, but by the persuasiveness of the new mendicant orders, especially the Franciscan and Dominicans. These monastic orders led an exemplary life, spread the Christian faith with heart and mind and were thus gradually able to suppress the Cathar’s beliefs. The persecution of the Cathars shows how desperately they areChurch tried to stop a movement that eluded its control and how the persuasion of the new religious communities ultimately won.

The development of the Inquisition in the later Middle Ages and the involvement of state institutions

In the course of the Middle Ages, the inquisition increasingly turned into a matter that also affected the state level. Not only the church institutions, but also the secular courts took over the prosecution of the so-called heretics. They expanded their competences more and more to religious questions and resorted to the internal affairs of the churcha This was already evident in the proceedings against the Templars, in which the French king ruthlessly tried to assert his power. The church inquisition became weaker and ultimately ineffective in the course of the late Middle Ages. The development went in the direction of the secular courts taking over the persecution and increasingly taking responsibility for fighting heresytakeovers. They relied on the pre-existing pre-works, but the church inquisition itself lost its influence and effectiveness. The future lay with the university expert activities, which played an increasingly important role in the assessment of heresia. This scientific approach based on the careful analysis of theological positionsbased, became increasingly the standard procedure. The conviction was only carried out if the reports showed a clear deviation from the orthodox belief. The principle of condemnation by scientific assessment prevailed, with extradition to the secular authorities only in exceptional cases.

The balance of medieval persecution and its consequences

The balance of the medieval persecution of the so-called heretics is shattering. It was the first time in Christianity history that people were executed on a large scale to suppress religious deviations. While these acts were officially justified by a strict procedure, many convictions in violence and cruelty ended. the justificationThe Church’s cited for these measures was that they had happened in the interest of the salvation of people to protect the community from perishable teachings. This argument is reminiscent of today’s legal systems in which citizens’ freedom is restricted in order to secure the common good. In some Southeast Asia countries, this is even the death penaltydrug trafficking applied. In the case of anti-constitutional groups and sects, the view is widespread that democracy must protect society from radical and harmful ideologies. The understanding of the motives of the persecution at that time only becomes clear when one recognizes that it was primarily a desperate defense against fanaticism and radical movements, even ifthe means used today hardly seem justified. The persecution was characterized by cruelty and arbitrariness, and the number of victims is difficult to determine. However, it is clear that the violent suppression of deviations from faith in the Middle Ages is a dark side of European history, which is only through the long course of time and the change in societywas gradually overcome.

The situation in Germany and the long-term consequences

In the Middle Ages, Germany was significantly less affected by the measures of the Inquisition compared to France. The first known case in Germany concerns the provost Friedrich Minneke von Neuwerk near Halle, who is considered an example of a comparatively fair and thorough procedure in the research. The Berlin medieval historian emphasizes the thoroughness, the multitudeof the instances and the formal fairness with which this procedure was carried out. But shortly after the beginning there was a serious setback. The Inquisitor Konrad von Marburg, who lived around 1185 to 1233, carried out unauthorized persecutions in which he wanted to take action against heretics. His measures met with the resistance of the bishops, who rejected a common attitude, and so cameit to an open conflict. Eventually, Konrad was murdered by Marburg, with some still expressing a desire to burn the dead man. Although the Pope showed his dismay at the murder, the persecution of heretics in Germany remained insufficient and was only sporadically continued. The number of victims is not yet known exactly, since no reliable figuresexist.

Persecution of heretics in Germany

After this failure, efforts to revive the inquisition in Germany could only have a limited success. In the course of the 14th and 15th centuries there were still individual proceedings against beguines and other religious movements, but overall the persecution remained uncoordinated and low. The term “hetticians” was hardly ever found in Germany in the late Middle Agesused, since the movement itself decreased sharply and the persecution only took place in the inner-church context. The verification of the truth of faith was increasingly carried out by the theological faculties at the universities, which played a central role in the assessment of heresia. The Universities of Vienna and Cologne in particular became important institutions in this context.At the same time, the secular rulers took over the persecution of the so-called enemies of God, referring to the old justification that it was the task of the state to protect society from radical, anti-constitutional or fanatical movements. Already during the great plague in 1348 it became apparent that the church measures to appease the divineZorns were considered insufficient, which led to increased attempts to seek their own ways outside of the official religious rituals to avert the divine anger. This made the separation between church and secular persecution increasingly visible, with the secular courts playing an ever greater role in the fight against deviance from faith. The development led tothat the persecution of heretics has become more and more a state task associated with the enforcement of state power and control. The historical consequences of this change are profound and shape European society up to the modern age.