Grand Inquisitor (, literally ''Inquisitor General'' or ''General Inquisitor'') was the highest-ranked official of the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a Catholic Inquisitorial system#History, judicial procedure where the Ecclesiastical court, ecclesiastical judges could initiate, investigate and try cases in their jurisdiction. Popularly it became the name for various med ...

. The title usually refers to the

inquisitor An inquisitor was an official (usually with judicial or investigative functions) in an inquisition – an organization or program intended to eliminate heresy and other things contrary to the doctrine or teachings of the Catholic faith. Literall ...

of the

Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition () was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile and lasted until 1834. It began toward the end of ...

, in charge of appeals and cases of aristocratic importance, even after the reunification of the inquisitions. Secretaries-general of the

Roman Inquisition The Roman Inquisition, formally , was a system of partisan tribunals developed by the Holy See of the Catholic Church, during the second half of the 16th century, responsible for prosecuting individuals accused of a wide array of crimes according ...

were often styled as ''Grand Inquisitor'' but the role and functions were different. The

Portuguese Inquisition The Portuguese Inquisition (Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Inquisição Portuguesa''), officially known as the General Council of the Holy Office of the Inquisition in Portugal, was formally established in Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal in 15 ...

was headed by a Grand Inquisitor, or General Inquisitor, named by the

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

but selected by the king, always from within the royal family. The most famous Inquisitor General was the Spanish Dominican Tomás de Torquemada, who spearheaded the Spanish Inquisition.

List of Spanish Grand Inquisitors

Separation of Inquisitions of Castile and Aragon

Castile

Aragon

Reunification of the Inquisitions

List of inquisitors-general of Portugal

* D. Diogo da Silva (1536–1539),

Archbishop of Braga The Archdiocese of Braga () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Portugal. It is known for its use of the Rite of Braga, a use of the liturgy distinct from the Roman Rite and other Latin liturgical ...

. * Cardinal Dom Henrique (1539–1579),

, became King of Portugal. * D. Manuel de Meneses (1578–1578), Bishop of Lamego and

Bishop of Coimbra The Diocese of Coimbra () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Coimbra, Portugal. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Braga. From 1472, the bishop of Coimbra held the comital title of Count of Arganil, being thus called Bishop- ...

, killed at the

Battle of Alcácer Quibir The Battle of Alcácer Quibir (also known as "Battle of Three Kings" () or "Battle of Wadi al-Makhazin" () in Morocco) was fought in northern Morocco, near the town of Ksar-el-Kebir (variant spellings: ''Ksar El Kebir'', ''Alcácer-Quivir'', ...

. * D. Jorge de Almeida (1580–1585),

Archbishop of Lisbon The Metropolitan Patriarchate of Lisbon () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or patriarchate, patriarchal archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. Its episcopal see, archiepiscopal see is the Lisbon Cathedra ...

. *

Albert VII, Archduke of Austria Albert VII (; 13 November 1559 – 13 July 1621) was the ruling Archduke of Austria for a few months in 1619 and, jointly with his wife, Isabella Clara Eugenia, sovereign of the Habsburg Netherlands between 1598 and 1621. Prior to this, he had ...

(1586–1593), Cardinal and

Archbishop of Toledo The Archdiocese of Toledo () is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in Spain.

, Viceroy of Portugal. * D. António de Matos de Noronha (1596–1602),

Bishop of Elvas The Roman Catholic Diocese of Elvas was a Latin diocese in Portugal, located in the city Elvas, district of Portalegre in the Alentejo region and in the ecclesiastical province of Évora.Bishop of Viseu The Diocese of Viseu () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic church in Portugal. It is a suffragan of the archdiocese of Braga. Its episcopal seat is in Viseu Cathedral in the Centro Region. The current bishop is António Luciano dos Santos ...

, refused the position. * D. Alexandre de Bragança, (1602–1604), Archbishop of Evora. * D. Pedro de Castilho (1605–1615), Grand Chaplain of King

Philip II of Portugal Philip III (; 14 April 1578 – 31 March 1621) was King of Spain and King of Portugal, Portugal (where he is known as Philip II of Portugal) during the Iberian Union. His reign lasted from 1598 until his death in 1621. He held dominion over the S ...

. * D.

Fernando Martins Mascarenhas Fernando Martins Mascarenhas (otherwise referred to as Fernão Martins Mascarenhas; c. 1548 – 20 January 1628) was a Portuguese scholar, theologian, and church leader. King Philip I appointed him Rector of the University of Coimbra and, later ...

(1615–1628), Bishop of Algarve and Bishop of Faro. * D. Francisco de Castro, (1630–1653),

Bishop of Guarda The Diocese of Guarda () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic church in central eastern Portugal, a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the Latin Patriarchate of Lisbon in southern Portugal. The present episcopal seat is in Guarda C ...

. * D. Sebastião César de Meneses (1663–1668). Appointed by King

Afonso VI of Portugal '' Dom'' Afonso VI (; 21 August 164312 September 1683), known as "the Victorious" (), was the second king of Portugal of the House of Braganza from 1656 until his death. He was initially under the regency of his mother, Luisa de Guzmán, until ...

, but not confirmed by

Pope Alexander VII Pope Alexander VII (; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death, in May 1667. He began his career as a vice- papal legate, and he held various d ...

due to the lack of recognition of the new Portuguese State by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

. * D. Pedro de Lencastre (1671–1673),

and

Duke of Aveiro Duke of Aveiro () was a Portuguese title of nobility, granted in 1535 by King John III of Portugal to his 4th cousin, John of Lencastre, son of Infante George of Lencastre, a natural son of King John II of Portugal. John of Lencastre was ...

. * D. Veríssimo de Lencastre (1676–1692),

. * D. Frei José de Lencastre (1693–1705), Bishop of Bragança-Miranda and

Bishop of Leiria A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

. * D.

Nuno da Cunha e Ataíde Nuno can refer to *Nuno (given name) :*Nuno Espírito Santo, football manager :*Nuno Tavares, football player *Nuño (given name) *Nuno felting Nuno felting is a fabric felting technique developed by Polly Stirling, a fiber artist from New Sou ...

(1707–1750), Grand Chaplain of King

Pedro II of Portugal ''Dom (title), Dom'' Pedro II (Peter II; 26 April 1648 – 9 December 1706), nicknamed the Pacific (''Português:'' O Pacífico) was King of Portugal from 1683 until his death, previously serving as regent for his brother Afonso VI of Portugal, ...

and

John V of Portugal ''Dom (title), Dom'' John V (; 22 October 1689 – 31 July 1750), known as the Magnanimous (''o Magnânimo'') and the Portuguese Sun King (''o Rei-Sol Português''), was King of Portugal from 9 December 1706 until his death in 1750. His reig ...

. * D. José de Bragança (1758–1760), bastard son of

. * D.

João Cosme da Cunha João is a given name of Portuguese origin. It is equivalent to the given name John. The diminutive is Joãozinho and the feminine is Joana. It is widespread in Portuguese-speaking countries. Notable people with the name are enumerated in the s ...

(1770–1783), Archbishop of Evora and minister of Justice. * Frei Inácio de São Caetano (1787–1788), confessor of Queen

Maria I of Portugal '' Dona'' Maria I (Maria Francisca Isabel Josefa Antónia Gertrudes Rita Joana; 17 December 1734 – 20 March 1816) also known as Maria the Pious in Portugal and Maria the Mad in Brazil, was Queen of Portugal from 24 February 1777 until her de ...

. * D. José Maria de Melo (1790–1818), Bishop of Algarve, Bishop of Faro and confessor of Queen

. * D.

José Joaquim da Cunha Azeredo Coutinho José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , ...

(1818–1821),

External links

References

{{Authority control Spanish Inquisition Portuguese Inquisition

Grand Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), ...