Grand Inquisitor (, literally Inquisitor General or General Inquisitor) was the highest-ranked official of the Inquisition. The title usually refers to the inquisitor of the Spanish Inquisition, in charge of appeals and cases of aristocratic importance, even after the reunification of the inquisitions. Secretaries-general of the Roman Inquisition were often styled as Grand Inquisitor but the role and functions were different.
The Portuguese Inquisition was headed by a Grand Inquisitor, or General Inquisitor, named by the Pope 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
FromToGrand InquisitorAppendix 2 to Henry Charles Lea's A History of the Inquisition of SpainOther positions held14831498Tomás de TorquemadaPrior of the Dominican Convent of Santa Cruz, Segovia, 1477–149814991506Diego de Deza TaveraArchbishop of Seville 15061507Diego Ramírez de GuzmánBishop of Catania, Bishop of Lugo
Separation of Inquisitions of Castile and Aragon
Castile
FromToGrand InquisitorOther positions held15071517Francisco Jiménez de CisnerosCardinal, Archbishop of Toledo
Aragon
FromToGrand InquisitorOther positions held15071513Juan EngueraBishop of Vich, Bishop of Lleida, Bishop of Tortosa15131516Luis Mercader EscolanoBishop of Tortosa15161517Adrian of UtrechtCardinal priest of Ss. Giovanni e Paolo, Bishop of Tortosa, later Pope
Reunification of the Inquisitions
FromToGrand InquisitorOther positions held15181522Adrian of UtrechtCardinal priest of Ss. Giovanni e Paolo, Bishop of Tortosa, later Pope15231538Alonso Manrique de LaraBishop of Badajoz, Archbishop of Seville, Cardinal15391545Juan Pardo de TaveraArchbishop of Toledo15461546García de LoaysaArchbishop of Seville15471566Fernando de Valdés y SalasArchbishop of Seville15661572Diego de EspinosaBishop of Sigüenza, Bishop of Cuenca15721572Pedro Ponce de LeónBishop of Ciudad Rodrigo, Bishop of Plasencia15731594Gaspar de Quiroga y VelaArchbishop of Toledo15951595Jerónimo Manrique de LaraBishop of Cartagena, Bishop of Ávila15961599Pedro de PortocarreroBishop of Calahorra, Bishop of Cuenca15991602Fernando Niño de GuevaraArchbishop of Seville16021602Juan de Zúñiga FloresBishop of Cartagena16031608Juan Bautista de AcevedoBishop of Valladolid, Patriarch of the West Indies16081618Bernardo de Sandoval y RojasArchbishop of Toledo16191621Luis de Aliaga Martínez16221626Andrés PachecoBishop of Cuenca, Patriarch of the West Indies16271632Antonio de Zapata CisnerosArchbishop of Burgos16321643Antonio de SotomayorPrior of Santo Domingo16431665Diego de Arce y ReinosoBishop of Tuy, Bishop of Avila, Bishop of Palencia16651665Pascual de AragónArchbishop of Toledo16661669Juan Everardo Nithard16691695Diego Sarmiento de ValladaresBishop of Oviedo, Bishop of Plasencia16951699Juan Tomás de RocabertiPrior of Santo Domingo, Archbishop of Valencia16991699Alonso Fernández de Córdoba y AguilarAppointed Grand Inquisitor, but died before he could assume this office.16991705Baltasar de Mendoza y SandovalBishop of Segovia17051709Vidal Marín del CampoArchbishop of Burgos17091710Antonio Ibáñez de Riva HerreraArchbishop of Zaragoza, Archbishop of Toledo17111716Francesco del GiudiceArchbishop of Monreale17151715Felipe Antonio Gil de TaboadaCommissioned as Grand Inquisitor but did not serve.17171717Proclaimed in Rome, but detained by Austrians and died without serving.17181718Felipe de ArcemendiDied without serving.17201720Diego de Astorga y CéspedesArchbishop of Toledo17201733Juan de Camargo y AnguloBishop of Pamplona17331740Andrés de Orbe y LarreateguiArchbishop of Valencia17421746Manuel Isidro Orozco Manrique de LaraArchbishop of Santiago17461755Francisco Pérez de PradoBishop of Teruel17551774Manuel Quintano BonifazTitular Archbishop of Farsala17751783Felipe Beltrán SerranoBishop of Salamanca17841793Agustín Rubin de CeballosBishop of Jaén17931794Manuel Abad y LasierraTitular Archbishop of Selymbria17941797Francisco Antonio Lorenzana y ButrónArchbishop of Toledo17971808Ramón José de Arce y RebollarArchbishop of Burgos18081814Abolition of the Inquisition18141818Francisco Javier Mier CampilloBishop of Almería18181818Cristóbal Bencomo y RodríguezTitular Archbishop of Heraclea (position rejected by himself)18181820Gerónimo Castillón y SalasBishop of Tarazona
List of inquisitors-general of Portugal D. Diogo da Silva (1536–1539), Archbishop of Braga. Cardinal Dom Henrique (1539–1579), Archbishop of Braga, became King of Portugal. D. (1578–1578), Bishop of Lamego and Bishop of Coimbra, killed at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir. D. (1580–1585), Archbishop of Lisbon. Albert VII, Archduke of Austria (1586–1593), Cardinal and Archbishop of Toledo, Viceroy of Portugal. D. António de Matos de Noronha (1596–1602), Bishop of Elvas. D. (1602), Bishop of Viseu, refused the position. D. , (1602–1604), Archbishop of Evora. D. Pedro de Castilho (1605–1615), Grand Chaplain of King Philip II of Portugal. D. Fernando Martins Mascarenhas (1615–1628), Bishop of Algarve and Bishop of Faro. D. , (1630–1653), Bishop of Guarda. D. Sebastião César de Meneses (1663–1668). Appointed by King Afonso VI of Portugal, but not confirmed by Pope Alexander VII due to the lack of recognition of the new Portuguese State by the Holy See. D. Pedro de Lencastre (1671–1673), Archbishop of Braga and Duke of Aveiro. D. Veríssimo de Lencastre (1676–1692), Archbishop of Braga. D. Frei José de Lencastre (1693–1705), Bishop of Bragança-Miranda and Bishop of Leiria. D. Nuno da Cunha e Ataíde (1707–1750), Grand Chaplain of King Pedro II of Portugal and John V of Portugal. D. José de Bragança (1758–1760), bastard son of John V of Portugal. D. (1770–1783), Archbishop of Evora and minister of Justice. Frei Inácio de São Caetano (1787–1788), confessor of Queen Maria I of Portugal. D. José Maria de Melo (1790–1818), Bishop of Algarve, Bishop of Faro and confessor of Queen Maria I of Portugal. D. José Joaquim da Cunha Azeredo Coutinho (1818–1821), Bishop of Elvas.Inquisidores gerais de Portugal
External links Council of Inquisition: List of Grand Inquisitors
References