This book reexamines the origins and growth of the medieval inquisition which provided a framework for the large-scale operations against religious dissidents. In the last quarter of the twelfth century, the papacy launched concerted efforts to hunt out heretics, mostly Cathars and Waldensians, and directed operations against them all across Latin Christendom. The bull of Pope Lucius III Ad abolendam of 1184 became a turning point in the formation of the inquisitorial system which made both the clergy and the laity responsible for suppressing any religious dissent. From a comparative perspective, the study analyzes political, social and religious developments which in the High Middle Ages gave birth to the mechanism of repression and religious violence supervised by the papacy and operated by bishops and, starting from the 1230s, papal inquisitors, extraordinary judges delegate staffed mostly by Dominican and Franciscan friars.

James B. Given analyzes the inquisition in one French region in order to develop a sociology of medieval politics. Established in the early thirteenth century to combat widespread popular heresy, inquisitorial tribunals identified, prosecuted, and punished heretics and their supporters. The inquisition in Languedoc was the best documented of these tribunals because the inquisitors aggressively used the developing techniques of writing and record keeping to build cases and extract confessions.Using a Marxist and Foucauldian approach, Given focuses on three inquiries: what techniques of investigation, interrogation, and punishment the inquisitors worked out in the course of their struggle against heresy; how the people of Languedoc responded to the activities of the inquisitors; and what aspects of social organization in Languedoc either facilitated or constrained the work of the inquisitors. Punishments not only inflicted suffering and humiliation on those condemned, he argues, but also served as theatrical instruction for the rest of society about the terrible price of transgression. Through a careful pursuit of these inquires, Given elucidates medieval society's contribution to the modern apparatus of power.

"The medieval Inquisition: A study in religious persecution" by Charles T. Gorham. Published by Good Press. Good Press publishes a wide range of titles that encompasses every genre. From well-known classics & literary fiction and non-fiction to forgotten−or yet undiscovered gems−of world literature, we issue the books that need to be read. Each Good Press edition has been meticulously edited and formatted to boost readability for all e-readers and devices. Our goal is to produce eBooks that are user-friendly and accessible to everyone in a high-quality digital format.

This was originally published in three volumes, but is now comprised in one volume. There is a linked table of contents for each volume as well as a detailed table of contents at the beginning of each volume linked to the specific chapters in that volume. There is also a subject index at the end of the volume which is not linked, but nonetheless it gives the book and chapter in which the subject can be found, as well as the original page number of the printed edition. Henry Charles Lea's History of the Medieval Inquisition pulls from primary sources, so as to give an accurate account of the Catholic Church’s judicial system known as the Inquisition. As he explores the events of the twelfth century, which later become known as the dreaded Inquisition, he breaks the subjects down into three categories. In the first volume he looks at the medieval concepts and of the relationships between individuals and the Church. In volume two he looks at the placement of the inquisitions throughout Europe and the state of different religious conditions within the Languedoc region. He shows how that in Italy and France there was a continual resistance to the Inquisition. In the third and final volume Lea studied the impact of the Inquisition on scholarship and academic life and on faith and society as a whole. He also shows how that the belief in sorcery and witchcraft in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries was a product of the Catholic Inquisition and how that the Church authorities were feeding its growth. Through these orders of the Franciscans and the Fraticelli they gained their prominence. Throughout these three books he deals with religious groups such as the Cathari, the Albigensian, the Hussites, as well as looking at the Albigensian Crusades, and its impact. Overview Of The Table of Contents Volume 1 Origin and Organization of the Inquisition: 1. The Church; 2. Heresy; 3. The Cathari; 4. The Albigensian Crusades; 5. Persecution; 6. The Mendicant orders; 7. The Inquisition founded; 8. Organization; 9. The Inquisitorial process; 10. Evidence; 11. The defence; 12. The sentence; 13. Confiscation; 14. The stake; Appendix. Volume 2 The Inquisition in the Several Lands of Christendom: 1. Languedoc; 2. France; 3. The Spanish peninsula; 4. Italy; 5. The Slavic Cathari; 6. Germany; 7. Bohemia; 8. The Hussites; Appendix of documents. Volume 3 Special Fields of Inquisitorial Activity: 1. The Spiritual Franciscans; 2. Guglielma and Dolcino; 3. The Fraticelli; 4. Political heresy utilized by the Church; 5. Political heresy utilized by the state; 6. Sorcery and occult arts; 7. Witchcraft; 8. Intellect and faith; 9. Conclusion; Appendix of documents; Index.

A fresh examination of the Cathar heresy, using the records of inquisitorial tribunals to bring out new details of life at the time.

Religion can be a force for good, but when those in command seek to increase their control, it can become a dangerous tool. This volume explores the political power the Catholic Church possessed in medieval Europe and the lengths it went to in order to keep and expand that influence. Full-color photos, quotes from primary sources, and a timeline of important events supplement the main text to give readers a better understanding of the perils that can occur when an institution abuses its power.

This detailed analysis of one of the most brutal periods of religious persecution ever recorded is a must-read for history buffs of all stripes. Author Henry Charles Lea lends detail and dimension to the historical record, providing a turn-by-turn recounting of events along with deeper insight into the motives and psychology of the persecutors and persecuted. As part of our mission to publish great works of literary fiction and nonfiction, Sheba Blake Publishing Corp. is extremely dedicated to bringing to the forefront the amazing works of long dead and truly talented authors.