Agents and Power Networks of the Spanish Inquisition in Rome (Sixteenth–Eighteenth Centuries)
(2026) RSA (Renaissance Society of America) 72nd Annual Conference — Location: San Francisco (United States of America) (19.February.2026)
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- Abstract
- Shortly after its foundation in the late 15th century and until the early 18th century, the Spanish Inquisition maintained a representative at the Roman court, initially called “procurator” and later “agent.” This diplomatic envoy represented the Spanish Inquisition before the Holy See, especially the papacy. He managed various administrative and legal procedures, safeguarded the Tribunal’s interests, petitioned for benefits and privileges, handled appeals to Rome and promoted the Spanish Tribunal within the Curia. Although the procurator was the official representative, inquisitorial agency functioned as a collective endeavor. The Spanish Tribunal relied on a network of supporters within the Holy See, including ambassadors, members of the Curial institutions, cardinals, religious figures, and unofficial informants, within which the procurator was embedded. His individual powers were limited, and his effectiveness depended on this network of resident defenders who acted on behalf of and in defense of the Tribunal. This paper aims to reconstruct and analyze the composition and workings of this power and influence network, cultivated by inquisitorial agents to secure support for their efforts in defense of the Tribunal. It seeks to reveal the clientelist and networked dynamics underlying this form of “intermediary” or non-state diplomacy: inquisitorial diplomacy.
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Albisson, M. (2026). Agents and Power Networks of the Spanish Inquisition in Rome (Sixteenth–Eighteenth Centuries). RSA (Renaissance Society of America) 72nd Annual Conference, San Francisco (United States of America). https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/272795