The Spanish Inquisition was one of the most feared institutions in Western history. Set up by the Roman Catholic church to suppress heresy it operated in France, Italy, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire and was later extended to the Americas. Trials were held in secret, torture was common, and penalties ranged from simple fines and flogging to death by burning. Lea's magisterial study remains one of the most detailed and comprehensive accounts ever published. It continues to be an essential source for scholars of the Inquisition and medieval Spain. This edition includes the scarce volume on the inquisition in the Spanish dependencies. Introduced by Professor Lu Ann Homza, a leading contemporay scholar of the Inquisition, this handsome 5 volume set will be welcomed by researchers, collectors and institutions alike.