Institution

Roman Inquisition

1542–1908 · 16th century · Also known as Congregation of the Holy Office

The Roman Inquisition was a system of church tribunals founded by Pope Paul III in 1542 and run by a congregation of cardinals in Rome to combat Protestantism and other heresy in Italy. Its best-known case was the trial of Galileo Galilei in 1633. Several Italian states, including Tuscany under Peter Leopold, later abolished its local tribunals, and the Congregation was renamed in 1908.

Roman Inquisition
Image: Jim McIntosh · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
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APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Roman Inquisition. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/roman-inquisition
MLA
“Roman Inquisition.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/roman-inquisition. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Roman Inquisition.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/roman-inquisition.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Roman Inquisition’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/roman-inquisition (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻