Earlier in the day, Steven and I had strolled along Vittoriosa's glorious alleys, taking in the town’s significant historic sights, including the Inquisitor's Palace. I felt this unusual tourist location deserved its own post. Built in the 1530s, it served as the civil law courts for the Order of St. John for 40 years before becoming the tribunal and prison of the Inquisition. Its task was to rout out and suppress heresy for 220 years. The Inquisitor’s Palace is one of the few surviving palaces erected by the Roman Inquisition in Europe and South America.
Model fans would have been entranced by Ruzar Calleja's accurate and to-scale model of pre-1939 Vittoriosa, formerly known as Birgu.
The palace's first floor was the only part that remained virtually untouched through the centuries. Some rooms were initially used as prison cells, but they were later transformed into storage facilities. The Inquisitors resided on the upper floors both for privacy and because of the dampness on the lower floors.
It was disheartening to learn that the Inquisitors did their best to live sumptuously and impress their guests with fine imported wines and lavish foods during their stay in the palace. An inventory from 1798 revealed that this area under the staircase was a wine cellar.
I couldn't help but be struck by the beautiful artwork, but it seemed incongruous that it was in a room where Inquisitors lived.
The palace's first chapel was built near the front door in the late 16th century, when the first general Inquisitor, Pietro Dusina, arrived on the Maltese islands. After an earthquake hit Malta in 1693, the chapel was moved upstairs, and completely refurbished in the 1720s. Though Steven and I had toured other Inquisition sites in South America, I hadn't known that there was a patron saint of the Roman Inquisition. It was St. Peter the Martyr whose feast day is celebrated each May. During the palace's occupation by the British military forces in the 19th century, the chapel suffered extensive damage, but that was reversed by a curator in the 1930s.
The Council of Trent, 1545-1563, reaffirmed the Catholic Church’s Articles of Faith and established rules for clergy conduct. Generally, Catholic missionaries - whether they were inquisitors, friars, or Jesuits - spent their time evangelizing since the prior methods used by parish clergy were ineffective among the lower strata. As the Council advanced, the Inquisition took it upon themselves to communicate what they perceived as the truth and fight ignorance and heresy to convert ordinary folk to the Church's doctrine.
One wing of the palace was known as the Ruffo Apartments after the prelate who enlarged it after the earthquake. Pope Innocent XII approved the changes and lived in the palace from 1644 to 1648. Their coats of arms were still visible in the friezes in every room of the wing.
The robe was eerily similar to those worn by the Klu Klux Klan in our city of Denver and elsewhere in the US.
It was disconcerting to read that it was everyone's duty to report anyone going against the Church's rules, in their opinion. Since each accused person had to be summoned to verify the truth, witnesses played a critical role in the inquisitors' search for evidence. People from all walks of life were unexpectedly summoned to testify, including the Baroque artist Caravaggio in 1607.
The use of torture was a means to extract truth during trials and was rarely inflicted by Inquisitors unless they were absolutely sure about a person's guilt. It was applied following strict rules and after considerable guidance.
Corporal punishments, on the other hand, were generally vindictive to compensate for the harm committed. They included kneeling or whipping in public and working on government fortifications.
The possession and reading of prohibited books and the printing or defense of heretical writings were offenses that could only be discharged by the Inquisitor and the Holy Office. Books were often burned in front of a large crowd in a square, generally in Vittoriosa.
Spiritual punishment: Most of the sentences were of a spiritual nature to cure the condemned's spirit. These included the recitation of prayers and penitential psalms, fasting on bread and water, and pilgrimages to Marian shrines. The Holy Office sometimes asked for certificates to prove the penance had been carried out.
The Prison Warden was a layman chosen by the Inquisitor who was sworn to secrecy and had one of the lowest salaries among Inquisition officials. He was required to lead an exemplary life and avoid any kind of unethical behavior. His general duties included checking materials received by prisoners, escorting prisoners outside the palace according to their sentences, and restoring torture equipment.
In addition, the warden was also responsible for the security of the prison complex and accountable for the condition of the walls, doors, and windows; the strict application of sentences delivered to prisoners; the prisoners' well-being, including supplying food and water rations, and reporting on the prisoners' state of health. The warden was only removed from office for inefficiency or old age.
The warden's room:
Trial Procedures in the Tribunal: The first step involved was Repentance, which could be voluntary self-repentance, imposed self-denunciation, or denunciation by others.
Next up was the Trial, in which all those involved were imperatively required to appear before the Holy Office to have the veracity of the accusations checked. The Inquisitor would cross-examine the suspect and witnesses to obtain the necessary evidence. If any of the interviewees were suspected of withholding evidence, torture might be used to extract the truth. Once guilt was established, the Inquisitor would announce a verdict.
Sentences: Penalties for those people found guilty in the Tribunal included fasting on bread and water, regular Confession, taking the Holy Eucharist, whipping, public humiliation, and exile. Only in extremely rare circumstances were prisoners condemned to death. Those found innocent were released and, as necessary, warned by the Inquisition.
Depending on the palace's needs at the time, this room might have been used as a prison cell, the prison warden's room, or a torture chamber. Particularly sinister was the rope contraption used to extract confessions in the room.
Secret stairs led the accused or those wanting to denounce someone to the Inquisitor directly into the Tribubunal Room. That way, neither the prisoner's identity nor the identity of others would be revealed. Secrecy was of the utmost importance for the Inquisition's legal procedures.
Prison cells:
This mid-17th-century well had formerly been a toilet for prisoners locked in the communal prison cell above it. Acid marks left by human feces were visible on the opposite wall.
Abolition: With the advent of the Enlightenment and the advance of French power in Rome, the last Inquisitor, Giulio Carpenga, was asked to leave the island in 1798, two weeks before the arrival of Napoleon and French forces. In the name of freedom, they freed Malta from the Inquisitorial Tribunal and confiscated its property.
The Inquisition's long history in Malta was a sad chapter in Malta's history.
Next post: A much happier escape later that day to Malta's Munxar Window, Delimara Pt, Marsaxlokk, Għar Dalam Cave, and the End of the Cold War Memorial!
Posted on March 3rd, 2025, from our home in Denver's Foothills, west of the capital city, as we await another blizzard in just hours. Skiers and the snow resorts are thrilled, but those of us wanting to remain firmly on our feet aren't so thrilled! As our friend Ruth reminded me this weekend, sow kindness as far as you can reach.
