Which 1478 papal bull let the Catholic Monarchs appoint inquisitors for Castile?

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Which 1478 papal bull let the Catholic Monarchs appoint inquisitors for Castile? Exigit sincerae devotionis affectus did.

Pope Sixtus IV issued the bull on 1 November 1478. It responded to pressure from Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, who sought a stronger instrument against suspected heresy—especially alleged Judaizing among converts from Judaism to Christianity.

The bull authorized the monarchs to select and appoint inquisitors, making the new Castilian tribunal unusually dependent on royal choice rather than direct papal administration. The first inquisitors, the Dominicans Miguel de Morillo and Juan de San Martín, were appointed in 1480.

This document is often confused with later or unrelated inquisitorial decrees. Summis desiderantes affectibus, for example, concerned witchcraft in parts of Germany, while Ad abolendam was a much earlier anti-heresy decree. Exigit sincerae devotionis affectus was the foundational authorization for the Spanish Inquisition in Castile.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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