Santo Ufficio
Item
Country
IT
Name of institution (English)
State Archives of Venice
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
ita
Contact information: postal address
Campo dei Frari, San Polo 3002, 30125 Venice
Contact information: phone number
0039 0415222281
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
as-ve@archivi.beniculturali.it
Reference number
Santo Ufficio
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
The Holy Office of the Inquisition
Title (official language of the state)
Santo Ufficio
Language of title
ita
Creator / accumulator
Savi all'eresia (Santo Ufficio)
Date(s)
1541/1797
Language(s)
ita
lat
Extent
164 folders
Type of material
Textual Material
Scope and content
This fonds contains documentation related to the Tribunal of the Holy Office, namely processes, letters to officials and other institutions, registers of the accused, etc. Each type of documentation is gathered into specific series: Processi (fascicoli processuali) (Trials: process files, from 1541 to 1794); Processi (atti processuali e sentence) (Trials: process acts and sentences, including three process records from 1551-1552, 1554-1555 and 1569-1571); Libri expeditorum (includes three alphabetical indexes of defendants from 1624-1640, 1699-1700 and 1711-1793); Dispacci di pubblici rappresentanti e lettere diverse ai capi del consiglio di dieci (Despatches from public delegates and various letters from the heads of the Consiglio di dieci, from 1500 to 1791); Carte varie (Various letters, part of them from the archives of the Consiglio di dieci and the Inquisitori di Stato, from the 16th to the 18th century); Minute settecentesche del segretario Pietro Franceschi (18th-century minutes by secretary Pietro Franceschi).
Among the vast documentation gathered in this fonds, it is possible to find numerous references to the Jewish community of Venice, in particular to Portuguese and Spanish Jews and Conversos prosecuted by the Inquisition. Most of these trials were already identified and transcribed by Pier Cesare Ioly Zorattini in his monumental work Processi del S. Uffizio di Venezia contro Ebrei e Giudaizzanti.
Below are some examples:
Processi, b. 159 (Zorattini, I, 225-246): trial of Duarte Gomes in 1555.
Processi, b. 24 and 159 (Zorattini, II, 225-246 and III, 67-96): trials of Duarte Gomes and Agostinho Henriques in 1555 and 1568.
Processi, b. 36 and 159 (Zorattini, V, 37-209): trial of Henrique Nunes, alias Abraham Benveniste, alias the Righetto, in 1570.
Processi, b. 106 and 107 (Zorattini, XI, 79-85): trial of António Dias Pinto in 1651.
Processi, b. 107 (Zorattini, XI, 83-105): trials of Álvaro da Silva, Francesco Valenza and Pietro da Costa in 1654.
Processi, b. 122 (Zorattini, XII, 33-35): trial of Iacob Arias da Costa in 1682.
Among the vast documentation gathered in this fonds, it is possible to find numerous references to the Jewish community of Venice, in particular to Portuguese and Spanish Jews and Conversos prosecuted by the Inquisition. Most of these trials were already identified and transcribed by Pier Cesare Ioly Zorattini in his monumental work Processi del S. Uffizio di Venezia contro Ebrei e Giudaizzanti.
Below are some examples:
Processi, b. 159 (Zorattini, I, 225-246): trial of Duarte Gomes in 1555.
Processi, b. 24 and 159 (Zorattini, II, 225-246 and III, 67-96): trials of Duarte Gomes and Agostinho Henriques in 1555 and 1568.
Processi, b. 36 and 159 (Zorattini, V, 37-209): trial of Henrique Nunes, alias Abraham Benveniste, alias the Righetto, in 1570.
Processi, b. 106 and 107 (Zorattini, XI, 79-85): trial of António Dias Pinto in 1651.
Processi, b. 107 (Zorattini, XI, 83-105): trials of Álvaro da Silva, Francesco Valenza and Pietro da Costa in 1654.
Processi, b. 122 (Zorattini, XII, 33-35): trial of Iacob Arias da Costa in 1682.
Archival history
The existence of an organised archive of the Inquisition of Venice is known only after 1652. Back then, the most ancient documents that were still in the archive dated from 1590.
From 1541 to 1615, the archive was kept by the chancellor of the nuncio in the headquarters of the Holy Office, in the chapel of San Teodoro, adjoining the ducal church of San Marco. In 1615, the chapel was intervened by order of the Doge, resulting in damages by humidity on the documents. To prevent further damages, the documents were temporarily moved to the patriarchal palace, where they remained until 1660. Then, they were transferred to the inquisitors' residences. They remained there until 1776, when they returned to the chapel of San Teodoro.
After the fall of the Republic of Venice in 1797, the archives of the Venetian Inquisition were burned, causing enormous destruction to its document collections. The part that was not destroyed was eventually transferred once more to the chapel of San Teodoro. In 1824, these fonds were finally transferred to the convent of S. Maria Gloriosa dei Frari.
The trials and other papers of the Inquisition were subject to a detailed inventory by Luigi Pasini and Giuseppe Giomo between 1868 and 1870. On this occasion, papers related to the Holy Office that had been taken from other archives, such as those of the Consiglio di dieci (Council of Ten) and of the Inquisitori di Stato (Inquisitors of State), were placed side by side with the more strictly procedural material to form a sort of thematic documentary complex. The sorting was concluded on April 9, 1870, with the compilation of an alphabetical, toponymic and chronological index of the fonds, still in use today.
Some documents of the Venetian Inquisition can be found in other archives. For instance, the Archive of the Curia Patriarcale di Venezia contains four folders with judicial processes stored there in 1771.
From 1541 to 1615, the archive was kept by the chancellor of the nuncio in the headquarters of the Holy Office, in the chapel of San Teodoro, adjoining the ducal church of San Marco. In 1615, the chapel was intervened by order of the Doge, resulting in damages by humidity on the documents. To prevent further damages, the documents were temporarily moved to the patriarchal palace, where they remained until 1660. Then, they were transferred to the inquisitors' residences. They remained there until 1776, when they returned to the chapel of San Teodoro.
After the fall of the Republic of Venice in 1797, the archives of the Venetian Inquisition were burned, causing enormous destruction to its document collections. The part that was not destroyed was eventually transferred once more to the chapel of San Teodoro. In 1824, these fonds were finally transferred to the convent of S. Maria Gloriosa dei Frari.
The trials and other papers of the Inquisition were subject to a detailed inventory by Luigi Pasini and Giuseppe Giomo between 1868 and 1870. On this occasion, papers related to the Holy Office that had been taken from other archives, such as those of the Consiglio di dieci (Council of Ten) and of the Inquisitori di Stato (Inquisitors of State), were placed side by side with the more strictly procedural material to form a sort of thematic documentary complex. The sorting was concluded on April 9, 1870, with the compilation of an alphabetical, toponymic and chronological index of the fonds, still in use today.
Some documents of the Venetian Inquisition can be found in other archives. For instance, the Archive of the Curia Patriarcale di Venezia contains four folders with judicial processes stored there in 1771.
Administrative / Biographical history
There was a magistrate against heresy in Venice since the beginning of the 13th century. However, the institution of the special magistracy entrusted with the inquisition on heretics and with power to punish was only created in 1249, with the selection of the first three "savi" (literately, wise men) for this purpose, the Savi all'eresia.
They were elected by the Doge from among the most suitable patricians (group of noblemen in Venice) for their religious piety and probity. Upon taking office, their autonomy was limited, as they were expected not to withhold any information related to their actions and act only when authorised by the Doge or the Senate. Their sentences were also dependent on the agreement of the two Consigli Minore e Maggiore (Minor and Major Councils). This is one of the main reasons why the Inquisition in Venice was more constrained in its actions in comparison to similar courts in other European cities. The three "savi" had the power to suspend or prevent the execution of sentences when they deemed them contrary to the laws, customs or instructions of the government. They also had the right and the duty to excite to action the Inquisitors who neglected their mission.
In the 16th century, with the Protestant reforms, the activity of the Venetian Inquisition was intensified and the importance of the Savi all'eresia grew while their jurisdiction was also enhanced. In this light, there were important reforms determined by decrees of the Senate in 1560, 1567 and 1589. The power to extradite people who were found guilty of heretical crimes committed elsewhere remained outside their autonomy. Also, they could not send any judicial process to other court without previously notifying the Signoria (body of government of Venice).
New decrees in 1609 and 1613 determined that the three "savi" were obliged to attend every trial and to suspend any inquisitorial process if it was suspected that there was no real evidence of heresy. They were also responsible for notifying the government when it was necessary to provide for a new inquisitor. In the 18th century, the Inquisition gained oversight capacity in new areas, especially around some industries — namely, the production of glass, mirrors and dyeing industries —, as well as in supervising artistic heritage by protecting artistic or documentary collections of great value from being taken by foreign collectors.
They were elected by the Doge from among the most suitable patricians (group of noblemen in Venice) for their religious piety and probity. Upon taking office, their autonomy was limited, as they were expected not to withhold any information related to their actions and act only when authorised by the Doge or the Senate. Their sentences were also dependent on the agreement of the two Consigli Minore e Maggiore (Minor and Major Councils). This is one of the main reasons why the Inquisition in Venice was more constrained in its actions in comparison to similar courts in other European cities. The three "savi" had the power to suspend or prevent the execution of sentences when they deemed them contrary to the laws, customs or instructions of the government. They also had the right and the duty to excite to action the Inquisitors who neglected their mission.
In the 16th century, with the Protestant reforms, the activity of the Venetian Inquisition was intensified and the importance of the Savi all'eresia grew while their jurisdiction was also enhanced. In this light, there were important reforms determined by decrees of the Senate in 1560, 1567 and 1589. The power to extradite people who were found guilty of heretical crimes committed elsewhere remained outside their autonomy. Also, they could not send any judicial process to other court without previously notifying the Signoria (body of government of Venice).
New decrees in 1609 and 1613 determined that the three "savi" were obliged to attend every trial and to suspend any inquisitorial process if it was suspected that there was no real evidence of heresy. They were also responsible for notifying the government when it was necessary to provide for a new inquisitor. In the 18th century, the Inquisition gained oversight capacity in new areas, especially around some industries — namely, the production of glass, mirrors and dyeing industries —, as well as in supervising artistic heritage by protecting artistic or documentary collections of great value from being taken by foreign collectors.
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Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Kevin Soares, 2022
Bibliography
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