Inquisition Free Walking Tour

The Spanish Inquisition is one of the most controversial institutions in history and a symbol of terror and death for millions of people in Spain and Latin America. But what was really behind the myth? Discover the dark secrets of the Court of the Holy Inquisition on this walking tour of Madrid.

In a circular route, we will begin and end our route in the Plaza Mayor, where the largest Auto de Fe that the Inquisition celebrated in the Villa and Corte took place in 1680. Along the way we will discover many of the places that were the scene of the activity of the Holy Office (such as the Convent of Santo Domingo, located in the square of the same name, the Convent of the Incarnation or the seat of its last Court, in Calle Torija).

We will also learn about some of the more murky events linked to the institution in Madrid, such as those that motivated the great Auto de Fe of 1632, and we will remember great historical figures whose fate was linked to that of the Inquisition: from the brilliant painter Diego de Velázquez the obscure first Grand Inquisitor Tomás de Torquemada, the powerful Count Duque de Olivares or the controversial royal secretary Antonio Pérez.

How many people lost their lives because of the Inquisition? What kind of crimes were investigated by the inquisitorial justice and what kind of punishments and torture did it apply? What was the purity of blood? What relationship was there between the Holy Office and the Hispanic Monarchy? Was there a real witch hunt in the country? This tour sheds light on one of the darker sides of the History of Spain, helping to understand many of the historical, political, social and cultural phenomena that have defined us for centuries.