Having thus seen the complete establishment of the Inquisition in Spain, before proceeding further in its history, we shall give an outline of the mode of procedure in the "Holy Office," together with some account of the officers belonging to that infamous tribunal. At the head of the Inquisition in Spain, stands the Inquisitor-general. This high officer is appointed nominally by the king, but in reality by the Pope, for the Holy See enjoys the privilege of a _veto_ on the election of the sovereign. The supreme Inquisitor cannot proceed one step in the discharge of his office, till he has received the confirmation of the Sovereign Pontiff. When thus elected and confirmed, the Inquisitor-general appoints the subordinate Inquisitors, but in this last instance, the nomination of the supreme Inquisitor is subject to the review of the king. So high in dignity is the Inquisitor-general esteemed by the Romish Church, that he enjoys the title of "most reverend," a title which places him on an equal footing with bishops.
The privileges of the Inquisitors are many and valuable. They are not subject to the bishops of the provinces where they reside, or to the superiors of the religious orders to which they belong. They alone can publish the edicts against heretics; they can excommunicate, interdict, and suspend; and, except in a few cases which are distinctly specified, they can prevent the ordinaries or resident bishops from absolving those whom they have subjected to the censure of the Church. They may apprehend heretics, though they take refuge in churches; make statutes, and increase the punishments on those who violate them; grant indulgences of twenty or forty days; and give full pardon of sins to all their officers who die in their service. "Whoever, by himself or others, shall kill, beat, or strike any of the Inquisitors, or the officials of the holy office, or who shall injure or damage their effects, shall be delivered over to the secular power."
With a few exceptions, the Inquisitors may proceed against all persons whatsoever, both among the clergy and the laity. Bishops, priests, and friars, nay, princes and kings, must be subject to this extraordinary tribunal. Persons of every age and condition, and of both sexes, may be cited as witnesses, in the causes which it takes up. We have a striking example of this in the citation of Joan, daughter of the Emperor Charles V., before that tribunal, to give evidence in a case where a person was accused of holding doctrines contrary to the faith. So great was the awe with which this court inspired the superstitious emperor, that he commanded his daughter without delay to obey the summons, in order to avoid the sentence of excommunication. She accordingly appeared before the Inquisitor-general on the day appointed, and gave her evidence in the case under consideration.