Let's Time Travel to The Inquisition in Malta Quiz

Answer: Central Mediterranean Sea

Malta is a European country in the Mediterranean Sea and is south of Sicily, Italy, and north of Africa. Because of its prime location, Malta has historically had several ruling groups, including the Phoenicians, followed by the Carthaginians, and then the Romans. Arabs ruled during the Medieval period.

In 1530, the Knights Hospitaller (Order of St. John) took over when they were gifted the island.

Answer: The Pope of the Roman Catholic Church

The Inquisition of Malta was run by a series of Inquisitors who were appointed directly by the Pope, who was the the ultimate authority in the Roman Inquisition. The local Inquisitor acted as the direct representative of the Roman Catholic Church and reported to the Congregation of the Holy Office in Rome.

The Inquisitor kept Rome and the Pope informed of events and actions taking place in Malta and ran a local tribunal or court of justice.

Answer: Book

When the Roman Inquisition was established in Malta, its primary mission was to protect the island from the spread of Protestant ideas carried by foreigners. A key way of doing this was controlling the circulation of forbidden publications. This would include any book or pamphlet written by a Protestant author. Books that were written in the common language of the people and not in Latin were suspect. Scientific texts, including botanical, natural history, and astronomical works, were usually banned. Finally, any writings that appeared to have an Islam origination were condemned.

If a person was found to be in possession of any of these types of books, a range of penalties was possible, from confiscation and confession to public shame, excommunication, or even incarceration for repeat offenders.

Answer: no

In 1574, Pope Gregory XIII sent Monsignor Pietro Dusina as a representative to ensure that the Maltese were in conformity with all aspects of the Catholic teachings. During his term, Dusina established the Holy Office permanently in Malta and became its Inquisitor. H began personally visiting each of the 450 churches and chapels on Malta as soon as possible.

He wanted to see the physical shape of the buildings and to witness the administrative practices of the parish priests. He was shocked to find that most of the places were in horrendous condition and that the clergy's religious knowledge fell far short for them to impart the Catholic faith. As a result, he shut many of the churches down.

Answer: Fabio Chigi

Fabio Chigi was born in Italy in 1599, and received a doctorate in law in his youth. In 1634, Pope Urban VIII chose him to be the Inquisitor of Malta, the same year that Chigi was ordained as a priest.

His name became associated with the teaching of Arabic in Malta. He was known for his improvements to the Inquisitor's palace and prisons and his aid in financing the building of the fortifications in the area. Through his five years in the role in Malta, he became known as a "very bright star in the firmament". This became the start of a very successful career back in Rome. He served as a papal legate, Secretary of State, and eventually became Pope Alexander VII in 1655.

Answer: Slaves

The Knights of St. John were a military and religious order that had a base in Malta during the Inquisition. During their Crusades, they often brought back Muslim and Jewish prisoners who were then turned into slaves on the island. Their treatment was frequently defined by harsh forced labor, strict controls on their movement, and severe punishment for disobedience or escape.

The Inquisitor would often focus on these people as they condemned the slaves for what was considered magic. This would often include diagnosing or healing illnesses with knowledge from their own homeland. Sometimes it would be superstition in the use of divining the future or helping with match making. The punishment for slaves could be twofold - the Inquisitor could torture them and the Knights could give them brutal, backbreaking work on ships and galleys.

Answer: Inquisitor's Palace

The building was erected in the 1530s in Vittoriosa, Malta, and served as the site of a civil tribunal. When Pietro Dusina arrived in Malta as its first Inquisitor and Apostolic Delegate of Pope Gregory XIII, he was offered the building and thus it got the name Inquisitor's Palace. Between the late 16th and 18th centuries, the various Inquisitors who lived and worked in the palace made a number of major alterations to the building. It is generally considered an architectural type of Roman palazzo with ornate details added.

As of 2025, the building is still standing and has been turned into a museum. There are three distinct sections with the domestic and historic kitchen area at ground floor level. The second floor has both official halls and private quarters. The third part of the visitor's experience are the spaces pertaining to the Holy Office itself.

Answer: Graffiti

The Inquisitor's prison held two different sections of cells - one for pre-trial and one for punishment. Prison sentences were relatively short, lasting from a few days to a couple of years. Time in the prison was not as harsh as in the civil prisons where sewers were nonexistent and women and children were shut in with the male population.

In the Inquisition prison, the people behind bars could have visitors, could have candles at night to see better, could sleep on straw mattresses, and had locations to use the privy. They even had access to doctors and priests.

The prisoners in Malta's Inquisition prison left behind clues of their treatment in the form of multiple graffiti art on the walls. Drawings carved into the walls showed how the people earned their living before their sentence, how they did daily chores, what religion they practiced, and symbols of their culture.

Answer: yes

The Inquisition at Malta utilized torture techniques, but under very strict guidelines and mainly to get a confession rather than as a punishment. Unlike the Spanish Inquisition, only a small percentage of prisoners perished. Torture was limited to no more than thirty minutes and a physician was on standby. Old, weak, disabled, and pregnant people were also exempt.

Those that were unfortunate enough to face the torture generally found themselves up against one of several devices. Most commonly used were the corda, which suspended people from their wrists in the air and a sharp bench the prisoner was forced to ride. After confessing, the person was then put in jail for a prescribed period of time.

Answer: France

In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte of France realized that Malta held a strategic location for his proposed advancement into Egypt. It could be used as a naval base and to thwart British activity in the area. Napoleon sent spies to Malta, whose reports confirmed the ruling Knights of the Order were in poor condition and would not put up much of a resistance.

In June of that year, French forces landed in Malta and within a day, the island's fortifications were taken. The Inquisitor was given 48 hours to leave Malta and the tribunal was closed down, putting an end to a two century long Malta Inquisition.