Between 1524 and 1604, several hundred Englishmen found themselves in contact with the Spanish Inquisition. This book draws on the records of their experiences and testimonies to provide a fresh perspective on a crucial period of religious divergence. In the context of increasing animosity between England and Spain, Teresa Tinsley looks at how those individuals managed the international encounters they were exposed to and what they had to say about their lives in England – particularly their experiences of religion. Cross cultural contact – whether through trade or war – brought individuals face to face with differences in religious faith and practice; interrogation by the Inquisition forced them to articulate these. This has resulted in a unique corpus of historical evidence, mostly relating to the time of Queen Elizabeth I, examined here in detail for the very first time.

English Encounters with the Spanish Inquisition comprehensively examines the diverse range of circumstances which brought the English into contact with the Spanish Inquisition, highlighting cooperation and alliance as well as suspicion and persecution. There were well-integrated expatriates, Catholic exiles and converts to Catholicism who had to prove their sincerity as well as merchants and seamen, privateers and smugglers who employed a range of survival strategies in the international politics and religious struggles of the day. While Inquisitors sought to reinforce clear distinctions between the 'new religion of England' and traditional Catholicism as redefined by the Council of Trent, this book insightfully reveals how men who found themselves straddling both worlds often tried to ignore or minimise the difference.