Скачать или смотреть How Spain Demonized the Aztecs: Heresy & the Inquisition | AL 17

This episode traces how the demonology of the Spanish Inquisition was projected onto Aztec culture. From Juan de Castellanos’ vision of Spain as a sword-wielding virgin slaying the dragon, to Inquisitor Nicolau Eymeric’s trials of necromancers and demonic rites, we uncover how the Spanish brought a worldview of cosmic combat into the Americas.

We examine how medieval models of heresy, blasphemy, and demon summoning shaped Spanish perceptions of Aztec gods, rituals, and festivals like Tlacaxipehualiztli. The conquest wasn’t framed as a land grab — it was imagined as the final stage in a centuries-long war between God and the Devil.

This is the story of how empire weaponized belief, and how theology became a tool of conquest.

0:00 Juan de Castellanos' Demonization of the Aztecs
1:15 Hispania Virgo Fidelis vs The Devil
2:50 Origins of the Spanish Inquisition
5:01 Nicolau Eymeric, Inquisitor General
6:02 Eymeric's Paranormal Investigations
8:06 The Necromancer of the Desecrated Church
8:58 Blasphemy

#spanishinquisition #aztecs #necromancy #culturalhistory #demonology #nicolauEymeric #conquistadors

Want to know more about demons & devils in the New World? Check out this playlist here:    • AL Chapter 2: Devil's Empire  

Want to know more about the connections between American History & the history of Greeks and Romans? Check out this playlist about these ancient links here:
   • AL Chapter 1: Classical Roots of American ...  

“American Libertas” is Latin for “American-Liberty”. American Libertas is a narrative history tracing the origins of American culture and ideas. Although each episode is meant to be a stand alone experience, each episode builds upon and connects to previous episodes.



Bibliography

Cañizares-Esguerra, J. Puritan Conquistadors: Iberianizing the Atlantic, 1550-1700 (ISBN-13 ‏: ‎978-0804742801)

Granados, Pau Castell. "The inquisitor’s demons: Nicolau Eymeric’s Directorium inquisitorum." In The Science of Demons, pp. 19-34. Routledge, 2020.

Kamen, H. The Spanish Inquisition: A Historical Revision, Fourth Edition (ISBN-13: ‎978-0300078800)

Martínez-Osorio, E. Authority, Piracy, and Captivity in Colonial Spanish American Writing : Juan de Castellanos's Elegies of Illustrious Men of the Indies (ISBN-13: ‎978-1611487183)

Soormally, M.G. Idolatry and the Construction of the Spanish Empire (ISBN-13: 978-1607328001)



Visuals are prioritized for their aesthetics and may or may not be historically accurate. Consult a historian/history of fashion and/or architecture.


Research & Visuals by Stefan Roel Reyes