The dismissal of Governor Francisco de Meneses: Resistance and contempt of the Commissioner of the Holy Office of the Inquisition, Chile, 17th century

Abstract

This study analyses the accusations which lead to the destitution of the governor of Chile, Francisco de Meneses, in 1668. These accusations were made within the concepts of lèse-majesté, tyranny and heresy, all of them very serious crimes in that period. In order the carry out the analysis, these crimes are defined and contextualized in order to later apply them to the accusations made against the governor. In addition, a special focus is given to the Inquisition commissioner, based on the hypothesis that the information provided by him was highly taken into account by the regent Mariana of Austria in her decision on Meneses.