Discussing the Legitimacy of Astrology with Inquisitors: Non-Scholar Witnesses on Free Will and University Lectures in Seventeenth Century Trials

In their efforts to follow the instructions emanated from the Council of Trent, Sixtus Vth Bull Coeli et Terrae, and the rules established by the commissions of the Roman and the Spanish Indexes of Forbidden Books, Spanish Inquisitors involved in trials for the practice of astrology dealt with not only the reports of experts about the discipline, but also with the testimonies of people of all levels of literacy and social class origins. Previous studies have focused on the scholarly debates held by theologians, astronomers, mathematicians, physicians and natural philosophers on astrology and its practice (Pardo-Tomás 1991, Caro-Baroja 1992, Lanuza-Navarro 2017). The objective of this paper is to put the focus on non-scholar witnesses involved in trials related to the practice of astrology, with the aim of revealing their attitudes towards the discipline and their knowledge of the extent of the prohibitions, as well as the opinions they expressed on crucial aspects of the debate such as free will. It aims to contribute to the study of the circulation of concepts related to the prohibition and persecution of astrology outside scholar circles, among wider audiences, and the strategies members of the popular classes used when confronted with the Inquisitors to present their own and others’ cases.