Editing Spanish Inquisition (section)

==Geopolitical Implication==

Obviously the Inquisition didn't take place in a vacuum, but in a Europe that was very rapidly dividing itself up over religion.  The extremes of the inquisitors, along with other incidents such as the St Bartholowmew's Day Massacre in France and the brief reign of ''"Bloody"'' Queen Mary I in England hardened opposition to Catholicism throughout pretty much all of Europe that stood to gain from seeing Spain knocked down.  It also didn't help that Charles V by dint of ancestry was both King of Spain as well as the Holy Roman Emperor. Charles spent most of his reign making war with France and trying to hold Germany together even as Martin Luther tore it apart touting Protestantism in response to corruption among the clergy.  

Charles's son Philip II inherited Spain and was a fanatical Catholic who was completely onboard with the Inquisition.  However, having a lot of power and being an ideological nutter tends to leave you with no friends.  The Dutch converted to Protestantism and revolted against Spanish rule, while the English had formed their own church and now started pirating Spanish ships.  Eventually even reliably Catholic powers like France and north Italy were fighting border wars with Spain, presaging the chaos that would ensue soon after in the Thirty Years War.

By the time Cardinal Richelieu (yes, THAT Richelieu) came to power in France, the Spanish Hapsburgs had made themselves so unpopular from their fanaticism and warmongering that a catholic cardinal who used inquisition style persecution himself against protestants in his own country was willing to ally with protestant nations to fight Spain.