AUTO DA FE, omits dii fit (Poling. auto, act. from Lat. arias da, of the + fly, faith. from Lat. fides, Sp. auto dr le). The name given to the procession or ceremony which used to take place in Spain and Portugal at the exe cution of those condemned to death by the In quisition. it was generally held on a Sunday, between Whitsunday and Advent, very often on All Saints' Day. At dawn the dismal tolling of the great bell of the cathedral gave the signal to begin the drama of the, day, for as such it was looked upon by the people, who thronged to it in troops, believing that they did a good work in merely looking on. Men of the highest. rank reckoned it prudent to give their countenance to the holy tribunal at these processions. and even grandees of Castile did not disdain to make themselves familiars of the Inquisition. The procession was led by the Dominicans, carry ing the flag of their order and that of the In quisition; next followed the penitents, on whom only penance had been laid; behind them, and separated by a great cross, which was borne before, carte those condemned to death—bare foot, clad in the sunbenito (a yellow shirt in scribed with a list of the victim's crimes and painted over with pictures of damnation), and wearing a pointed cap on the head: then effigies of the fugitives, and lastly the bones of dead cul prits, in black coffins, painted with dames and hellish symbols. The train was closed by the army of priests and monks. The procession went through the principal streets to the church, where, after a sermon on the true faith, the sen tence was announced. Ill the meantime, the ac
cused stood before a crucifix, with extinguished torches in their hands. After the sentence had been read to them an officer of the Inquisition gave each one of the condemned a blow on the breast with his hand, as a sign that they were given over by that tribunal tc the secular power; on which a secular officer took them in charge, had them fettered, and taken to prison. A few hours afterwards they were brought to the place of execution. If they made profession of the Catholic faith at the last moment, they were so far favored as to he first strangled: otherwise they were burned alive, and with them the effigies of the fugitives and the bones of the dead culprits. Asa rule, the King, with his whole court, had to exalt by his presence the solemnity of the awful transaction. The celebration of the auto da fe began as early as 1257, though the death penalty was first imposed in I481. Be tween 1481 and 1808 more than 340.000 persons suffered punishment at the auto da fe. Of these 32,000 were burned. heresy was not the only crime thus punished, as is generally supposed, but all grave sins coming under ecclesiastical jurisdiction. The most elaborate auto da fe took place at Madrid, under Charles II., in I680. America also has had its autos da fe, Mexico celebrating one as late as I8I5—the latest re corded. See