Paul IV
Gian Pietro Carafa · 1555 – 1559
A fierce Counter-Reformation pope who created the Roman ghetto, expanded the Inquisition, and established the Index of Forbidden Books.
Carafa was already seventy-nine when he became pope in 1555, and his energy was frightening. He had co-founded the Theatine order and spent decades running the Roman Inquisition before becoming pope. Once in power, he expanded the Inquisition's reach, created the Index of Forbidden Books to control what Catholics could read, and established the Roman ghetto, forcing the city's Jews into a confined quarter and making them wear identifying badges. He was deeply suspicious of the Jesuits, hostile to Spain despite being politically dependent on it, and so authoritarian that Romans celebrated his death in 1559 by tearing down his statues and burning Inquisition records. He was undeniably effective at stamping out Protestant influence in Italy. The cost was a surveillance state within the Church.
The Inquisitor Pope
Paul IV ran the Church the way he had run the Inquisition: with suspicion and control. He got results. Protestantism never gained a foothold in Italy. But the methods were harsh, and the culture of censorship and fear he created lasted long after him.
The Roman Ghetto
Paul IV's treatment of Jews was among the worst of any pope. He confined them to a ghetto, restricted their economic activities, and forced them to attend Christian sermons. The ghetto he created lasted until 1870. This is not a comfortable part of papal history, but it is an honest one.