The Scientific Revolution

His trial

He had many friends in the Church who knew he was right, and they were chief among those urging him to be moderate. In the 1640s, a new pope came to power, and Galileo's friends could no longer protect him. His writings were condemned and he was summoned to Rome to answer for his views.

He was nearly seventy years old when he came before the Roman Inquisition. His writings were heresy, they told him, and he was to recant. At first he refused, but when he was threatened with torture, he could not hold out. He signed the confession and recanted his teachings.

History of Western Civilization

E.L. Skip Knox
Boise State University

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