Imagine for a moment that you and your friends are playing a game. In the game, everyone has to follow a set of rules. If someone breaks the rules, they have to answer to the Inquisition, which is like a group of grown-ups who make sure everyone is playing the game fairly.
Now, let's imagine that the game is life in France and the Inquisition is a group of people who make sure everyone follows the rules of the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church was the most important religion in France during a long time ago. People who didn't follow the rules were seen as breaking the laws of both the Church and the country.
The Inquisition was made up of people called Inquisitors, who were like the super-cops of their day. They were highly respected, and their job was to make sure that everyone was a good, loyal Catholic. They also investigated people who were accused of doing things that were against the teachings of the Catholic Church. These things ranged from simple things like not going to church on Sunday to more serious issues like practicing a different religion.
The Inquisition had the power to arrest, try and even imprison, torture and execute people who broke the rules. They also had informants, people who would tell them when someone was breaking the rules.
The Inquisition in France began in the 12th century and continued until the 18th century. Throughout that time, thousands of people were questioned, imprisoned and sometimes killed, all in the name of keeping France a Catholic country. The Inquisition was a scary and powerful force, and people lived in fear of being accused of breaking the Church's laws.
However, as time went on, people began to question the Inquisition's methods. They didn't like the idea of people being tortured or killed for their beliefs, and they began to push back against the Inquisition's power. Eventually, the French government abolished the Inquisition in the 18th century, and it has never been reconstituted since then.