Jews in England in 1290

Enquiry question

Investigate the sources

1. Source 1: Statute of the Jewry, 1275

   In 1275, King Edward I introduced a Statute of the Jewry with further rules and regulations for the Jewish community living in England. Various versions of this statute survive, but the document below is preserved in a compilation book of statutes at The National Archives. The statute below is written in Anglo-Norman (a form of the French language). This task focuses on three key extracts from the statute.

   1. 

      Transcript

      Les Estatutz de la Jewerie

      Por ceo ke le Rey ad veu mout[z] de maus e deseritizons des p[ro]des houmes de sa t[re]re sunt avenue p[ro] es usures des Jeus e unt fe[i]t ca en arere, e ke mult de pecchez en sunt sui[tz] ja seit ceo ke luy ou ces auncestres eient eu g[aeg]nt pru de la gyuerie tot tens ca en arere, ne p[re] kau[m]t en le honur de deu e p[re] le com[m]un pru del people ke le Rey ad ordine e establi ken ul geu desoremes ne p[re]ste ren a usure ne sour t[re]re ne sur rente ne sour autre chose […]

      Translation

      Statute of Jewry

      Since the king has seen various evils, and the disinheriting of the good men of his land by the usuries (lending money at interest) of Jews made in time past, and that various sins have followed thereafter; [and] although he and his ancestors have received much benefit from the Jewish people in all time past; nevertheless for the honour of God and the common benefit of the people, the king has ordained and established, that from this day forward no Jew shall lend anything at usury, either upon land, or upon rent, or upon other thing […]

   2. 

      Transcript

      E ke tus les Geus seient menauns en les citez e en les burgs propres les Rey, ou les Whuches Cirograffes de Geuerie soleient ester: e k[e] checun Geu pus kil avra passee set anz, porte enseine en son soverain garnement cest assav[et] en fourme de deus tables joyntes de feutre iaune de la longure de sis poucer[is] e de la laur de treis pou[tz]. E ke checun pus kil aurta passe duzze anz paie tres den[ers] p[re] an de [taillage] au Rey [ky serf il est] a la Pasche e ceo seit entendu ausi ben de fem[m]e con de houme.

      Translation

      And that all Jews shall stay in the king’s own cities and boroughs, where the Chests of Chirographs of the Jewry are. And that each Jew after he turns seven years old, shall wear a badge on his clothes; that is to say, in the form of two tables joined, of yellow felt, of the length of six inches, and of breadth three inches. And that each one, after he shall be twelve years old, pay three pence yearly at Easter of tax to the king […]; and this is the same for both women and men […]

   3. 

      Transcript

      E le Rey lor g[aeg]nte kil vivent de marchaundies leaus e p[ro] lor labur e kil co’munient ove les Crestiens p[re] leument marchaunder en endaunt e en echataunt. Mes ke par cest encheson ne p[ro] autre nul Crestien ne seit cochaunt ne levaunt entre eus. E ne velt pas le Reys par encheson de lor merchandise kil seient lote ne en escot ne en talliages o ceus des Citez ou des Burgs ou il eminent de ci cum il sunt taillables al Rey come ses serfs e a nul autres, for a Rey […]

      Translation

      And the king grants to Jews that may earn their living by lawful merchandise and labour; and that they may interact with Christians in order to lawfully trade by buying and selling. But other than this, no Christian should mix with Jewish individuals. And the king wills that they [Jews] shall not by reason of their merchandise be put to scot or lot, not in taxes with the men of the cities and boroughs where they live; for that they are taxable to the king and to no other but the king […]

   Examine the source

   • In extract 1a, what does the king no longer allow Jews to do?
   • What reasons does the king give for introducing this new rule?
   • How do you think Jewish individuals might have felt and/or responded to this rule?
   • What three rules are introduced in extract 1b?
   • The chests of chirographs kept records of Jewish loans. Why do you think the king wanted to restrict Jews to cities and boroughs where these chests were located?
   • Why do you think King Edward I wanted Jewish individuals to wear a badge?
   • What does this extract suggest about attitudes towards Jewish women in 1275?
   • Look at extract 1c, what does the king suggest Jews do to earn a living?
   • How does the king feel about Christians mixing with Jews?
   • What does the statute order in regards to the taxation of Jews?
   • After reading all three extracts, what do you think the impact of this statute was on England’s Jewish community? Explain your answer with reference to the extracts.

2. Source 2: Plea Roll of Essex forest eyre, 1277

   Despite the tightening restrictions on England’s Jewish community, Jews and Christians continued to interact with one another. They are even recorded to have committed crimes together in select court cases. For example, in a court case recorded before the forest court in 1277, it was reported that two of Aaron of Colchester’s sons, amongst other Jewish men, were part of a mixed-faith gang tried for illegal deer hunting in Colchester, Essex. This case is particularly notable as a caricature of Aaron was drawn next to record and labelled ‘Aaron, son of the Devil’ in Latin.

   This image includes one of the earliest English depictions of the Jewish badge – the piece of yellow taffeta, six fingers long and three broad, cut to represent the shape of the tabula (stone) that recorded the Ten Commandments. The badge was first introduced in England by Pope Honorius III’s orders following the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215, but it was only after the Statute of Jewry around 1275 that it had to be worn in England by every Jew aged over the age of seven.

   1. 

   Examine the source

   • What does the image suggest about attitudes towards Aaron of Colchester?
   • How does the image compare to the cartoon of the Norwich Jewish community that we considered in the resource Jews in England 1216-72? Note the similarities and differences.
   • What does the presence of the Jewish badge on Aaron’s chest suggest about the effectiveness of the new rules introduced in the Statute of Jewry around 1275?

3. Source 3: Letters from King Edward, 1290

   These sources are extracts from letters sent by King Edward in 1290 that were enrolled on the Close Rolls (formal record of royal letters); the first on 18 July to his sheriffs, and the second to the treasurer and barons of the Exchequer on 5 November.

   Following the Statute of Jewry around 1275, the situation for England’s Jewish community declined further still. In 1287, in the duchy of Gascony (an area of modern-day France under English rule), King Edward ordered the local Jews to be expelled. All their property was seized by the crown and all outstanding debts owed to Jews were transferred to the king’s name. Shortly later, England’s Jewish community faced the same fate. By the time King Edward returned to England in 1289, he was deeply in debt. The next summer he summoned his knights to introduce a steep tax on his people. To make the tax more bearable Edward essentially offered to expel all Jews in exchange. The heavy tax was passed, and three days later, on 18th July 1290, writs (letters) were issued to the sheriffs of every county outlining that all Jews should leave England by All Saint’s Day (1 November 1290). Jews were allowed to take their possessions with them, but the vast majority had their houses forfeited to the king.

   1. 

      Transcript

      Rex vicecomiti Gloucestriae etc. cum Judaeis regni nostri universis certum tempus praefixerimus a regno illo transfretandi; Nolentes quod ipsi per ministros nostros, aut alios quoscunque, aliter fieri consuevit, indebite pertractentur, tibi praecipimus, quod per totam ballivam tuan publice proclamari, et firmiter inhiberi facias, ne quis eis intra terminum praedictum, injuriam, molestiam, aut dampnum inferat seu gravamen. Et cum contingat ipso cum catallis suis, quae, dirige regressus suos, salvum et securum conductum eis habere facias, sumptibus eorum. Proviso, quod Judaei, ante recessum suum, vadia Christianorum, quae penes se habent, illis quorum fuerint, si ea acquietare voluerint, restituant, ut tenentur. Teste Rege apud Westm. 18 die Julii. Confimiles Literae diriguntur vicecomitibus Essexiae, Eboraci, Northamptoniae, Lincolniae, Herefordiae, et Southamptoniae.

      Translation

      The King to the sheriff of Gloucester etc. Whereas the king has prefixed to all the Jews of his realm a certain time to pass out of the realm; he wills that they shall not be treated by his ministers or others otherwise than has been customary. He orders the sheriff to cause proclamation to be made throughout his bailiwick prohibiting any one from injuring or wronging the Jews within the said time. He is ordered to cause the Jew to have safe conduct at their cost when they, with their chattels, which the king has granted to them, direct their steps towards London in order to cross the sea, provided that before they leave they restore the pledges of Christians in their possession to those to whom they belong. Witness the king at Westminster, 18th July. The like to the sheriffs of Essex, York, Northampton, Lincoln, Hereford and Southampton. 

   2. 

      Transcript

      Edwardus, etc. Thesaurario et Baronibus de Scaccario salutem. Cum dudum in Parliamento nostro apud Westmonasterium in quindena S. Michaelis anno regni nostri tercio, ad honorem Dei et populi regni nostri utilitatem, ordinaverimus et statuerimus quod nullus Judeus ejusdem regni extunc aliquid sub usura Christiano alicui mutuaret super terris, redditibus seu rebus aliis, set per negotiationes et labores suos ducerent vitam suam; ao idem Judei, postmodum malicious inter se deliberantes, usure genus indeterius quod curialitatem nuncuparunt inmutantes, populum nostrum predictum sub colore hujusmodi circumquaque depresserint, errore ultimo priorem dupplicante; per quod Nos ob scelera sua et honorem Crucifixi Judeos illos tamquam perfidos exire fecimus regnum nostrum […]

      Translation

      Edward, etc. To the Treasurer and Barons of the Exchequer, greeting. Whereas the king in his parliament at Westminster at the quinzaine of Michaelmas in the third year of his reign, ordained that no Jew of the realm should thenceforth lend anything in usury to any Christian upon lands, rents or other things, but should earn his living by trade and labour, and the Jews afterwards, maliciously discussing amongst themselves, changed the kind of usury into a worse kind, which they called courtesy, and oppressed the king’s people twice as bad as before; as a result the king, for this reason and for the honour of Christ, has caused the Jews to leave his realm as perfidious men […]

   Examine the source

   • Looking at source 3a, which sheriffs were sent a copy of the letter? Why do you think these sheriffs in particular were selected to receive this order?
   • What does the king urge his sheriffs to make sure happens to Jews in each sheriff’s bailiwick (area)?
   • What about these instructions might surprise you? Explain your answer.
   • In source 3b, what main reason does King Edward give for expelling Jews from England?
   • Why might the king describe the Jews as ‘perfidious’ men?
   • From this letter, was Edward’s decision more economic (about money) or religious (for Christianity and the Church)? Explain your answer.

Extension activities

Explain how Christian-Jewish relations deteriorated between 1066 and 1290 using this resource, and the Jews in England in 1216-72 and Jews in England in 1066 resources. Students may then consider whether the expulsion could have been avoided. This may be structured in the form of a debate to consolidate the unit of work.

Background information

Edward I and the expulsion of the Jews.

Following almost two centuries of Christians and Jews living alongside each other, King Edward I expelled England’s entire Jewish population in the autumn of 1290. Jews had once been prominent in national finance and local trade at key regional centres like York, Lincoln and London, yet by the end of the thirteenth century, Jewish individuals were no longer able to reside ‘freely and honourably’ in England nor enjoy the same ‘liberties and customs’ as their predecessors. They were expelled from the realm as perfidious (faithless) men.

The Statute of Jewry around 1275

The reign of King Edward I (1272-1307) witnessed a heightening of tensions between the Christian and Jewish populations in England. Before relations between the two faiths had been occasionally difficult, subject to prejudice around crusading propaganda and the varying levels of debt owed to Jewish moneylenders but horrific outbursts, such as the attack on York’s Jewish population in March 1190, were few and far between. Edward, however, placed new emphasis on the status of Jews in England. The Statute of Jewry around 1275 outlined that Jews had to live in specific areas of the king’s towns; those aged over seven had to wear a badge that visually identified them as being Jewish (the double tabula – the shape of stone tablets); all aged over twelve years were to pay a tax of 3 pence each Easter; and Jews could only sell property or negotiate debts with the king’s permission. England’s Jewish population were entitled to earn a living as tradesmen or farmers but were not allowed to be part of guilds (groups of craftsmen or merchants) or to own farmland.

Impact of new laws

New rules paired with heavy taxation and growing suspicions surrounding the coin-clipping events in the late 1270s led to mounting pressure on Christian-Jewish relations. By the late 1280s, Edward could only secure parliament’s grant of further taxation to aid his war with France by making sacrifices. The expulsion of the Jews was the price he agreed to pay. As a result of these new laws, many Jewish families became poor and the king could no longer collect taxes from them: hundreds were arrested, hanged or imprisoned.

Growing tensions

The 1270s also marked escalating tensions elsewhere. The accusation most brought against Jews in court was neither homicide (murder) nor theft, but the act of coin-clipping; trimming pieces of silver off the rims of coins, melting them down, recasting the silver into plates, and selling these to a goldsmiths or other metalworkers for money. Various arrests took place over the course of the thirteenth century, but there was much worse to follow. On 17th November 1278, it was record that all the Jews of England were simultaneously arrested “for clipping of money” and imprisoned while their houses were searched. Although Christians were also accused of these crimes, it was clear that England’s Jewish community were targeted as the key suspects. Coin-clipping was punishable by death and, by 7th May 1279, it was recorded that 269 Jews had been executed in London.

Edict of Expulsion 1290

Just over a decade later, England’s Jewish community was unrecognisable compared to its size and so-called ‘prosperity’ in the early 1200s. By 1290, the gradual deterioration of Christian-Jewish relations in England came to a head when King Edward could only secure parliament’s grant of further taxation of his people to aid his war with France by making sacrifices. The expulsion of the Jews was the price he agreed to pay. On 18th July 1290, Edward I issued what came to be called the Edict of Expulsion. The same day that the Edict was proclaimed writs (letters) were sent to his sheriffs advising that all Jews in their counties had until 1st November to leave the realm. Any Jews remaining after this date were liable to be seized and executed. It was also ordered that Jewish houses would be forfeited to the crown, but Jews could take with them what they could carry, including any money and valuables. The letter also urged the sheriffs to protect the Jews and ensure they were not injured in their exit from the kingdom. Not all Jews, however, made the journey safely. One famous account recorded by Walter of Guisborough reveals that Jews sailing from London were persuaded to disembark for a walk on a sandbank while the tide was out and then left to drown there when the water returned.

Oliver Cromwell admits Jews to England

Altogether, it is estimated that around 3,000 Jews were forced to leave England. In return for the expulsion of Jews from England, Parliament granted Edward a tax of £116,000. Edward’s Edict to banish his Jewish community was followed by his fellow Christian monarch in France, Philip le Bel sixteen years later. It was not until 1656 that Oliver Cromwell allowed Jews back into England. In the interim, Jews were required to obtain a special license to visit the realm, though it seems very likely that some Jews remained or resettled in England while keeping their religion secret.

Further information

Useful links

bbc.co.uk

Readmission of Jews to Britain in 1656

Article published by the BBC that examines the events leading up to the expulsion and the readmission of Jews in 1656.

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