Lesson 3 - The Early History of the Jews in England

Lesson Plan

1. Introduction ● Begin the class by drawing a timeline on the board from the year 70 CE to the present day. (Note: Explain the terms BCE, CE, and circa if not explained previously.) ● Ask the students when they think the first Jews came to England. o Direct the students to stand at the board next to the date that they think is correct. o Ask the students where they think the first Jews came from and where they arrived to.

2. Jigsaw Group Activity – Part 1 (For more information about the jigsaw strategy click here.) The students learn about eight historical events or personalities. a. Divide the students into eight analysis groups. Each group learns about one event or person in Jewish English history. b. Tell the students the following background story: There once was a brilliant, yet eccentric, historian who researched the history of the Jews in England. He researched several events and personalities who were central to the story of the life of the Jews in England from 1066 to 1753. The historian took notes so that he could report on what he had learned. He was afraid that someone would steal his research, so he wrote all of his notes in code. Unfortunately, the elderly historian died before he was able to write his report. We have his notes, but we need you to decode them and write them in regular English. Each group will receive notes on one topic. c. Relay the following instructions to the students: Your job is to: 1. Decode the notes using the key. 2. Record the information on the worksheet. d. Distribute the notes, key and worksheets to each group.

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e. Decoded notes: 1. Research Note #1 The first Jews came to England after the Norman conquest in 1066. William the Conqueror invited a group of merchants from Rouen, France to come to England and work as moneylenders, as Christians were not permitted to charge interest on the money they lent. It was a necessary but detested job. (That reminds me, I have to stop at the bank on the way home from work!) 2. Research Note #2 A boy, William of Norwich, was found dead. Someone had killed him. The Jews of Norwich were accused of killing William and using his blood to make matzah. (Seriously?!) Although Pope Innocent IV said this was ridiculous, the Christians of Norwich believed it. This was the first example of what is called a blood libel. 3. Research note #3 In March 1190, hostility was growing towards the Jews in England. Anger about the debts that were owed to Jews, religious tensions relating to the Crusades, general anti- Semitism, the coronation of Richard I, and, perhaps, the upcoming Easter holidays…all of these led to riots against the Jews in all parts of England, including the city of York. Jewish homes were burned and a group of about 150 Jews fled to a part of York Castle called Clifford’s for protection. A mob surrounded the castle, and many of the Jews inside, realizing that they would not survive the attack, committed suicide. When the mob finally captured the castle, they killed the remaining living Jews and burned the records of the money that they owed to Jewish moneylenders. (As much as I love the Middle Ages, this makes me happy to be living in the twenty-first century!) 4. Research note #4 On July 18, 1290, King Edward I expelled the Jews from England. This was the first time in European history that Jews were forced to leave a country. Most of the English Jews moved to France and Germany. There were no Jews living in England for the next 350 years. (Note to self: This is a great picture of Jews being exiled from France. Try to find a picture of the expulsion from England. I imagine it looked pretty similar.) BTW – the image also shows a Jewish badge from the time! 5. Research note #5 Menasseh ben Israel (1604–1657) was a Dutch who was influential in the effort to allow Jews to return to England after their expulsion in 1290. (Amazing that a man who wasn’t even English had so much to do with the Jews’ return to England!) Ben Israel was well known as a rabbi and a printer, and he established the first Hebrew printing press in Holland. Ben Israel came to England in order to advocate for the return of Jews to the country. Perhaps as a result of reading Ben Israel’s writings, Oliver Cromwell convened the Conference in 1655 with the purpose of discussing the idea of readmitting Jews into England. This began the era of Jewish resettlement, with Jews gradually being allowed to return to England.

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6. Research note #6 Solomon de Medina was the first Jew to be knighted in England. He was a Sephardi Jew living in Amsterdam who accompanied William of Orange (later King William III) to England, having also helped to finance the visit. Once in England, de Medina worked as a financier and merchant and was a supporter of the , which was built in 1700. (He must have been very proud of the synagogue that he helped to build. I really should stop by and take a visit sometime soon.) Sir Solomon de Medina was knighted in 1700 for his services to the crown. 7. Research note #7 In the seventeenth century, during the rule of Oliver Cromwell, Jews from Spain and Portugal returned to England after an absence of more than 300 years. In 1657, a house was leased in the City of and converted into a synagogue. In 1699 a nearby site was obtained for the building of a new synagogue in a secluded courtyard off a street called Bevis Marks. The Bevis Marks Synagogue was subsequently built and opened in 1701. Above the entrance to the synagogue is carved in Hebrew: “Kahal Kadosh Sha’ar HaShamayim” (Holy Congregation, the Gates of Heaven) and 1701, the date of its establishment. (I see my usual seat in this photograph! End seat, three rows from the back. Perfect location!) 8. Research note #8 The Jewish Naturalisation Act, also known as the Jew Bill, was passed by Parliament in 1753. The Act changed the law, making it possible for Jews to become British subjects while remaining Jewish. Jews who lived in England for three years could now request naturalisation without taking a Christian pledge. (It must have been very exciting for them to become British subjects and to finally feel a part of British history!) The Act was apparently passed in appreciation of the loyalty that the Jewish community had shown towards England during the Jacobite rising of 1745. The public, however, were very angry that the law was passed and reacted with an outburst of anti-Semitism, seeing the law as an “abandonment of Christianity.” The Act was thus repealed in the next sitting of Parliament in 1754.

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3. Jigsaw Group Activity – Part 2 a. Create new study groups of eight students with one student from each of the original analysis groups to represent each event or person. b. Each student presents their event or person to the other students using the completed worksheets. c. After the students have learned about all of the events and people, they design a timeline of the events as a poster on a large piece of card. They should also add a 1– 3 sentence summary of Jewish history in England from 1066 to 1753. d. Students present their posters. Ideas for presentation: i. Each group presents their poster to the class. ii. Posters are hung on the walls of the classroom or in a hall, and the students view them all in a “museum walk.”

4. Summary Activity – Individual Activity Throughout their study of Jewish history, the students will have the opportunity to reflect on their journey by writing a short entry in a journal that each student will keep. Teachers can choose whether students will write in a notebook or keep an online journal.

Summary Question: What aspects of life in twenty-first-century England can you appreciate more after learning about the early history of the Jews in England?

Complete the assignment by choosing one of more of the following options:

 Write the answer in your diary.  Post your answer to the Padlet board. Feel free to add a photograph, link, or video to your answer.

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