Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive Faculty Publications 2005 The Medieval Holocaust: The Approach of the Plague and the Destruction of Jews in Germany, 1348-1349 Albert Winkler Brigham Young University - Provo, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub Part of the European History Commons, and the Medieval History Commons BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Winkler, Albert, "The Medieval Holocaust: The Approach of the Plague and the Destruction of Jews in Germany, 1348-1349" (2005). Faculty Publications. 1816. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/1816 This Peer-Reviewed Article is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. The Medieval Holocaust:The Approach of the Plague and the Destruction of Jews in Germany, 1348-1349 by Albert Winkler The Jews of Germany have suffered a great deal from Jews in Germany during the Middle Ages persecutions over the centuries. The Holocaust of the 1940s, According to the available information, Jews have lived for example, ranks among the most brutal events in recorded in what is now Germany starting in Roman times. There was history, but there were many other instances of oppression in a community of Jews in Cologne during the Roman era German history, many of which date from the Middle Ages. indicated by the remains of their synagogue, which has During the Medieval period, the Jews were subject to recently been unearthed. However, the existence of Jews in numerous attacks, and they often faced periods of Germany might not have been continuous because scholars devastation and mass murder. Likely, the most brutal of have been unable to find evidence that indicated the Jews these were the severe pogroms unleashed on the Jews in were in that region in the following centuries. During the association with the advance of the Black Death in 1348 and Middle Ages, Jews came to Germany largely as merchants, 1349. Perhaps only ranking behind the annihilations by the and they most often lived in the towns along the rivers which Nazis, the ravaging of the Jewish communities at the time of were the major avenues of trade. During much of that age, the Plague was the most extensive oppression the Jews ever many Jews served in important positions as doctors and faced in the history of Germany. The persecutions of Jews merchants.1 Very early in their existence in Germany, the at the time of the Black Death in Germany started with the Jews faced prejudice and persecutions. Some early Church advance of the disease towards the southwestern areas of the Fathers, most notably St. John Chrysostom, condemned the German Empire. The communities in these regions Jews largely for religious reasons. Somehow, he argued, all essentially started the process and precedence of attacks that Jews bore collective guilt for the execution of Jesus of were soon followed in many other German cities. Nazareth, even though the event occurred hundreds of years Despite the attention which has been paid to the Jewish before any the contemporaries of Chrysostom were born.2 experience in history, the topic of the early persecution of Additionally, the Jews were denigrated for rejecting the Jews in Germany has been the subject of some controversy teachings of Christianity and its new concept of salvation. among scholars. For instance, the exact role of the pestilence The Gospel of John, for example, has Jesus condemning the in the outbreak of hostilities towards the Jews has never been Jews because they refused to believe that he was sent by fully clarified. The attacks might have been triggered by the God. In John 8:44 Jesus said, “Ye are of your father [who is] fear of approaching doom, or they may have started at the the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.” The book time of the Black Death only by coincidence. Clearly, the of Revelations 2:9 expressed a similar sentiment, “Jews ... issue is more complicated than a simple cause and effect are the synagogue of Satan.”3 All of this demonstrated a relationship because numerous factors came into play in the basic paranoia of many Christians. The fact that the Jewish decisions to attack Jews. A vicious and pervasive anti- people, who were well versed in the culture and ethics of the Jewish sentiment led many Christians to believe that the Hebrew Bible, would reject the teachings of Jesus forced members of this often-victimized religion must be many insecure Christians to question the efficacy of their responsible somehow for any malady, social problem, or own religion. This was too disturbing for many of them to disaster that befell society. When no hard evidence was bear, and they frequently lashed out at the Jews, who viewed available to support accusations, as was almost always the the evidence of Jesus differently. case, then myths and unfounded rumors were used as Many Christians believed that the sin of killing Jesus, evidence. Other factors contributing to the tragedy include the consequences of which the Jews had somehow inherited the uncertainty associated with political realities in the cities from their ancestors, clearly made the Jews unable to attain of Germany at this time. Many social and economic groups salvation, and their punishment by divine actions continued vied for power in the communities. Economic competition to show how the Lord held them in disfavor. This was between Jews and Christians was clearly involved, as well as demonstrated by the dispersal or diaspora of the Jewish greed and jealousies by many people in the Christian people starting during the Roman era. Some Christians community. This article will address the issues surrounding justified their persecution of the Jews because deity was the destruction of the Jews of Germany at the time of the punishing them already, and the continual mistreatment of Black Death and attempt to shed light on the controversial those people was a means of showing devotion to their Lord aspects of the persecutions. This work will concentrate on and doing his will. Often, the Christian teachings of love, the attacks on Jewish communities in the cities and towns of charity, and an unwillingness to judge others were simply set the southwest German Empire because these were the aside when the treatment of Jews was concerned. Christians locations of the first outbreaks of these pogroms and became viewed Jews as having every demonic proclivity, and they the model of similar oppression in other areas. often bore the stigma of being the adversaries of all peoples. 6 FEEFHS Journal Volume XIII Many calamities that fell on society were blamed on the struck at Jewish communities from northern France to Jews. When fires broke out in cities, the Jewish community Prague and deep into to Hungary. The armies massacred was repeatedly held responsible even when the conflagra- Jews in the larger cities of Germany including Metz, Trier, tion started in a part of the town away from Jewish Mainz, Cologne, Worms, Rothenburg, and Regensburg, and neighborhoods. Diseases and maladies were often blamed many other smaller settlements as well. The knights forced on the Jews, whom many Christians believed used sorcery or some Jews to convert to Christianity, but they also killed any kind of collaboration with evil to cause these many. Clearly, thousands of Jews were murdered at that unfortunate events to take place. The Jews again and again time, but the estimates of 20,000 or more victims are were seen as poisoners seeking to kill Christians by the use probably exaggerations.6 of hazardous substances. Supposedly, the Jews frequently A new element of the persecution of Jews during the desecrated the Holy Eucharist, murdered children in some Middle Ages seemed to be added at the time of the Crusades. kind of lust to kill, and then used their blood in a degraded While the Jews had long been oppressed for religious ritual or means of worship. These accusations had little or no reasons, the Christians began to mistreat them for economic evidence to support them and were clearly absurd, but even motives as well. Apparently for the first time, the Jewish the most unreliable rumors could be used as excuses to communities were believed to control much wealth that persecute Jews. Joshua Trachtenberg, an eminent scholar of could be stolen and used by those who oppressed them.7 In anti-Jewish ideas and practices during the Middle Ages, has fact, greed would become such a strong motivating factor observed, “Nothing was too monstrous to be told about a that persecutions were often unleashed for little reason other Jew.”4 Many of these unfounded allegations were used than to steal the property of Jews whom many Christians against the Jews when the Christian communities feared the believed to be wealthy. approach of the Plague. During the Middle Ages, Jews were barred from entering many occupations, so their economic activities were restricted to a relatively small number of ways to make a living. The Catholic Church’s condemnation of loaning money at interest, called usury, gave a few Jews the opportunity of making a living by providing credit. Despite the Church’s restriction on lending practices, funds were often available from Christians to those who needed cash, and banking firms prospered in the Lombardy area of Italy during the Middle Ages. Also, money was available on the local level as well. However, many borrowers found Jewish money lenders to be a convenient source of funds because other means of obtaining funds were not always available.