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18 July 1290
Expulsion of the Jews
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Edward I expels England's Jewish community,
which numbers about 3,000, after having extracted as much money as he
could from it. In a climate of hatred towards foreigners, which has already
led to local massacres of Jews, this is a popular move: Jews are accused
of murdering Christian children to obtain blood to bake their Passover
bread. Jewish communities first settled in England during the reign of
William I and acted as moneylenders
(a profession forbidden to Christians by Church law) to the king at very
high rates of interest. But, by Edward's reign, they have been squeezed
of virtually all their funds.
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