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History of prejudice
Sole survivor David Stolier
Greg Buxton searches for the wreck
Greg Buxton's grandfather, Grigori Buchspan
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It is generally thought that the first Jews into England arrived with
the Norman Conquest in 1066, from Rouen. Enjoying the favour of successive
kings, they flourishing by money-lending and trade, but the wealth accrued
from monastic and aristocratic defaulters also brought resentment and
dislike. The community came under increasing attacks and were subjected
to superstitious and unfounded charges. Chief among these were ritual
murder accusations.
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In 1217 English Jews were made to wear yellow badges and during the
remainder of the century they came under increasing restrictions,
culminating in their expulsion in 1290 by Edward I.
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Those who dared to remain stayed with the Domus Conversorum, having
converted to Christianity, until 1551. Attempts to revoke the expulsion
edict failed and when some Jews returned in the 14th century, for
example, complaints were made to the king.
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For 350 years Jews were more or less excluded from the country, and
towards the end of this time, in 1589, anti-Semitic feelings were
fuelled by Marlowe's play The Jew of Malta and then in 1597
by Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice.
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Nevertheless, with the coming of Oliver Cromwell and the increasing
influence of the Puritans, Jews were re-admitted to England in 1655.
Cromwell’s view was that Jewish contacts throughout the world
would be useful to the country’s international trade.
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When Jews were expelled from Spain, an enemy of England, a large
number arrived in London in the mid-1600s. Still persecuted in England,
many formed a secret congregation, outwardly appearing as Catholics.
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The edict of expulsion has never been formally repealed, but in 1740
a statute was passed, allowing Jews who had lived in the colonies
for seven years to become naturalised. In 1753, a similar act, with
much opposition, was applied to Jews in England. Huge demonstrations
followed, with Jewish dummies burned. The bill was repealed in 1754
and then another passed in 1845.
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In 1901 The British Brothers League campaigned against 'alien immigration',
particularly of Jews escaping Eastern Europe’s pogroms. In 1905
the first immigration act, the Aliens Act, was introduced. Entry to
Britain became discretionary rather than a right.
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Jews were not the only people to suffer rising racism. A large black
population who had lived in England for hundreds of years also came
under attack and in 1911 the same fate befell Cardiff’s small
Chinese population.
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A tougher Aliens Act was introduced in 1914, requiring aliens to
register, restricting movement and imposing deportations. And in 1919,
another cut the ports open to immigrants and, among other things,
allowed the authorities to deport aliens involved in industrial disputes.
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When in 1935-36 there were numerous attacks on Jewish people in the
East End of London, often instigated by Oswald Mosley's British Union
of Fascists, opposition mounted, culminating in the Battle of Cable
Street.
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Asked by the Board of Deputies of British Jews to intervene to stop
the persecution of the Jews in Germany during the 1930s, the British
government refused to do anything that might be seen as interfering
in Germany’s internal politics.
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When the war began, the board again asked the UK government to highlight
the genocide and bomb Auschwitz. There was no response, with the UK
government also resisting Jewish immigration to Palestine.
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By 1941 when the Struma made its fateful journey, British
support was still ambiguous and the emerging Jewish state in British-controlled
Palestine still far from secure.
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