Anti-Semitism and the Birth of Europe

Abstract

In August 1976 the remains of a substantial building were uncovered in the courtyard of the Palais de Justice at Rouen, by the street which has been called at least since 1116 the rue aux Juifs (see plate I). That it was a Jewish building is confirmed by the Hebrew graffiti on its interior walls. It can be dated firmly to the years around 1100 by its scale, style, and workmanship, which are strongly reminiscent of the so-called ‘Norman exchequer’ in the ducal castle at Caen. The quality of its masonry is as good as may be found anywhere in northern Europe at this time. The function of the building is not altogether certain. At 14.14 X 9.46 metres, with at least one storey above the ground floor, it seems too large for a private dwelling, and indeed it is bigger than any known synagogue of this date north of the Alps. Not only the graffiti, but the lions of Judah finely carved at the base of one column, and the dragon from Psalm 91 on another, strongly suggest a religious purpose. The synagogue was on this street, but it is usually thought to have been on the south side, opposite the Palais de Justice site. This has led Norman Golb, the author of a major study of the Jewish community at Rouen, to suggest that the building unveiled in 1976 was a school, which acted as a centre of advanced study, not only for the Jewry of Rouen, but for a much larger region in which educational and scholarly activity is attested throughout the twelfth century by a rich crop of surviving manuscripts and other references, including many from places like Pont-Audemer, Touques, Falaise, Evreux, and Coutances, which were by no means major urban centres at this time.

Jewish Persecutions and Weather Shocks: 1100–1800

“…in the charges of host desecration, well poisoning, coin‐clipping or diabolism). See Moore , pp. 42–3) and Stacey , pp.…”

Causes and Consequences of Rohingya Refugee Crisis: A Case of Doubly Alienated People

“…This kind of depiction is very similar to a rich body of literature that documents dehumanization campaigns by the power elite against a part of the population to serve political purposes. It has similarities with similar dehumanization campaign against Jews in Europe for centuries (Moore 1992;Brustein, 2003;Herf, 2013), World War II-era representations of the Italians and Japanese Americans in American popular culture (Guglielmo, 2000), and the ongoing social media campaigns against Mexicans (Flores-Yeffal, et al, 2011). These targeted smear campaigns clearly demonstrate how the alienation process against the persecuted Rohingyas within the hosting country operates.…”

“…However, what the Rohingyas suffered both inside Myanmar when they faced an ethnic cleansing as well as inside Bangladesh as refugees is not anything new. A rich literature has addressed another similar but lengthier, broader, and more intense dehumanization campaign that existed for centuries in Europe against Jews (Moore 1992;Brustein, 2003;Herf, 2013). This dehumanization campaign culminated in one of the biggest ethnic cleansings of history: The Holocaust (Nova, 1986).…”

Early Medieval Christian Identity and Anti‐Judaism: The Case of the Visigothic Kingdom

“…1982, pp. 19–23; Moore 1992, p. 36; Cohen, M. 1994, p. 44; Stow 1992, p. 43. For an opposing view, see Rouche 1979.…”

“…26 26 See, for example, Funkenstein 1993; Langmuir 1990; Moore 1992; Depres 1994; Abulafia 1995, 1996; Foa 1996; Jordan 1996; Lipton 1999, 2002; Rubin 1999; Narin Van Court 2002. For an interpretation of Carolingian constructions of pagan religious identities as means to ‘delineate the parameters of acceptable [Christian] behavior’, see Palmer 2007, p. 413. …”