In the Middle Ages The Middle Ages is a period of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The period followed the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, and preceded the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period in a three-period division of history: Classical, Medieval, and Modern. The term "Middle Ages" (medium aevum) was coined in the city of Speyer Speyer is a city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located beside the river Rhine, Speyer is 25 km south of Ludwigshafen and Mannheim. Founded by the Romans, it is one of Germany's oldest cities. The first known names were Noviomagus and Civitas Nemetum, after the Teutonic tribe, Nemetes, settled in the area, Germany A region named Germania, inhabited by several Germanic peoples, has been known and documented before AD 100. Beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire, which lasted until 1806. During the 16th century, northern Germany became the centre of the Protestant Reformation. As a modern nation-state,, was home to one of the most significant Jewish The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation. Converts to Judaism, whose status as Jews within the Jewish ethnos communities in the Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire (HRE; German: Heiliges Römisches Reich , Latin: Imperium Romanum Sacrum (IRS), Italian: Sacro Romano Impero (SRI)) was for about a millennium a realm in Central Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in. After many ups and downs throughout history the community was totally wiped out 1940 in the holocaust The Holocaust , also known as The Shoah (Hebrew: השואה, Romanized HaShoah, "calamity"; Yiddish: חורבן, Romanized Churben or Hurban, from the Hebrew for "destruction") was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored extermination by Nazi Germany. With the fall of the iron curtain The concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological fighting and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On either side of the Iron Curtain, states developed their own international economic and military alliances: in 1989 Jews again chose to settle in Speyer and a first assembly took place in 1996.
The Beginnings in 1084
At the instigation of bishop Rüdiger Huzmann and with the expressed approval of emperor Henry IV. Henry IV was King of Germany from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century. His reign was marked by the Investiture Controversy with the Papacy and several civil wars with pretenders to his throne a larger number of Jews from Mainz Mainz is a city in Germany and the capital of the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It was a politically important seat of the Prince-elector of Mainz (see: Archbishopric of Mainz) under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of and other Rhenish cities settled in Speyer. In his notes the bishop wrote:
Turning the village of Speyer into a city I believed to multiply its image a thousand times by also inviting Jews. I had them settle outside the quarters of the other inhabitants and as not to have them disquieted by the insolence of the lowly folk I had them surrounded by a wall. Now the place of their habitation which I acquired justly (for in the first place I obtained the hill partly with money and partly by exchange, while I received the valley by way of gift from some heirs) that place, I say, I transferred to them on condition that they pay annually 3 ½ pounds in silver for the use of the brethren. I have granted also to them within the district where they dwell, and from that district outside the town as far as the harbour, and within the harbour itself, full power to change gold and silver, and to buy and sell what they please. And I have also given them license to do this throughout the state. Besides this I have given them land of the church for a cemetery with rights of inheritance. This also I have added that if any Jew should at any time stay with them he shall pay no thelony. Then also just as the judge of the city hears cases between citizens, so the chief rabbi shall hear cases which arise between the Jews or against them. But if by chance he is unable to decide any of them they shall go to the bishop or his chamberlain. They shall maintain watches, guards, and fortifications about their district, the guards in common with our vassals. They may lawfully employ nurses and servants from among our people. Slaughtered meat which they may not eat according to their law they may lawfully sell to Christians, and Christians may lawfully buy it. Finally, to round out these concessions, I have granted that they may enjoy the same privileges as the Jews in any other city of Germany. Lest any of my successors diminish this gift and concession, or constrain them to pay greater taxes, alleging that they have usurped these privileges, and have no episcopal warrant for them, I have left this charter as a suitable testimony of the said grant. And that this may never be forgotten, I have signed it, and confirmed it with my seal as may be seen below. Given on September 15, 1084, etc. [1][2]
The settlement mentioned in this privilege is the former suburb of Altspeyer in the area to the east of today’s railway station. The “valley” refers either to a moat-like grove to the north of the Weidenberg (today Hirschgraben) or to the low areas around the stream of the Speyerbach. This walled settlement for Jews is the first documented Ghetto Ghetto was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. A ghetto is now described as an overcrowded urban area often associated with a specific ethnic or racial population; especially because of social, legal, or economic pressure.[3]
The charter granted by bishop Huzmann went well beyond contemporary practice anywhere else in the empire. The Jews of Speyer were allowed to carry out any kind of trade, exchange gold and money, own land, have their own laws, justice system and administration, employ non-Jews as servants, and were not required to pay tolls or duties at the city’s borders. The reason for asking the Jews to come to Speyer was their important role in the money and trade businesses, especially with distant regions. Money lenders were needed on a large scale for the construction of the cathedral The Speyer Cathedral, officially the Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and St Stephen, in Latin: Domus sanctae Mariae Spirae in Speyer, Germany, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Speyer and is within the Archdiocese of Bamberg. The cathedral, which is dedicated to St. Mary, patron saint of Speyer ("Patrona Spirensis". The deliberate settlement of Jews was seen as a measure for business development. The Jews can also be regarded as pioneers of urban development in Germany.[4] The prosecution of Jews and trade restrictions led to considerable economic disadvantages and loss of revenues, which is why bishops, lords and kings usually tried to restrain the anti-semitic fervour of the lower clergy and the public. By granting privileges and protection to the Jews, they were merely lured into one's realm while at the same time safeguarding considerable revenues and protection fees.
With the aid of bishop Huzmann the Jews of Speyer had their rights and privileges confirmed and even expanded ("sub tuicionem nostram reciperemus et teneremus") by Henry IV as he departed on his third punitive expedition to Italy in 1090.[5][6] The rights and privileges which had been especially granted to the Jews of Speyer, in particular to Judah ben Kalonymus, David ben Meshullam, and Moses ben Ghutiel (Jekuthiel)[7], were extended to all the Jews of the empire. This Imperial Jews Charter was one of the first in Germany. The regulations concerned various political, legal, economical and religious aspects of life, most prominently free enterprise, the sale of goods to Christians and protection of property. A new regulation was that Jews who acquired stolen goods had to sell them back at the same price if the former owner wished to buy them. This constituted a major improvement because it greatly reduced the business risk for the Jews who had often been subject to accusations that they were dealing in stolen goods. In the event of disagreements between Jews and Christians from then on the “right of the concerned” was to be employed, which meant that Jews could also prove their case by oath or witness. Trials by ordeal Trial by ordeal is a judicial practice by which the guilt or innocence of the accused is determined by subjecting them to a unpleasant, usually dangerous experience. In some cases, the accused was considered innocent if they survived the test, or if their injuries healed; in others, only death was considered proof of innocence were forbidden. Jews were also allowed to address the emperor or the imperial court directly in case of difficulties. Among each other they could use their own courts, which was to help avoid arbitrariness Arbitrariness is a term given to choices and actions subject to individual will, judgment or preference, based solely upon an individual's opinion or discretion by Christian judges. Torture of any kind was strictly forbidden, and in the case of murder or injury the privilege stated that fines were to be paid to the emperor. The privilege also introduced strict rules for baptisms. Forced baptisms of children were totally outlawed. Jews voluntarily getting baptised were required to think it over for three days. Conversions were also made more difficult in that baptised Jews would lose their rights to inheritance. Basically, these regulations were meant to protect the size of the Jewish community and to ensure continued revenues. Jews were also allowed to employ Christian maids, wet nurses A wet nurse is a woman hired to breast feed and care for another's child. Wet nurses are hired when the mother is unable or chooses not to nurse the child herself. Wet-nursed children may be known as "milk-siblings", and in some cultures the families are linked by a special relationship of milk kinship. Mothers who nurse each other's and labourers in their homes as long as it was ensured that they could observe the Christian Sundays and holidays.[8] Neither the original charter granted by the bishop nor its re-enactment by the emperor proved sufficient to afford the Jews adequate protection.
First pogroms 1096
Only six years after granting the first privileges for Jews in the empire the first wave of pogroms A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack, either approved or condoned by government or military authorities, directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious, or other, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes, businesses, and religious centres, property. The term was originally used to denote extensive swept the country, triggered by an epidemic of the plague, which was blamed on the Jews, and the First crusade The First Crusade was a military expedition from 1096 to 1099 by Western Christianity to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquest of the Levant, ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem. It was launched in 1095 by Pope Urban II with the primary goal of responding to an appeal from Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos, who. The Jews of Speyer were among the first to be hit, followed by the ones in Worms and Mains a few days later. On 3 May 1096, Count Emicho of Leiningen stopped in Speyer on his way to the crusade and attacked the synagogue.[9] In a report on the pogroms of 1096 in Speyer and Worms, written 1097–1140 by the so-called Anonymus of Mainz, it says: “And it happened on the 8. day in the month of Ijar (6 May 1096), on a Sabbath, the last judgement started to come upon us as the mistaken and city dwellers rose in Speyer against the holy men, the pious of the Almighty; they conspired against them to seize them together in the synagogue. This came to their attention, so they rose early in the morning, even on Sabbath, prayed briefly and left the synagogue. And when they (=the enemy) noticed that their plan to seize them together couldn’t be followed, they rose against them and killed eleven souls among them….And it happened when Bishop John heard of this, he came with many troops and wholeheartedly stood by the community, he took them into his private quarters and saved them from their hands.” [10] The bishop had the rioters punished severely and the Jews stayed in the bishop’s palace on the northern side of the cathedral until the rage of the mob had subsided. Taking this action the bishop of Speyer (Johannes I, 1090–1104) prevented massacres and expulsions as happened in other cities of the Rhineland. 800 Jews perished in the pogroms of Worms and even 1000 in Mainz.[11] The events in Speyer are also mentioned in Salomo bar Simson’s chronicle on the Pogroms of 1096 which he wrote around 1140.[12]
Flourishing times
First room in the medieval mikveh in Speyer. Pool of the medieval mikveh in Speyer, dating back to 1128 Changing alcove in the Speyer MikvehFollowing these events Jewish quarters were established in the vicinity of the cathedral along modern day Kleine Pfaffengasse which used to be the Judengasse (Jews Alley). Today’s Judengasse is a side street of Kleine Pfaffengasse. The settlement in Altspeyer continued to exist and there was a synagogue. At the head of the Jewish community of approx. 300 to 400 people was the "Archisynagogus" installed by the bishop. Around 1100, on Pfaffengasse, the Jews built the Judenhof as the centre of their community containing a mikveh Mikveh (Hebrew: מִקְוָה or מקווה , Modern Miqva Tiberian Miqwāh ; plural: mikva'ot or mikves Hebrew: מִקְוֶוֹת or מִקְוָאות) is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism. The word "mikveh", as used in the Hebrew Bible, literally means a "collection" – generally, a collection of with a pool at groundwater level for ritual baths, a men’s and later a women’s synagogue. The synagogue, designed and built by the same architects as the cathedral of Speyer, was consecrated on 21. September 1104, eleven years after the pogrom of 1096. It fell into disuse in the 16th century but its ruins today represent the oldest visible remnants of a mikveh in central Europe. Today it is an archaeological heritage site and has been made accessible; the pool is still supplied by groundwater.
Along with the Frisians Afrikaners, Dutch, English, Flemings, Germans the Jews made up the majority of the long distance merchants in the 11th and 12th century. Both groups had their headquarters in the merchant’s quarters right at the free cathedral territory. Members of the renowned Kalonymos family lived in Speyer at that time and took a leading part in the development of Jewish studies in Germany. One example is Jekuthiel ben Moses, a liturgical poet and author of the reshut יראתי to Kalir's Kerobah for the feast of Rosh Hashana New year's day according to the Hebrew calendar. Commemorates the creation of the world as narrated in the Bible. it begins the ten days before Yom Kippur. A son of Jekuthiel named Moses of Speyer has been quoted as a high Talmudical authority. Another Kalonymos from Speyer for some time was responsible for the finances of emperor Barbarossa Frederick I Barbarossa was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pavia in 1154, and finally crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV on 18 June 1155. He was crowned King of Burgundy at Arles on 30 June 1178. The name Barbarossa came from the northern Italian cities he.[13] Another famous man of letters, Jehuda ben Samuel he-Chasid, called Jehuda the Pious, and the son of the German halachist Balakist Balak was king of Moab around 1200 BC. According to the Bible, Zippor was the father of Balak and the ruler of Moab around 1350 BC.[citation needed] Kalonymus ben Isaac the Elder, was born 1140 in Speyer. In these years the Jewish community of Speyer became one of the most significant in the Holy Roman Empire. It was an important centre for Thora studies and, in spite of pogroms, persecution and expulsion, it had considerable influence on the spiritual and cultural life of the city. In a synod of Rabbis in Troyes Troyes is a commune, the capital of the Aube department in north-central France and is located on the Seine river. It is about150 km (93 mi) southeast of Paris. The inhabitants of the commune are called Troyens around 1150 the leadership of the Jews in Germany was transferred to the Jewish communities of Speyer, Worms and Mainz. This was confirmed by a convention of Rabbis in Mainz. The three communities created a federation called "SHUM" (שום: initials of the Hebrew names of the three cities: Shpira, Warmaisa, Magenza) and kept this leadership until the middle of the 13th century. Over a period of decades, these communities enacted a body of regulations known as "Taḳḳanot SHUM". The SHUM-Cities had their own rite A rite is an established, ceremonious, usually religious act or process art. Rites in this sense fall into three major categories: and were accepted as central authority in legal and religious matters. Speyer had renown Jewish schools and a highly frequented Yeshiva Yeshiva or yeshivah (pronounced /jəˈʃiːvə/; Hebrew: ישיבה, "sitting " ; pl. yeshivot or yeshivas), or metivta or mesivta (Aramaic: מתיבתא)), also frequently referred to as a Beth midrash, Talmudical Academy, Rabbinical Academy or Rabbinical School, is an institution unique to classical Judaism for study of its traditional,.[14] Because of their high esteem in the Middle Ages the three SHUM-Cities were praised as "Rhenish Jerusalem". They had considerable influence on the development of Ashkenazi culture Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, and other Jewish ethnic divisions. In the 13th century Issac ben Mose Or Sarua from Vienna wrote: "From our teachers in Mainz, Worms and Speyer the teachings were spread to all of Israel ...", and all the communities in Germany and in the Slavic kingdoms were followers.[15]
Yet, even in this flourishing period of the Speyer Jewry, there were outbursts of violence in 1146 during the Second Crusade The Second Crusade was the second major crusade launched from Europe. It was called in 1145, in response to the fall of the County of Edessa the previous year to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusade (1095–1099) by Baldwin of Boulogne in 1098. While it was the first Crusader state to be founded, it was also, in which not only laymen but also members of the clergy took part. This came to the attention of Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, O.Cist was a Frankish abbot and the primary builder of the reforming Cistercian monastic order. After the death of his mother, Bernard sought admission into the Cistercian order. Three years later, he was sent to found a new abbey at an isolated clearing in a glen known as the Val d'Absinthe, about 15 km southeast of Bar-sur- who wrote a letter of reproach to Bishop Günther. Among the victims of this pogrom was a woman named Minna, whose ears and tongue were cut off because she refused to submit to baptism.[16]
