On 25 March, 1144, a boy's corpse showing signs of a violent death was found in Thorpe Wood near Norwich. The body was recognized as that of William, a tanner's apprentice. The grave was opened by William's uncle, the priest Godwin Stuart, the body recognized, the burial Office read, and the grave recovered.
During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and it already had a diverse and relatively cosmopolitan population. It was the centre of the most heavily populated part of England and the market for a fertile agricultural region.
The engine of trade was wool from Norfolk's sheepwalks. Wool made England rich. Throughout this period Norwich established wide-ranging trading links with other parts of Europe, its markets stretching from Scandinavia to Spain.
Jewish settlers arrived in England after the Norman Conquest in 1066 and Norwich was one of the first cities, along with London and York, where they took up residence. A settled Jewish community is thought to have existed in Norwich by 1135. By the mid 12th century Norwich’s Jewish Community was thriving and established.
The population of medieval Norwich was in the range of 5,000 - 15,000 but the Jewish community is unlikely to have been more than 200. By 1159, 7% of the city’s population were Jewish. The community appears to have consisted of a few who were very rich, a more numerous middle class and larger numbers of poor Jews.
The occupation of the wealthier Jews was the lending of money - they were effectively prohibited from engaging in the trading of goods due to the restrictions on travel and their exclusion from the trade guilds and other social and commercial networks accessible to Christians.
But Jews were not simply the city’s moneylenders, they also established a reputation as doctors. In fact, the first recorded private herb garden in the city was that of a Jewish apothecary. Other documented Jewish professions included wine merchants, cheese and fishmongers, butchers and physicians.
Without the Jews there would not have been the financial impetus to fund the projects envisioned by the power figures of the time. Jews in Norwich at this time were scholarly and powerful and their traditional role as moneylenders allowed for much more financial freedom of trade. Inevitably, this created debt and, in turn, prejudice.
The relationship with the Christians was ‘never very good and became worse during the century and a half of the community‘s existence‘. The citizens may have resented the Jews because they were not subject, unlike the other citizens of Norwich, to the Mayor and Corporation but only to the Crown and its local agent the Sheriff.
A few days after the discovery of the body of William, the diocesan synod met under the presidence of Bishop Eborard, and Stuart accused the Jews of the murder, and offered to prove his accusation by ordeal. But the Jews of the Norwich Jewry were the king's men and under the protection of the sheriff, who pointed out that the bishop had no jurisdiction in the case.
The called for Judgment of God or Ordeal was a trial of guilt or innocence by a direct appeal to God. It was based on the belief that the divine Ruler of the universe will work a miracle for the vindication of justice. The person accused or suspected of a crime was exposed to the danger of death or serious injury by elements such as water or fire: if he escaped unhurt—if he plunged his arm to the elbow into boiling water, or walked barefoot upon heated plough-shares, or held a burning ball of iron in his hand, without injury, he was supposed to be declared innocent by a miraculous interposition of God, and discharged; otherwise he was punished.
But the cult of St. William did not become popular immediately, and though one or two miracles are reported during this period (1144-49) it is quite possible that the story of the murder of the Jews might have been forgotten but for the murder of the Jew Eleazer, suspected of murdering William, who was murdered by the followers of Sir Simon de Novers in 1149. The Jews demanded the murderer's punishment, and Bishop Turbe, acting for the accused, who was his own vassal, brought up the murder of the boy William five years earlier as a countercharge. The case was tried before the king at Norwich, but postponed owing, according to Thomas of Monmouth, to the payment by the Jews of much money to the king and his councilors.
For the whole story of William of Norwich, the only authority is Thomas of Monmouth, a monk of the cathedral priory of Norwich, and it is only at the end of the second book of his "Vita et Passio", that he himself came upon the scene in person. He gives the story of the events related in his first two books on hearsay as it was current in the monastery. He seems to have been a man of unlimited credulity even beyond his contemporaries, but probably more deceived, though perhaps by himself, than a deceiver. The Book can be read in the internet archive of Google.
In Lent, 1150, Thomas had three visions in which Herbert of Losinga (d. 1119), the founder of the cathedral, appeared and ordered the translation of the body from the monks' cemetery to the chapter-house. At this point the prior Elias died and was succeeded by Richard de Ferrariis, "a staunch supporter of the bishop and of Thomas".
The body was translated from the chapter-house to the cathedral in July 1151, and again moved on 5 April, 1154, to the apsidal chapel of the Holy Martyrs to the north of the high altar, now known as the Jesus Chapel. The real spread of the cult dates from the moving of the grave to the cathedral when there was a great burst of enthusiasm accompanied by visions and miracles. [The grave of St. William can no longer be found at the cathedral]
Thomas adduced evidence about the martyrdom of William. He writes that while William was staying in Norwich, the Jews who were settled there and required their cloaks or their robes or other garments to be repaired, preferred him before all other skinners. On the Monday in Holy Week, 1144, he was decoyed away from his mother by the offer of a place in the archdeacon's kitchen. Next day the messenger and William were seen to enter a Jew's house and from that time William was never again seen alive.
He was treated kindly by the Jews at first, and, ignorant of what was being prepared for him, he was kept till the morrow. But on the next day [Tuesday, March 21], which in that year was the Passover for them, after the singing of the hymns appointed for the day in the synagogue, the chiefs of the Jews.... suddenly seized hold of the boy William as he was having his dinner and in no fear of any treachery, the Jews lacerated his head with thorns, crucified him, and pierced his side.
For this last scene Thomas produces the evidence of a Christian-serving woman, who, with one eye only, caught sight through a crack in a door of a boy fastened to a post, as she was bringing some hot water at her master's order, presumably to cleanse the body. She afterwards found a boy's belt in the room and in after years pointed out to Thomas the marks of the martyrdom in the room.
When, a month after the martyrdom, the body was washed in the cathedral, thorn points were found in the head and traces of martyrdom in the hands, feet, and sides. The servant's evidence was apparently not produced till Thomas was preparing to write his book.
But the most telling piece of evidence and the most disastrous in its consequences was that of Theobald, a converted Jew and a monk probably of Norwich Priory. This man told Thomas that "in the ancient writings of his Fathers it was written that the Jews, without the shedding of human blood, could neither obtain their freedom, nor could they ever return to their fatherland. Hence it was laid down by them in ancient times that every year they must sacrifice a Christian in some part of the world" (Vita, II, 2), and that in 1144 it had been the lot of the Jews of Norwich.
------------
From: Thomas of Monmouth: The Life and Miracles of St. William of Norwich, 1173
As a proof of the truth and credibility of the matter we now adduce something which we have heard from the lips of Theobald, who was once a Jew, and afterwards a monk. He verily told us that in the ancient writings of his fathers it was written that the Jews, without the shedding of human blood, could neither obtain their freedom, nor could they ever return to their fatherland. [There is no such statement in Jewish law or literature.] Hence it was laid down by them in ancient times that every year they must sacrifice a Christian in some part of the world to the Most High God in scorn and contempt of Christ, that so they might avenge their sufferings on Him; inasmuch as it was because of Christ's death that they had been shut out from their own country, and were in exile as slaves in a foreign land.
Wherefore the chief men and Rabbis of the Jews who dwell in Spain assemble together at Narbonne, where the Royal seed [resides], and where they are held in the highest estimation, and they cast lots for all the countries which the Jews inhabit; and whatever country the lot falls upon, its metropolis has to carry out the same method with the other towns and cities, and the place whose lot is drawn has to fulfill the duty imposed by authority. [Lots are cast in Narbonne, France, where Jews had a "king" to decide which city was to seize the Christian victim. ]
Now in that year in which we know that William, God's glorious martyr, was slain, it happened that the lot fell upon the Norwich Jews, and all the synagogues in England signified, by letter or by message, their consent that the wickedness should be carried out at Norwich. "I was," said he, "at that time at Cambridge, a Jew among Jews, and the commission of the crime was no secret to me. But in process of time, as I became acquainted with the glorious display of miracles which the divine power carried out through the merits of the blessed martyr William, I became much afraid, and following the dictates of my conscience, I forsook Judaism, and turned to the Christian faith."
These words-observe, the words of a converted Jew-we reckon to be all the truer, in that we received them as uttered by one who was a converted enemy, and also had been privy to the secrets of our enemies.
---------------
The motive of the clergy – in particular, William de Turbeville (Bishop of Norwich 1146-1174) – to establish a cult may have been partly pecuniary. De Turbeville encouraged Thomas of Monmouth, a Benedictine monk who lived in Norwich, to write The Life and Miracles of St. William of Norwich. Monmouth arrived in Norwich just after the events he describes. There was never any papal canonization of William, his cult always being "popular" rather than official.
In the history of Norwich Cathedral, one of the reasons given for why the Cathedral survives in such an unaltered state is that the medieval monks did not have the relics of a major saint to attract pilgrims and generate the income necessary to remodel the Cathedral as architectural fashions changed. The monks attempt to manufacture a major saint in the 1150s by exploiting the unfortunate death of William was not successful and did not generate much income.
March 24 was made the feast day for St. William of Norwich. He was considered the patron saint of kidnap victims and torture victims. He became one of the patrons of the peltiers’ (furriers’) guild at Norwich and therefore was the recipient of flowers, candles, and money. The guild also held an annual procession led by “a knave child [in] … tokenyng of the glorious marter.” There was also a scholars' guild dedicated to St William in the Norfolk town of Lynn.
There is little evidence of a flourishing cult of William in Norwich, although offerings were made at his tomb until the sixteenth century. Indeed, after some fifty years the cult faded into insignificance. William by the 14th century was no longer listed as a Saint in the Roman Martyrologies.
The Jewish family of Jurit resided in Norwich at the time of the death of William
Isaac Juret came from a wealthy merchant family resident in England for at least two generations. Isaac fil Jurnet was among the Jews who came to Norwich after the Norman Conquest. He was thought by many to be the wealthiest Jewish buisnessman in England at the time. According to Francis Blomefields 18th century History of Norfolk, he married a Christian Miryld, daughter of Humphrey de Havile but had to pay a huge sum of 1800 marks for the privilege of living in England.
Isaac was the chief money-lender to the Abbot and monks of Westminster. He took them to court to get interest on the money they had borrowed. As a result of this he became the target of opposition from Pandulf, the Bishop of Norwich, who wanted to see all Jews thrown out of the country to 'beyond the seas'. Isaac was also a merchant and owned a dock in Norwich. The Abbot and monks were not the only ones in debt - whole districts of the city owed him money.
Most of the Jews who settled in Norwich lived between the castle and the market place. There was no compulsion on Jews to live in a specific quarter, but this location near the castle was good for security, as times were difficult for them.
However, Jurnet‘s House in King Street was further away from the castle. This most important and impressive Jewish house still exists and is considered Norwich’s oldest home. Its proximity to the river must have been among the attractions of the property, as this was the economic heart of the city.
When Isaac bought the King Street house in about 1170, the fact it was built like a fortress would have been attractive. There was no door to the street but a stone porch and entrance at the side with courtyard behind. The arched and vaulted ground floor had only a few narrow windows, adding to its security from thieves and other attackers. The family lived and slept on the floor above. The Jurnets were safe in their fortress-like home, but they must have lived in fear during times of mob riots.
It seems likely there was a synagogue there from 1154 until the latter part of the thirteenth century.Indeed, Norwich, in the thirteenth century, had five or six rabbinical scholars, addressed as 'Master', 'Magister'. Likewise, the women were noted for their literacy.
The Jurnets lent to rich and poor alike. This was lucrative, but led to resentment. One of the reasons for outbreaks of persecution was that records of debts could be destroyed. In the 13th century the Jurnets had property in London, where the Bank of England now stands, and Kings Lynn as well as Norwich. The quay near the Norwich house indicates that, like the occupants of nearby Dragon Hall, the Jurnets were inolved in the import and export of goods. Their house had a shop and storeroom where the bar now stands.
The Jews had a strange relationship with the monarchy; they were officially protected by the crown, and lent money to the king, but were at the mercy of his whims. Isaacs father was among the wealthiest English Jews, and regularly lent to the Crown. His son, also Isaac, took over the family business on his fathers death in 1197. Known simply as Isaac of Norwich, he once paid an eighth of the entire tax levied on the city 400. The depleted Jews of Norwich contributed a large sum to help ransom Richard I when he was imprisoned in Austria coming home from crusade.
When it suited the kings, they supported the Jews. In modern parlance the Jews were lucrative tax points. They could be relied to pay up when the king wanted money to go to war. But when, in 1210, Isaac Jurnet failed to pay his contribution to King Johns war effort, he was locked up and his goods, including the King Street house, confiscated. Fortunately for him, John soon died, and the new king, Henry III, released him.
Isaacs grandson suffered the same fate he was sent to the Tower of London charged with treason. To save his life he converted to Christianity, but the family lost their property for good. Time was running out for English Jews; in 1290 Edward I expelled them. They were not to return for nearly 400 years.
The Jurnet family was immortalized in a cartoon from 1233 during the reign of King Henry III. The cartoon depicts the profoundly negative way in which Jews were viewed in 13th century England. It was found on an Exchequer Roll, a government document recording various payments. This roll listed tax payments made by Jewish people in the city of Norwich. The document, document E 401/1565, is stored in The National Archives.
There are a number of figures in the cartoon that we can identify:
Isaac fil Jurnet
Isaac is pictured with a triple beard to associate him with the devil and suggest sexual excess. Demons were often linked to the seduction of women, so again this is a very negative portrayal of a Jew.
Mosse Mokke
Mosse Mokke worked for Isaac, collecting the money owed to him. He was a rather shady character, charged for beating someone up in 1230, and in 1242 he was caught clipping coins and executed.
Abigail
Another well known figure in medieval Norwich was Abigail, or Avegay, who some said was the wife of Mosse Mokke. She was known for usury - the collecting of very high interest on a loan.
The Devils
In the cartoon we can see a devil named Colbif (centre) and another called Dagon (to the right of Isaac). Colbif is shown pointing to the hooked noses of Abigail and Moses as if to liken them to himself, so the cartoon is providing a visual shorthand associating demons with Jews. Even the devils' fingers are drawn to look like hooked noses to re-enforce the idea. All of the devils are shown with horns in order to link them with animals. Again, by showing the devils as part man and part beast, the cartoonist is associating the Jews with sin; they are not in made in God's image. The semi-nakedness of the devils is also used to suggest barbarity.
Finally, there is a reference to a devil named Mammon. Mammon is mentioned in the Bible in the gospels of Matthew and Luke and is associated with greed.
The Jewish community after the death of William
Things became harder for the Jewish community of Norwich in the later 13th century and there is evidence that there was a period of decline. In fact, hardships suffered by the Jews of the city are described in the lengthy poem by Meir ben Elijah (also known as Meir of Norwich) "Oyevi bim’eirah tiqqov" ["Put a curse on my enemy"], which is filled with despair, a dilating catalogue of hardship and distress. Written in the late 13th century, the poem is currently in the Vatican archive.
Meir ben Elijah of Norwich was the thirteenth-century author of about twenty-one Hebrew poems. Translated from the Hebrew, the poem paints a vivid picture of Medieval Norwich, and the hostility towards the Jewish community at the time. Meir wrote in the wake of martyrdoms and violent persecutions. Many of his fellow Jews had been lost to conversion, while others had embraced a passionate but fruitless messianism.
Meir wondered if God might have forgotten his chosen people. “The land exhausts us by demanding payments, and the people’s disgust is heard.” He expresses confusion about why God should allow his people to be so assailed ("The words of the seer are garbled, for the foe has mocked your children," "Have you forgotten to be gracious, my God?"
Every declaration of the dimming of the world, however, is met in Meir's poem by the possibility of daybreak to come: "When I hoped for good, evil arrived, yet I will wait for the light." Indeed, the biblical refrain of the work is the line "You are mighty and full of light, You turn darkness into light."
As a result of the feelings generated by the William ritual murder story and subsequent intervention by the authorities on behalf of the accused, the growing suspicion of collusion between the ruling class and Jews only fueled the general anti-Jewish and anti-King Stephen mood of the population.
The relationship with the Crown, the nominal protector and direct governor of the Jews was not an easy one. Jews were subject to taxes on estates being passed to children, forfeits should Jews be convicted of a capital offence and ‘tallage‘ - an arbitrary tax levied at intervals often a substantial amount.
In the mid twelfth century the Jewish population was still under the protection of King Henry II but when he died in 1189 Richard I did little to help. With the increase in national opinion in favor of a Crusade, and the conflation of all non-Christian others in the Medieval Christian imagination, the Jewish deputation attending the coronation of Richard the Lionheart in 1189 was attacked by the crowd. Under King Richard and later King John, the Jews were forced to wear badges identifying themselves, and anti-Jewish laws were stacked up against them.
A widespread attack began on the Jewish population in London and York leading to massacres of Jews at London and York in 1190. The most serious attack on a Jewish community was the York Massacre in which 150 Jews were killed as they took refuge in Clifford's Tower, one of the city's castles. As a result of Norwich's local nobility's partisanship on behalf of Crusader King Richard's opponents, the local yeomanry and peasantry revolted against the lords and attacked their supporters especially Norwich's Jewish community.
A massacre took place in Norwich, according to the historian V.D Lipman, on Feb. 6, 1190. His book, Jews of Medieval Norwich can be found in Norwich Library and contains the assertion that: “all the Jews found in their own houses at Norwich were butchered, some had taken refuge in the castle.” The Jews that did escape to the castle committed mass suicide.
The remains of 17 bodies believed to have been victims of the Norwich massacre were unearthed at the bottom of a medieval well in 2004, at a location where Jews lived in the 13th century, as foundations were dug for the Chapelfield shopping centre. Subsequently, seven skeletons dating back to the 12th or 13th century were successfully tested with five having a DNA sequence suggesting they were likely to be members of a single Jewish family.
In 1290 Edward I decide to expel the Jews (about 16,000) from England, the first time this had happened anywhere in Europe. The reasons are not completely clear but the official version was that the Jews had continued to lend money despite legislation banning it. It seems more likely that the attraction of the property held by the Jews lead the king to order the expulsion to replenish his exchequer. An inventory of Jewish property was compiled in October and the Jews were told they had to leave England by 1st November 1290.
This effectively ended the first period of Jewish settlement in Norwich, although Lipman writes that a few may have converted to Christianity in order to stay in the city.
Jews were not officially allowed to live in Britain again until 1655 when Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell asked Parliament to allow Jews renouncing Papal sovereignty and who were fleeing Catholic persecution in the Low Countries and France to settle under writ of Parliament. Oliver Cromwell encouraged them to return promising they would be allowed to practice their religion and trade. He took this decision in the face of opposition from his colleagues in government and merchants. However, their assimilation was gradual and it took another 200 years before Jews were enfranchised.
Further Reading:
Killing Jews for Profit and Profit in Medieval Bavaria
Looking Back: The Damascus Blood Libel Affair
Today in History: In 1171, Jews accused of ritual murder in French City of Blois
