Migrants In Britain: 1.3 Flashcards
Jewish, Lombardy and Low Country migrants
When and what was the Jewish diaspora ?
- 70 CE
- Romans drove Jews out of Middle East
- most settled in/around the Mediterranean
Why did Jews migrate to England for the first time ?
- William I needed money for castles etc
- no Catholic Christians could be moneylenders because Pope forbade charging interest on loans
- 1070, invited Jews from Rouen in Normandy to England to work as moneylenders
What were the pull factors of England for Jews ?
- economic; new job opportunities and no competition in the market since England was fully Catholic at this point
- had royal protection since were invited by William
What was day-to-day life in England like for Jews initially ?
- many lived in Jewries
- set up own kenilas (councils), mikvehs (bath houses), kosher butchers + synagogues
- lent money to regular A-S + business owners as well as the king
- accepted widely as community members
- some worked normal jobs like being artisans, teachers, etc. and some were very poor
How did attitudes to Jewish immigrants change over time ?
- anti-Semitism spread lots in England over time
- kings didn’t pay back any debts they had to the Jewish moneylenders
What happened during Richard I’s coronation on the 3rd September 1189 ?
mob attacks on Jewries
Describe a brief timeline from 1189 to 1290 of the spread of anti-Semitic attitudes/events in England
[] 1189 - anti-Semitic mob attacks on Jewries during Richard I’s coronation
[] 1190 - Jews fled York for safety from mobs
[] 1218 - Jews forced to wear yellow patches to identify them
[] 1230s - Jews expelled from towns + not allowed to own anything apart from houses/lodgings
[] 1255 - Henry III ordered arrest of 90 Jews + hanged any protesters on the accusation of murder of a boy in Lincoln
[] 1275 - Statue of Jewry law forbade Jews from moneylending in England to earn a living and stated that anyone who owed money to a Jewish person didn’t have to pay it back
[] 1290 - king Edward I forced all Jews to either convert to Christianity or leave the country
What is a ‘blood libel’ story ?
anti-Semitic rumours that accused Jews of human sacrifice and drinking human blood to become stronger - no records of this ever happening
Why did Jewish moneylenders become obsolete ?
- 1265 Pope allowed Italian bankers to charge interest on loans (usury)
- English kings saw that they could have Christian moneylenders instead of Jews and so became less willing to defend Jews from anti-Semitism and eventually forced Jews to leave so could invite the Italians
How were Jewish moneylenders forced to lend money to English kings ?
penalties = confiscation of goods, heavy fines, imprisonment of entire communities
How did Jewish money impact English society ?
- Jews heavily taxed in times of nationwide financial stress
- used for ransom of Richard I, funding wars, crusades etc.
How did Jewish immigrants contribute to the English economy ?
- were educated, literate and had business skills
- lent money to local start-up businesses
- lent money to English merchants so they could expand overseas trading networks and make England a greater economical and trade centre
- were often wealthy merchants themselves
- lent money to monks to build abbeys like Fountains Abbey in York
- helped to establish Oxford University by acting as pawnbrokers for poor students to cover study expenses, tutors for those studying Hebrew texts etc.
What were the Low Countries ?
- Flanders, Belgium
- Luxembourg
- Netherlands
What was Lombardy ?
- collection of powerful Italian states
- included Florence, Venice, Lucca and Genoa
Why did bankers from Lombardy and weavers from the Low Countries want to migrate to England ?
- push factors
[] bubonic plague
[] hundred years’ war - pull factors
[] economic/job opportunities in England for skilled labourers + bankers
[] not far from their own countries and many had been there before so preferable as an evacuation place
[] weavers had raw materials (high quality wool) in England that stopped being exported in 1330s by Edward III to get them to go to England
[] 1330s, Edward III allowed weavers to set up own guild in England
[] 1220s, Henry III offerend royal protection to Lombardy bankers if migrated
[] 1270, Henry III invited weavers
What were the experiences of Lombardy bankers in England ?
- had money + were skilled so settled in quickly + absorbed into the community
- did better than Jewish moneylenders because of the shared faith with the English
- could support themselves if royal loans were not paid back due to extreme wealth, unlike the Jews
What were the experiences of Low Country/Flemish weavers in England ?
- most successful migrants invited royally
- cloth industry in England skyrocketed because of the weavers’ work
- Hansa merchants established a base in London called the Steelyard; had direct access to the Thames, was self-contained/walled-off
- Hanseatic League merchants given right to trade (timber/furs/foods) in 1303 by Edward I
- Hansa merchants given royal protection, lowered tax rates + customs tariffs
- some hostility from English during difficult times
[] English guilds said stealing jobs - Edward III allowed migrants set up own guild in response
[] Peasants’ Revolt 1381 (150 weavers/merchants murdered bc resented for privileges)
[] Revolts 1381 + 1492 - atk Steelyard
[] arrest of all migrants on south coast by Edward III during French invasion scare
What were the weavers’ and merchants’ impacts on England ?
- Flemish taught brickmaking methods to English
- Dutch taught how to brew beer w/hops instead of barley
- made English economy secondary (sold manufactured goods instead of raw materials like before)
- Crown got rich off of income from trade taxation
What were Lombardy bankers’ impacts on England ?
made England a key trade centre in Europe and taught their methods to English businesspeople/bankers
