What were the historical roots of anti-semitism?

Question 1

How long has Jewish people lived in Europe for before WW2?

Answer 1

Jewish people had lived in Europe for over 200yrs

Question 2

Jews before WW2 in general:

Answer 2

• majority of Jewish ppl weren’t wealthy
• not all Jews were religious
• majority of Jews were passionate about the country they lived in
• there were Jewish communities in every European country

Question 3

How many Jews live in Europe before WW2?

Answer 3

in 1933 5.5 mil Jews lived in Europe

Question 4

Jews in E Europe before WW2:

Answer 4

• more Jews lived in E Europe than W Europe - most lived in Poland, Soviet Union, and Romania
• Jews in Eastern Europe were more orthodox and took the practice of their religion more seriously - lived in shell and spoke Yiddish

Question 5

Jews in W Europe before WW2:

Answer 5

• Jews in W Europe more assimilated into country
  
  • they lived alongside non-Jews in large towns and cities
  • more secular and don’t practice religion as much
  • approx 10,000 German Jews served in German army in WW1
  • being Jewish was only small part of some Jews identities - diversity of experience, class and religious practice among all Jews

Question 6

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1 CE Onwards

Answer 6

many early Christians blamed Jews for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ

Question 7

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 66 CE Onwards

Answer 7

Jews were driven out of Israel becoming a vulnerable minority in many countries

Question 8

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1096 CE

Answer 8

• during the First Crusade, 1000s of Jews are massacred in Germany as religious ‘enemies’ of the Christian majority

Question 9

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1100 CE Onwards

Answer 9

• Jews are not allowed to join guilds, stopping them from doing most jobs
• many turn to money-lending to survive which makes them more unpopular

Question 10

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1114 CE Onwards

Answer 10

some Christians falsely believe the ‘Blood Leibel’ - a lie in which Jews are said to kill children and use their blood to make bread

Question 11

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1190 CE

Answer 11

• in York, England, there is a Jewish pogrom of the Jewish population by local leaders who owed the Jews money

Question 12

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1215 CE

Answer 12

Jews are forced to wear special clothing by the Catholic Church, making them Jews

Question 13

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: England 1290CE, France 1306, Spain 1492

Answer 13

• Expulsions

- Jews are forced to leave European countries through this period

Question 14

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1555 CE

Answer 14

• the Catholic Church orders that Jews in Catholic countries should be restricted to separate part of cities, known as ghettos, and demand that Jews convert to Christianity

Question 15

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1791 CE

Answer 15

Jews living in the Russian Empire are forced to live in one area, known as the Pale of Settlement, separate from Christians and Russians

Question 16

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1804 CE

Answer 16

Jews can only farm unused land in Russia, meaning Jews settle in the area of Trochenbrod

Question 17

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1806 CE Onwards

Answer 17

French ruler Napoleon gets rid of restrictions on Jews in much of Europe, expecting them to assimilate

Question 18

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1859 CE

Answer 18

• Charles Darwin publishes his book ‘On the Origin of Species’
• some people try to apply his ideas to different ‘races’ of humans saying some are superior and inferior

Question 19

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1879 CE

Answer 19

• Wilhelm Marr writes a book claiming Jews can never assimilate because he wrongly believes they are a different race
• Jews were seen as a race rather than a religion

Question 20

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1881 - 1919 CE

Answer 20

Jews in the Russian Empire are attacked in a series of violent pogroms motivated by fears of Jewish ’radicals’

Question 21

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1903 CE

Answer 21

The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is published, a conspiracy theory that spreads lies claiming Jews secretly control the world

Question 22

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1905 CE

Answer 22

Britain passes a law restricting Jews from migrating to Britain to escape the pogroms in Russia

Question 23

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1917 CE

Answer 23

there is communist revolution in Russia, which some people falsely blame on Jews

Question 24

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1918 CE

Answer 24

right-wing Germans falsely blame Jews for Germany losing WW1 in the ‘Stab in the Back’ myth

Question 25

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1923 CE Onwards

Answer 25

The Nazi Party falsely claim that Jews and ‘Aryans’ are stuck in a never-ending war

Question 26

How anti-semitism developed/changed from Medieval Europe: 1942 CE

Answer 26

Leon Greenman and his family are deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where his wife and son are murdered by the Nazis

Question 27

How did anti-semitism change?

Answer 27

Anti-Semitism was first motivated by religion and the belief that Jews should be blamed for the crucifixion of Jews. The motivation of anti-Semitism slowly changed due to the belief that Jews were a different, inferior race. The motivation of anti-semitism changes from religious motivations to racial motivations.