History of the Jews in Wales
Encyclopedia
The history of the Jews
in Wales
starts with the establishment of Jewish communities in South Wales
in the eighteenth century CE. In the thirteenth century, shortly after Wales was conquered by Edward I of England
, he issued the 1290 Edict of Expulsion
expelling the Jews from England
, and executed over three hundred English Jews. There is no known account of the contemporary situation in Wales and no testimony that Jews were living there at that period. Between 1290 and the formal return of the Jews in 1655, there is no official trace of Jews as such on English soil and the same is true for Wales.
Major Jewish settlement in Wales dates from the 19th century, although there are records of Jewish communities from the 18th century as well.
The medieval Welsh clergyman and author Gerald of Wales (c. 1146 – c. 1223) wrote an account of his journey through Wales in 1188, the object being a recruitment campaign for the Third Crusade
. In his account of that journey, the Itinerarium Cambriae (1191), he gives an obviously allegorical account of a Jew and a Christian
priest travelling in Shropshire
, England, but makes no reference to Jews in Wales.
In 1282 with the fall of Llywelyn the Last
, the last native Prince of Wales
of direct descent, Wales became subject to Edward I of England
. He decreed the expulsion of Jews from England
in 1290; whether this affected Wales, where the writ of the English king was for a long time limited to the implanted boroughs and some of the Marcher
territories, is not known. The Welsh chronicle Brut y Tywysogion
refers to the event but only in the context of Jews in neighbouring England.
, which kept a number of Jews who had converted to Christianity within its precincts up to 1551 and even later. There is no comparable evidence for Wales.
The BBC
notes, "The oldest non-Christian faith [in Wales] to be established was Judaism, with a presence in Swansea
dating from around 1730. Jewish communities were formed in the next century in Cardiff
, Merthyr Tydfil
, Pontypridd
and Tredegar
."
The explosion of the mining industry in the 19th century lead to major economic growth and a vast increase in immigration to Wales. The Jews were one group who immigrated to Wales in large numbers during this period, leading to the founding of new Jewish communities, particularly in the heavily industrialised South Wales Valleys
. A synagogue was founded in Merthyr Tydfil in 1875, and by the end of the century, most towns in the Valleys were home to small Jewish communities and trading stations. Generally, these communities appear to have been well-tolerated, though there were some notable exceptions. In 1911 anti-Semitic
sentiment came to a head in the Tredegar
area, where working-class mobs attacked Jewish-owned businesses, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage. Early 20th-century Welsh Jewish society is featured in the 1999 film Solomon & Gaenor
, which is set at the time of the Tredegar riots.
Jews continue to flourish in Wales, being augmented by refugees from Nazi-dominated Europe in the late 1930s. The modern community in South Wales is centered in the Cardiff Reform Synagogue and the Cardiff United Synagogue
. The synagogue of Merthyr Tydfil, the major one north of Cardiff, ceased to hold regular services in the 1970s and was later sold. It is a Listed Building.
Articles and miscellanea
Jews
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...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
starts with the establishment of Jewish communities in South Wales
South Wales
South Wales is an area of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south, and Mid Wales and West Wales to the north and west. The most densely populated region in the south-west of the United Kingdom, it is home to around 2.1 million people and includes the capital city of...
in the eighteenth century CE. In the thirteenth century, shortly after Wales was conquered by Edward I of England
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
, he issued the 1290 Edict of Expulsion
Edict of Expulsion
In 1290, King Edward I issued an edict expelling all Jews from England. Lasting for the rest of the Middle Ages, it would be over 350 years until it was formally overturned in 1656...
expelling the Jews from England
History of the Jews in England
The history of the Jews in England goes back to the reign of William I. The first written record of Jewish settlement in England dates from 1070, although Jews may have lived there since Roman times...
, and executed over three hundred English Jews. There is no known account of the contemporary situation in Wales and no testimony that Jews were living there at that period. Between 1290 and the formal return of the Jews in 1655, there is no official trace of Jews as such on English soil and the same is true for Wales.
Major Jewish settlement in Wales dates from the 19th century, although there are records of Jewish communities from the 18th century as well.
Middle Ages
Like the rest of Western Europe, Wales has traditionally been a majority-Christian country. This has meant that Jews have experienced minority status, but that there was some familiarity with certain Jewish scriptures.The medieval Welsh clergyman and author Gerald of Wales (c. 1146 – c. 1223) wrote an account of his journey through Wales in 1188, the object being a recruitment campaign for the Third Crusade
Third Crusade
The Third Crusade , also known as the Kings' Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin...
. In his account of that journey, the Itinerarium Cambriae (1191), he gives an obviously allegorical account of a Jew and a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
priest travelling in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, England, but makes no reference to Jews in Wales.
In 1282 with the fall of Llywelyn the Last
Llywelyn the Last
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
, the last native Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
of direct descent, Wales became subject to Edward I of England
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
. He decreed the expulsion of Jews from England
Edict of Expulsion
In 1290, King Edward I issued an edict expelling all Jews from England. Lasting for the rest of the Middle Ages, it would be over 350 years until it was formally overturned in 1656...
in 1290; whether this affected Wales, where the writ of the English king was for a long time limited to the implanted boroughs and some of the Marcher
Welsh Marches
The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...
territories, is not known. The Welsh chronicle Brut y Tywysogion
Brut y Tywysogion
Brut y Tywysogion is one of the most important primary sources for Welsh history. It is an annalistic chronicle that serves as a continuation of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae. Brut y Tywysogion has survived as several Welsh translations of an original Latin version, which has...
refers to the event but only in the context of Jews in neighbouring England.
Early modern period
In England, between 1290 and their formal return to that country in 1655, there is no official trace of Jews as such except in connection with the Domus ConversorumDomus Conversorum
The Domus Conversorum was a building and institution in London for Jews who had converted to Christianity. It provided a communal home and low wages. It was needed because all Jews who converted to Christianity forfeited all their possessions.It was established in 1253 by Henry III...
, which kept a number of Jews who had converted to Christianity within its precincts up to 1551 and even later. There is no comparable evidence for Wales.
The BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
notes, "The oldest non-Christian faith [in Wales] to be established was Judaism, with a presence in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
dating from around 1730. Jewish communities were formed in the next century in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil is a town in Wales, with a population of about 30,000. Although once the largest town in Wales, it is now ranked as the 15th largest urban area in Wales. It also gives its name to a county borough, which has a population of around 55,000. It is located in the historic county of...
, Pontypridd
Pontypridd
Pontypridd is both a community and a principal town of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales and is situated 12 miles/19 km north of the Welsh capital city of Cardiff...
and Tredegar
Tredegar
Tredegar is a town situated on the Sirhowy River in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent, in south-east Wales. Located within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, it became an early centre of the Industrial Revolution in South Wales...
."
Modern period
South Wales Valleys
The South Wales Valleys are a number of industrialised valleys in South Wales, stretching from eastern Carmarthenshire in the west to western Monmouthshire in the east and from the Heads of the Valleys in the north to the lower-lying, pastoral country of the Vale of Glamorgan and the coastal plain...
. A synagogue was founded in Merthyr Tydfil in 1875, and by the end of the century, most towns in the Valleys were home to small Jewish communities and trading stations. Generally, these communities appear to have been well-tolerated, though there were some notable exceptions. In 1911 anti-Semitic
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
sentiment came to a head in the Tredegar
Tredegar
Tredegar is a town situated on the Sirhowy River in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent, in south-east Wales. Located within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, it became an early centre of the Industrial Revolution in South Wales...
area, where working-class mobs attacked Jewish-owned businesses, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage. Early 20th-century Welsh Jewish society is featured in the 1999 film Solomon & Gaenor
Solomon & Gaenor
Solomon & Gaenor is a BAFTA Awarded and Academy nominated Welsh film released in 1999 and directed by Paul Morrison. It was filmed twice, once with principal dialogue in English and again in Welsh.-Plot:...
, which is set at the time of the Tredegar riots.
Jews continue to flourish in Wales, being augmented by refugees from Nazi-dominated Europe in the late 1930s. The modern community in South Wales is centered in the Cardiff Reform Synagogue and the Cardiff United Synagogue
Cardiff United Synagogue
The Cardiff United Synagogue is the Orthodox Jewish congregation of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales.-History:A Jewish community existed in Cardiff by 1841, when the Marquis of Bute donated land at Highfield for a Jewish Cemetery...
. The synagogue of Merthyr Tydfil, the major one north of Cardiff, ceased to hold regular services in the 1970s and was later sold. It is a Listed Building.
Notable people
Notable people of Welsh-Jewish Jewish background include:- Louis Barnett AbrahamsLouis Barnett AbrahamsLouis Barnett Abrahams was the head master of the Jews' Free School, London; born at Swansea, South Wales, 1842. He was educated in the Jews' School at Manchester, whither his family had removed in 1845...
- Dannie AbseDannie AbseDaniel Abse, better known as Dannie Abse , is a Welsh poet.-Early years:Abse was born in Cardiff, Wales to a Jewish family. He is the younger brother of politician and reformer Leo Abse and the eminent psychoanalyst, Wilfred Abse...
- Leo AbseLeo AbseLeopold Abse was a Welsh lawyer, politician and gay rights campaigner. He was a Welsh Labour Member of Parliament for nearly 30 years, and was noted for promoting private member's bills to decriminalise male homosexual relations and liberalise the divorce laws...
- Sacha Baron CohenSacha Baron CohenSacha Noam Baron Cohen is an English stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and voice artist. He is most widely known for his portrayal of three unorthodox fictional characters: Ali G, Borat, and Brüno...
, father Gerald of Welsh-Jewish origin - Maurice EdelmanMaurice EdelmanMaurice Edelman was a British Labour Party politician and novelist who represented Coventry constituencies in the House of Commons for over 30 years.- Early life :...
- Raymond GarlickRaymond GarlickRaymond Garlick was an Anglo-Welsh poet and editor. Garlick was born in London, but grew up in Llandudno, and studied English literature at the University of Wales, Bangor. Whilst there, he converted to Roman Catholicism, although no longer a practising Catholic...
- Albert GubayAlbert GubayAlbert Gubay, KC*SG is a Welsh businessman and philanthropist, who made his fortune in retailing with Kwik Save, building it further on investments, mainly in property development...
- Michael HowardMichael HowardMichael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne, CH, QC, PC is a British politician, who served as the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005...
- Joe JacobsonJoe JacobsonJoseph Mark "Joe" Jacobson is a Welsh footballer who plays for Shrewsbury Town. He is the former captain of the Wales U21 team, and is also a former captain of the Cardiff City reserve team.- Cardiff City :...
- Greville JannerGreville JannerGreville Ewan Janner, Baron Janner of Braunstone is a British Labour politician, lawyer and author. A QC since 1971, he was a Labour MP from 1970 to 1997...
- Michael MoritzMichael MoritzMichael Moritz is a Welsh-American venture capitalist with Sequoia Capital in Menlo Park, California in Silicon Valley, and a former member of the board of directors of Google Inc.-Life and career:...
- Lucy OwenLucy OwenLucy Owen is a Welsh television news reader.-Early life:Owen attended Howell's School in Llandaff, Cardiff, and graduated from the Royal Holloway, University of London in English.-Career:...
- Jon RonsonJon RonsonJon Ronson is a Welsh journalist, documentary filmmaker, radio presenter and nonfiction author, whose works include The Men Who Stare At Goats. His journalism and columns have appeared in British publications including The Guardian newspaper, City Life and Time Out magazine...
Further reading
Books- Bermant, Chaim (1969) Troubled Eden: an Anatomy of British Jewry; pp. 59–61. London: Vallentine Mitchell
- Davies, Grahame (ed.) The Chosen People: Wales and the Jews. Seren (March 1, 2002) ISBN 1854113097 ISBN 978-1854113092
- Henriques, U. R. Q. (ed.) (1993) The Jews of South Wales: Historical Studies. Cardiff: University of Wales Press
- Roth, Cecil (1950) The Rise of Provincial Jewry, 1950, p. 104 (Susser Archive – available on-line)
Articles and miscellanea
- "The Jewish Communities of South Wales". Shemot July 1994 vol. 2/3
- "The Jewish of Merthyr Tydfil". Shemot September 1998 vol. 6/3
- "A Vanished Community – Merthyr Tydfil, 1830–1998" September 2001 vol. 9/3
- Mars, Leonard "Celebrating diverse identities, person, work and place in South Wales"; in Identity and Affect: Experiences in a Globalising World, Campbell, J. R. & Rew, A., eds. London: Pluto, 1999, pp. 251–274 (This is about a Jewish doctor who was a member of the Swansea community)
- Mars, Leonard "Cooperation and Conflict between Veteran and Immigrant Jews in Swansea", in: Religion and Power, Decline and Growth: sociological analyses of religion in Britain, Poland and the Americas, [London]: British Sociological Association, Sociology of Religion Study Group, 1991, by Peter Gee & John Fulton, eds.; pp. 115–130
- Alderman, G. "The Jew as Scapegoat? the settlement and reception of Jews in South Wales before 1914", in: Trans JHSE; XXVI (1977)
- James, E. Wyn, ‘ “A’r Byd i Gyd yn Bapur . . .’ Rhan 3: Dylanwadau Rhyngwladol – Sansgrit a Hebraeg’, Canu Gwerin: Journal of the Welsh Folk-Song Society, 27 (2004), 34–47 ISSN 0967-0599.
- Cardiff Jewish Roll of Honour WW1, based on 1919 Western Mail
- Association of Jewish Ex-Servicemen & Women (AJEX) consecration and unveiling of War Memorial 1939–1945 at Cathedral Road Synagogue