1290

This is the year, under reign of Edward I, that all Jews are expelled from England.

Although some Jews managed to stay in England by hiding thier identity and religion, the overwhelming majority of Jews--about 16,000 altogether--were forced from England. Many made their way to France and settled there.

But this expulsion led to three and a half centuries--350 years--of Jewish exile from England.

This fact is vitally important to understanding the relationship between Shakespeare, Elizabethan society, and anti-semtism because Shakespeare and his contemporaries, who lived roughly between 1580-1620, had never seen a Jew in their lives. All the Jews had been expelled about 300 years before Shakespeare was born!

Go to Next Date / History of the Jews / Index Page / Geocities