Expulsion of the Jews from Sicily
Encyclopedia
The expulsion of the Jews
from Sicily
began in 1493 when the Spanish Inquisition
reached the island of Sicily
and its Jewish
population of more than 30,000 Jews.
times, and they were relatively untroubled on the island until the acceptance of the Crown of Aragon
in Sicily
in 1412. A great number of Jews had reached Sicily after Pompey
's 63 BC
sacking of Jerusalem, and additionally by Roman Proconsul Crassus, who is traditionally said to have sold more than 30,000 Jewish slaves on the island.
After the enslavement under Roman rule, Jews in Sicily eventually assimilated into society, working in professions as wide-ranged as philosophy, medicine, artisanal pursuits, and farming.
The exact number of Jews in Sicily at the time of expulsion is not certain, However, some have put the number of Jewish refugees at 36,000.
Also, in 1492, it is known the Jewish populations of Palermo
, Messina, and several other cities were considerable, and that there were Giudeccas
, or Jewish settlements, in over 50 places in Sicily, ranging in anywhere population from 350 to 5,000. At their height, Jewish Sicilians probably constituted from five to eight percent of the island's population.http://www.bestofsicily.com/religion.htm
Muslim Moors had ruled much of the Iberian Peninsula since the first invasion in 711
. By the late Middle Ages, Christian kings had begun to wage war on the Moors and recapture some of the peninsula. After the marriage of King Ferdinand of Aragon to Queen Isabella of Castille, the Moors were finally forced out of Granada in 1492, completing the Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula.
Jewish life had flourished in Spain, and Muslims, Christians, and Jews had coexisted peacefully throughout Al-Andalus
(see Golden age of Jewish culture in the Iberian Peninsula
).
In 1492, as part of an attempt to maintain Catholic orthodoxy and purify their kingdom of Moorish influence, Ferdinand and Isabella ordered the forced expulsion
or conversion of all Jews on pain of death. The date of the expulsion was extended from September 18, 1492 to January 12, 1493, in order to allow the extortion of opportunist tax levies.
Witnesses recounted the sight of the Jews of Palermo
waving from the departing ships at their former neighbours as they were borne away. Many Sicilian Jews fled to neighboring Calabria where the Spanish Inquisition
caught up with them again fifty years later. Not all of the Sicilian Jews departed. A large number of Sicily's Jews converted to Catholicism and remained on the island.
The unique liturgy
of the Jews of Sicily remains amongst certain communities, but the Jews have never returned en masse to Sicily. However, in 2005, for the first time since the Expulsion, a Passover seder
was conducted in Sicily (in Palermo), held by the Milan
ese progressive Rabbi
Barbara Aiello
.
http://www.dieli.net/SicilyPage/JewishSicily/JudaicaMessina1.html
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...
from Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
began in 1493 when the Spanish Inquisition
Spanish Inquisition
The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition , commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition , was a tribunal established in 1480 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms, and to replace the Medieval...
reached the island of Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
and its Jewish
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...
population of more than 30,000 Jews.
History of the Sicilian Jews
At the time of Expulsion, there had been Jewish activity in Sicily for some 1,555 years, dating back to early RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
times, and they were relatively untroubled on the island until the acceptance of the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon Corona d'Aragón Corona d'Aragó Corona Aragonum controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain and southeastern France, as well as some of the major islands and mainland possessions stretching across the Mediterranean as far as Greece...
in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
in 1412. A great number of Jews had reached Sicily after Pompey
Pompey
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey or Pompey the Great , was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic...
's 63 BC
63 BC
Year 63 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cicero and Hibrida...
sacking of Jerusalem, and additionally by Roman Proconsul Crassus, who is traditionally said to have sold more than 30,000 Jewish slaves on the island.
After the enslavement under Roman rule, Jews in Sicily eventually assimilated into society, working in professions as wide-ranged as philosophy, medicine, artisanal pursuits, and farming.
The exact number of Jews in Sicily at the time of expulsion is not certain, However, some have put the number of Jewish refugees at 36,000.
Also, in 1492, it is known the Jewish populations of Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, Messina, and several other cities were considerable, and that there were Giudeccas
La Giudecca
La Giudecca was a term used In Southern Italy and Sicily to identify any urban district where Jewish communities dwelled and had their synagogues and businesses....
, or Jewish settlements, in over 50 places in Sicily, ranging in anywhere population from 350 to 5,000. At their height, Jewish Sicilians probably constituted from five to eight percent of the island's population.http://www.bestofsicily.com/religion.htm
History of the Spanish Inquisition and Jewish Expulsion
711
Year 711 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 711 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Europe :* April 30 – Ummayad troops led by...
. By the late Middle Ages, Christian kings had begun to wage war on the Moors and recapture some of the peninsula. After the marriage of King Ferdinand of Aragon to Queen Isabella of Castille, the Moors were finally forced out of Granada in 1492, completing the Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula.
Jewish life had flourished in Spain, and Muslims, Christians, and Jews had coexisted peacefully throughout Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
(see Golden age of Jewish culture in the Iberian Peninsula
Golden age of Jewish culture in the Iberian Peninsula
The golden age of Jewish culture in Spain coincided with the Middle Ages in Europe, a period of Muslim rule throughout much of the Iberian Peninsula. During that time, Jews were generally accepted in society and Jewish religious, cultural, and economic life blossomed.The nature and length of this...
).
In 1492, as part of an attempt to maintain Catholic orthodoxy and purify their kingdom of Moorish influence, Ferdinand and Isabella ordered the forced expulsion
Alhambra decree
The Alhambra Decree was an edict issued on 31 March 1492 by the joint Catholic Monarchs of Spain ordering the expulsion of Jews from the Kingdom of Spain and its territories and possessions by 31 July of that year.The edict was formally revoked on 16 December 1968, following the Second...
or conversion of all Jews on pain of death. The date of the expulsion was extended from September 18, 1492 to January 12, 1493, in order to allow the extortion of opportunist tax levies.
Witnesses recounted the sight of the Jews of Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
waving from the departing ships at their former neighbours as they were borne away. Many Sicilian Jews fled to neighboring Calabria where the Spanish Inquisition
Spanish Inquisition
The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition , commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition , was a tribunal established in 1480 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms, and to replace the Medieval...
caught up with them again fifty years later. Not all of the Sicilian Jews departed. A large number of Sicily's Jews converted to Catholicism and remained on the island.
The unique liturgy
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
of the Jews of Sicily remains amongst certain communities, but the Jews have never returned en masse to Sicily. However, in 2005, for the first time since the Expulsion, a Passover seder
Passover Seder
The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted on the evenings of the 14th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, and on the 15th by traditionally observant Jews living outside Israel. This corresponds to late March or April in...
was conducted in Sicily (in Palermo), held by the Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
ese progressive Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Barbara Aiello
Barbara Aiello
Rabbi Barbara Aiello was the first Rabbi of Synagogue Lev Chadash in Milan, Italy. Aiello is the first female Rabbi in Italy and has served as the head of Italy's first Reform synagogue.- Early life :...
.
See also
- History of the Jews in SicilyHistory of the Jews in SicilyThe history of the Jews in Sicily goes back two millennia. Sicily, is a large island off the Southern Italian coast. There has been a Jewish presence in Sicily for at least 1400 years and possibly for more than 2000 years...
- History of the Jews in CalabriaHistory of the Jews in CalabriaThe history of the Jews in Calabria reaches back over two millennia. Calabria, Calabria is at the very south of the Italian peninsula, to which it is connected by the Monte Pollino massif, while on the east, south and west it is surrounded by the Ionian and Tyrrhenian seas. Jews have had a presence...
- Haplogroup G2c (Y-DNA)Haplogroup G2c (Y-DNA)In human genetics, Haplogroup G2c is a Y-chromosome haplogroup and is defined by the presence of the M377 mutation. It is a branch of Haplogroup G, which in turn is defined by the presence of the M201 mutation....
External links
http://www.dieli.net/SicilyPage/JewishSicily/JudaicaMessina1.html