The Jewish people settled in Spain for a long period of time, with significant proof from as early as 300 C.E., though likely earlier, before they were expelled in 1492. The unpredictable mass expulsion of this seemingly well integrated assiduous people was simply stimulated by the king’s foolish greed accompanied by the intensified nationalism felt by those who had just been inspired by the power of the Roman Catholic Church through the First Crusade against the Muslim Moors. It was the religious zeal of not only the Church and the Queen but also of the masses that really caused the expulsion of the Jewish people from Spain. Of course, the official justification for exiling the Jews was because they were counterproductive to the Church’s ultimate goal – they attempted to prevent the Marranos from severing their ties with Judaism.
Anti-Semitism began soon after the beginning of Christianity with the inherent hatred toward Jews simply because they have differing theological and religious practices are not Christian, not because they are specifically Jewish. Anti-Judaism began with the crucifixion of Christ – it became commonly believed that the Jewish people were responsible for the crucifixion which caused initial discriminatory writings against the Jews as a people, as well as societal misunderstanding and distrust. The Jewish people were exposed to severe persecution under Visigoth control in the Mediterranean and more Christian control in Spain. It is therefore not surprising that the Jewish people helped the Muslims invade and conquer the Iberian Peninsula in 711 C.E. from the Christians, ushering in the Golden Age of Spanish Jewry.
Not long after the conquest, the Jews integrated themselves into Muslim society. Massive migration waves – of both Jewish and Muslim – toward Spain created a political, cultural, and powerful region, running from Barcelona in the north to Andalusia in the south. Iberia was a place of opportunity and relative tolerance, acceptance, and most of all co-existence among the Jews and the dominant Moors. Alongside the Iberian invasion of 711 came roughly one hundred and fifty years of peace and religious freedom. Jews were integral members of their Muslim communities as they held positions ranging from government officials to moneylenders to market workers. Jews who wished to reside in Islamic territories were granted to status of a Dhimmi citizen. Dhimmis were non-Muslims living under Islamic authority who are granted State protection both civilly and militarily, assuming the Jizyah is paid. The Jizyah is an annual tax paid to the Islamic State, symbolizing the non-Muslim’s open acceptance of the Islamic State and its laws. Part of the rights granted to Dhimmis was that they were able to practice their religion, but not publicly. Overall, little-to-no tension existed between the Muslims and Jews in the Iberian Peninsula, compared to Christian-Jewish relations, as Jews were well more immersed into the economic life of the larger Islamic society and were given more freedom regarding their religious practices. Furthermore, Jews were seen more favourably in the Islamic lands, rather than in Christian regions, as the Jews were not seen as the sole “infidels” against the Muslim religion – Jews were perceived as less-threatening and trustworthy compared to the Christians.
Christian kingdoms and principalities all the way up in northern Iberia extended their power southward between the 11th and 13th centuries in order to reconquer everything taken from them by the Muslims in the early eighth century. Other Christian kingdoms contributed to this reconquista before and after these centuries, such as the Christian conquest of Granada in 1492, though the most significant conquests for the Roman Catholic Church took place in that time span.
In the late 11th century, the Church set out to reclaim the lands recently lost. A series of horrific crusades unfolded, commencing in 1096 in an effort to restore Spain under Christian authority. Pogroms, massacres, even expulsions emerged – all negatively effecting the Jewish people. Non-Christians were presented with an ultimatum – forcibly convert to Christianity or die at the hand of the Christian sword as a Jew, or Muslim, or whatever other ethnicity you chose. The crusaders travelled through and annihilated numerous cities, including Worms, Spyers, and Mainz – as they journeyed towards Jerusalem, the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic Holy Land. The Church was already vast in size, so this stunt was undoubtedly a tactic in order to ensure Christianity as the dominant religion above all others in Spain.
During this reconquista, Jews in Christian Spain were completely acculturated. As European commerce grew in the late Middle Ages, with the reconquista, some Jews played a vital role as moneylenders and traders. They did not have any legal restrictions on the acquisition of land (Lea, p.40). Ergo, the Jewish economy was founded on land, while many Jews persisted to work in commerce and crafts (Lea, p.43). Jews in Barcelona were employed as tailors, shoemakers, gold and silver smiths, and even moneylenders to Counts, of Barcelona. Some of these Jews rose to valued governmental statuses while other were simply more intelligent and sophisticated than other Christians. Many of these Jews were literate in multiple languages – Hebrew, Arabic, and Spanish – with respected and sought after scientific knowledge.
Many of the more renowned Jews in Spain were known for this philosophical or poetic texts. Jewish philosophers attempted to explain why Judaism is superior to other philosophies and religions. Yehuda Ha-Levi (1075-1141) is a prime example of an educated Jewish-Spanish philosopher. He dismisses the importance of Aristotelian ways of thinking, and contends that Judaism offers a clear moral compass and that it is all one needs in life, therefore there is no reason to stray away from Judaism. Jewish philosophy and mysticism is along these lines.
During the 12th century, Jews had surely begun to feel animosity and resentment towards them. Horrendous accusations ensued, which likely did not take place as accusations against Jews were a common pretext for massacres and expulsions throughout the Middle Ages in Europe. For instance, blood libels or host desecrations seem absurd when thinking about it in contemporary society. Jews were given some rights, and even managed their own legal court system however it is clear that the Jews’ relationship with the local Count was one of near-servitude (Baer, p.41). It was the Count that determined the wergild for a Jew, additionally, “a Christian should under no circumstances be required to swear to a Jew” (Baer p.42). Evidently, equality does not exist as the Jew is a lower class citizen in Spain.
The 13th century only heralded in more prohibitions for the Jews of Spain. Jewish men, women, and children were under strict command to differentiate themselves from the Christian population by donning yellow badges, for their own security. It is quite palpable that the real reason was to eradicate all Christian relationships. Not to mention, in 1250 Pope Innocent IV issued the papal bull describing all new limitations on the Jews. The bull illuminated the ultimate and discriminatory goal of the Church – to essentially cut all ties between the Jews and Christians – as Jews can no longer associate with Christians, dine with Christians, and even appear in public on certain days of the year, i.e. Good Friday.
Castille and Aragon were both cities containing extreme amounts of Jews and Muslims. These Jews prospered greatly and many were respected either because of their political position or because of their intellect. These Jews acculturated to the point where many of their traditions and speech stems from Spanish culture and language. The king of Aragon was not threatened by these Jews, rather he believed he owned the Jews, as if they were some kind of tangible property, as the king protected the Jews against violence – as if they were his property to protect. There was no real connection between the Jews and the people of Aragon as the king clearly treated them horridly. Jewish moneylenders were able to charge 20-25% interest from the citizens and noblemen and king, although the Jews still were not making a noticeable profit as they also had to pay taxes to the very same king who is borrowing money from them. The Jews were not liked at a local level, though the king recognized their value at this time. In 1360 Castille was occupied and all the Jews were massacred. But it was not until 1380 that the Al-hama communities in Spain be stripped of their authorities regarding more serious legal proceedings, i.e. not civil. It was this time that things really took a turn for the worse for the Jews. They were degraded. They were constantly under attack or thievery, prohibited from holding political positions in the capital, as well as the complete separation from Christian society. In the early 15th century, Henry III went a step further and restricted commercial intercourse between the two religions, preventing any future mistakes or sin in his eyes. The nuptial of Isabelle of Castille and Ferdinand of Aragon enabled the Spanish Inquisition to be unleashed. Subsequent random searches or inquisitions begun to ensure that all suspected people are being honest about the religion with which they appear to identify. Isabelle heard of story of a women in Sevilla, who followed her lover home one day only to find out he was still secretly practicing Judaism and insisted that the entire Spain be one religion, Christian. Thus, the ultimatum was given to all non-Christians – convert to Christianity or be exiled from Spain as a non-Christian. The rationale behind these Marranos is that many of them outwardly appear to be Christian but in reality still practice Judaism as they repented after their conversion since some, like Maimonides, contend that those who convert out of Judaism out of a fear of death will be accepted back upon repentance. Consequentially, Christian authorities aimed exile any non-believers for the same reason they wanted to silence Jewish philosophers and their teachings – out of fear that Marranos will revert back to Judaism.
Some attribute the harsh conditions the Jews endured at the hands of the Christians to the idea that Christians believed gospels from 70 C.E in which the Jews are blamed for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Although, it was the Jews’ economic and cultural successes that certainly aroused the envy of the Christian populace. This economic resentment, allied with traditional religious prejudice, prompted the forced expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492, and several other countries and regions, including England (1290), France (1306), Germany (1348), Portugal (1496), Provence (1512), and the Papal States (1569). One may effectively state that Isabelle’s paranoia and distrust towards Judaism (Anti-Semitism) multiplied by her determination for a one religion state are the chief rationalizations behind the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492. This was the Edict issued against the Jews by Ferdinand and Isabelle, post victory at Granada. As a result of the expulsion, the medical care in Spain went downhill, as the black plague spread and more doctors were either exiled or forbidden from practice, the Spanish economy fell into a state of depression for roughly 300 years due to the lack of economists in Spain following the expulsion so when riches came pouring through the land there was no one able to manage the economy. Subsequent inflation occurred which kept the Spanish economy unbalanced until only recently.

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