Talk:Resettlement of the Jews in England

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There was never an official ordinance by Cromwell for the wholesale readmission of Jewish people to England, which, in the long run, was probably fortunate for them, for reasons that will be made clear below. Rather, by virtue of the monarchical powers he enjoyed as Lord Protector, he was able to extend a degree of toleration to a particular group, under some highly unusual circumstances.

As the Wikipedia article makes clear, this was a matter that had long been on Cromwell's mind, and he first raised the possibility openly at the Barebones Parliament in 1653. However, it was the petition presented to him in 1655 by Menasseh Ben Israel, who had travelled over from Amsterdam, that finally prompted him to act. The Council of State, the executive authority of the Protectorate government, was deeply divided by the proposal, so Cromwell summoned a gathering at Whitehall of a number of influential individuals to debate "some proposals made in reference to the nation of the Jewes." He may have hoped that the combination of his authority, and the appeal of Ben Israel, would have ensured that matters went according to his intended design. If so, he reckoned without William Prynne, one of the most notorious pamphleteers of the day, and a committed anti-Semite. On the day the Whitehall conference opened on 4 December, Philip Nye, a leading Puritan divine, engaged Prynne in conversation, saying that that the lawyers present were in favour, as the expulsion by Edward I had not the force of statute. Prynne insisted that the lawyers were wrong-"The Jews were in the year 1290 all banished out of England, by judgement and edict of the King and Parlament." Returning to his rooms at Lincoln's Inn, Prynne was further disturbed by growing rumours that Cromwell was even planning to let out St. Paul's Cathedral as a synagogue. He responed in his usual manner, retreating in to his library, and dipping his pen in vitriol.

Even in Prynne's absence matters did not go well: the lawyers may have been in favour; the merchants, fearing competition, were not. The Jews were accused of being addicted to 'evil practices', like usuary and the debasement of the coinage. The hostility of the traders found an echo in that of the divines, who argued that the Jews were blasphemers. Matters were bad; they became much worse on 18 December, the last day of the conference, when Prynne appeared with his own response, A Short Demurrer to the Jews. In this he called for "...a perpetual Barr to the Antichristian Jews readmission, both in this new-fangled age, and all future generations." His venomous words galvanized the opposition, and Cromwell, faced with a hostile outcome, abandoned both the conference and the whole idea of readmission. There the matter might have ended but for new turn in English foreign policy, that brought a partial rescue to the scheme.

In 1655 England went to war with Spain. As a consequence, the following year the Council of State announced that all Spanish property in England would be confiscated. Many of the Spanish merchants living in London were Morranos, outwardly Christian but secretly Jewish. Faced with ruin, they openly renounced their Spanish citizenship, declaring their true faith. In March a petition was sent to Cromwell, signed by a number of prominent Morranos, desiring to live peaceably under the government of the Protectorate, and asking permission to build a synagogue-"We thank you for leave to meet in our private houses for devotion, and beg to have protection in writing, that we may meet without fear of molestation...Also we beg licence that those of us who die may be buried in a place out of the city, with leave of the proprietors." There is no evidence that Cromwell ever responded in writing, as the petition desired, but their request was clearly granted by the exercise of his prerogative powers alone. That same year building work began on a new synagogue in London at Creechurch Lane. There was no 'readmission', there was not even an edict of toleration; but the wall set up in 1290 had at least been breached.

So, why was it fortunate for the future well-being of the Jewish community that the London conference did not decide on a change of policy, and that Cromwell issued no ordinance in their favour? Because after the Restoration of the old monarchy in 1660, in the person of Charles II, much of Cromwell's edicts and law-making was reversed, making it appear, in legal and constitutional terms, as if the Commonwealth and Protectorate had never existed. It is almost certain that any measure in favour of the Jews would have been swept away in this Augean cleansing. As it was, they were able to build, piece by piece, on the uncertain foundations of 1656. Clio the Muse 12:58, 26 June 2007 (UTC)

Move Article from 'Resettlement' to 'Admission' or 'Readmission'
Talking of 'resettlement' is a very loaded term in Jewish history. Could someone perhaps move this to 'Readmission' which is a largely used term for these events and actually a better description of what was happening? VelvetCommuter (talk) 20:48, 16 October 2019 (UTC)

Move discussion in progress
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:History of the Jews in Abkhazia which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 05:15, 5 June 2020 (UTC)