Language:
French
Year of publication:
2000
Titel der Quelle:
Revue des Etudes Juives
Angaben zur Quelle:
159,1-2 (2000) 79-98
Keywords:
Crusades
;
Martyrdom Judaism
;
Judaism Liturgy
;
Jews History Middle Ages, 500-1500
Abstract:
Discusses the Jewish chronicles on the First Crusade (compiled around 1140 by Salomon bar Simson, Eliezer bar Nathan, and an anonymous writer), which describe the massacres of Jews in the Rhineland, and the chronicle on the Second Crusade by Ephraim of Bonn, in which he describes the persecution of Jews in Germany and France. Examines the genesis of the chronicles and the introduction of different themes at various stages. Oral testimonies compiled and preserved in synagogues after the events emphasize the courage of those Jews who chose suicide rather than accept forced conversion. The chroniclers then explained the victims' behavior, and also reflect on the moral and eschatological implications of the recent persecutions, inscribing them in the history of Jewish martyrology. They agree that the Crusades were motivated by religious fervor but differentiate between the part played by various Christian circles (the Church hierarchy, the Crusaders, noblemen, and townspeople).
DOI:
10.2143/REJ.159.1.151
URL:
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