Researching the history of synagogues and mikvehs
Jews are mentioned in
English ecclesiastical documents as early as 740 AD and came to England
in significant numbers after the Norman conquest. After outbreaks of
anti-Semitism, they were driven
from England in 1290, but Jewish refugees from Portugal
settled in Bristol and London between 1590 and 1600. The re-admittance
was officially sanctioned in 1656, giving Jews freedom of worship.
Subsequently political disturbance and anti-Semitism in Europe caused
other Jews to flee to Britain and settle in London and other cities.
In the establishment of a new Jewish community, the rabbis of the Talmud gave top priority to the building of a mikveh - a ritual bath. Jews could congregate in their houses or rented rooms to worship until the community grew large enough and wealthy enough to build a synagogue. Both mikveh and synagogue should ideally be within walking distance, since travelling on the Sabbath is prohibited to Jews.
The first post-medieval, purpose-built synagogue in England was the Bevis Marks, London, consecrated in 1701 and retaining much of its interior from that period. Above is an aquatint of the synagogue in Hounsditch built in 1765-6, designed by George Dance senior.
Studies
Synagogues
- Barnett, Richard D., Bevis Marks Synagogue (1995).
- de Breffny, Brian, The Synagogue (London 1978). Scholarly history, covering the subject world-wide.
- Judaism 101: Synagogues, Shuls and Temples. An illustrated online introduction to form and use.
- Kadish, Sharman, Bevis Marks Synagogue: A short history of the building and an appreciation of its architecture (English Heritage 2001).
- Kadish, Sharman (ed.), Building Jerusalem: Jewish architecture in Britain (London 1996). Compilation of scholarly articles.
- Lindsay, Paul, London Synagogues (1993).
- Meek, Harold A., The Synagogue: The complete history of the art and architecture of the synagogue (London 1995). Well-illustrated history of the building type world-wide.
- Renton, Peter, Lost Synagogues of London
(2000).
Mikvehs
- Kadish, Sharman, 'Eden in Albion: a history of the Mikveh in Britain' in Sharman Kadish (ed.), Building Jerusalem: Jewish architecture in Britain (London 1996), 101-54. Includes gazetteer for UK and Ireland.
- Blair, I, Hillaby, J, Howell, I, Sermon, R, and Watson, B, The discovery of two medieval Mikva'ot in London and a reinterpretation of the Bristol 'mikveh', Jewish Historical Studies 37, 15-40 (2002).
Gazetteers
- The Survey of the Jewish Built Heritage of the United Kingdom and Ireland is preparing a full database which will be stored at the National Monuments Record Centre.
- Sharman Kadish, Jewish Heritage in England: An Architectural Guide (English Heritage in association with Jewish Heritage UK 2006) draws on the above survey. An appendix covers Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
- Jewish Heritage UK gives the addresses of Listed Jewish buildings and some details of those at risk.
- The Survey of London includes synagogues.
- See Kadish (above) for Mikvehs.
Primary sources
- The Jewish Chronicle (1841-). On microfilm in the British Library Newspaper Library. Card index in its own library, Furnival St., EC4, available by appointment. Its archives can be consulted at
- The Hartley Library, University of Southampton which has a particular focus on the records of Anglo-Jewry. It maintains the Survey of Jewish Archives in the UK and Eire which can be searched online.
- See West for urban records.
- General sources for maps and images.
Society
Jewish Historical Society of
England, 33 Seymour Place, London W1H 5AP.
The society's
library resources are located within the Department of
Hebrew and Jewish Studies at University College London.