The Crusades and the Jews: The impact of the first Crusade on Jewish life

What were the Crusades – with no reference to Jews? Urban II, French Knights, Ademar de Puy; the townspeople; attacks on the Jews: Speyer, Worms, Mainz, Koblenz and Trier. Emicho of Flonheim, the central character in the story. The Jewish Chronicles and Christian reports: similarities and differences. Conversion and Kiddush haShem: forces, willing, idealized Jewish attitudes; Christian attitudes; Trier (Eucharistic inversion=denial of Christianity). The legislation of Visigothic Spain and its implications: returning converts. Popes, anti-popes, emperors. Mutual suspicion. Development of libels. Churchmen: local bishops and the pope. Secular rulers, a variation; Ephraim of Bonn on Second Crusade. Jewish anger at Christianity. Internal Jewish developments. Rashi and Rabbenu Tam. Hasidei Ashkenaz. The general community, if at all; economy; return to “normal”; the family: competing social and theological structure: A loss of security, deepening of earlier suspicions. Most important: growing ecclesiastical suspicions with important ramifications in coming generations; legal consolidations: Sicut iudaeis non