The murder of a child will always shake a community, but this was particularly the case when the local Jews are being blamed for murdering the child for religious reasons. In the mid-twelfth century, the Jews of Norwich in England were faced with such a situation. This is one of the first cases in the long history of ritual murder charges against Jews. This, like all the others, was a false charge. The Jews of Norwich were fairly well to do. They were of value to the kings for their ability in business and finance and were regarded as the king’s property rather than as citizens. Chronicler William of Malmesbury records that Jews came to England with William the Conqueror and were tolerated, though not liked by the people, and were pressured to convert to Christianity. Their situation was always tentative. In Norwich, they were not permitted to own houses, as they could in most English towns. The clergy particularly hated the Jews, seeing them as the king's men in the cler...
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