Marseilles, a seaport in southern France, had approximately 5,000 Jews within a population of 420,300 in 1896. A Jewish colony existed there as early as the fifth century. In 567, exiles from Clermont, Auvergne, sought refuge in the city due to the intolerance of Bishop Avitus. In 591, Pope Gregory intervened on their behalf, reproaching Theodore, Bishop of Marseilles, for attempting to convert Jews by force rather than persuasion.
Benjamin of Tudela records in his Itinerary (i.6) that when he visited the city around 1165, the Jewish community numbered about 300 members and maintained two synagogues.
During the thirteenth century, the Jews of Marseilles engaged extensively in commerce and maintained important relations with the East. Although they were referred to as “citizens of Marseilles” (cives Massiliæ) in agreements made in 1219 and 1257, this status did not necessarily grant them equal rights with Christian citizens.
Conditions changed in 1262 after an insurrection against the Duke of Anjou, Count of Provence. Following the city’s capitulation, the Jews were surrendered to the count as taxable property. Nevertheless, the count later issued a severe edict in March 1276 against inquisitors who had compelled Jews to wear oversized identifying badges and extorted money from them through fines.
Disabilities
Although theoretically regarded as citizens, Jews were subject to numerous legal restrictions. After the age of seven, Jews were required to wear a colored disk on their clothing. Married Jewish women were obligated to wear special veils known as “orales,” under penalty of a fine of five sous.
As elsewhere in Provence, Jews in Marseilles were forbidden:
to testify against Christians when challenged,
to work on Sundays and Christian holy days,
to visit public baths more than once a week,
to travel to Alexandria,
or to embark in groups larger than four on the same ship.
Jewish passengers were also required to abstain from meat on days when Christian passengers fasted.
Toward the end of the thirteenth century, a Jewish resident near the episcopal palace organized Purim festivities that Christians interpreted as mocking their religion. The bishop imposed a heavy fine upon the entire Jewish community (Ibn Adret, Responsa, iii.389).
Fourteenth Century
The fourteenth century represented a comparatively favorable period for the Jews of Marseilles, who were placed under municipal protection. The municipal council resisted attempts to interpret statutes against them and opposed hostile clergy when necessary to preserve their legal protections.
Jews were permitted to engage in the same professions as Christians. Many worked as brokers, wine merchants, cloth merchants, or tailors. One individual is recorded as a magister lapidis (stone-cutter).
A Jew named Crescas Davin, called Sabonerius, is credited with introducing the soap industry in 1371. His son, Solomon Davin, later continued the trade.
Although commerce dominated community life, several Jews also practiced medicine.
Under Provençal Rule
No major accusations appear to have been directed against the community as a whole during this period.
In 1357, the Jews helped defend the city during a siege. In 1385, they contributed fifty florins toward a public loan required by the citizens of Marseilles.
In recognition of their loyalty, Queen Marie in 1387 and her son Louis II in 1389 confirmed the liberties, privileges, and immunities of the Jewish community.
In 1481, following complaints by two Jewish deputies, Solomon Botarelli and Baron de Castres, René ordered the closure of the baptistery of Saint-Martin after a Christian woman forcibly baptized a Jewish girl. He further ordered parishioners to baptize their children instead at the Church of St. Jacques de la Corrigerie.
Projects of Expulsion
In 1484, armed bands roaming the cities of Provence attacked and pillaged Jewish communities, including that of Marseilles.
The following year, residents of the city accused the Jews of usury and other alleged crimes, leading to massacres and demands that King Charles VIII expel the remaining Jews from Provence.
Approximately eight years later, a royal decree banishing Jews from Marseilles was issued. The expulsion was not fully completed until around 1501.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, some Jews gradually returned to Marseilles.
Since 1808, Marseilles has served as the seat of a consistory overseeing Jewish communities throughout southern France.
Ghetto
The Jewish quarter, centered around the street known as “Carreria Jusatarie” or “Carreria Judæorum,” formed a distinct district referred to as “Insula Juzatarie.”
When King Alphonso V of Aragon captured the city in 1423, the Jews suffered heavily, and many fled Marseilles.
Synagogues and Cemeteries
During the Middle Ages, the Jewish community maintained two synagogues:
the “Scola Major,”
and the “Scola Minor.”
The modern synagogue referenced in the article was built in 1865.
The medieval Jewish cemetery was located on Mont-Juif (Montjusieu). After the expulsion of the Jews, King Charles VIII granted the site to a citizen of Marseilles.
As of 1904, the Jewish community maintained two cemeteries:
one near Place Castellane (later closed),
and another in the Quartier de St. Pierre.
The community hospital stood near the large synagogue, while two almshouses operated under the supervision of appointed rectors.
Scholars
In the second half of the twelfth century, Marseilles became an important center of Jewish scholarship. Benjamin of Tudela described it as “the city of geonim and sages.”
In 1194, Maimonides addressed his famous letter on astrology to the scholars of Marseilles.
Among more modern rabbis associated with the community were Jonas Weyl (d. 1903) and his successor, Honel Meiss.
Editorial Note
This text originates from the early twentieth-century Jewish Encyclopedia and reflects the historical terminology and editorial conventions of its period.