(Everybody needs good) Neighbours: Jews and Christians living together in medieval Kent

Irwin, Dean

(Everybody needs good) Neighbours: Jews and Christians living together in medieval Kent

Irwin, Dean

Authors

Dean Irwin

Abstract

This is an invited paper which will see me return to the Medieval Canterbury Weekend, where I will talk about my book project.

There as a Jewish presence in medieval Kent from at least the 1180s until the general expulsion of the Jews from England in 1290. For much of that period, Jews and Christians seem to have had positive relations in the local context (even if matters were more complex at other levels). This paper will explore how Jews and Christians lived, and worked, together in medieval Canterbury, and Kent, in order to facilitate urban communal life. It explores the experience of the two main religious houses (Christ Church and St. Augustine's) with the Jews, before proceeding to discuss the Christian community of Canterbury with the Jews. This is followed by an examination of intra-communal neighbourliness (i.e. Jews as neighbours to other Jews), exploring relations with other domestic and international communities. Finally, the experience of converts is explored, given that they occupied a liminal space between Jews and Christians - no longer one, not quite the other.

Citation

Irwin, D. (2024, April). (Everybody needs good) Neighbours: Jews and Christians living together in medieval Kent. Presented at Medieval Canterbury Weekend