Crypto Jews of Portugal
The Jews that integrated into Portuguese
Christian society were able to retain relative autonomy and their own
organization by a delicate balance of compromise, concession and
interdependence, until the 15th. century. According to legend, the first Jews came
to the Iberian Peninsula at the time of Nabucodonosor, King of the Chaleans
(6th century) or even before, at the time of Solomon who reigned in Israel from
974B.C. to 937B.C. While these hypotheses may lie in the legendary domain, it
has been ascertained that the Jewish presence in Iberia preceded and
accompanied that of the Romans. From the 5th. century onward the Jews
reinforced their position and remained active in Peninsular society during the
Visigoth and Muslim periods of occupation.
When the kingdom of Portugal was formed, in the
12th century, there were already a number of important Jewish communities in
several cities re-conquered by the Christians.
Generally speaking, Portuguese Jews enjoyed the
protection of the Crown during the first dynasty. D. Afonso Henriques entrusted
Yahia Ben Yahi III with the post of supervisor of tax collection and nominated
him the first chief rabbi of Portugal. D. Sancho I (1185-1211)continued the
same policy as his father, making Jose Ben Yahia, the grandson of Yahia Ben
Yahia, High Steward of the Realm. The clergy, however, invoking the
restrictions of the Lateran Council, brought considerable pressure to bear
against the Jews during the reign of D.Dinis (1279-1325), but the monarch
maintained a conciliatory position.
Later, anti-Jewish movements became
increasingly apparent in the Iberian Peninsula during the political crisis of
1383-1385, which accentuated the rivalries between Portugal and Castile. The
crisis culminated in the establishment of the Avis dynasty and the accession of
Joao I to the throne. In 1391, serious incidents between Christians and Jews in
Seville and other places, provoked a growing wave of Jewish migration from
Spain to a welcoming Portugal. Thus, the beginning of the second dynasty (1385)
also initiated a new era for the Portuguese-Jewish population which was to
embark on a period of great prosperity.
In the period 1279 to 1383, there were some 31
communes in various parts of the country, but in the 15th century this number
increased so rapidly that soon there were 135 judiarias or Jewish quarters in
different places.
Nevertheless, if this was the golden age of the
Jewish community in Portugal, when crucially important contributions were made
to the development of the county at the economic, cultural and scientific
level, it was also a period during which the first, major social tensions
between Jews and Christians were to appear.
Intolerance largely stemmed from the emerging
mercantile, middle class which was alarmed by the not inconsiderable competition
of Jewish capital.
During the reign of King Joao I (1385-1432)
decrees were passed which required Jews to wear a special habit with a
distinctive emblem and to obey a curfew at night. In the reign of D. Duarte,
from 1433-1438, laws were introduced which prevented Jews from employing
Christians. D.Afonso V, however, was to return to the more tolerant policy of
the first dynasty and some of the rights that had been withdrawn were restored,
particularly those which allowed Jews to hold public office.
In 1492 Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain signed
a decree expelling all Jews who refused to be converted to Christianity. A
considerable number moved into Portugal where the king authorized their entry
on payment of 8 cruzados a head, and on the understanding that after 8 months
they would move on elsewhere.
The measures taken by D.Manuel I, (1495-1521)
were as complex as they were ambiguous. At first the king maintained a neutral
attitude and revoked the decree of his predecessor, freeing Jews who had been
made slaves. However, on drawing up his marriage contract with the daughter of
Ferdinand and Isabells, he yielded to the demands of Spain and agreed to expel
the Jews from the kingdom. The decree, signed in December of 1496, anticipated
that the departure of the Jews would take place by October of the following
year. Measures were taken to convert Jews to Christianity and to control the
ports of exit. Lisbon was the only permissible port of exit and a completely
inadequate number of vessels were provided for a mass exodus. In practical
terms, the king was fully aware of the advantage to be gained by the Jewish
community remaining in the country and did everything to hinder their
departure. These impositions culminated in the creation of New Christians when
thousands of Jews who were waiting to leave the country were baptized in
Lisbon. The attitude of the king reflected the vicissitudes and contradictions
of the policy of Iberian union, in the ambit of which each of the two kingdoms,
Spain and Portugal, sought to play a leading role.
CRYPTO-JEWS and
MARRANOS...
Those Jews who had been unable to leave
Portugal were baptized into the Christian faith and officially designated
"New-Christians" to distinguish them from the
"Old-Christians."
Many Jews accepted the new religion which had
been imposed upon them and with the passage of time gradually adapted to
Christian society, but equally there were many others who covertly remained
resistent. While they had to all appearances yield, they never abdicated their faith
which was passed down from generation to generation, and maintained within a
restricted ambit and the family circle, with a degree of religiosity marked by
secrecy. These were the crypto-Jews who publically followed Catholic rituals
but who, in the privacy of their own homes, maintained their religion and
culture and celebrated Hebrew rites on holy days.
During this period, over which the Inquistion
cast a long shadow, the term marrano (which means "pig" in popular
and archaic language) was used derogatorily by Old Christians when speaking of
crypto-Jews. The Court of the Holy Office often took action against the
New-Christians or crypto-Jews accusing them of following the Jewish faith, and
therefore, of being guilty of apostasy.
Sentences and sanctions imposed by the
Inquistion against the accused ranged from public forswearing of the alleged
sins, the obligatory wearing of a special penitential habit, a sambenito, to
burning at the stake.
Among the Jews who died at the hands of the
Inquisition were well-known names of the period such as Isaac de Castro Tartas,
Antonio Serrao de Castro and Antonio Jose da Silva, who was known to history as
"The Jew."
Apart from the periods during which the
activities of the Inquisition were suspended, it was only in the 18th century
that its power was completely curtailed with the introduction of the
Englightenment policies of the Marquis of Pombal, principal minister to King
Jose I (1750-1777). The last public "auto de fe" at which Jews
professing their religion were condemned took place in 1765, though the
Inquisition was only formally disbanded in 1821.
Historical Figures
Abraham Zacuto
(c.1450-c.1522) Author of the famous
"Almanach Perpetuum" published in Leiria in 1496, with tables which
provided the principal base for Portuguese navigation at the end of the 15th
century and the beginning of the 16th. He belonged to a family of French
origin, which had emigrated to Castille in the 14th century. The expulsion
decree of 1492 brought them to Portugal, where his expertise was immediately
employed in the preparation of the voyage of Vasco da Gama to India. He made a
sterling contribution to the development of navigation and was greatly
respected as "Mathematician to the king."
Guedelha-Master
Guedelha
(1432-c.1453) A member of the Negros family
(Ibn Yahia), one of the most important and influential in the Jewish community
in Portugal. In the reign of King Fernando, his father, Solomon Guedelha,
founded a hospital in the Grande Judiaria in Lisbon. Master Guedelha was a
rabbi and also doctor and astrologer to both King Duarte and King Afonso V. One
of his sons, Abraham Guedelha (1450-1471), also became a chief rabbi and doctor
to King Afonso V, which further increased the influence of the family.
Guedalha Palacano
(second half of the 15th century) A leading
merchant, holder of a number of special prerogatives, he had considerable
influence at Court. He played an important role in the history of the kingdom,
by loaning huge sums to the Crown, on many occasions he financed royal
activities. In 1478, he and Isaac Abravanel lent the sum of 3,384,615 reales to
D. Afonso V. Guedelha Palacano was known as a loyal supporter of Prince Henry,
having financed a number of overseas expeditions and justly deserved his honors
and special treatment at Court.
Isaac Abravanel
(second half of the 15th century) One of the
principal merchants in the kingdom and a member of one of the most important
Jewish families in Portugal. In 1478, along with Guedelha Palacano, he made a
huge loan to King Afonso V. He was greatly respected as a man of learning, a
doctor and philosopher.
Jose Vizinho
(second half of the 15th century) Born in
Viseu, he was a doctor and astrologer to King Joao II. Colombus and Joao de
Barros knew him as Master Jose and he was considered to be one of the most
outstanding figures in the scientific context of the great feats of navigation.
He translated the "Almanach Perpetuum" by Zacuto into Castillian and
Latin and navigated to Guinea to test the regiment of latitudes by meridional
observation of the sun.
Abraham Usque
(16th century) Born in Portugal and given the
Christian name of Duarte Pinhel, he fled from the Inquisition and settled in
Ferrara about 1543, where he was associated with Yom-Tob Ven Levi Athias
(Jerome de Vargas), a New-Christian of Spanish origin who owned a typography.
His name is linked to the publication of the "Biblia de Ferrara" (
The Ferrara Bible) in 1553. He published other books which included
"Menina e Moca" by Bernardim Ribeiro and "Consolaco as
Tribulacoes de Israel" ("Consolation for the Tribulations of
Israel") by Samuel Usque.
Pedro Nunes
(1502-1578) A great Portuguese mathematician
and cosmographer-major, author of "Tratado da Esfera", published in
Lisbon in 1537, he was a first generation New-Christian. Born in Alcacer do
Sal, he studied philosophy and mathermatics at the University of Lison, where
he obtained his degree and became a teacher in 1529.
Antonio Jose da Silva
(1705-1739) Known as "the Jew", he
was born in Rio de Janeiro, the son of a wealthy colonial family, and was one
of the victims of the Inquisition. One of the great Portuguese playwrites of
the 18th century, he wrote operas and satrical plays which were tremendously
critical and entertaining, one of the most interesting being "The
Jew." Other well-known works include: "Guerras de Alecrim e da
Manjerona" and "Vida do grande D. Quixote de la Mancha e do gordo
Sancho Panca." He was
imprisoned for the first time in 1726 but, after being tortured, was released.
He was sent to prison again and condemned to death at the stake in a dramatic
auto-de fe which took place in Lisbon on October 18th 1739.
Source:
"The Jews in Portugal" booklet issued
by the Tourism Information Dept. Lisbon, Portugal...
With the support of TAP Air Portugal
Submitted by: Patricia Julia Silva Corbera
papagaia@inreach.com