Who belongs here? Romans, Vikings & the expulsion of Jews

This blog is Part 1 of the series 'Medieval to Modern UK Immigration'.

Over the centuries, immigration to the UK and associated laws have ebbed and flowed. But as we’ll see from this first account, this ‘island nation’ has always been significantly impacted by global events. Powerful forces have frequently fought one another over a land from which they did not originate. This fraught history reinforces a compelling binary of ‘subjugate or be subjugated’. As well as power and riches, allegiance and religion persist as a source of conflict and a key determinant of immigrants’ value both historically and today.

Romans and Anglo-Saxons

The early medieval period saw the collapse of Roman rule in Britain at the start of the 5th century after over 300 years of domination mostly characterised by movement of the ruling elite rather than mass immigration. Urban society and economies collapsed as Britain was de-colonised, and immigration greatly reduced, although there is evidence that some international trading continued after this point (Heritage Calling).

From the mid-5th century onwards, significant immigration came from Germany and Denmark in the form of the Angles, Saxons and Jutes. From this time, Britain was divided into 7 ‘petty’ kingdoms (the Heptarchy), inhabited and ruled by people with varying ancestry and origins (Britannica). 

Britons who had adopted Christianity under Roman rule moved Westwards with the arrival of Anglo-Saxons in the East of England. Almost 200 years after Roman rule in Britain ended, the monk Augustine was sent on a mission from Rome by Pope Gregory 1 to convert King Ethelbert of Kent to Christianity (whose wife was a European Christian) and they were warmly welcomed (Historic UK).

7th century Britain was characterised by conflict between the different kingdoms and religions (Paganism and Christianity). An early legal system of Anglo-Saxon law codes emerged based on the Germanic oral tradition of law and the written laws of kings (Brittanica). Although this varied kingdom-by-kingdom, it eventually developed into a court system, enforced by royal officials and by communities themselves.

Vikings

The late 700s saw the first raids on Britain by Vikings from Scandinavia, with very few at first, increasing in frequency through the early 800s (Our Migration Story). In the 860s, thought to be motivated by the presence of valuable portable items, Viking incursions in Britain intensified, from smaller raiding parties to full-scale invasion by an army of thousands (‘The Great Heathen Army’). Led by chiefs from Denmark and modern-day Sweden, Vikings arrived in eastern England by boat and continued their advance on land (Our Migration Story).

The late 800s were characterised by conflicts between Anglo-Saxon rulers and now-settled Viking immigrants, with several occasions where peace was made between Scandinavians and King Alfred the Great. This included a treaty between Alfred and warlord chief Guthrum which defined geographic boundaries, dividing England between the Scandinavians and the Anglo-Saxons (from the Tees to the Thames), and established laws around homicide and peaceful trade. This laid the foundation for the Danelaw, large territories of England where Danish rule applied, provided their rulers pledged allegiance to English Kings (Our Migration Story).

photo credit: Leo Reynolds

Despite these developments, conflict persisted between the Anglo-Saxons and the Vikings through the late 9th century and early 10th century, with further Viking invasions also. After King Æthelstan (Alfred’s grandson) unified the Heptarchy into a single English kingdom in the early 900s, Viking raids once again intensified in the late 10th century.

Viking invaders were paid off with significant amounts of ‘Danegeld’ twice in the 990s in hopes of ending the violence. However, far from discouraging such behaviour, the raids and payments of Danegeld continued to Viking attackers such as King Sweyn of Denmark in the early 11th century (Our Migration Story). King Sweyn returned to Britain with his son Prince Knut in 1013 and was crowned King of England but died 5 weeks later. Anglo-Saxon King Æthelred returned from exile in Normandy and drove 18-year-old Knut back to Denmark (Historic UK). Knut returned with a large army, eventually winning victory over Æthelred and his son Edmund (Historic UK) and was crowned King of England in London (alongside his territories of Denmark, Norway, and part of Sweden).

Normans and Jews

In 1042, Edward the Confessor became King, regaining Anglo-Saxon rule of Britain. 24 years later in 1066, Normans (descended from Scandinavian raiders) led by William the Conqueror invaded from Northern France. This led to Norman rule although the numbers of Norman immigrants to Britain were much lower than previous waves of migration such as the Romans, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, and mainly confined to the ruling class.

William needed significant funds to secure his position as King and welcomed Normandy’s Jewish community to England to provide this. Christians were forbidden from providing loans with interest (usury) but Jews were permitted to do this and as direct subjects of the Crown, William could tax them whenever he wanted to fund his activities (The National Archives). The protection of the crown and perceived special treatment for Jews aggravated resentment and animosity from non-Jews, leading to scapegoating and moral panics. From mid- to late-12th century, antisemitic conspiracy theories about Jews’ involvement in ritual sacrifices (‘blood libel’) led to accusations and attacks on the Jewish community across England.

The Magna Carta (1215) provided for all merchants (except those from enemy nations during conflict) to be able to safely enter and exit England, staying here and travelling without prejudice or discrimination in order to carry out their business in line with the laws of the land. However, the 13th century saw a series of intensifying anti-semitic interventions by the state. In 1218, developing a church council ruling that Jews and Christians must live separately, Jews were now mandated to wear badges to set them apart (The Wiener Holocaust Library). In 1231, an inconsistently enforced expulsion order in Leicester was the response to populist anti-semitic political pressure related to the practice of usury, and in the mid 1200s the Jewish community was once again accused of ritual murder and blood sacrifice. Despite a papal investigation into such charges which found no evidence to justify their persecution, further restrictive statutes followed.

When Edward I returned from the crusades, he only allowed Jews to live in certain towns and cities. As well as living separately from Christians, identifying badges, and a tax for everyone aged 12 and over, Jews were now restricted to certain professions, were prevented from collecting debts owed to them and required the King’s permission regarding property and debts. It’s thought these restrictive measures originated because the King had exhausted the taxes he could collect from the Jewish community (which he used to fund his war with Wales). Jews were later accused of altering metal coinage for financial gain leading to many arrests and hangings (Statutes of the Realm).

Things came to a head in 1290 when, motivated by financial pressures from the war with France and public animosity towards the (relatively very small) Jewish population, Edward I expelled Jews from England. The King needed to raise taxation to fund his conflict with France, and the expulsion of Jews meant that all the wealth, possessions and property they couldn’t take with them passed to the Crown.

Read Part 2 in this series on Medieval to Modern UK Immigration: ‘Migrants welcome? Exploitation, racism & national security’.