Strasbourg's Jewish community is attacked amid plague accusations
About this date: The event dates the Strasbourg massacre; the linked collection also contains separate Savoy interrogation material from 1348.
False accusations of well poisoning contribute to violence against Jews. The Strasbourg chronicle describes the destruction of a community and the appropriation of property and debts.
Historical context
The persecution belongs to the history of Christian-majority societies confronting epidemic. Political and economic conflict amplified religious hostility and fear.
Key points
- Coerced confessions circulated as supposed evidence.
- The chronicle connects violence with property interests.
- Jews also died from plague, contradicting the conspiracy allegation.
People
- Jacob von Königshofen
Sources and further reading
- The Black Death and the Jews
Read accusations as evidence of persecution, never as proof of Jewish responsibility.