The Jews Come to Spain – #26

http://JewishHistory.org

In the 7th Century the Moslims take over all of North Africa, including Algeria and Tunisia and Morocco. It was just in order to cross the Straits of Gibraltar and come in to Spain. When they came into Spain and conquered most of the Iberian Peninsula Jews went with them. They were very active with the Moslims. This was a Moslim society that was moderate, and, to a great extent, tolerant. It was the most progressive civilization in the world. It was tolerant of others to a certain extent. The Abdul Rahman who was a caliph in Baghdad and got thrown out of Iraq moved to Spain and established a dynasty there. The Jews were very active with him. There were Jewish foreign ministers, Jewish generals in the army, even Jewish prime ministers. There were people like Shmuel HaNagid, the great Shmuel the Prince who was the leading courtier in the court of the leading Moslim rulers, and other Jews that rose to high positions. The Jews were wealthy, they were merchants and trades people. The Jews were the intermediaries between the Moslims and the Christians because the Moslims didn’t want to deal with them directly. This was the Golden Age of the Jews in Spain. It began at about 670 and lasted until about 1150. From 1150 to 1492 the Christians begin to take over Spain and that’s when the fortunes of the Jews decline radically in Spain until they are finally expelled.