History of The Jews in The Byzantine Empire - Punctuated Tolerance and The Crusades: 565-1204

Punctuated Tolerance and The Crusades: 565-1204

Although the Justinian Code remained in force in the Eastern Empire until the ninth century, the period following Justinian's reign was generally characterized by toleration of non-Christians, particularly the Jews. One exception to this was Heraclius, who reigned from 610 to 641, and was the first emperor to force the conversion of Jews to Christianity. Following his death, and until 1204, the Jews suffered only three notable legal persecutions, the sum of whose span was roughly fifty years. It is even debated whether the first of these—the anti-Jewish measures passed during the reign of Leo III the Isaurian—could be considered a persecution. The second of these, during the reign of Basil I from 867 to 886, briefly punctuated the tolerance of the ninth century. The last of these persecutions took place under John Tzimiskes, who reigned from 969 to 976. Accordingly, there were no recorded legal persecutions of the Jews for nearly two and a half centuries following his reign.

In the twelfth century, there were about 2,500 Jews in Constantinople, 2,000 Jews in Thebes and 500 Jews in Thessalonica. Halmyrus, Rhaedestus, Chios, and Rhodes each housed 400 Jews. Also, there were about 300 Jews each in Corinth and Samos, and 200 Jews in Gallipoli.

It was in the 12th century that the passing Crusaders wrought havoc upon the Jewish communities of Byzantium, in a foretaste of what the later Latin occupation would bring upon the Byzantine Christians. Although most crusading bands did not adopt a policy of violence or forced conversion against the Jews, the First Crusade certainly undertook an anti-Jewish face in certain communities. Because the Crusade was undertaken with the goal of "subjugating all non-believers to the faith," many crusaders compelled Jews to convert on pain of death, and there is a large number of recorded cases of mass suicides within Jewish communities—particularly among Jewish maidens—in order to avoid such conversions.