Author(s): Leonie Star

European

William Duke of Normandy conquers England in 1066. Jews follow him, arriving as traders. They have financial expertise and money-lending capabilities that are much needed in the medieval economy. A few have become among the wealthiest in the land. Yet medieval Jews have a unique status; they are owned by the King. This ultimately proves their downfall as they are consistently and savagely taxed. After two hundred years, anti-Jewish feeling - bolstered from Rome - is growing in intensity. The pious and prejudiced Edward I has passed a law forbidding Jewish money-lending. Italian financiers operating in England now provide him with money at interest. The value of his Jews is rapidly diminishing. It is All Saints' Day, 1 November 1290, and by royal edict every single one of England's Jews must leave the country or be put to death. From all over England families of Jews, carrying little more than essential religious items, walk south to begin their exile from the Isles of the Sea. This is the first permanent ethnic cleansing of a Jewish population from a whole country in the history of Europe.
England's Ethnic Cleansing of the Jews is a telling exploration of the treatment of Jews in medieval England. Anglo-Jewry rises to a peak of prosperity by 1200 then falls into the abyss one hundred years later. Its ethnic cleansing sets an iniquitous precedent in Europe. It has a malevolent influence that grows over time, culminating with horrific effect in the 20th century. About the Author Leonie Star began her professional life as a secondary school teacher. A family move to Canada in the 1960s saw her undertake two higher degrees in English, which she later followed with a degree in law from the University of New South Wales. She is a former principal of the Women's College within the University of Sydney and a writer and editor of legal material. Her work as an author began after the death of Professor Julius Stone, whose biographer she became. She has written several other books, all non-fiction, choosing a wide variety of subjects according to her current interests. While undertaking research for the Stone biography she stumbled upon material about England's ethnic cleaning of the Jews.
Her own Jewish heritage and previous ignorance of this fascinating story prompted her interest in medieval Anglo-Jewish history. Leonie was born in England but has lived in Australia since she was a child. She is based in Sydney and has two daughters, both of whom live overseas, necessitating frequent travel to the United States and England. When not reading, researching topics of interest and writing, she spends her times attending classical music concerts and playing bridge.