Jewish Tours of Oxford
Oxford has possibly the most well documented history of any Jewish medieval community in the world. Find out about the remarkable circumstances which allowed this to be so, and what this unique collection can tell us about a medieval Jewish community and how it functioned. Fine out about its characters and how they lived. Take a walk around the medieval Jewish Quarter and learn about Jewish life in the city and significant events before the expulsion of 1290. Come up to date with the story of the Jewish population since the17th century re-admission and remarkable facts about the Jewish contribution to Oxford University in the 20th century. Learn about the innumerable Jews who have contributed to the social, intellectual and cultural life of Oxford over the past centuries.
Jewish sites in Oxford include Merton College, where you can find out how a Jewish land transaction contributed to the founding of one of the first Oxford colleges; the Botanic Garden - site of the medieval Jewish cemetery; St Aldates, formerly Great Jewry; The Oxford Castle - medieval tax point and site of the Jews' Mount, and the location of the first English coffee house in the High Street, which was opened by a Levantine Jew called Jacob.
