blood libel

blood libel, the superstitious accusation that Jews ritually sacrifice Christian children at Passover to obtain blood for unleavened bread. It first emerged in medieval Europe in the 12th century and was revived sporadically in eastern and central Europe throughout the medieval and modern periods, often leading to the persecution of Jews.

Christian attitudes toward Jews during the Middle Ages were reflected in the economic, social, and political life of medieval societies. Until about the 11th century, manifestations of anti-Semitism were relatively infrequent. In fact, in the early medieval period there were frequent contacts between Christians and Jews, who intermarried and shared language and culture.

The situation became complicated after about the year 1000, as Christian society began a process of reorganization that contributed to the marginalization of Jews as well as of other groups. In 1096 knights of the First Crusade unleashed a wave of anti-Semitic violence in France and the Holy Roman Empire, including massacres in Worms, Trier (both now in Germany), and Metz (now in France). Unfounded accusations against Jews of such gruesome actions as ritual murder and host desecration began to spread. In 1144 an English boy, William of Norwich, was found brutally murdered with strange wounds to his head, arms, and torso. His uncle, a priest, blamed local Jews, and a rumour spread that Jews crucified a Christian child every year at Passover. A century later an investigation into the death of another boy, Hugh of Lincoln (died 1255), sparked anti-Jewish fervour that resulted in the execution of 19 English Jews. The story of “Little Saint Hugh” soon became part of popular literature and song, and he was widely venerated as a martyr.

The blood libel reemerged in Damascus in 1840 and in Tiszaeszlár, Hung., in 1882. In both cases, torture was used to obtain false confessions, though the accused were ultimately cleared. The most infamous occurrence of the blood libel in modern times was the case of Mendel Beilis, a Jewish factory manager in Kiev (now in Ukraine), who was accused of ritual murder by the tsarist government in 1911. Imprisoned for more than two years, he was eventually acquitted by an all-Christian jury. In the 1930s the blood libel became part of Nazi propaganda. It was subsequently a staple of anti-Semitic propaganda in parts of Europe and the Arab world.