Event

Parliament’s tax grant to Edward I, 1290

Tax of £116,000 granted to Edward I in July 1290, which the National Archives says he bought with the expulsion of the Jews.

3 links, 3 backed by primary records

Connections 3

Parliament of England granted the tax Primary record 1
Edward I of England deeply in debt; offered the expulsion in exchange Primary record 1

Expulsion of the Jews from England, 1290 According to The National Archives (UK) Primary record 1 2
The Archives’ account: the expulsion was the price Edward agreed to pay for the tax. Ariel Hessayon notes that several reasons have been suggested, among them that Jews had become less useful to the crown as a source of tax.

Timeline 1 date

Proof 2 sources

Jews in England in 1290 (teaching resource with transcribed and translated royal records), The National Archives (UK). Primary record
In return for the expulsion of Jews from England, Parliament granted Edward a tax of £116,000.
By the time King Edward returned to England in 1289, he was deeply in debt.
To make the tax more bearable Edward essentially offered to expel all Jews in exchange.
The expulsion of the Jews was the price he agreed to pay.
Jews in England: From Expulsion (1290) to Readmission (1656), by Ariel Hessayon, Jewish Communities and Records UK (JCR-UK); article by Ariel Hessayon, Goldsmiths, University of London, 2006. Scholarship & press
Several reasons have been suggested for why Edward I expelled Jews from England in 1290.
once Jews were barred from usury in 1275 their wealth declined and consequently they became less useful to the Crown as a source of revenue through taxation.
engaged in usury disguised as trading in grain and wool.

Page history 1 change