By Camryn Hope Bolkin [Edited by Katie Simpson & Sarah Kearney]
Module: HST5413 (re)Writing History
One of the most contentious debates for modern historians surrounds the cause of England’s victory in the eighteenth century American Colonial Revolt. Some historians point primarily to economic prosperity, while others point to militaristic superiority, and yet more espouse social theories on the cause for England’s victory in 1776. While countless factors contributed to the outcome of the war, many of these elements spring from a common source. When one analyses the causes of the victory, it becomes clear that King Edward I’s decision not to enact the Edict of Expulsion, which would have expelled Jews from England in 1290, directly led England to win the war in 1776. The continued tolerance of Jews in England resulted in a high population of Jews in the country, causing economic prosperity, a greater number of skilled and motivated soldiers in the British army, and a Jewish battalion’s strategic placement at the Battle of Trenton that secured British victory.
Edward I infamously considered ratifying an edict to expel Jews from Britain in 1290. The country’s large debts forced the King into negotiations with Parliament for a new tax, and the King considered offering to expel his country’s Jews in exchange for Parliament’s co-operation.[i] As he debated this high-risk plan with his advisors, however, they determined a different course of action. Instead of expelling the Jews, which would undoubtedly have been disastrous for the country, the King decided that a series of statues depicting members of Parliament would be commissioned and displayed in front of Westminster Abbey.[ii] Parliament, anxious to receive this honour, agreed to grant Edward I the high tax. In a letter to his wife, Parliament member Sir Andrew Parrish wrote:
Our family for generations to come shall look upon my statue with wonder. All of my fellow legislators agree that we are most anxious to approve this measure. Any allowance, no matter how grand, we shall concede in order to bring this honour to fruition.[iii]
With these words, Parrish emphasized the high level of enthusiasm that he, and his constituents, felt regarding Edward I’s proposal. Not only did Parliament agree to the King’s terms, but it also added an extra 500 pounds to the original tax.[iv] Art Historian, Hunter Holland, writes on the creation of the sculptures:
Politicians changed their attitudes to Edward I’s requests seemingly overnight. Not only did the men feel intense gratitude for the opportunity to erect statues in their honour, but they also wished to speed up the building process as much as possible. They knew that Edward I would only commission the statues once Britain had exited its debt-ridden quagmire […] and so they granted higher funding than they had originally discussed.[v]
The increased funds greatly alleviated the country’s financial strain. England erected statues commemorating members of Parliament in 1301, ten of which still stand in the British Museum today.[vi] As a consequence of this successful measure, the drafted Edict of Expulsion was soon forgotten, never to resurface again.
As England continued to accept its Jewish population and no longer threatened the people’s removal, Britain became a haven for persecuted Jews. Not only did the native British population thrive, but Jews from other areas also began to migrate to England. As Jack Wertheimer states in his lecture on Jewish migration, “England received an influx of Jews following the French Expulsion of 1306. […] Jews expelled from the Holy Roman Empire likewise fled to England in droves over the course of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.”[vii] Furthermore, England received its greatest surge of immigration at the end of the fifteenth century, following the Iberian expulsions of Sephardic Jewry.[viii] The dramatic increase in the Jewish population changed the makeup of Britain, and led to a cultural shift concerning British attitudes toward Jews. In his podcast, “All You Had to Do Was Stay”, host Jeremiah Colton claims that this shift occurred because British gentiles “were forced to accept” a Jewish presence, due to the elevated population of Jews in the country, and soon grew to tolerate them.[ix] Historian Nicole Searles, however, offers a more nuanced explanation that renders Colton’s analysis inadequate. She states in her essay, “Many gentiles strongly resented the influx of Jews in England. Although protests abounded through the beginning of the seventeenth century, resistance quieted not because of bigots’ spontaneous tolerance, but because dissenters emigrated from England to the New World.”[x] Anti-Jewish voices began to dissipate because those who most virulently resented Jews seized the opportunity that American colonization provided them. Seeking what self-proclaimed pilgrim Douglas Beech described as “religious freedom” from the influence of the “too powerful minority”, these English emigrants went on to populate the American colonies instead.[xi] As they departed, so eventually did the discourse attacking Jewish tolerance in England. The resulting British population consequently grew more and more accepting, until Jewish citizens were granted equal rights under the Proclamation of Jewish Equality in 1655.[xii]
A thriving Jewish population resulted in its substantial aid to British economy. As Benjamin Gampel affirms in his YouTube lecture series on Jews in Medieval Europe, “Throughout history, Jews have been a tremendous financial asset. If you’re a feudal lord, the first thing you’re going to want is Jews in your area.”[xiii] Gampel explains that, among their skills, merchant Jews were invaluable in bringing new items from afar to trade, and stimulating otherwise potentially stagnant economies. Consequently, England became a superpower that quickly surpassed Spain, Portugal, France, and its other rivals.[xiv] This stood in stark contrast to the continued financial difficulties that the American colonies faced. Despite the fact that contemporary thinkers, such as the prominent Alexander Hamilton, largely blamed British taxation for the colonies’ struggle, little evidence supports these claims.[xv] Hamilton famously declared in a speech criticizing the British government, “essentially, they tax us relentlessly. Then, King George turns around and runs a spending spree.”[xvi] Despite this, tax records show that the only changes to colonial taxes came as a result of inflation.[xvii] England’s economic prosperity precluded its need to tax its poorest colony so heavily. Moreover, copious conquests in other regions, far outnumbering those of any other European country, allowed England to administer more lenient taxes on each.[xviii] Even Guam, which—contrary to Thomas Paine’s claims in Common Cents—was in fact England’s most highly taxed colony in this period, did not suffer the blow that the American colonists alleged their own economy sustained. [xix]
England prospered economically while the American colonies floundered, in no small part due to their disparate Jewish populations. Whilst Jews bolstered the economy of England, the colonies lacked this support. Jews fleeing persecution relocated to England and saw no need to turn to the New World for such safety, as other persecuted groups did.[xx] Moreover, the hostile anti-Jewish culture in America proved a strong deterrent to any Jew who might have considered such a venture. One powerful illustration of this phenomenon is the case of Haym Salomon, the famed British-Jewish philanthropist. In his diary, he explained,
My family was among the many expelled from the Iberian Peninsula in the late fifteenth century. Although my forefathers considered immigrating to Poland, they instead thought it best to move to England, baruch HaShem [thank God]. I have been ever so fortunate to grow up in such a wonderful country. Some goy [gentile] friends of mine are deliberating relocation to New York, Bar Minan [God forbid]. I would never consider such a thing. I love England with all my heart, and abhor those hateful colonies.[xxi]
Since Salomon’s family was so welcomed in England, Salomon felt fierce gratitude toward the country and disdain for its detractors. This, combined with the colonies’ notoriously anti-Jewish attitude, made Salomon eager to aid his country in quashing the revolt. As his wealth and prominence grew, he contributed larger and larger sums of money to the British war effort and was ultimately one of its biggest benefactors.[xxii]
England’s impressive finances allowed the country access to extensive resources that strengthened its military. The country relied on its own funds and purchased what military expert Wendy Wang calls “top-of-the-line everything, from weapons to kitchen utensils.”[xxiii] Britain’s ability to afford such supplies was exacerbated by the amount of money that it did not waste on superfluous resources. Unlike other countries at the time, England did not need to rely heavily on Hessian mercenary soldiers.[xxiv] Not only were such forces expensive, but they also brought less-than-optimal results.[xxv] The soldiers were notoriously subpar because, as Wang puts it, “They had no skin in the game. If you’re going to pay someone to fight, don’t be surprised when they don’t have any personal investment in the cause. And then don’t be surprised when they don’t fight as hard.”[xxvi] These mercenaries lacked the zeal that was possessed by soldiers whose livelihoods were directly threatened, and the quality of their fighting reflected this unfortunate disparity. Other European countries commissioned large numbers of Hessian troops, which proved damaging in many cases.[xxvii] Were Britain to have followed the same tactic, success may not have come as easily in the War.
Instead, however, Britain’s high Jewish population rendered the need to purchase troops almost obsolete.[xxviii] Almost every able-bodied member of the Jewish community volunteered to fight, as their gratitude to the country that welcomed them led to a strong sense of patriotism. In contrast to the Hessians’ characteristic dispassionate attitude, the Jewish forces fought with renowned passion, eventually becoming the most decorated population of soldiers in British military history.[xxix] Jewish participation in the war additionally benefitted Britain because it decreased friction between soldiers. British soldiers looked on their few Hessian troops with disdain, largely for their lack of ease in speaking English.[xxx] Moreover, when British forces arrived in America and witnessed the colonists’ guerrilla warfare tactics, Britain was quick to push for an adoption of these strategies. The Germans, however, resisted this push, instead wishing to adhere to the traditional style of fighting in lines.[xxxi] While these few troops suffered losses, it spelled minimal damage for British forces as a whole, due to the small percentage of their forces that the Hessians comprised.[xxxii]The rest of Britain’s forces, including its extensive Jewish troops, quickly adopted guerrilla warfare tactics and achieved resounding success.
Much controversy surrounds the potential moments that turned the tide of the war. Military history analyst Peter Culpepper asserts that the moment victory became certain for England was the day the army elected to adopt guerrilla warfare. He states in his essay, Guerrilla Warfare, Not Monkey Business, “The only real advantage that the colonists had over British forces was its guerrilla tactics. The moment that Britain’s superior military shifted its strategy, the colonists had nothing left. Their losses piled up, until they couldn’t take any more.”[xxxiii] Analyst Anastasia Dimitry, however, identifies a later date for the moment that secured England’s victory. In her book, Once Upon a December: The Battle that Won the War, Dimitry refutes Culpepper’s claims, and holds that the decisive moment occurred with George Washington’s defeat at the famous Battle of Trenton. She argues, “Although England’s use of guerrilla warfare did weaken the rebel army, the revolt could have gone on for quite a while longer, during which time any chance mishap could have cost England the war. The decisive victory at Trenton devastatingly crushed Washington’s forces, which is why the war ended almost immediately afterward.”[xxxiv] Dimitry makes the important distinction that a gradual decline did not necessarily preclude other factors from turning the tide yet again.
When taking this into account, her identification of the Battle of Trenton as the fate-sealing moment becomes the most compelling. Still, while both historians make valid points, each fails to take into account the larger picture, and the way in which each factor feeds into the other. Culpepper is correct in his assertion that the colonists’ continued failure in battle weakened them to the point of defeat. By the end of 1776, the vast majority of the Continental Army’s soldiers had deserted, morale was extremely low, and the rebels were close to surrender.[xxxv] Without this, a simple victory at Trenton may not have been enough to end the war. That said, a substantial victory on the part of the rebels could have boosted the colonists’ morale and renewed their strength, leading to their ultimate triumph in the revolt. While Dimitry correctly identifies the Battle of Trenton as the decisive moment that secured victory, this encounter was so monumental because of the Continental Army’s dismal state going into the battle, as established by Culpepper.
At the famous Battle of Trenton, General George Washington of the rebel Continental Army crossed the Delaware early on the morning of December 26 to ambush Hessian soldiers.[xxxvi] Washington believed that the Germans would be distracted and inebriated from Christmas celebrations the night before. While this plan seemed cunning in theory, Washington made a large oversight: the lack of Jewish presence in the American colonies led Washington not to consider that any of the forces might not celebrate Christmas. Washington had expected Hessians to be garrisoned at Trenton, but this was not the case. Due to such a strong representation of Jews in the British military, Britain set up all-Jewish battalions, so that the Jewish soldiers could keep kosher, keep Sabbath, and observe all other rituals with greater ease.[xxxvii] Consequently, an important responsibility of these battalions was to fight during Christian holidays, during which time the Jews were not distracted by celebrations. Thus, when Washington and his soldiers arrived in Trenton, they encountered the Jewish 18th Regiment.[xxxviii] The Jewish troops overwhelmed the rebel army and soon secured a resounding victory. In a letter to General Howe, General Abraham Levy described the triumph he witnessed as “total” and “easily accomplished”.[xxxix] Levy also expressed his belief that, due to Washington’s crushing defeat, the revolt would soon be over entirely.[xl] Indeed, this prediction proved to be accurate. Within the next three days, the rest of the Continental Army’s troops deserted, and on December 30, 1776, the American colonies officially accepted Britain’s victory.[xli]
The American Colonial Revolt served as an unfortunate hiccup in England’s long and storied history of prosperity. Despite this, the violence flared only briefly, before quickly dying down to the peace that all citizens know today. Many factors worked in tandem to guarantee England’s complete victory in the war with the American colonies. These factors resulted directly from the presence of Jews in England, which was ensured by King Edward I when he decided not to enact the Edict of Expulsion in 1290. The proposed edict would have validated and exacerbated anti-Jewish sentiments in England and beyond, while also damaging the country’s economy greatly. With the abolishment of such a proposal, anti-Jewish attitudes diminished, as it became clear that Jews were in England to stay.[xlii]Consequently, England enjoyed significant booms in population, with its citizens markedly more productive and constructive than ever before. This, in turn, led directly to England’s defeat of the rebel colonists’ forces in 1776. The Jewish influences bolstered England’s economy and strengthened its military, turning England into a superpower that could take on not only the American colonies, but also the world.
Footnotes
[i] Elliott Clay, Edward I’s Reign on a Wedding Day (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), pp. 859-61. [ii] Troy Bolton, Breaking Free from Breaking Free: British Expulsion Averted (New York: Scholastic, 2004), pp. 43-45. [iii] Sir Andrew Parrish to Marie Parrish, July 1290, in Letters from Medieval Parliament, (ed.), Emma Craig (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1925), p. 3. [iv] Elliott Clay, Edward I’s Reign on a Wedding Day, p. 892. [v] Hunter Holland, Beauty in the World: How Art Comes to Be (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018), p. 420. [vi] Harold Angelo, Parliament Members, marble, 1301, British Museum, London, UK. [vii] Jack Wertheimer, “Jews on the Move” Lecture, Jewish Theological Seminary, New York, New York, September 19, 2017. [viii] Wertheimer, “Jews on the Move”. [ix] Jeremiah Colton, host. “All You Had to Do Was Stay”, Historical Peas in a Pod (January 11, 2016) <https://radiowaves.com/podcast/had-to-stay/>, [accessed 23 November 2019]. [x] Nicole Searles, “What’s Love Got to Jew with It?”, Jewish Jistory Journal 6/13 (2016), pp. 49-50. [xi] Douglas Beech, “British on the Move.” Sermon, Fundamentalist Church, York, November 4, 1622, pp. 3-7; Nicole Searles, “What’s Love Got to Jew with It?”, pp. 45-55. [xii] Eve Beth, Important British Laws for Jews (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986), p. 406. [xiii] Benjamin Gampel, Medieval Jewish History, online video recording, YouTube, 10 January 2018, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRZkxypF05M&list=PL7Yaf7nQHP3CD-jtibqiM_NOOAll4s6JA&index=2&t=0s>, [Accessed 10 October 2019]. [xiv] Gampel, Medieval Jewish History. [xv] Audrey Smith, “Taxation Without Communication”, in Jim Moriarty ed., Baseless Blame (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1982), pp. 132-136. [xvi] Alexander Hamilton. “There Will Be a Revolution in this Century.” Speech, Albany, New York, July 32, 1763. [xvii] Audrey Smith, “Taxation Without Communication,” pp. 140-142. [xviii] Smith, “Taxation Without Communication,” pp.140-142. [xix] Thomas Paine, 1737-1809. Thomas Paine's Common Cents: the Call to Independence. Woodbury, N.Y. Barron's Educational Series, inc., 1975; Audrey Smith, “Taxation Without Communication”, p. 150. [xx] Jack Wertheimer, “Jews on the Move.” [xxi] Haym Salomon, January 1760, diary entry, in Biography of Haym Salomon, ed. Willaim Orion (London: Bloomsbury, 1925), pp. 275-276. [xxii] Salomon, diary entry, pp. 489-502. [xxiii] Wendy Wang, “This Means War: British Military History” (podcast), April 6, 2019, https://radiowaves.com/podcast/this-means-war/. [xxiv] Carlos Johnson, Everybody Was Kung Fu (and Otherwise) Fighting (Sydney: Scholastic), p. 1902. [xxv] Johnson, Everybody was Kung Fu, p. 1904. [xxvi] Wendy Wang, “This Means War: British Military History”. [xxvii] Carlos Johnson, Everybody Was Kung Fu (and Otherwise) Fighting, p. 1903. [xxviii] Wendy Wang, “This Means War: British Military History”. [xxix] Wang, “British Military History.” [xxx] Carlos Johnson, Everybody Was Kung Fu (and Otherwise) Fighting, p. 1911. [xxxi] T.A. Swift, “Out of the Woods,” in Guerilla Warfare in the British Army, ed. U.R. Funneigh (New York: Macmillan, 1972), p. 156. [xxxii] Swift, “Out of the Woods,” p. 162. [xxxiii] Peter Culpepper, Guerilla Warfare, Not Monkey Business (London: Penguin), p. 232. [xxxiv] Anastasia Dimitry, Once Upon a December: The Battle that Won England the War (Cape Town: Oxford University Press, 1954), pp. 178-179. [xxxv] Carlos Johnson, Everybody Was Kung Fu (and Otherwise) Fighting, pp. 2024-2036. [xxxvi] Anastasia Dimitry, Once Upon a December: The Battle that Won England the War pp. 150-183. [xxxvii] Skyler Faith, “Jews in Battle”, in The Story of Us: Jews in Medieval and Early Modern England, ed. Gwyneth O’Connor (New York: Macmillan, 1996), pp. 2088-3013. [xxxviii] Faith, “Jews in Battle,” p. 3042. [xxxix] General Abraham Levy to General William Howe, December 25, 1776, in Armies and Sleevies: Military Letters, ed. Jane Appleseed (London: Harper Collins, 1997), p. 609. [xl] Levy to Howe, Armies and Sleevies, pp. 421-423. [xli] Anastasia Dimitry, Once Upon a December: The Battle that Won England the War pp. 236-243. [xlii] Skyler Faith, The Story of Us: Jews in Medieval and Early Modern England, pp. 500-785.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Angelo, Harold. Parliament Members. Marble. 1301. British Museum. London, United Kingdom
Beech, Douglas. “British on the Move.” Sermon. Fundamentalist Church. York, November 4, 1622
Hamilton, Alexander. “There Will Be a Revolution in this Century.” Speech. Albany, New York, July 32, 1763
Levy, Abraham. ‘General Abraham Levy to General William Howe, December 25, 1776’ in Armies and Sleevies: Military Letters, (ed.), Jane Appleseed. London: Harper Collins, 1997
Parrish, Sir Andrew. ‘Sir Andrew Parrish to Marie Parrish, July 1290’ in Letters from Medieval Parliament, ed. by Emma Craig. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1925
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Holland, Hunter. Beauty in the World: How Art Comes to Be. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018
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Smith, Audrey. “Taxation Without Communication” in Baseless Blame, ed. by Jim Moriarty. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1982
Swift, T.A.. “Out of the Woods,” in Guerilla Warfare in the British Army, ed. by U.R. Funneigh. New York: Macmillan, 1972
Wang, Wendy. “This Means War: British Military History.” Podcast. April 6, 2019. <https://radiowaves.com/podcast/this-means-war/> [Accessed 10 October 2019]
Wertheimer, Jack. “Jews on the Move.” Lecture. Jewish Theological Seminary, New York, New York, September 19, 2017
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