Gibraltar Jewish Community - Communal History

by Tito Benady

General Overview

Current General Population (2008): 28,750

Current Jewish Poulation (2008): 600

Percent of Population: Approximately 2%

Migration routes: Mainly Morocco, particularly from the Ladino speaking city of Tetuan; a small number from England.

Languages Spoken: English and Spanish

Historical Overview

1160, The city of Gibraltar was founded by the Emperor of Morocco.

1462, Gibraltar was captured by Spain.

1474, Gibraltar was sold by its lord, the Duke of Medina Sidonia,to the Conversos of Cordoba.

1476, Medina Sidonia expelled the Conversos.

1704, Gibraltar was captured by an Anglo-Dutch force in the name of the pretender to the crown of Spain.

1705, Gibraltar was cut-off from Spain and the garrison depended largely on supplies from Morocco. A number of Jewish merchants from London, Lisbon and Livorno who dealt with Morocco settled in Gibraltar, as also did a number of Jews from Tetuan in Morocco.

1713, Gibraltar was ceded to Britain under the Treaty of Utrecht. Spain insisted on inserting a clause in the Treaty, which precluded Jews from Living in Gibraltar.

1717, Jews were expelled from Gibraltar in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht.

1718, Britain at war with Spain again after Spain had invaded Sicily and upset the arrangements made a Utrecht. Gibraltar once again cut-off from supplies from Spain and the Jews were readmitted to ensure supplies from Morocco.

1721, Treaty negotiated with Morocco by Commodore Stewart of the Royal Navy. On the Moroccan side the negotiations were handled by Moses Ben Hatar, the treasurer of the Emperor of Morocco and Jews were henceforth allowed to settle in Gibraltar. The first land grants given to Jews.

1723, Foundation of the Great Synagogue of Shaar Hashamayim (Gate of Heaven) by Isaac Netto on land granted by the governor. The synagogue and its services followed those of the Spanish and Portuguese synagogue at Bevis Marks in London

1750, Governor Bland makes the elders of the synagogue responsible for maintaining order among the poorer members of the community.

1754, there were 573 Jews in Gibraltar and they formed one-third of the civilian population.

1759, The yeshiva (Talmudic academy) of Es Hayim (Tree of Life) was turned into a synagogue.

1766, The Great Synagogue was destroyed by floods that followed torrential rains and was rebuilt two years later.

1777, The number of Jews had increased to 863, but they now formed only a quarter of the larger civilian population.

1779, The Great Siege by Spain commenced in June, it lasted until February 1783.

1781, beginning of heavy Spanish bombardment; the synagogue was burnt down and many of the Jewish inhabitants took refuge in England to escape from the rigours of the siege. Most returned in 1783.

1793, The French Republic declares war on Britain. The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars which lasted (with an intermission of less than three years) until 1815, were to bring great prosperity to the merchants of Gibraltar and Jewish merchants participated in this. Two of them, Aaron Cardozo and the Banker Judah Benoliel, achieved considerable fame abroad. Cardozo’s mansion is now the City Hall.

1800, The Flemish Synagogue, Nefusot Yehudah (Dwelling Places of Israel), built.

1881, Jewish population 1,800 forming 10% of the civilian population.

1940, The non-combatant population of Gibraltar was evacuated because of fears of a combined attack by Spain and Germany. Most of the evacuees went to England but some went to Jamaica and the Portuguese island of Madeira. They return in 1944 and 1945.

The city of Gibraltar was founded in 1160 by the Moroccans and there is evidence of a Jewish community during the subsequent three centuries of Moslem rule. It was captured by Spain in 1462 and the only Jewish connection during the Spanish period was the sale of the city in 1474 to the Conversos (Jews who had adopted Christianity) of Cordoba, by the lord of the city, the Duke of Medina Sidonia. This interlude did not last long and Medina Sidonia expelled the Conversos two years later. It was not until Gibraltar became a British possession that the present Jewish community was established.

Gibraltar was captured by British and Dutch forces in 1704, during the War of the Spanish Succession, and was held by Britain for the remainder of the war. Spain ceded Gibraltar to Britain under the terms of Article 10 of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. During this time the garrison was cut off from the Spanish hinterland and had to turn to neighbouring Morocco for fresh provisions. The trade of northern Morocco was largely in the hands of the Jews of Tetuan, which is only 50 miles from the Rock, and a number of Jewish merchants from that place settled in Gibraltar. They were later joined by a few secret Jews from Seville and Portugal.

Spain was not at all pleased by the Jewish presence on the Rock and in spite of strong British objections, insisted on inserting a clause in the treaty of cession, which stipulated that “Jews and Moors” were not to be allowed “to reside or have their dwellings in the said Town of Gibraltar”.

Moorish Castle, Gibraltar

In 1716, there was a rapprochement with Spain, the frontier reopened and supplies were obtained from across the border. The British government ordered the expulsion of the Jewish merchants from Gibraltar in accordance with its treaty obligations. Reluctantly the local governors complied with the pressing orders they received, although this meant a financial loss to them personally, as it reduced the taxes and rents they collected. The Jews were expelled in February 1718, and Morocco retaliated by stopping all exports to Gibraltar. .

But the good relations between Britain and Spain did not last long. Within a few months the two countries were at war again over Spanish expansion in Italy, and Admiral Byng destroyed the Spanish fleet in the naval battle of Cape Passaro. This left the garrison of Gibraltar in difficulties as they were no longer able to obtain supplies from Spain either. The Jewish merchants who had returned to Tetuan were therefore invited back to supply the garrison. The British Government, aware of the importance of securing this trade, sent Commodore Stewart as an ambassador and a treaty was signed in January 1721. On the Moroccan side the treaty was negotiated by Moses Ben Hatar, the leader of the Jewish community of Salé, who was the Emperor of Morocco’s treasurer and man of business, and who for some years had used the European Jewish merchants of Gibraltar to make purchases for his master. Article 7 of the treaty stipulated that British merchants were allowed to settle in Morocco and “that the subjects of the Emperor of Fez and Morocco, whether Moors or Jews, residing in the dominions of the King of Great Britain, shall entirely enjoy the same privileges that are granted to the English residing in Barbary”.

The Jewish merchants returned to Gibraltar and bought properties. In 1721 the Governor made grants of land to Abraham Acris, Abraham Benider and Moses Cansino. In 1723 a grant was made to Isaac Netto and the following year he received a further grant for the construction of a synagogue. Netto was the founder of the Jewish community of Gibraltar. Born in Livorno, Italy, he had been taken to London at a young age by his father Rabbi David Nieto when he became Haham of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue in London. Although he was in Gibraltar as a merchant, he had been educated and given his rabbinical degree by his father. He therefore not only acted as the religious leader of the young community but his position as an important merchant enabled him to set up a complete communal organisation on the lines of the London synagogue. The synagogue itself received the name of Sha’ar Hashamayim (Gate of Heaven) which was the name of the London synagogue. The original building was destroyed by a flash flood in 1766 and was rebuilt on more substantial lines. The other institutions that Netto set up were similarly named after their London equivalents. He started a yeshiva called Es Hayim (Tree of Life) and a boys’ school called Talmud Tora (Teaching of the Law). A census taken in 1725 showed that there were 137 Jews in Gibraltar and they formed ten percent of the civilian population. After the death of his father, Netto left Gibraltar to become Haham of the Spanish and Portuguese Congregation in London.

In 1727

North Front Encampment, Jewish Immigrants

Spain besieged Gibraltar for several months and most of the Spanish residents in the town left. After the unsuccessful siege, the Spaniards built a line of fortifications along the isthmus that divides Gibraltar from Spain and the Spanish element in the civilian population declined considerably. Jewish immigrants from Morocco took their place and the next census in 1753 shows there were 572 Jews in Gibraltar and that they formed a third of the civilian population.

The British Government was concerned about the clause that gave Jews the right to settle in Gibraltar that was written into the 1721 treaty with Morocco, as it was contrary to the undertaking they had given Spain under the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht so this clause was modified in subsequent treaties. The next treaty signed in 1729 allowed them only to come to Gibraltar on business for a maximum period of thirty days “but not to reside”. Similar clauses appeared in subsequent treaties until 1760. But successive governors of the fortress paid no attention to this limitation. The 1777 census shows that while the rate of immigration had levelled off in recent years, the number of Jews had increased to 863, of whom three-quarters had been born in Gibraltar, and were therefore British subjects by birth. They now formed a quarter of the increased civilian population and owned a quarter of all the registered properties, which shows their established position. Although some were affluent merchants many were ordinary craftsmen or working men, as the lists of registered porters and boatmen show.

The Great Siege, which lasted for almost four years, brought great privations to the inhabitants of Gibraltar and the destruction of most of their property. In the first few months a number left for Morocco, Minorca and Livorno. In 1781 the Spanish started an intensive bombardment of the town and the great synagogue of Sha’ar Hashamayim was burnt to the ground. After this, several hundred left for England, where many of the Jewish refugees received assistance from the Spanish and Portuguese Jewish Community in London. The refugees included the Chief Rabbi, Isaac Almosnino and the leader of the community, Isaac Aboab..

When the siege ended in February 1783, the refugees returned to find the town in ruins and the commercial life interrupted. Reconstruction was slow and trade did not recover until the next series of wars with France broke out in 1793. The years of the French Revolutionary War from 1793 to 1802, followed by the Napoleonic War of 1804 to 1814, brought great prosperity to Gibraltar. There was an increase in the garrison and in the naval presence, which was beneficial to trade. In addition, the Gibraltar merchants fitted out privateers, which brought in numerous prizes, which were sold locally, as were the prizes brought in by the ships of the Royal Navy. In the words of a contemporary naval officer, “The success of the Gibraltar privateers has enriched the inhabitants to that degree that they scarcely know what to do with their money”.

The Jewish merchants of Gibraltar participated in this bonanza and became very affluent. This is shown by the many silver lamps and ornaments that were donated to the synagogues, and also in the building of the magnificent new synagogue of Nefusot Yehuda (Dwelling Place of Judah) in 1800. During those years, the Gibraltar community was considered the largest contributor to the yeshivot and poor in Palestine, with particular affinity for the yeshiva of R. Meir in Tiberias.

This period of prosperity was only temporarily interrupted by the great yellow fever epidemic of 1804, when one third of the civilian population, then totalling 7,000, died over a period of four months. There was no time to take the many Jewish dead for burial at the cemetery up the Rock, and an emergency burial ground was opened in the sands of the isthmus that joins Gibraltar to the mainland. This cemetery was used for subsequent epidemics but in 1878 the tombstones were removed, the ground grassed over and a memorial stone erected. The memorial disappeared when the airfield was built over the site in the 1940s.

There have always been two synagogue traditions in the Gibraltar. The community organised by Rabbi Isaac Netto followed the London synagogue which derived its traditions from the Conversos who for generations had to worship in churches before they left the Iberian Peninsula and reverted openly to Judaism, and their services were conducted on highly formal and decorous lines. On the other hand the majority of the community was of Moroccan origin, and they therefore came from a country where Sharia law did not permit the erection of Jewish places of worship and synagogues were normally rooms within private dwellings. Behaviour and services in Moroccan synagogues tended to be much more informal. The synagogue established by Netto proved too formal for many and the yeshiva of Es Hayim was turned into a synagogue in 1759. With the passage of time the services in the Great Synagogue of Sha’ar Hashamayim must have lost some of their formality for the building of the new synagogue of Nefusot Yehuda was in every respect a deliberate attempt to revert to the Sephardi traditions of London and Amsterdam. It is still known as the Flemish synagogue.

The two leading members of the community during those years were Aaron Cardozo, who was a contractor to the forces and leader of the community from 1791 to 1814. He built himself a palatial residence, which is now Gibraltar’s City Hall. Juda Benoliel, was an owner of privateers who ended his days as an important banker with connections that extended from South America to Palestine. Both became strong supporters of Spanish liberals.

The appointment of R. Joseph Elmaleh, the leading Moroccan rabbi of the time as chief rabbi, is a measure of the importance of the community, although it only numbered 1,068 in 1814. This appointment no doubt strengthened the Cabbalist trend within the community where the daily reading of the Zohar was widespread. This was very much in the Moroccan tradition where the Jews have been influenced by the Sufi element in the beliefs of the host community.

The British government had given instructions in 1749 that property in Gibraltar should thereafter only be transferred to Protestants but this had been consistently ignored. In 1803, the Governor, the Duke of Kent, was asked to confirm the purchase of a property by a local Jew and he asked the government for instructions. The Protestant, Roman Catholic and Jewish merchants joined forced to defend the status quo and have the law changed, and they were supported by the local governors. Lieutenant-Governor, Sir Thomas Trigge was a strong defender of the Jews. He wrote in 1804 citing their patriotism, “the Jews from having been long established here and having no other country are more interested in our keeping possession of this place, and have more to fear from our losing it than any other persons, they are the most wealthy people and consequently the most ready and able to make purchases. I think them very useful and good subjects." After years of discussions and petitions the matter was solved in 1818 when the Secretary of State informed Cardozo that there would not be any discrimination on the holding of property.

There were important cultural differences among the civilians who settled in Gibraltar in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The Jews were mostly from Morocco and the Roman Catholics from Italy and the Iberian Peninsula, but all lived peaceably and comfortably together. The younger generations lost the identity of the country of origin of the families and acquired a Gibraltarian identity, and mixed marriages became a problem for the community. The reaction was to try to stem the tide by not allowing conversions and this attitude was less successful than that of the Roman Catholic Church which did not even insist on conversion, but recognised the marriages as long as the children were baptised and brought up in the Church. Today there are a number of families with Jewish Moroccan surnames who are all Roman Catholics. To try and avoid this, the community withdrew within itself for most of the nineteenth century and no longer played the same prominent part in civic matters as before.

Communal affairs continued to be directed by the committees of the synagogues, and as there were now four synagogues each with its own committee, there was very little coordination, except that the Parnas de Ha’aniyim (Warden of the Poor) of each of the four synagogues met to arrange poor relief. Several attempts were made to institute a more formal structure but it was not until 1864 that the Junta Gubernativa de la Comunidad Hebrea de Gibraltar was formed. The members of the committee were elected by the yehidim of the synagogues. The name was later Anglicised and was changed in 1966 to the Managing Board of the Jewish Community.

The same seems to have happened with the rabbinate. After R. Joseph Elmaleh died in 1823, he was succeeded by R. Israel Benshaya, but after he died in 1837, there appears to have been no further appointments for a number of years. In 1878, R. Samuel Lasry was appointed to the position, but he was already 74 years old and when he resigned in 1883, the next appointment was R. Moses Benaim, who at the time was in Gibraltar collecting money for the yeshiva of R Meir in Tiberias. After the death of R. Moses Benaim in 1920, no further chief rabbis were appointed. Instead the Managing Board appointed religious advisers who acted as communal rabbis

The civilian population of Gibraltar grew to almost 18,000 during the nineteenth century, but the Jewish community did not grow proportionally and never reached 2,000 in number.

During the latter half of the nineteenth century, the isolationist attitude of the community started to be eroded and individuals began to take an interest in civic affairs. The institution of Talmud Torah was turned into a proper primary school in 1895 with the assistance of the Anglo-Jewish Association of London, but the secondary schools in Gibraltar, for both boys and girls, were run by Roman Catholic religious orders. Attendance at these schools tended to break down the community’s isolation. The process of cultural integration was further advanced when, during the Second World War, all the non-combatants in Gibraltar were evacuated for the duration of the war. Some 12,000 went to London, 1,700 to Jamaica and 1,500 to Madeira, where they shared the fate of their fellow citizens.

The second half of the twentieth century brought elected government to Gibraltar, and a number of Jews stood for election. The most successful was Sir Joshua Hassan who became leader of the Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights. His party swept the poll in the first elections for the City Council after the war and he became the Chairman. In 1955 he became the first mayor of Gibraltar, and in 1964 he became Gibraltar’s first chief minister. He held this position with one short interruption, for over twenty years, until he retired from politics in 1988.

References and Further Reading - Books and Articles:

Belilo, Mesod, 1995, Talmud Torah. Gibraltar

Benady, Tito M., 1979, “The Settlement of Jews in Gibraltar, 1704 - 1783.” Pp. 87-110 inTransactions of the Jewish Historical Society of England 26.

- 1989, “The Jewish Community of Gibraltar” Pp. 144-179 in Western Sephardim. Richard D. Barnett and Walter Schwab, eds., Gibraltar Books.

- 1994, “The role of the Jews in the British colonies of the Western Mediterranean.” Pp 45–63 in Trandactions of the Historical Society of England 33.

- 2004, ed., Aaron Cardozo, life and letters. Gibraltar Books.

Gibraltar Heritage Trust. Jackson, Sir William, and Francis Cantos, 1995, From Fortress to Democracy: The Political Biography of Sir Joshua Hassan. Gibraltar Books.

Lamelas, Diego, 1992, The Sale of Gibraltar. Gibraltar Books.

Lombard, Anthony, 1997, “The Roman Catholic Abudarham Family.” Pp 75-90 in Gibraltar Heritage Journal 4.

- 2000, “Fives Court: the Benzimra and Levy families” Pp 49-73 in Gibraltar Heritage Journal 7.

Serfaty, Abraham B. M., 1933, The Jews of Gibraltar under British Rule. Gibraltar.

Seymour, Anthony A. D., 1996, “A Tale of Two Families.” Pp 49-60 in Gibraltar Heritage Journal 3.

Contemporary Overview

Trades and Professions: Jews participate in all the trades and professions but a number are lawyers as Gibraltar’s finance centre which incorporates a number of overseas companies offers many opportunities to the legal profession.

Communal Institutions: There are four orthodox synagogues practising the Sephardi rite. The Managing Board of the Jewish Community controls all communal affairs. There is an elementary school, which recently celebrated its centenary, and more recently, separate secondary schools have been started for girls and boys. There is an active burial society Hevrat Gemilut Hasadim, which is entirely run by volunteers.

Communal relations: The Jewish community is well established and relations with other religious sections are very good and on special occasions joint services are held. There is no anti-Semitism and the situation has no doubt been eased by considerable intermarriage in past years. Today a quarter of the general population have some Jewish ancestry.

Present Economic Conditions: The finance centre and tourism make Gibraltar an affluent place with a GDP of over £20,000 per person, above the average for southern Europe, nevertheless opportunities are limited and has led to much Jewish migration to Britain and Israel.

References and Further Reading - Books and Articles:

Belilo, Mesod, 1995, Talmud Torah. Gibraltar

Benady, Tito M., 1979, “The Settlement of Jews in Gibraltar, 1704 - 1783.” Pp. 87-110 inTransactions of the Jewish Historical Society of England 26.

- 1989, “The Jewish Community of Gibraltar” Pp. 144-179 in Western Sephardim. Richard D. Barnett and Walter Schwab, eds., Gibraltar Books.

- 1994, “The role of the Jews in the British colonies of the Western Mediterranean.” Pp 45–63 in Trandactions of the Historical Society of England 33.

- 2004, ed., Aaron Cardozo, life and letters. Gibraltar Books.

Gibraltar Heritage Journal, 2004, Special Edition. Gibraltar Heritage Trust.

Jackson, Sir William, and Francis Cantos, 1995, From Fortress to Democracy: The

Political Biography of Sir Joshua Hassan. Gibraltar Books.

Lamelas, Diego, 1992, The Sale of Gibraltarin 1474. Gibraltar Books.

Lombard, Anthony, 1997, “The Roman Catholic Abudarham Family.” Pp 75-90 in Gibraltar Heritage Journal 4.

- 2000, “Fives Court: the Benzimra and Levy families” Pp 49-73 in Gibraltar Heritage Journal 7.

Serfaty, Abraham B. M., 1933, The Jews of Gibraltar under British Rule. Gibraltar.

Seymour, Anthony A. D., 1996, “A Tale of Two Families.” Pp 49-60 in Gibraltar Heritage Journal 3.