Aaron of York or Aaron fil Josce, was a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

financier and

chief rabbi Chief Rabbi () is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He was born in

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

before 1190 and died after 1253. He was probably the son of

Josce of York Josce of York (Latin: Joceus; died 1190) was the leader of the Jewish community in York, England, and the leading figure in the York pogrom of 1190. He committed suicide along with nearly the entire Jewish community, rather than face death or ...

, the leading figure in the York pogrom of 1190.

Chief Rabbi

Aaron appears to have obtained some of his father's money and commercial connection, for he was appointed

Presbyter Judaeorum The Presbyter Judaeorum was the chief official of the Jews of England prior to the Edict of Expulsion. The office appears to have been for life, though in two or three instances the incumbent either resigned or was dismissed. Prynne argues that t ...

, or senior representative, of the

Jews of England Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

in 1237, in succession to Josce of London. This would imply that he was very wealthy, as only the wealthiest of the Jews obtained this position. He did not hold the office more than a year, as he was succeeded in 1237 by Elias of London (Prynne, ''Short Demurrer'', ii.38).

Transactions

In 1219 he was appointed by the King to act as a talliator (assessor of tallage) and was among the twelve wealthiest Jews of the Kingdom. In 1221 on the marriage of the King's sister to

Alexander II of Scotland Alexander II ( Medieval Gaelic: '; Modern Gaelic: '; nicknamed "the Peaceful" by modern historians; 24 August 1198 – 6 July 1249) was King of Alba (Scotland) from 1214 until his death. He concluded the Treaty of York (1237) which defined t ...

, Aaron paid £14 15s towards her dowry. In 1223 he paid £43 towards a tallage of £3000, making the second highest payment. In 1235 Henry III had made an agreement with him that he would only tax him 100 marks, reduced to 60. This was never honoured. In 1236 Aaron agreed to pay to King Henry III of England 100 marks a year to be free of all taxes (Tovey, ''Anglia Judaica'', Oxford, 1738, p. 108). Notwithstanding this, in 1273 he was mulcted 4,000 marks of silver and four of gold (

Matthew Paris Matthew Paris, also known as Matthew of Paris (; 1200 – 1259), was an English people, English Benedictine monk, English historians in the Middle Ages, chronicler, artist in illuminated manuscripts, and cartographer who was based at St A ...

, ''Chronica Majora'', iv.260). This was not an unusual occurrence, for in 1250 he was fined 14,000 marks of silver and ten of gold for the use of the Queen, on the charge of having falsified a

deed A deed is a legal document that is signed and delivered, especially concerning the ownership of property or legal rights. Specifically, in common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right ...

. On this occasion he told Matthew Paris himself that he had paid the king altogether no less a sum than 30,000 marks in silver and 200 in gold (ibid. v.136). A number of Hebrew '' sheṭarot'' dealing with Aaron's transactions still exist, one of them entirely in his own handwriting. When Henry III went to war in 1243, in his absence Aaron of York was accused of transgressions against the King; these are not recorded. He was sent to prison and managed to leave when he paid a fine of £100. The following year he was accused of forging a deed and was summoned before the King. On threat of imprisonment he paid the sum of 30,000 marks in silver to the King and 200 gold marks as a gift to the Queen. At this time the King was desperate for money as the war in France had not gone well. This left Aaron of York in ruins and the King realised that he was no more of use to him and dismissed him from his office.M. Adler, Jews of Medieval Britain (Cheshire, Sheratt & Huges, 1939)

References

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

, ''Chronica Majora'', iv.260, v.136; *M. D. Davis, ''Sheṭarot'', Nos. 93, 102, 108, 109 (autograph), 196-198; * M. Adler, Jews of Medieval Britain (Cheshire, Sheratt & Huges, 1939) *Papers of Anglo-Jewish Exhibition, 1887, p. 41; *Tovey (1738), ''Anglia Judaica'', p. 108; *R. Davies, "On the Medieval Jews of York", in ''Yorkshire Archeological and Topographical Journal'', iii.147-197; *Moses Margoliouth (1851), ''History of the Jews in Great Britain'', i.164.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aaron of York 12th-century births 13th-century deaths Clergy from York 12th-century English Jews 12th-century English people English Orthodox Jews 13th-century English rabbis