Jewish Refugees Waiting to Board Ship bound for the USA, Marseille 1939

Marseille

Also: Marseilles

Capital of the department of Bouches-du-Rhone; second largest city in France.

Located on the Mediterranean coast, the ancient port city of Marseille is home to the second-largest Jewish population in France. In 2013, an estimated 80,000 Jews were living in Marseille, comprising nearly ten percent of the total population of the city. The majority of Marseille's Jewish families live in the areas of St. Marguerite, Parc Fleuri, and La Rose.

However, the Jewish population of Marseille has declined in subsequent years due to the significant increase in violent attacks against Jews and Jewish institutions both in Marseille and in France at large. The Jewish Community Security Service (SPJC) reported a 45 percent rise in anti-Semitism since 2011. By 2015, more than 10,000 Jews had left France for Israel.

The Jewish community of Marseille is served by a number of agencies and associations that provide social and educational services designed to strengthen Jewish identity and support Jewish religious life. Jewish leadership is provided by the Federation and the CRIF, the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France. Other notable organizations include the ACEFI and the Jewish Agency for Israel (AJPI).

For generations, the Jews of Marseille have been deeply committed to charity. Several of the city's social programs were established in the 20th century to provide resources for Jewish immigrants. By the 21st century, Marseille had become one of France's poorest cities, with 25 percent of its residents living below the poverty line and an unemployment rate 30 percent higher than the national average. The Jews of Marseille responded to this reality by developing new programs to address hunger and poverty. One such program was a charity network comprised of 25 separate organizations. Each year, approximately $1 million is distributed through the charity network. The National Appeal for Tzedekah collects millions of dollars for the Jewish Federation which is distributed annually among the city's many charities. The Federation also delivers kosher food to dozens of families throughout Marseille. Baskets for Shabbat serves nearly 1,000 poor Jews every week. One of the oldest Jewish charitable institutions in Marseille is CASIM, the Jewish Charity Society of Marseille. Founded in 1906, CASIM offers a variety of social services as well as food and clothing. CASIM also operates a supermarket which offers food and home supplies for one-tenth their actual price.

There are more than 40 synagogues located throughout Marseille, the overwhelming majority of which are Orthodox. Located on Breteuil Street is Marseille's main synagogue, La Grande Synagogue de Marseille, which has maintained a congregation since its inauguration in 1864. The building was constructed during the second half of the 19th century and was registered as an historic monument in August of 2007. The building also houses the offices of the Consistoire de Marseille and a number of Jewish religious organizations.

In addition to the synagogues, there are also seven mikva'ot (ritual baths), a rabbinical court, and numerous kosher services. By 2014, Marseille boasted 11 dairy restaurants, 27 meat restaurants featuring North African and Middle Eastern cuisine, 11 catering companies, 12 bakeries, and 9 supermarkets. There are more than 24 Jewish schools, including kindergartens, primary schools, high schools, and colleges. Additionally, there are about 20 Jewish study centers and a half-dozen social associations such as camps, youth groups, and recreation clubs, of which Maccabi Sports Marseille is most popular.

The oldest Jewish cultural and community center in Marseille is the Centre Communautaire Edmond Fleg. Founded in 1964, the Centre was established to welcome Jewish families arriving from North Africa, a group which makes up the vast majority of the Marseille's Jewish population. As large numbers of Jews began to settle in Marseille, the Centre provided many social services, including housing and employment. Since the 1990s, the Centre has offered a wide variety of cultural and educational programs. It has established several associations dedicated to community service, as well as Israel advocacy. Other important Jewish cultural institutions include the Jewish Library of Marseille, which was founded in 1994, and the Institut Méditerranéen Mémoire et Archives du Judaisme. The museum explores the history and culture of Jewish communities of the Mediterranean, and features a collection of documents and artifacts.

France's national Jewish newspaper, Actualité Juive, has delivered national and international news to Jewish communities throughout France every week for more than 30 years. It has a audience of about 90,000. On the airwaves is Radio JM, a pluralistic and independent radio show formed in 1982 that promotes Jewish culture.

HISTORY

Archeological evidence indicates a Jewish presence in the region in the first century CE. However, the earliest documented evidence for the presence of Jews in Marseille can be traced back to the late sixth century CE. In a letter from Pope Gregory the Great to Theodore, the bishop of Marseille, dated 591 C.E, there is reference to an attempted forced conversion of a group of Jewish refugees from Clairmont (now Clermont-Ferrand, in central France), who had fled similar persecutions from the local bishop some twenty years earlier. Jewish settlement of Marseille continued through the early Middle Ages when various documents refer to properties either owned by Jews or somehow connected to Jews, such as a "Jewish valley" referenced at the end of the 10th century, and a vineyard mentioned in the late 11th century.

According to the Spanish-Jewish traveler Benjamin of Tudela (1130-1173), there were 300 Jewish families in Marseille when he visited the city around 1165. He reported that there were two areas of Jewish settlement in the city: one in the upper part of the town, which was under the jurisdiction of the bishop, and the other in the lower town, which was under the authority of the viscount. Benjamin of Tudela refers to Marseille as a "town of learned men and scholars" and noted that the yeshivas and the scholars were situated in the upper town. In fact, years later Maimonides would address a letter to the "Wise Men of the Congregation of Marseille." Among the scholars mentioned by Benjamin of Tudela was R. Isaac b. Abba Mari of Marseille (c.1122 - c.1193), commentator, author of prayers, and codifier, best known for his work Ittur Sofrim, or Ittur.

Meanwhile, the Jews who settled in the lower part of the city, close to the port, developed a trading network with other port cities from Spain and North Africa throughout the Mediterranean to the countries of the Levant. They traded wood, spices, textiles, metals, various products for dyeing, and slaves. During the13th and the 14th centuries, the economic activities of the Jews of Marseille extended to include new occupations such as brokers, wine or cloth merchants, laborers, porters, or tailors; at least one document mentions a Jewish stone-cutter (magister lapidis). Certain professions saw Jews enter their ranks in numbers greater than their Christian counterparts; there were more Jewish than Christian physicians, and the field of coral craftsmanship, although not very profitable, was practically a Jewish monopoly. There were Jews active in moneylending, but in a port city their impact was relatively low and it was not a major source of revenue. Soap production, an industry that later became the major economic enterprises of Marseille is thought to have been introduced to the city between 1371- 1401 by Crescas David, a Jew sometimes nicknamed Sabonerius. He was succeeded in the business by his son, Solomon David.

During the early Middle Ages, the Jews in Provence enjoyed a relatively high social standing. Marseille' city regulations of 1257 did not distinguish between the Jewish and Christian inhabitants of the city, referring to all as "citizens of Marseille" (cives Masasiliae), although it should be noted that the Jews did not enjoy the same legal status as their Christian neighbors. The legal status of the Jews changed after 1262 after the city of Marseille led an unsuccessful rebellion against the Duke of Anjou, Count of Provence. After the insurrection, the Jews of Marseille became the responsibility of the count, who was a relatively benevolent ruler and issued a proclamation against the inquisitors who extorted money from the Jewish community under the pretext of fines, and who had compelled the Jews to wear a special badge that was bigger than the badge ordered by the Lateran Council of 1215. Nonetheless, there were a number of restrictions imposed on the Jews. These included the obligation for married Jewish women to wear a special veil (orales). Jews were not allowed to testify against Christians, to work on Sundays or during Christian religious festivals, nor were they allowed to go to the baths more than once a week. Jewish merchants were banned from embarking on sea journeys in groups larger than four; while aboard ships, Jewish passengers had to abstain from eating meat on Christian fast days. Jews were not allowed to travel to Egypt so that they could not become involved with the profitable trade there. According to a note by Rabbi Shlomo Ben Adret (Rashba), a heavy fine was levied on the Jewish community of Marseille at the end of the 13th century following accusations that the Jews were mocking Christianity during their Purim celebrations.

The legal status of the Jews improved during the 14th century when they managed to enjoy the protection of the counts of Provence andthe city authorities. The rivalry that existed between the municipal authorities and the counts allowed the Jews to maneuver between the two and use them as protection from the church. There is no mention of accusations against the Jewish community, not even in the aftermath of the Black Death of 1349-51. Jews succeeded in obtaining certain privileges that made possible for them to observe Jewish law; in order to make matzah, they were allowed to trade flour within the Jewish community, and were thereby exempt from the obligation of conducting this business specific areas designated by the city. Additionally, Jews were permitted to sweep the streets in front of their houses on Fridays, instead of Saturdays, and during Jewish festivals, Jews were exempt from the obligation of walking with a lamp after curfew.

The rulers of Provence also protected the Jews. In 1320, King Robert intervened in favor of the Jews and promised to offer them shelter in his castles and fortresses whenever they might come under attack during the Pastoureaux Crusade. This protection was renewed in 1331 and again one year later by Philippe de Sanguinet, seneschal of Provence. Jews took an active part in defending the city of Marseille against attacks in 1357 and contributed generously easing the financial burdens occasionally imposed by the counts of Provence that the city inhabitants were required to pay. Consequently, the Jewish community of Marseille enjoyed a relative level of protection by the counts of Provence, who occasionally renewed or confirmed the privileges granted to the Jewish community. The relatively benevolent attitude of the counts of Provence continued into the 15th century, as evidenced by the decrees of Yolande, Countess of Provence and Queen of Naples who, in 1422, forbade abuses against the Jews by her officials. Similarly, King Rene of Anjou (1409-1480) declared in 1463 that Jews have a right to the special protection of the authorities, especially since they could not enjoy that of the church. Kind Rene's commitment to this idea became clear when closed the baptistery of Saint-Martin following a complaint by two Jewish deputies, Solomon Botarelli and Baron de Castres, that a Christian woman had baptized a Jewish girl against her will there.

Subsequently, the condition of the Jews worsened during the 15th century. They suffered more than the Christian inhabitants of the city when Marseille was captured by the Aragonese troops of King Alphonso V in 1423. Many Jews left Marseille at the time, seeking refuge in other communities throughout Provence. When Provence was later incorporated into the Kingdom of France in 1481, the situation of the Jews of Marseille worsened considerably. In 1484 and again in the early months of 1485, following accusations of usury, the inhabitants of Marseille attacked and pillaged Jewish neighborhoods, killing a number of Jews. This led to an exodus of Jews from the city, many of whom fled to Sardinia, which became home to about 200 Jewish families from Marseille. King Charles VIII (1483-1498), however, was not inclined to yield to the popular demand to forcibly expel the Jews from Provence. He decreed that all Jews wishing to depart should be allowed to leave Marseille unharmed on the condition that they had satisfied any and all of their commitments to the Christians. The city authorities, on the other hand, were not prepared to let the Jews leave Marseille with their property. Accordingly, in 1486 they organized an inventory of Jewish property in Marseille. The resulting protests by the Jews led to a royal intervention and the Jews gained a few extra years of protection.

The expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 brought new Jewish inhabitants to Marseille. That same year, the Jewish community of Marseille ransomed 118 Jews of Aragon who had been captured by the pirate Bartholemei Janfredi for the price of1,500 ecus. Renewed anti-Jewish attacks in 1493 eventually led to a royal decree ordering the general expulsion of the Jews from Marseille; by 1501 this expulsion had been carried out completely. About half of the Jews of Marseille left for Italy, Northern Africa, and the Ottoman Empire, especially to Salonika, while others chose the Papal estates (Comtat-Venaissin) in Provence, with the remaining half converting to Christianity in order to avoid expulsion.

Before the expulsion, most of the Jews of Marseille lived in the Jewish quarter of the city, which was called by the name of its main streets, Carreria Jusatarie or Carreria Judorum. Along with the neighboring lanes, it formed a kind of island designated Insula Juzatarie. The Church authorities strove to keep the Jews within a separate district and opposed any attempt to leave it. Various documents mention two synagogues in Marseille during the late Middle Ages: the Scola Major and the Scola Minor. Additionally, there maybe have been a third synagogue that functioned for some time. The medieval Jewish cemetery was located at a place consequently known as Mont-Juif or Montjusieu, but following the expulsion of 1501 the cemetery was transferred to a Christian landlord and destroyed.

MIDDLE AGES-CULTURAL LIFE

Marseille was an important center of Jewish civilization during the Middle Ages. The Jews of Marseille, and of Provence more broadly, was generally considered as part of the Jewish culture of Sepharad, although they remained separate from the direct influence of the Arab culture dominant in the Iberian Peninsula.

The cultural figures who made Marseille their home demonstrated this cultural influence. Marseille was the home of several members of the Ibn Tibbon family of translators, philosophers, physicians, and commentators who were instrumental in uncovering the Jewish works of philosophy originally written in Arabic for the Hebrew readers of Provence and in France and Northern Europe. Members of ibn Tibbon family include Jacob ben Machir ibn Tibbon (c.1286 - c.1304, in Montpellier), Moses ibn Tibbon (active between 1240 and 1283), and Samuel ben Judah ibn Tibbon (c.1150, in Lunel - c.1230).

Other distinguished medieval Jewish scholars that lived in Marseille during the late Middle Ages include the liturgical poet Solomon Nasi ben Isaac Nasi Cayl and Nissim Ben Moses of Marseille (active in the early 14th century), who wrote a rationalist Torah commentary titled "Sefer Ha-Nisim" or "Maaseh Nissim." In addition, Marseille was home to Samuel ben Yehudah (ben Meshulam) HaMarsili, also known as Miles Bonjudas (or Bongodos, in Provencal), who translated a number of philosophical and scientific texts from Arabic into Hebrew. Joseph ben Jochanan, sometimes called "the Great" in recognition of his erudition, a native of Northern France, was rabbi in Marseille in 1343. Yehuda Ben David, also known as Bonjudas Bendavi (or Bondavin) or Maestre Bonjua, was a Talmud scholar and a physician of the late 14th century and early 15th century; later in his life he emigrated to Sardinia, where he settled in Alghero and became the rabbi of the Jewish community of Cagliari. Jacob Ben David Provencali, a Talmud commentator of the second half of the 15th century, lived in Marseille and was a sea merchant until he left the city for Naples in the late 1480s.

There were 34 Jewish physicians living in Marseille during the 15th century. Among them was Abraham de Meyrargues who lived during the early years of the 15th century, and Bonet de Lattes. De Lattes was a Jewish physician, rabbi, inventor, and astrologer; after the expulsion of the Jews from Provence, he went to Rome and eventually became the personal physician of Pope Alexander VI and, later, Pope Leo X.

EARLY MODERN PERIOD

1669 saw the creation of a second Jewish community in Marseille, when Joseph Vais Villareal and Abraham Atthias, two Jews from Livorno, Italy, settled in the city with their families. They were taking advantage of an edict made by King Louis XIV promising tax exemptions for the port of Marseille, and settled in the city. Villareal and Atthias were soon followed by other Jews. However, in1682, after pressure from the citizens of Marseille, an expulsion order was issued against Villareal, followed by occasional expulsions of other Jews who settled in Marseille.

The modern Jewish community of Marseille was founded in 1760. By 1768 the community already had a small synagogue in a rented house on rue de Rome and in 1783, with the help of donations from 48 wealthy members of the community, land was purchased in the Rouet quarter for a Jewish cemetery. A new synagogue was opened in 1790 at 1 rue du Pont, serving what was known as the "Portuguese community," since most of its founding families belonged to the Sephardi communities of Livorno, Italy: de Silva, Coen, de Segni, Attias, Foa, Gozlan, Cansino, Vital, and Tunis - Darmon (also spelled D'Armon), Boccara, Lumbroso, Daninos, Bembaron. They were joined by Jewish families from Avignon: Rigau, Duran, de Monteaux, Ravel, Ramut, Graveur, Caracasone.Still others came from the Eastern Mediterranean countries: Constantini, Huziel, Brudo, Coen de Canea and from Tunisia - Semama, Lahmi, Bismot.

Sabaton Constantini, a merchant of Candia (now Heraklion, in Crete, Greece) was also instrumental in founding the new community. In fact, Constantini met with King Louis XVI of France in 1782 and received royal approval for Jewish settlement in Marseille; immediately 13 families received the right to live in Marseille. The Parliament of Aix-en-Provence officially recognized the Jewish community of Marseille in 1788, and also officially acknowledged the privileges that had already been granted to the community in 1776. On the same occasion Daniel de Beaucarie, a Provencal Jew, was recognized as the representative of the Jewish community of Marseille.

By January 1790, the "Jewish Nation" of Marseille, numbering about 200 members, was granted full emancipation by the French Revolution, almost two years before the general emancipation of Jews in France. New settlers came to Marseille from other Jewish communities in Provence: Cremieu and Delpuget from Avignon, another branch of the Delpuget from Cavaillon. Additionally, Jews from Aleppo (now in Syria) also began arriving, including the Marini, Sciama, and Altaras families. The community began adopting the customs of the Jewish community of Livorno, and Spanish was spoken daily.

In the wake of internal disputes, the community was reorganized in 1804; at that time its population had reached approximately 300. In spite of these changes, the establishment of a rabbinical council shortly thereafter, in 1808, reinforced the leading role of the Jewish community of Marseille over other Jewish communities in the south of France.

THE MODERN COMMUNITY

The growth of the Jewish community of Marseille continued throughout the 19th century. Jews were active in the industrial and financial development of the city, as well as in international trade with North African countries. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 and the sustained economic growth of Marseille brought about even more economic opportunities for the local Jewish population.

The 19th century also saw the integration of the Jewish community into the social and political life of Marseille. Traditionally supporters of the government in power, with the fall of the Second Empire the community chose to endorse the Republican parties, especially Leon Gambetta who received the backing of Gustave Naquet, editor of Peuple, a local newspaper that promoted democratic ideals. On the other side of the political spectrum, two Jews, Adolphe Carcassone and Gaston Cremieux, became the leaders of the local Revolutionary Commune in the spring of 1871. Following the fall of the radical movement, Gaston Cremieux, who headed the Revolutionary Commission of the Departement Bouches-du-Rhine, was arrested and tried for his role in the revolt. He was eventually condemned to death and was executed in November 1871.

The success of the Jews of Marseille was met with growing opposition which, by the end of the19th century turned, into overt anti-Semitism. Anti-Jewish attitudes were propagated by figures such as Auguste Chirac of Marseille in works published in 1876. However, the expression of anti-Semitism reached its peak during the Dreyfus Affair. During the Dreyfus Affair, Marseille became central location for both the supporters of Dreyfus, as well as for his detractors. An "Anti-Semitic Conference" held in January 1898 in Marseille generated riots against local Jews, with the mob attacking Jewish-owned shops.

During the second half of the 19th century, and then in the early years of the 20th century, the population of Jews in Marseille continued to grow, eventually turning the city into the second largest Jewish community in France, after Paris. Despite the troubled years of the Dreyfus Affair, many Jews in Marseille succeeded in climbing the social ladder and occupying important positions in the economic, social, cultural and political life of the city. Special mention should be made of such personalities as Jules Isaac Mires (1809-1871), a Bordeaux- born financier who played an active role in promoting the local press in Marseille as well as in undertaking large construction projects of a harbor and new districts, and Jacques Isaac Altaras (1786- 1873), born in Aleppo, Syria, who became a ship-builder and philanthropist. Altaras was president of the Jewish Consistory of Marseille for about thirty years, during which he tried unsuccessfully to advance a project of resettling Russian Jews in
French-occupied Algeria.

The cultural life of the Jews of Marseille was enriched by the activities of the author and journalist Louis Astruc (1857-1904), the painter Edouard Cremieux (1856-1944), the geographer and African explorer Edouard Foa (1862-1901), the author Andre Suares (1868-1948), and the world-famous composer Darius Milhaud (1892-1974).

In the mid-19th century, the Jewish community of Marseille purchased land for a new cemetery that opened in 1855 in the St. Pierre neighborhood. The old cemetery of Rouet was closed, and during the 1970s it disappeared beneath new urban developments (the remains and headstones were transferred to the new cemetery).

A second synagogue was opened in 1820 on rue Grignan, but the demographic growth of the community soon brought about the need for an additional, more spacious, synagogue. Donations by community members enabled the acquisition of a plot of land on rue Breteuil, not far from the old port of Marseille. The new synagogue, called Temple Breteuil, opened on September 22, 1864, having been built according to the plans of the architect Nathan Salomon. The design chosen uses Oriental motifs fashionable at the time, particularly in Marseille, which tried to present itself as the "Gate to Orient." The synagogue also contained similarities with a number of important churches built in Marseille at the same time. The architectural style tried to express the desire of the local Jewish community to present its Judaism in a way that would be acceptable to their Christian neighbors, an attitude typical of the decades following the Jewish emancipation. Temple Breteuil also housed the offices of the Jewish religious council.

THE HOLOCAUST

The Jewish community of Marseille continued to grow into the first half of the 20th century. By 1939, there were about 39,000 Jews in Marseille. Along with Lyons, Marseille had the largest Jewish population in the South of France and was home to the largest number of Jewish organizations and institutions. During the late 1930s many Jewish refugees from Germany sought refuge in Marseille, in spite of the fact that most of them lacked legal documents; after 1940, Jews from other regions of France also began arriving in the city, seeking safety. Marseille remained in the "Free Zone" of France from 1940 until 1942 when the Germans occupied the city following the Allied landing in North Africa. The German occupation worsened the condition of the Jews in Marseille; many went underground , a small number joined the French Resistance, while many others were arrested during massive operations conducted jointly by the Germans and French police. Some 6,000 Jews were arrested in the night of January 23rd, 1943. Of the Jews arrested in Marseille, about 4,000 were eventually deported to Nazi concentration camps. Jewish property was seized and transferred to "Aryan" owners. At the end of World War II there were only about 10,000 Jews left in Marseille.

Hiram (Harry) Bingham, IV (1903-1988), who served as US vice-consul in Marseille, distinguished himself as a Righteous among the Nations. During his service in Marseille between 1939 and1941, he issued more than 2,500 US entry visas to Jews and other refugees, including the painter Marc Chagall and the sculptor Jacques Lipchitz. Bingham helped the French Resistance movement smuggle Jews to Spain or North Africa, sometimes paying the expenses from his own pocket.

POSTWAR ERA

For a long time after World War II, Marseille served as a transit port, first for Holocaust survivors, and then for Jews from North African countries, for those making their way to Israel. Tunisian independence in 1956 and the Suez campaign in Egypt that same year led to a wave of Jewish immigrants coming to Marseille. They were joined in the early 1960s by Jewish emigrants from Morocco and Algeria.

At approximately 65,000 members in 1969, the Jewish community of Marseille was the second largest Jewish community in France and the third largest in the whole of Western Europe. During the early 1970s there were more than a dozen of active synagogues in Marseille and its suburbs. There were also three community centers, a Jewish primary school, an ORT vocational school, and a well-developed network of youth movements, associations and organizations. By the turn of the 21st century, Marseille' Jewish population grew to about 80,000, the second largest Jewish community of France and one of the largest anywhere in the Diaspora. Outside of Israel, Marseille also has the largest Jewish population by far in the Mediterranean region.

The religious and communal lives of the Jews of Marseille are coordinated by the CRIF. During the last decades of the 20th century the CRIF was instrumental in providing the means for strengthening the spiritual and material needs of the community.

During the early aughts there was a significant increase in anti-Semitism and violence in France, which has also affected the Jewish community of Marseille. The arson of the Or Aviv synagogue on April 1st, 2002, was a traumatic event that shocked both the Marsailles community, and the world beyond.