Limerick Synagogue

City of Limerick

The city of Limerick (Irish: Luimneach), in southwest of Ireland, lies on the rive Shannon.  Although geographically part of County Limerick, the city of Limerick has a separate administration, and was officially referred to as a “County Borough” until 2001, when the term was formally replace by “City”.  Although the city officially has a population of about 50,000, there are well approximately 90,000 living in Limerick and its immediate suburbs.

Jewish Community

Jews began to settle in Limerick in about 1881, and for a period in the 1890's there were two rival congregations. Members of the Jewish Community initially lived in harmony with their neighbours. However, on 11 January 1904, Father Creagh, of the Redemptorist Order, delivered a violent sermon against the Jews, accusing them of ritual murder, of blaspheming Jesus, and of robbing the people of Limerick. The next day there was a riot in which the Jews were attacked by mobs, and this was followed by a general boycott. It would appear that the principal ground for complaint against the Jews related to the "weekly-instalment plan" by which they frequently sold their goods. The boycott caused serious suffering and hardship among the Jews of Limerick.

Congregation Data

Articles on the Limerick Community

Jewish Encyclopaedia article on Limerick by Joseph Jacobs and Isidore Harris, c-1906.

Other Limerick Information

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