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JCR-UK
is a genealogical and historical website covering all Jewish communities and
congregations throughout the British Isles and Gibraltar, both past and present.
NOTE: We are not the official website of this
community or any of its congregations.


Clifford's Tower, the scene of the 1190 York
Massacre Courtesy Steven Jaffe, 2024
City of York
York, a historic city in Northern England located at the confluence of the rivers Ouse
and Foss, has a tragic place in Jewish history, remembered for the massacre of the Jewish
community which occurred at Clifford's Tower in 1190.
The city's present boundaries date to 1996, when it
became a unitary authority, within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, and
it currently has a population of about 180,000. From 1974 to 1996, the somewhat
smaller city of York was a district within the county of North Yorkshire. It is
in the traditional county town of Yorkshire and was a county borough not forming
part of any of the three Ridings into which Yorkshire was divided until 1974.

The former synagogue in Aldwark Courtesy Steven Jaffe, 2024
York Jewish Community
There was an important Jewish community in York in the medieval period. In modern
times, there have been two organised Jewish congregations, the York Hebrew Congregation,
whose synagogue closed in 1975 and is now effectively defunct, and the
York Liberal Synagogue, formed in 2014.
Data on
First Congregation |
Name: |
York Hebrew Congregation |
Foundation, Address and Closure: |
Religious services were first held in 1892,(i)
being the first time a Jewish service had been held in the city since the expulsion of Jews in 1290.
The synagogue was opened in 1893 at Aldwark,
York,(ii)
in a building dating from the 1770s, on a site tucked away in a courtyard just behind
what was later the RAF.
The ground floor of the building was mostly used as workshops by joiners and the synagogue operated above the workshop.(iii)
Although regular services ceased some years ago, certain Jewish communal events (communal seder, chanukah party, Friday night suppers, etc.)
continued to take place until at least the late 1960s.In about 1975, the synagogue closed and the Jewish community ceased to
have a formal place of worship.(iv)
On 1 July 2025, a ceremony of deconsecration of the Aldwark synagogue took
place, marked by a service led by
Rabbi Alby Chait of Leeds, as the property had recently
been purchased by a developer intending to convert it into two flats.(iii)
|
Ritual: |
The congregation was Ashkenazi Orthodox, although, after
closure of the synagogue, it became non-denominational. |
Affiliation: |
Became affiliated to
Leeds United Hebrew
Congregation (UHC) solely for the purposes of burial rights. |
Ministers:
(To view a short profile of a minister
- hold the cursor over his name.) |
Rev. Moses Eker
- prior to 1894(v)
Rev. M. Isaacs
- from at least 1896 until about 1899(vi)
Rev. Leopold Wolf Klein
- from about 1899 until 1901(vii)
Rev. David Isaac Devons
- from 1902 until 1909(viii)
Rev. Alter Behrman
- from about 1910 until about 1911(ix)
|
Lay Officers:(xi) |
Presidents
1892-1903 - J. Rudolph(xii)
1903-1905 - B. Cohen
1905-1909 - M. Liggi
1909-1910 - P. Cramer
1910-1924 - S. Morris
1924-1953 - Charles Hart(xiii)
1954-1955 - B. Sugar
1955-1956 - S. Morris
Treasurers
1896-1903 - J. Rudolph
1903-1905 - B. Cohen
1905-1908 - M. Morris
1908-1910 - A. Rosen
1910-1911 - S. Morris
1911-1918 - A. Rosen
1918-1924 - Charles Hart
1924-1933 - Solly Morris
1933-1937 - A. Levy
1938-1939 - Montague J. Howitts(xiv)
1939-1945 - War Years (no data)
1945-1956 - I. Morris
Shochet & Teacher
1914-1918 - Rev. Goldwater
|
Vice Presidents
1905-1906 - B. Cohen
1906-1907 - M. Kramer
1907-1909 - M. Morris-Saul
1909-1910 - L. Skulski
1910-1911 - M. Liggi
Hon. Secretaries
1896-1899 - J. Cohen
1899-1903 - S. Cohen
1903-1904 - N. Rosenfeld
1904-1907 - W. Levine
1907-1909 - Rev. David Isaac Devons
1910-1911 - Rev. A. Behrman
1911-1918 - Montague J. Horwitz(xiv)
1918-1924 - S. Morris
1924-1928 - Charles Hart
1928-1930 - J. Cohen
1930-1933 - Montague J. Horwitts(xiv)
1933-1937 - Solly Morris
1937-1958 - M. Rosenfeld/Rossfield(xv)
1958-1970 - B. Sugar
1970-1974 - F. Vigon
|
Membership Data: |
Jewish Year Books (number of seatholders)
1895 |
1899 |
1903 |
1905 |
1908 |
1913 |
1918 |
14 |
23 |
31 |
19 |
22 |
15 |
14 |
National Reports and Surveys(xvi)
1977 - 6 male (or household) members and 10 female members (with a
note that the congregation was "temporarily disbanded)
1983 - 6 male (or household) members and 12 female members
1990 - 10 male (or household) members
2010 - listed as having under 50 members (by household) |
Cemetery Information: |
For details of the Leeds UHC Cemetery (including database), see
Cemetery Information on Leeds Jewish Community home page. |
Notes & Sources
(↵ returns to text above)
|
 Data on Second Congregation |
Name: |
York Liberal Synagogue |
Address: |
No permanent address, although monthly Sabbath morning services
are usually held at Friergate Quaker House.(xxi) |
Current Status: |
Active. |
Date Founded: |
May 2014.(xxii) |
Ritual: |
Liberal / Progressive |
Affiliation: |
A constituent community of
Liberal Judaism
since 28 April 2015. |
Website: |
http://jewsinyork.org.uk |
JSCN Link: |
Click on York Liberal Jewish Community
(a member community), on the Jewish Small Communities Network website. |
Rabbi: |
Rabbi Dr. Elisheva Salamo
- from August 2023 until present (July 2025)(xxiii) |
Membership Data |
National Reports and Surveys(xxiv)
2016 - listed as having under 50 members (by household) |
Charitable Status: |
The congregation is a registered charity (no. 1166145),
being a "charitable incorporated organisation" (CIO) registered on
21 March 2016.(xxv) |
Cemetery Information: |
The congregation now
has a designated burial section at Fulford Cemetery, Fordlands Road, Fulford, York YO19 4QG,
which was consecrated in December 2017.(xxvi) |
Notes & Sources
(↵ returns to text above)
|

Courtesy Steven Jaffe, 2024
Online Articles, Bibliography and Other Material relating to the York Jewish Community
on JCR-UK
on Third Party websites
Notable Jewish Connections with York
(courtesy Steven Jaffe)
|
|
-
Medieval Jewish Leaders
-
Aaron of York, 13th century financier and communal leader, reputed to be one of the wealthiest men in England, believed to be the son of Josce of York,
appointed Presbyter Judaeorum, or senior representative, of the Jews of England in 1237.
On 9 September 2024, a blue plaque (image opposite) was
unveiled on the facade of the "Next" building on Coney Street to mark the location of Aaron of York's house and York’s thirteenth century synagogue.
(See
Blue plaque celebrates 13thC York Synagogue on York City Trust website.)
-
Benedict of York, 12th century communal leader, a forced convert to Christianity following the lynching of the Jewish delegation to the Coronation of King Richard (1189). Benedict died from his injuries sustained in the attack.
-
Josce of York, 12th century financier and communal leader,
believed to be the father of Aaron of York, committed suicide at Clifford's Tower, York, along with many of the community in the pogrom of 1190.
-
Benjamin Leftwich (b. 1989 in Heworth, York), educated at Bootham school, York, is a singer-songwriter.
Son of Adrian Leftwich (1940-2013), South African anti-apartheid campaigner and academic
in the Politics department at York University.
-
Ben Rich, former Chief Executive of the Movement for Reform Judaism, chief of staff and Campaign Director for then Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron MP, is a co-founder of the York Liberal Jewish community.
-
Graduates of York University:
-
Dame Louise Ellman (b.1945), former Labour MP, for Liverpool Riverside (1997 to 2019).
-
Sir Lawrence Freedman (b. 1948), Professor of War Studies at King's College London.
-
Jay Foreman (b. 1984), a YouTuber, singer-songwriter and comedian
-
Sarah Gavron (b. 1970), film director
-
Maurice Glasman, later Baron Glasman (b.1961), academic: MA Political Philosophy
-
Jeremy Goldberg (b.1958), historian: MA History
-
Paul Goodman (b 1959), journalist and former Conservative MP for Wycombe (2001 to 2010),
converted to Roman Catholicism.
-
Linda Grant (b.1951), novelist and journalist; BA, English, 1975.
-
Susanna Gross (b. 1968 or 1969), literary editor of The Mail on Sunday.
-
Fabian Hamilton (b.1955), Labour MP for Leeds North East since 1997.
-
Anthony Horowitz OBE (b.1955), author and screenwriter (Foyle's War); BA English, 1977.
-
Oona King, later Baroness King of Bow (b. 1967), former Labour MP for Bethnal Green and Bow (1997 to 2005); BA Politics, 1990.
-
Clive Lawton OBE (b.1951), professor, founder of Limmud.
-
Leon Rubin, theatre director, theatre management
consultant, writer etc.
|
Community Records |
Registration District (BMD): |
|
York Jewish Cemetery and Heritage Information
There was no modern Jewish cemetery in York until December 2017, when a
Liberal Jewish section of the municipal cemetery was consecrated, see above.
The medieval burial ground -
Jewbury Medieval Jewish Cemetery, Foss Bank Car Park, Foss Bank, York, YO31 7PL,
is now a Scheduled Monument, listed on 7 April 2025 (number 1491399).
See Historic
England listing and description.
Close by
Clifford's Tower, Tower Street, York, YO1 9SA
is a Grade I Listed Building, listed on 14 June 1954 (latest amendment 14 March 1997) (number 1259325).
See Historic
England listing and description.
For further information on York's Jewish cemeteries, see
IAJGS Cemetery Project - York
|
York Jewish Population
|
1896 |
60 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1896/97) |
1904 |
92 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1904/05) |
1905 |
99 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1906/06) |
1907 |
117 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1907/08) |
1908 |
115 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1909) |
1909 |
100 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1910) |
1911 |
70 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1912) |
1918 |
60 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1919) |
1945 |
40 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1945/6) |
1951 |
30 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1952) |
1954 |
20 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1955) |
1958 |
35 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1959) |
1961 |
45 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1962) |
1980 |
14 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1981) |
1985 |
10 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1986) |
1990 |
25 |
(The Jewish Year Book 1991) |
2003 |
191 |
(The Jewish Year Book 2004) |
List of Liberal Judaism Congregations
Jewish Congregations in North Yorkshire
Jewish Communities of England home page
Page created: 18 April 2003
Data significantly expanded:
30 August 2018 Page most recently amended: 7 July 2025
Research and formatting by David Shulman
Explanation of Terms |
About JCR-UK |
JCR-UK home page
Contact JCR-UK Webmaster:
jcr-ukwebmaster@jgsgb.org.uk
(Note: This is to contact JCR-UK, not the above Congregation)

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