Scotland's first Jewish community

The origins of the organised Jewish community in Scotland can be traced back to the 18th Century

The first organised Jewish community in Scotland emerged in 1816 when twenty Jewish families formed a congregation in Edinburgh.

Jews were resident in Scotland up until that time but not in sufficient numbers to form an assembled group.

The first official records of those who formed the first synagogue date back to 1794 when 'aliens' were required to register with the authorities.

The community established a synagogue, school and land for burial.

Immigration Bill

In Edinburgh in 1794, three Jewish men, Herman Lyon, Lin Davies and Moses Daniel were the first to register with Edinburgh magistrates, as a requirement of the Immigration Bill, passed after the outbreak of Britain's war with France in 1793.

By the end of 1794, 20 Jewish men and women had registered with the authorities. After the war only five Jewish men remained in Edinburgh and these formed part of the group of twenty families that founded the Jewish congregation in Edinburgh.

It is thought the congregation moved to Scotland from Holland, Poland and Germany but details are sketchy.

Jewish custom

Abel Phillips, author of "A History of the Origins of the First Jewish Community in Scotland" speculates that any records kept by the Community were written in Yiddish, and were buried in a grave in accordance with Jewish custom when the Community moved from their first burial ground to a larger one in 1867.

Many of the members of the community worked in professions related to the tailoring industry. Three of the most prominent members of the early community were Herman Lyon, Philip Levy and Jacob Ashenheim.

Herman Lyon was a "dentist and corn-operator", and is best remembered for having petitioned for, and acquired, a burial plot for his family on Calton Hill.

Philip Levy was a furrier, and in 1860 was granted a Royal Letters Patent for his invention of the "Wrapper whereby the Feet as well as the Knees are constantly kept warm and comfortable."

Jacob Ashenheim was a jeweller and general merchant. His two sons, Lewis and Charles, both became medical doctors, Lewis being the first Scottish-born Jew to hold qualifications from a Scottish university when he graduated from St Andrews in 1839 and Charles being the first Scottish-born Jew to graduate as a doctor from Edinburgh University in 1853.

Support

There is evidence that Edinburgh welcomed and supported the Congregation, and that the feeling in the 19th Century was one of religious tolerance.

In 1834, when a public meeting was held to call for the abolition of all laws that discriminated against Jews, the event was given coverage by both The Courant and the Scotsman, the former publishing a sympathetic leading article in support of the Jews.

When, following the meeting, a petition was sent to London it was signed by the Lord Provost, all members of the town council and 29 clergymen, as well as many others.

However, despite the climate of tolerance, there is some evidence that indicates that the Jewish Community were still seen as outsiders.

Firmly established

On 3 July 1827 Alexander Phillips, a dealer in furs, was found dead, presumed murdered. Charles and Margaret McMahon were arrested and tried for murder and theft.

By the turn of the century, the Jewish community in Edinburgh was firmly established and numbered about 500.

Jewish communities were also flourishing throughout Scotland, having been established in 1823 in Glasgow, 1893 in Aberdeen, Dundee in 1894 and also in Greenock, Falkirk, Inverness and Ayr from the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.