From the Middle Ages to the French Revolution
A Jewish presence predating papal rule
Jewish presence in Provence is attested from the early Middle Ages, although it was then scattered and sometimes poorly documented. The major turning point came in 1274, when the Comtat Venaissin became a possession of the Holy See.
From that date, the Jews came under the direct authority of the pope. They benefited from a specific legal protection, inspired in particular by the papal doctrine derived from Sicut Judaeis. The Comtat then became a relative refuge for communities facing expulsions and restrictions in neighbouring territories.
Detailed chronology
- In 1274, the Comtat Venaissin officially became papal property following the Council of Lyon and the cession of the lands of the Marquisate of Provence to the Holy See. Carpentras gradually became the administrative capital of the Comtat. Avignon, however, did not yet belong to the popes; the city was then under the authority of the Counts of Provence and the House of Anjou.
- In 1309, Pope Clement V nevertheless established the papal court in Avignon. This marked the beginning of the so-called “Avignon Papacy” (1309–1377), during which seven popes resided in the city.
- Only in 1348 did Queen Joanna I of Naples, Countess of Provence, officially sell Avignon to Pope Clement VI. The city then became fully a papal territory, distinct from the Kingdom of France.
- Jews expelled from the Kingdom of France in 1306, and later from Provence at the end of the 15th century, were then able to find refuge in the papal states of Avignon and the Comtat Venaissin. Their presence, and the rules imposed on them, evolved with the territorial expansion and the papal presence in the Comtat and Avignon. The popes granted them relative protection while imposing major restrictions: specific taxes, distinctive signs, professional limitations and confinement in closed quarters known as “carrières” (from the Provençal carriero, meaning street).
- From the 16th and especially the 17th century onward, Jewish residence was gradually limited to four main towns in the Comtat: Carpentras, Cavaillon, L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue and Avignon. These communities became known as the “Arba Kehilot” (“Four Holy Communities”). Pernes-les-Fontaines, which had hosted an important Jewish community in the Middle Ages, gradually lost its resident Jewish population. The papal authorities encouraged Jewish families to gather only in the authorised towns, where the carrières — closed quarters reserved for Jews — were established. Despite these restrictions, the communities developed an especially dynamic religious, intellectual and economic life. Synagogues were rebuilt or embellished in the 17th and 18th centuries, while distinctive liturgical and cultural traditions were maintained, combining Provençal heritage, Italian influences and rites specific to the “Jews of the Pope”.
- In the 18th century, the Jews of the Comtat and Avignon still lived under an exceptional status: protected by the popes, but subject to many legal, fiscal and residential constraints. This situation ended with the French Revolution.
- After several petitions to the National Assembly, the Jews of Avignon and the Comtat Venaissin obtained French citizenship on 28 January 1791. A few months later, on 13 September 1791, all Jews in France were emancipated. The Revolution thus ended the special status of the “Jews of the Pope” and gradually led to the opening of the carrières and the dispersal of families beyond the former Jewish quarters.
General sources
- France Mémoire, “History and memory of the Jews of the Pope”
- Ministry of Culture – Jewish heritage in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur
- Henri Dubled, “The Jews of Carpentras from the 13th century”, Persée
- RCF, “Who were the Jews of the Pope?”
- René Moulinas, The Jews of the Pope
- Danièle Iancu-Agou, Jews and Neophytes in Provence
- Carol Iancu, The Jews in France: from emancipation to integration
- Parliamentary Archives of 1791, National Constituent Assembly