SEARCHING FOR THE BLAME

POISONED WELLS AND OTHER CONSPIRACY THEORIES

“Here follows the confession of the Jews of Villeneuve made on September 15 in the year of our Lord 1348 in the castle of Chillon, where they were detained, who were accused of putting poison into wells, cisterns, and other places, as well as into food, in order to kill and destroy the entire Christian religion…”

- Interrogation of the Jews of Savoy, September to October 1348. Aberth, Source 37.

“Recently, however, it has come to our attention by public fame, or rather infamy, that some Christians out of rashness have mousy slain several of the Jews, without respect to age or sex, after falsely blaming the pestilence on poisonings by Jews, said to be in league with the devil, when in fact it is the result of an angry God striking at the Christian people for their sins, And it is the assertion of many that some of these Christian are chasing after their own profit and are blinded by greed in getting rid of Jews, because they owe great sums of money to them.”

- Pope Clement VI. Sicut Judeis (Mandate to Protect the Jews. October 1, 1348. Aberth, Source 38.

Persecution of the Jews of Strasbourg, 15th c. manuscript.