Benjamin Disraeli and the Jewish Community
I’m curious to know about the relationship between Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and the Jewish community in the United Kingdom, and in the wider Empire. I know he converted as a child to Anglicanism, and whilst I’ve not read anything to suggest he was an especially fervent Christian, I’ve not read anything to suggest he covertly practiced Judaism. I do know that he would play up his ‘exotic’ ancestry for characteristic showboating, but not much beyond that. So, how did British Jews perceive him? Especially the large families like the Rothschilds, did he actively keep a distant for fear of encouraging anti-semitism against his own person? Was he seen as an ally or a traitor? Was he even regarded as remotely Jewish by practicing Jews at all? I think it’s fascinating that Britain had a Prime Minister born to a Jewish family in the late 19th century, but this aspect of his identity is not discussed in great detail.
Posted May 6, 2022, 6:58 PM UTC