Anti-Jewish Stereotypes in Sicily (15th-16th centuries)

The issuing of the Edict of Granada in 1492 by Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile constituted the moment of rupture of the traditional royal policy of protection of the Jews, linked to the legal status of servi regiae camerae. The members of the Jewish communities in the kingdoms ruled by the Iberian sovereigns, including Sicily, were required to leave their land unless they agreed to convert to Christianity. Recent historiography has noted the strong weight of the institution (1478) and action of the Spanish Inquisition in the decision of the Catholic kings. The birth of the new tribunal of faith strongly reinforced the spread of negative stereotypes concerning Jews. Disparaging models already conveyed by the preaching of the mendicant orders and the conflict inherent in Iberian society between cristianos vejos and converted Jews (called cristianos nuevos, conversos or marranos) exacerbated the living conditions of the Jewish minority. Through the analysis of chronological and documentary sources, the paper aims to investigate the penetration, circulation and reinforcement of these ideas in Sicily, where the Inquisition would not be instituted until 1500 and anti-Jewish sentiments were less relevant.