"It is an unusual thing that the Jewish race has spread throughout the entire world, always having the same customs and keeping the same type of features. Before the Revolution of 1789, the Jews of the County of Venaissin [Enclave of Papal territory near Avignon, France] led a sad existence. The Christians of that area did not believe that a child of Israel was a human being like themselves. The Jews were restricted to a certain section of the town and could leave it only during designated hours. If by mischance they found themselves on the street while a religious procession was passing (which happened frequently) they had to flee at once to escape the stones which were thrown at them from all sides. "They were always required to wear a yellow hat; Jewesses wore a scarf of the same color across their breast. Woe to those who left their district without those distinctive badges. All Jews were required to bow to any Christian vagabond, who would tell them, 'Make an offering.' The Jew had to obey and give him five sous. God alone knows many twenty-five centime coins a rich Jew might have to pay every time he left his house." Elzéar Blaze, Military Life Under Napoleon, [trans. by John R Elting] More Napoleon and the Jews Napoleon and the Jews Was Napoleon Enlightened in a Bigoted Era? Dates of Importance Grand Sanhedrin Christian Practices Back to Table of Contents -- Napoleon #12 Back to Napoleon List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1998 by Emperor's Press. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. The full text and graphics from other military history magazines and gaming magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com