Popes and Jews, 1095-1291

170 Popes and Jews, 1095–1291

a damnable mixing may not spread further, under the excuse of a mistake of this kind,

we decree that such persons of either sex, in every christian province and at all times,

are to be distinguished in public from other people by the character of their dress—

seeing moreover that this was enjoined upon them by Moses himself, as we read.32

It also repeated Innocent III’s concern about Jews ridiculing Christianity in public:

They shall not appear in public at all on the days of lamentation and on passion

Sunday; because some of them on such days, as we have heard, do not blush to parade

in very ornate dress and are not afraid to mock Christians who are presenting a

memorial of the most sacred passion and are displaying signs of grief. What we most

strictly forbid, however, is that they dare in any way to break out in derision of the

redeemer. We order secular princes to restrain with condign punishment those who

do so presume, lest they dare to blaspheme in any way him who was crucified for us,

since we ought not to ignore insults against him who blotted out our wrongdoings.33

As usual with conciliar legislation, this decree laid down ‘universal rules’ for the

Church and left details to be decided at local level. Hence it specified no particular

type of clothing, nor made it clear of what the ‘distinguishing garb’ which Jews

must wear, should consist. That would come to vary in different countries—from

yellow badges, coloured clothing, round capes, or pointed hats—depending on the

wishes of the secular ruler or local government.34

nevertheless, whether it was an attachment to a vestment or an article of

clothing, the important point was that the ‘distinguishing garb’ must be clearly

visible.35 In France, Spain, and Italy it became a badge—a round of cloth known

as the rouelle which was sewn onto clothes, was normally worn by both sexes on

the chest, and varied in material (felt, linen, or silk) and colour, the most common

being saffron, which seems to have been favoured by both Gregory IX and

louis IX—perhaps because yellow crosses were also worn by heretics.36 In rome it

became a red coat; hence ‘The Jewish Badge’ was not necessarily an actual badge.37

northern European art of the period usually portrayed Jews wearing hats, whether

32 Tanner, Vol. 1, p.266: ‘In nonnullis provinciis a christianis Iudaeos seu Saracenos habitus distin-
guit diversitas, sed in quibusdam sic quaedam inolevit confusio, ut nulla differentia discernantur.
unde contingit interdum, quod per errorem christiani Iudaeorum seu Saracenorum et Iudaei seu
Saraceni christianorum mulieribus commisceantur. ne igitur tam damnatae commixtionis excessus
per velamentum erroris huiusmodi excusationis ulterius possint habere diffugium, statuimus ut tales
utriusque sexus in omni christianorum provincia et omni tempore, qualitate habitus publice ab aliis
populis distinguantur, cum etiam per Moysen hoc ipsum legatur eis iniunctum.’
33 Tanner, Vol. 1, p.266: ‘In diebus autem lamentationis et dominiciae passionis, in publicum
minime prodeant, eo quod nonnulli ex ipsis talibus diebus, sicut accepimus, ornatius non erubescunt
incedere ac christianis, qui sacratissimae passionis memoriam exhibentes lamentationis signa
praetendunt, illudere non formidant. Illud autem districtissime inhibemus, ne in contumeliam
redemptoris prosilire aliquatenus praesumant. Et quoniam illius dissimulare non debemus oppro-
brium, qui probra nostra delevit, praecipimus praesumptores huiusmodi per principles saeculares con-
dignae animadversionis adiectione compesci, ne crucifixum pro nobis praesumant aliquatenus
blasphemare.’
34 Simonsohn, The Apostolic See and the Jews. History, pp.135–8.
35 Mellinkoff, Outcasts, p.47.
36 Jeffrey richards, Sex, Dissidence and Damnation: Minority Groups in the Middle Ages (london,
1991), p.109; Mellinkoff, Outcasts, pp.45–66.
37 Simonsohn, The Apostolic See and the Jews. History, p.409.