Aljama judía - Cuenca, Castilla La Mancha, España - Signs of History on Waymarking.com

In this place below the Mangana Square are the remains of the Jewish Aljama.
Here they had their commercial center and even the synagogue.
ES: "Según los textos medievales, la aljama judía era la institución jurídica que agrupaba a los ciudadanos sefardíes en las grandes ciudades españolas de dicha época, llegando a constituir un organismo casi autónomo con repartición de funciones. Comunmente esta zona era conocida como judería.
En Cuenca, un recinto amurallado dentro del propio recinto murado de la ciudad, era sin duda el lugar ideal para la instalación de la aljama judía que ya mostraba gran pujanza dentro de la sociedad conquense del siglo XIII.
Evidentemente un barrio mayoritariamente compuesto por vecinos que profesaban la religión sefardi, necesitaba un edificio religioso donde celebrar sus actos litúrgicos, de ahí que se construyese la sinagoga.
Como en el resto del reino hispano, los judíos conquenses fueron adquiriendo un destacado poder económico gracias a sus florecientes negocios, fundamentalmente financieros, a los que la nobleza castellana acudía habitualmente. Por ello encubiertos con la excusa de la religión, en la mayoría de la Península Ibérica a finales del siglo XIV se producen unas revueltas cristianas contra la colonia judía.
Cuenca no permaneció ajena a este sangriento movimiento nacional y en 1391 se asaltó el barrio judío incendiando sus casas e incluso matando a alguno de sus habitantes. La mayor parte de los supervivientes no se dispersaron sino que, transformados en nuevos conversos cristianos, siguieron viviendo en su barrio del Alcázar. Todavía en pleno siglo XVI era popular un dicho en Cuenca: "Los del alcázar, todos judíos."

EN: "According to medieval texts, the Jewish aljama was the legal institution that grouped the Sephardic citizens in the great Spanish cities of that time, arriving to constitute an almost autonomous organism with distribution of functions. Usually this area was known as Jewish quarter.
In Cuenca, a walled enclosure within the walled enclosure of the city, was undoubtedly the ideal place for the installation of the Jewish aljama that already showed a great strength within the society of Cuenca during the thirteenth century.
Obviously a neighborhood mostly composed of neighbors who professed the Sephardic religion, needed a religious building to celebrate their liturgical acts, hence the synagogue was built.
As in the rest of the Spanish kingdom, the Jewish persons living in
Cuenca were acquiring a remarkable economic power thanks to their fourishing businesses, mainly financial business, to which the Castilian nobility usually attended. Therefore covered with the extuse of religion, in most of the Iberian Peninsula in the late fourteenth century, Christian revolts against the Jewish colony happened. Cuenca did not remain outside this bloody national movement and in 1391 the Jewish quarter was assaulted, burning their houses and even killing some of its inhabitants. Most of the survivors were not dispersed but, transformed into new Christian converts, they continued living in their district of the Alcázar. Still in the sixteenth century a saying was popular in Cuenca: "Those of the alcázar, all Jews:"

Group that erected the marker: Consorcio de Ciudad de Cuenca Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary: Plaza Mangana Cuenca, Castilla la Mancha España URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: Not listed

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