Aron de Almanza
Aron de Almanza, also known as Antonio Solomon de Almanza, Antonio de Almanza or Anthony d'Almanza.[1] (born c. 1670, in Salamanca – year of death unknown, in England) was a Spanish-Jewish Sephardic merchant and traveler.
Life
He was born in Salamanca and was the son of Spanish Marranos. He was one of the most important Jewish merchants in England in the 17th century; he traveled and established businesses in several European countries such as Portugal, France, Belgium, Netherlands and England. He moved to London and in 1696 he married Leonore de los Rios, who was also of Spanish Marrano origin. They were one of the most significant Jewish families in England; however, the marriage of Almanza with Leonore lasted a short time, because she fell ill and died. After the death of his first wife, Almanza married for the second time to a Christian woman. As he was a Jew committed to his Jewish beliefs, he tried to persuade her to convert to Judaism, but she resisted his attempts. Almanza began to associate with Christians and later became a Protestant[2], he withdrew from the Synagogue and abandoned his ancient Jewish beliefs. He, his sons and nephew were baptized[3] by Bishop Henry Compton on March 5, 1705. He wrote an account of his conversion to Christianity in English and Spanish. After his conversion, Almanza had some conflicts with the Jews. There were rumors that Almanza would have become a Catholic and other rumors said he returned to Judaism, but Almanza himself denied these rumors. [4][5]
He had legal problems with the Davila brothers and published a book on this case. After that, nothing is known about his life.
Works
- 1703 - A Declaration of the Conversion of Mr. Aron de Almanza, a Spanish merchant From Judaism to the Protestant Religion (publ. London, 1703)
- 1704 - The case of Anthony d'Almanza, shewing the justice of his cause against David Davila and Samuel Davila, brothers and Jews. Gale ECCO, Print Editions (June 10, 2010)
References
- ↑ The Jews in the history of England, 1485-1850 p.204 Katz, David S., Clarendon Press, 1994
- ↑ The Journal of English and Germanic Philology Volume 44, p.408
- ↑ The National Union Catalog, pre-1956 imprints: a cumulative author list representing Library of Congress printed cards and titles reported by other American libraries, Volume 10, p.192
- ↑ The Hebrew Christian Witness: An Anglo-Judaeo-Christian Magazine p.46 Elliot Stock, Paternoster Row, 1872
- ↑ Lost in Translation, Found in Transliteration. Books, Censorship and the Evolution of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews' Congregation in London as a Linguistic Community 1663-1810 Kerner, Alex. p.148 (Brill: Leiden & Boston, 2018)
Sources
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Samuel Abraham Hirsch (1901–1906). "ALMANZA, ARON DE (or SELOMOH DE)". In Singer, Isidore; et al. The Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls.
External links
- http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C5280972
- Librorum impressorum qui in Museo britannico adservantur catalogus, Volume 1 p.5 British Museum. Dept. of Printed Books (1813)
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