This is a portrait of Sir David Salomons (1797–1873) who was the first Jewish sheriff of the City of London and the first Jewish lord mayor of London. Salomons was born in London and became a successful banker and the founder of the London and Westminster Bank. In the photograph, he is dressed in formal attire, sitting in a plush chair.
David Salomons made it his life’s mission to put an end to the religious restrictions, known as “religious disabilities,” imposed on the Jews of England that forbade them from participating in political and civil life. For the Jews of England in the mid-19th century, the idea of holding public office was not only outlandish, it was practically impossible. Due to the religious restrictions imposed on the Jewish community, known as religious disabilities, Jews were excluded from participation in the political, municipal and civil life of the country. For David Salomons, the emancipation of the Jews of England became his life’s mission. When Salomons was elected sheriff in 1835 but was unable to officially take the position because it required taking an oath of office which included the phrase, “I make this declaration upon the true faith of a Christian,” which he refused to say as a practicing Jew. At the last minute, the government passed a law allowing Salomons to take the position without the oath. Salomons was later elected alderman of the City of London, which also required the Christian oath; this time, however, the law was not changed and Salomons could not take his seat. In 1845, the Jewish Disabilities Removal Bill was passed which allowed Jews to take an alternate oath of office which stated:
"I, being a person professing the Jewish religion, having conscientious scruples against subscribing the declaration contained in an act…do solemnly, sincerely, and truly declare that I will not exercise any power or authority or influence which I may possess…to injure or weaken the Protestant Church as it is by law established in England."
In 1855, Salomons was elected and sworn in as lord mayor of London. He was also elected to parliament but was again denied the opportunity to take his position due to the Christian oath, which was still in place. The debate surrounding Salomons led the way for the law to be changed in 1858, allowing Lionel de Rothschild to become the first Jewish Member of Parliament. Salomons was again elected to parliament in 1859 and served until his death in 1873.
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The Jewish Community of Britain – The first mention of Jews in Britain is from 1070. In the eleventh and twelfth century Jews were legally under the protection of the monarchs in return for heavy taxes and loans and lived mainly in the financial centres of London, Oxford, Lincoln, Bristol, and Norwich. In the late twelfth century, the Jews suffered from anti-Semitic restrictions, blood libels, riots, and massacres. One of the worst anti-Semitic massacres of the Middle Ages took place in York where the entire Jewish community was burnt to death at Clifford’s Tower. In 1290 King Edward I expelled all the Jews of Britain and their homes and properties were confiscated. For many centuries, Jews did not officially live in the country, but many lived secretly until the rule of Oliver Cromwell, when they were readmitted due to the intervention of the Dutch rabbi and leader, Menashe Ben Israel. Many of these new Jewish arrivals were of Spanish and Portuguese origins. An attempt to legalise Jewish presence in Britain was made in 1753 with the Jewish Naturalisation Act, and in the nineteenth century Jews received equal rights. The community prospered and comprised academics, bankers, scientists, and merchants. Among these distinguished British Jews of the eighteenth and nineteenth century were Sir Moses Montefiore, Nathan Mayer von Rothschild, and Benjamin Disraeli. Due to the good conditions, the lack of violence towards Jews, and religious tolerance, in the nineteenth century Britain became a target for Jewish immigration from Eastern Europe. The new Jewish immigrants lived mainly in the large industrial cities, especially London, Manchester, and Leeds. The East End of London became a Jewish neighbourhood where Yiddish was commonly spoken. In the twentieth century many more Jews fleeing the Nazis arrived in Britain, including the famous kindertransport, the British rescue effort of thousands of children from Nazi-occupied Europe. The Jewish community of Britain numbers over 300,000 today. This is the fifth largest Jewish community in the world and the second in Europe.
