d and dyde therein."

Although there was a good deal of prejudice against the Jews, there is
reason to think that the idea of anything approaching general
ill-treatment of the race is erroneous. The Jews were useful to the
King, and therefore, in all cases before the expulsion, excepting during
the reign of King John, they enjoyed royal patronage and favour.

The evil of clipping or "sweating" the coin of the realm grew to such an
extent during the latter half of the thirteenth century that strong
measures had to be taken for its suppression. In November, 1278, the
King gave orders for the immediate arrest of all suspected Jews and
their Christian accomplices. They were brought to trial, and the result
was that nearly three hundred Jews were found guilty and condemned to be
hanged. This was during the mayoralty of Gregory de Rokesle (probably
Ruxley, Kent), the chief assay master of King's mints, a great wool
merchant, and the richest goldsmith of his time. This Mayor passed a
series of ordinances against the Jews, including one to the effect that
the King's peace should be kept between Christians and Jews, another
forbidding butchers who were not freemen of the city buying meat from
Jews to resell to Christians, or to buy meat slaughtered for the Jews
and by them rejected. Still another ordinance provided that "No one
shall hire houses from Jews, nor demise the same to them for them to
live in outside the limits of the Jewry."

By the time of Edward I. the need for the financial aid of the Jews was
no longer felt, and from that moment their fate in England was fixed.
The canon law against usury was extended so as to include the Jews. They
were henceforth forbidden to lend money on interest, and, as has been
explained, owing to their religion they could not hold lands nor take up
any trade. The expulsion followed as a matter of course in a few years.

In order to rearrange the national finances, Italians who had no
religious difficulties were substituted for the Jews. Certain Jews, it
is known, from time to time returned to London disguised as Italians,
but it was not until the time of the Commonwealth, when Cromwell took a
more tolerant view of the outcast Jews, and when the State recognised
the legality of difference of creed, that the return of the Jews became
possible. This event is fixed with some precision by the lease of the
Spanish and Portuguese burial-ground at Stepney, which bears the date of
February, 165