Expulsion of the Jews from all Italian cities was the order of the day in the reign of this pope. Thus the Jews were expelled (in the spring of 1597) from the Milan district, i.e., from the cities of Cremona, Pavia, Lodi, and others, to the number of about a thousand. They were forced to beg for shelter in Mantua, Modena, Reggio, Verona, and Padua. During their migrations, they were robbed by heartless Christians. The sword of the church hovered for a time also over the Jews in Ferrara, a town that had always been a safe refuge for them, and even for the new-Christians from Spain. The ducal race of De Este, whose representatives vied with the Medici in magnanimity and culture, had died out. The Jews of Ferrara felt themselves so identified with the fortunes of this princely house, that they offered public prayers in the synagogue on the occasion of the severe illness of the thoughtful Princess Leonore, whom two great poets have immortalized by placing her in the glorified heaven of poetry. She herself was a benefactress of Jews, and frequently protected them. But now the last representative of the race, Alfonso II, had died without heirs (1597), and, in opposition to his last wishes, Ferrara was incorporated into the Papal States by Clement VIII. The Jewish community, consisting chiefly of Marrano refugees, was prepared to endure banishment, as it could expect no mercy from this pope. They only asked Aldobrandini, the pope's relative, who had taken possession of Ferrara, to grant them a respite that they might make preparations for departure. As Aldobrandini saw that a great portion of the trade of the town was in the hands of Jews, he had sufficient consideration not to injure it, granted them permission to remain for five years, and had this decree carried out in spite of the fanatical wishes of Clement VIII, who had hoped to banish them. No fugitive new-Christian, however, could now stop in Ferrara without falling into the clutches of the bloody Inquisition. Thus the last refuge in Italy for this class of Jews was destroyed, and there was no longer any place of safety for them in all Christendom.
It seems providential that the Jewish race, which, at the end of the sixteenth century, had no longer a footing, properly speaking, in Europe or Asia, under Christianity or Islam, should have taken firm root in the empire of their obstinate foe, Philip II, of Spain, and should have been able from that vantage ground to gain a position of equality. Indeed, in the chain of causation it was the bloody Inquisition itself which helped gain them freedom. Holland, a land wrung from the sea, became for the hunted victims of a horrible, refined fanaticism, a resting-place where they could settle down, and develop their national characteristics. But what changes and vicissitudes they had to undergo before this almost undreamed of possibility could become reality! The northwest corner of Europe had hitherto been inhabited by only a few Jews. They suffered, as did their brethren, under the extravagances of excited fanaticism, were hunted down, and massacred at the time of the crusades and the Black Death, bearing all in silent obscurity and patience. When the country, under the name of the Netherlands, beneath the far-reaching scepter of Charles V, was united to Spain, the Spanish principle of hostility to Jews was transferred to it. The emperor issued command after command that the Jews in the cities of the Netherlands, small though their numbers were, should be expelled. Every citizen was required to make known to the royal officers the presence of Jews contrary to law. In consequence of the introduction of the Inquisition into Portugal, several Jewish families had betaken themselves, with all their wealth, industry, and skill, to the flourishing cities of the Netherlands, Brussels, Antwerp, and Ghent, in order to lead a religious life secure from danger. The severe edict of Charles V, and his repeated command not to allow their presence, extended to them. The magistrates duly fulfilled the commands of their ruler in this matter, because they feared that the presence of new-Christians would cause the Inquisition to be introduced—an evil which seemed to their anxious hearts to forebode great danger for themselves.
The people of the Netherlands could not escape the Inquisition. Although an appendage of Spain, were they not surrounded by Lutheran heretics, and did not these dwell in their very midst? So this institution was to be introduced among them also. This was one of the main causes of the revolt of the Netherlands, and of that long-continued war, so small in its beginnings, and so great in its results, that rendered powerless the might of Spain, and raised the tiny land of Holland to a power of almost the first rank. It seemed as if from every head that Alva struck off in the Netherlands, hundreds of others sprang, as from the Hydra of old. It was a matter of course that in this sanguinary struggle which transformed the whole land into an arena of battle, there was no place for Jews. Upon the advice of Arnheim and Zütphen, Alva had issued an edict that if Jews were found there, they were to be kept in custody until such time as he should pass judgment upon them. It was well known what this meant from his mouth.
The Portuguese Marranos, or new-Christians, who, even in the third generation, could not forget, and would not repudiate, their Jewish descent, turned their eyes towards the Netherlands, now wrestling for freedom, the more as the Inquisition was raging more furiously than ever, and dragging them to the dungeon or the stake. Since the first symptom of the decline of Spain's fortunes, since the collapse of the invincible Armada, by means of which Philip II had thought to carry the chains of actual and spiritual bondage not only to England, but, if possible, to the ends of the earth, there had arisen in the hearts of the pseudo-Christians, under the iron rule of this tyrant, an eager desire for freedom. As Italy was closed to them by the persecuting policy of the reactionary popes, their only hope of refuge was in the Netherlands.
An eminent Jew, Samuel Pallache, sent by the king of Morocco as consul to the Netherlands (about 1591), proposed to the magistrate of Middelburg, in the province of Zealand, to receive the Portuguese Marranos, and allow them religious freedom. In return, they would develop the city into a flourishing, commercial center by means of their wealth. The wise city fathers would willingly have agreed to this plan, but the war for religion and freedom, so passionately waged against the two-fold despotism of Spain, had made even the reformed preachers fanatical and intolerant. They were opposed to the admission of Jews into Zealand.
But the Portuguese new-Christians did not abandon the idea of seeking security in the provinces of the Netherlands already freed from the Spanish yoke. They felt themselves drawn towards this republic by mighty bonds; they shared its fierce hatred against Spain with its thirst for human sacrifices, and against its fanatical king, Philip II. The great Protector, William of Orange, the soul of the struggle for independence, had uttered the idea of mutual toleration and friendly intercourse between different religious parties, creeds, and sects. Although this first germ of genuine humanity at first fell to the ground, the Marranos clung to it as affording hope of release from their daily torments. A courageous Marrano woman, Mayor Rodrigues, appears to have formed the plan of seeking a refuge for her family in Holland. She, her husband, Gaspar Lopes Homem, her two sons and two daughters, and several other members of this rich and respected family, were devotedly attached to Judaism, and weary of the pretense of following Christian customs, a pretense, after all, powerless to protect them from the horrors of the Inquisition. When a ship sailed from Portugal with a load of fugitive Marranos, under the leadership of one Jacob Tirado, Mayor Rodrigues intrusted to this vessel her charming and beautiful daughter, Maria Nuñes, and also her son. The mother appears to have relied upon the magic of her daughter's charms; the extraordinary beauty of Maria Nuñes was to serve as an ægis to these wanderers, surrounded by dangers on all sides, and secure to them a place of refuge. As a matter of fact, her beauty was successful in averting the first danger that threatened the party of refugees, consisting of ten persons, men, women and children. They were captured by an English ship making raids upon vessels sailing under the Spanish-Portuguese flag, and were taken to England. Maria Nuñes so bewitched the captain, an English duke, that he offered her his hand, thinking that she belonged to the rank of the Portuguese grandees; but she refused this honorable offer, because she wished to live as a Jewess. The beauty of the fair Portuguese prisoner made so great a sensation in London, that the virgin queen, Elizabeth, was curious to make the acquaintance of this celebrated beauty, inaccessible even to the love of a duke. She invited her to an audience, and drove with her in an open carriage through the streets of the capital. Probably owing to the mediation of Maria Nuñes, the fugitive Jews were allowed to leave England unharmed, and set sail for Holland. After enduring a most stormy voyage, they were able to make for the harbor of Emden, where, as in the rest of East Friesland, some few German Jews lived.
As soon as the Marranos became aware, by Hebrew letters and other signs, of the presence of brethren in this city, Jacob Tirado, the most eminent among them repaired to Moses Uri Halevi, who had the reputation of being a learned man, and on whose house Hebrew characters had been noticed. He discovered to him his own and his companions' intention to give up pseudo-Christianity, and to be received fully and, if possible, immediately into Judaism. But Moses Uri had scruples about taking such a decisive course, the apparent conversion of Christians to Judaism, in a small town, where nothing could long remain hidden. He, therefore, advised the fugitives to betake themselves to Amsterdam, where greater toleration was enjoyed, and promised to come to them with his whole family, to remain with them, and instruct them in Jewish doctrines. Accordingly, the Marranos, led by Tirado, arrived at Amsterdam (April 22d, 1593), sought an abode which would allow of their remaining together, and were received back into Judaism as soon as Moses Uri and his family came to them.
Moses Uri and his son arranged a house of prayer for the Marranos, and officiated as conductors of the services. Great zeal was shown, not only by Jacob Tirado, but also by Samuel Pallache, the consul, and a Marrano poet, Jacob Israel Belmonte, come thither from Madeira, who depicted the tortures of the Inquisition in verse, giving his poem the appropriate title of "Job." The youthful community was strengthened in numbers and in standing by fresh arrivals. An English fleet, which, under the Earl of Essex, surprised the fortress of Cadiz, and inflicted serious injuries upon the Spaniards (in the summer of 1596), conveyed several Marranos to Holland, amongst them a man of great originality, not without importance for posterity. Alonso de Herrera was descended from Jewish and ancient Spanish families. His ancestor was the great Gonsalvo de Cordova, the conqueror of Naples for Spain. He himself was the Spanish resident in Cadiz, and on the capture of this city was taken prisoner by the English. On being liberated he went to Amsterdam, became a Jew, and adopted the name of Abraham de Herrera (wrongly called Irira).
The Marranos in Amsterdam did not find the practice of their religion altogether easy. When this first Portuguese community was secretly celebrating its fourth Fast of Atonement (October, 1596), their Christian neighbors were surprised at the secret meeting of disguised figures in one house; they suspected treacherous assemblies of Catholic conspirators, and denounced them to the magistrates. Whilst the Jews were engaged in prayer, armed men suddenly rushed into the house, and spread terror amongst the assembled worshipers. As most of them, mindful of the cruelties of the Inquisition, and fearing a similar fate in Amsterdam, tried to save themselves by flight, the suspicions of the Amsterdam officials were increased. The latter searched for crucifixes and wafers, and led Moses Uri and his son, the leaders of the service, to prison. However, Jacob Tirado, who was able to make himself understood in the Latin language, succeeded in convincing the authorities that the assembly was not one of papists, but of Jews who had fled from the Moloch of the Inquisition. Moreover, that they had brought much wealth with them, and finally that they would induce many co-religionists to come from Spain and Portugal with their riches, and thus give an impulse to the trade of Amsterdam. Tirado's speech made a great impression. The prisoners were released, and the terrified Portuguese Jews were able to conclude the service of the Fast of Atonement. Now that their religion was made known, they ventured upon the step of petitioning the magistrate to allow them to build a synagogue in which to hold their religious services. After much consideration the request was granted. Jacob Tirado bought a site, and in 1598 built the first Jewish temple in the north of Europe, called the "House of Jacob" (Beth Jacob). It was consecrated amid the enthusiasm of the little community.
The favorable news about the Marrano colonists, carried secretly to Spain and Portugal, afforded additional inducement to emigration. Mayor Rodrigues Homem, the first promoter of this course, also found an opportunity of escaping from Portugal and joining her beautiful daughter, Maria Nuñes (about 1598). She brought her younger son and daughter with her; her husband had probably died before this time. Simultaneously, barely escaping the Inquisition, another eminent family arrived from Portugal, that of Franco Mendes, including the parents and two sons, Francisco Mendes Medeïros, a cultured literary man, who took the Hebrew name of Isaac, and Christoval Mendes Franco, rich and benevolent, who called himself Mordecai. Both played important parts in the Amsterdam community, but subsequently caused a division.