The First Ghetto: Venice and the Origins of Modern Antisemitism - Hardcover

by Alexander Lee (Author)

From an acclaimed historian, the definitive story of the Venetian Ghetto and the emergence of modern antisemitism.

"More than a history of a city, the book is a chronicle of a condition, an elegy for Jewish life lived in the paradox of family flourishing and civic exclusion .... A richly researched history of Italian Jewry and its will to live on." ―Kirkus Reviews

In the early sixteenth century, amidst the ruins of war and mounting religious hatred, the world's first Jewish "ghetto" was established in Venice. Constrained in cramped, often unsanitary conditions, the Jews who were forced to live there were extorted, abused, and subjected to countless humiliating restrictions. In the centuries that followed, the Venetian Ghetto would become the prototype for ghettos throughout Europe--and pave the way for modern antisemitism.

But this is also a tale of hope. Against the odds, the Ghetto's residents thrived, creating a vibrant literary, musical, and religious community. They became essential to the survival of Venice itself--and as more Jewish refugees arrived, the Ghetto became a microcosm of the Jewish world.

Tracing its story from its medieval origins to the present day, historian Alexander Lee explores the Ghetto through the eyes of its Jewish inhabitants, from the domestic troubles of a seventeenth-century rabbi to the agonizing wait of a family bound for Auschwitz.

Authoritative, detailed, and timely, this definitive history shows what happens when war and economics collide with hatred--and also offers a powerful warning for the future.

Author Biography

Alexander Lee is a prize-winning historian at the University of Warwick. He is the author of five acclaimed books, including Machiavelli: His Life and Times (a Financial Times Book of the Year). He writes a column for History Today and appears frequently on television, radio, and podcasts. Lee is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He lives in France.