JEWISH Tudela

Jewish Quarter

The Jewish community inhabited the houses of the narrow streets in and around the Plaza de la Judería. The names of these streets are Calle San Julián, Calle Verjas, Calle La Vida, Calle Benjamin de Tudela, Calle Cortes and Calle La Parra, all streets linked together in the same small neighbourhood. It is believed that the cloister of the nearby Tudela Cathedral occupies the site of the community's main synagogue. During Christian rule, however, a new Jewish Quarter began to emerge on Calle San Pedro, Calle Miguel and Plaza San Salvador where you can find a monument to the twinning of Tudela with the Israeli city of Tiberias. This New Jewish Quarter, nevertheless, did not replace the old one which continued to exist at the same time as its more recent counterpart. In 1498, the Jews of Navarre were forced to convert to Christianity or leave Spain. It is believed that the majority became Christians while the rest fled, either way bringing an end to Jewish life in Tudela. Navarre's Jews, however, faced this persecution later than the rest of Spain, making the Jewish Communities of Navarre the last ones to exist. The Jewish quarter is divided into the old, ‘Vetula’, and linked to the new quarter by two parallel streets. Vetula’s top attraction is the Old Synagogue, and the ‘Manta’ – roll – of Tudela, a list of conversos (forced converts) from the 17th century. The new quarter is just a stroll away, the place where the Jews took in other Spanish-Jewish refugees and clustered together during their last 6 years in the country.