# #184: Spanish Jewry II - 1460 - 1492: The Walls Close In

From **History For The Curious** by R Aubrey Hersh;Mena Reisner.

- **Published:** Tue, 27 Jan 2026 19:48:22 +0000
- **Duration:** 1:02:47
- **Audio:** https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/zx7gqbuvw45i3ras/HC077_-_Ep_184_-_Spain_Part_2_Assembled_mixdown6z238.mp3
- **Page:** https://rabbiaubreyhersh.podbean.com/e/184-spanish-jewry-ii-1460-1492-the-walls-close-in/
- **TorahApp:** https://torahapp.org/share/p/3P_history-curious?e=rabbiaubreyhersh.podbean.com%2F8f3b5d2d-3aac-3b61-bf17-3f686d4628c6

Post-1391 there was a period of uncertainty but many Conversos still found it possible to maintain a level of observance - sometimes even openly. It appeared that a Modus Vivendi could be achieved. But in 1477 the Church persuaded Ferdinand & Isabella to institute the Inquisition; aimed not at Jews but at the 'heretical' New Christians. 
 
The 1480s became a decade of hiding, yet scholarship was increased and Spain became a centre of Jewish printing until the axe fell for the remaining Jews in 1492, and 4 months of despair turned into a mass exodus.
 
Their decision to abandon everything and leave for the unknown - at great cost - was the largest display of faith in the past 1,000 years of Jewish history.
 

<p>Timestamps:</p>
<p>- [0:00] Topic setup: Spain Part 2 — continuation on conversos/Jewish life pre- and post-1480.  </p>
<p>- [0:44] Intro &amp; announcements: new website historyforthecurious.com and listener emails (Menorah/Vatican).  </p>
<p>- [6:07] Recap: 1391 massacres and Tortosa debates intensified pressure on Jews/conversos.  </p>
<p>- [12:15] Inquisition origins (1480): state-backed institution, torture, informers, auto-da-fé spectacles.  </p>
<p>- [20:07] Converso impact: shift from preserving family cohesion to living secret “cover stories.”  </p>
<p>- [24:28] La Guardia case (1491): blood libel, forced confessions, executions used to build case for expulsion.  </p>
<p>- [30:57] 1492: Fall of Granada and the Alhambra Decree — four months to leave, severe loss of property.  </p>
<p>- [52:18] Exodus hardships: banditry, ship abuses, disease, starvation; some returned/converted.  </p>
<p>- [56:07] Demographics: estimated ~150,000 left; major resettlement in Ottoman lands and North Africa.  </p>
<p>- [40:21 / 45:53] Culture &amp; print: strong late-medieval Spanish rabbinic scholarship and early Hebrew printing; many books later burned but printing continued in exile.  </p>
<p>- [1:00:17] Legacy: Sephardic communities revitalized elsewhere; theme — persecution paired with spiritual resilience.</p>