Rich and the Poor (HB @ PB Price): Jewish Philanthropy and Social Control in Nineteenth-Century London

This book shows how a centrally planned philanthropy developed within the London Jewish community in the 19th century, culminating in the establishment and development of the Jewish Board of Guardians. The process involved crucial power relations within the Jewish community and the wider British society. Jewish philanthropy was adapted by the Jewish elite and modified according to contemporary ideologies to become a base for social control of the poor. The cautious approach of the elite towards the poverty both of native Jews and of immigrants dates from the very beginning of the century, and indeed earlier times. The establishment of the Board is set in the context of debates over earlier proposals such as the schemes of Colquhoun and Van Oven, and faudel. Key areas covered in this work include health, employment, loans and housing - all in the context of the massive and burgioning metropolis that was 19th century London. A system of "checks and balances" developed wherby Jewish philanthropic institutions sought to discourage the immigration of the poor of Eastern Europe. But by the time mass immigration did occur the elite felt secure enough to seek the aid of an increasingly collectivist state. Although challenged by a vociferous immigrant working class, the elit successfully contained and limited class division within the Jewish community. This book includes recently released archival material from the Jewish Board of Guardians, and uses the recorded words of the elite themselves to illustrate the thinking of an enterprising and ingenious social class defending it position in a critical period.