France / Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

Auxerre

Clock tower. Photo by Pline – Wikipedia

The presence of Auxerre Jews in the capital of Yonne is attested by a letter from Rashi to the Talmudists in the region.

One of the Jewish quarters was near Porte Féchelle. The old rue du Puits des Juifs is now  rue du Pont.

A stone on a wall of the  Clock Tower contains a Hebrew inscription. Jews were expelled from the city several times between 1184 and 1393.

The Auxerre Jews will once again be part of the city with the wind of emancipation from the French Revolution.

However, there were only 70 Jews on the eve of World War II.