The Jewish presence in Toulon dates back to at least the 13th century, but little written material from the period has been found on the subject. A general assembly of citizens took place in 1285, which included the names of eleven Jews.
As the Jewish population was small at the time, the city’s few Jews were not encouraged to live in a neighborhood and mostly lived in the central part of old Toulon. Near the current rue des Tombades. They also enjoyed many rights.
Following the massacre of forty Jews on the night of April 13-14, 1348, the presence of Jews was almost non-existent until the French Revolution. A few Jews were encouraged to convert, and a handful of others lived there temporarily.
So it was not until the 19th century that a small Jewish community was formed again in Toulon. Before the Shoah, around fifty families lived there, mainly from Alsace. Thanks to the arrival of Jews from North Africa in the 1960s, the community numbered 2,000 in 1971. A number that increased to 2,000 families by the turn of the 21st century.
The city of Toulon has two synagogues. The Centre Communautaire Israélite of Toulon, and the ACIT Synagogue.