This timeline will be updated as soon as possible to include more twentieth and twenty first century events:
1655 – Manasseh ben Israel, a rabbi from Holland, arrives to persuade Oliver Cromwell to re-admit Jews into England. Three months later Cromwell holds a conference and in 1656 makes a positive signal to the Jews by allowing a Spanish merchant to keep his ships and goods whilst England is still at war with Spain.
1753 Jew Bill – allows Jews to become naturalized by application to Parliament.
1844 – Rabbi Aaron Jacob and daughter Rebecca die in a fire in St Ebbe’s – reported in Jackson’s Oxford Journal 2nd March
1847 – Synagogue in Paradise Square
1851 census records 10 Jewish households in Oxford, predominantly jewellers.
1858 – Lionel de Rothschild becomes the first Jewish MP
1868-1901 Adolf Neubauer – catalogues the Hebrew collections in the Bodleian
1871 – Universities Tests Act
1883 – J.J. Sylvester, Mathematician – first Jewish Fellow (New College)
1891 – New synagogue building constructed on present site.
1905 – Oxford University Jewish Society (the Adler Society) founded
1906 – first University Zionist Society founded
1922 – Chaim Weizmann speaks at Oxford Town Hall
1931 – Einstein given a fellowship at Christ Church for a month every summer.
1938 – Cecil Roth made Reader in post-biblical Jewish studies
1939 – During the war – hostel for refugee boys at 1 Linton Rd.
1945 – Ernst Chain shares Nobel Prize for Medicine with Prof Florey and Fleming.
1951 – Arthur Goodhart became the first Jew to become Head of a college, Master of Univ., followed by Arnold (Lord) Goodman.
1953 – Hans Krebs (Trinity college) receives the the Nobel Prize in Physiology
1966 – Isaiah Berlin becomes first President of Wolfson College.
1970-71 Rabbi Prof Jonathan Sacks, previous Chief Rabbi, grad student at New College
1970 – May, Daniel Barenboim and Jacqueline Du Pre perform at the Town Hall
1971 – Last services in the old synagogue held on 4th December.
1972 – Foundation Stone laid for new Synagogue & Centre.
1974 – New Oxford Jewish Congregation building ( synagogue, rooms for Classes, Jewish Students Meal service and Kosher Kitchen, and community offices, consecrated on 28th April by Rev Malcolm Weisman, Jewish Chaplain to the University
1990 – college heads include Sir Zelman Cowan – Provost of Oriel; Lord Goodman Master of Univ; Ruth Deech – St Anne’s; Baruch Blumberg – Master of Balliol; Sir Claus Moser – Wadham; Isaiah Berlin – President of Wolfson
