One thing I wonder, was the Spanish campaign against the Jews entirely unfounded? As it was carried out, the Spanish did do evil against the Jews.
But, were there a substantial number of Jews who preferred the Moorish rule? Was there reason to see Jews as collaborators with the Moors?
The campaign compares in some ways to the internment of the Japanese-Americans during WW2. We look back and say that it was unjustified - there were some who sided with Japan but nearly all were loyal Americans.
The American episode hadn’t the weight of centuries - decades of Japanese presence in this country, and a few years of Japanese aggression, and only a few months since Pearl Harbor.
>>We look back and say that it was unjustified -
I’m not sure that we do. Look back, that is. It is widely said today that it was evil/racist, but have those doing so really looked back? In a total war of that magnitude, given what was known about collaboration via our breaking of Japanese codes, was it really the wrong thing to do, overall?
Required reading on the subject. Lots of scans of source documents from the era:
Magic: The Untold Story of U.S. Intelligence and the Evacuation of Japanese Residents from the West Coast During WW II
http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Intelligence-Evacuation-Japanese-Residents/dp/0960273611
You can find Jews on either side of the conflict, as my tribe could not own land and thus were skilled craftsmen or (especially in Spain and Portugal) sailors, and thus used by whomever was the boss at the time.
Same story since Babylonian times (e.g., Daniel) or even with Pharoah (e.g., the famine) -— we’re useful in keeping the wheels of civilization from failing off.
In Spain, this was no different. For example, Chris Columbus was of Jewish origin (his mother), although it is unclear what his religion was -— probably Catholic.
And then, for the other side, go read “Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean” — a plurality of the nastiest raiders were Jewish.
And yes, Jewish people lent money to the Spanish crown to fight the muslims, so there is always this motive.