cover image Moses Montefiore: Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero

Moses Montefiore: Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero

Abigail Green, . . Harvard/Belknap, $35 (540pp) ISBN 978-0-674-04880-5

A world-famous humanitarian, philanthropist, and campaigner for Jewish emancipation, Sir Moses Montefiore (1784–1885) was born into London’s Sephardic merchant elite and knighted by Queen Victoria. Aided by his brother-in-law Nathan Rothschild, Montefiore made a fortune on London’s stock exchange by age 40 and dedicated the rest of his active life to aiding Jewry around the world. He sailed to the Middle East to intercede for Damascus and Rhodes Jews accused of blood libel; to St. Petersburg to lobby Czar Nicholas I for Jewish emancipation; and to the Vatican to plead for the release of Edgardo Mortara, a Jewish Bolognese boy seized by the Catholic Church after a forced baptism. The private Montefiore painted by Green is not without warts. Though happy in his marriage, he may have fathered several illegitimate children, and the Orthodox Montefiore cut a brother off for joining a Reform synagogue. An Oxford history fellow and descendant of Montefiore’s nephew, Green offers a perceptive, solidly researched biography with expressive period illustrations attesting to Montefiore’s global celebrity. His image graced the cover of Harper’s Weekly for his 99th birthday. 46 b&w photos, 4 maps. (Mar.)