Antiquity shows us Jewish soldiers and sometimes even generals in the Roman legions. Medieval warfare has notable jewish soldiers mostly in Iberia and Southern Europe. But in Western and Central Europe, there are few examples of Jewish arms and armor. Are any known, say in the Holy Roman Empire?

by [deleted]

I think it’s no surprise given Jewish historical written tradition in Europe was mostly focused on religious study and artwork, that there aren’t any surviving martial histories. Also of course because in most of medieval Europe (and at many, various points in time) Jews were forbidden to maintain armor or weapons or to soldier professionally. But we know there were exceptions—Ott Jud (Ott the Jew) for instance was a famous martial instructor of the Holy Roman Empire and a court Jew. There are a seldom few examples of people like this.

Yet we also know Jews were often fighting, defending themselves and their ghettos from marauding pogroms or crusaders. I’m wondering if we have any record at all in western in Central Europe of Jewish soldiering in the Middle Ages. Could be anywhere from the Norman conquest until the Renaissance.

I know about the renaissance polish Jewish military history and of medieval Jewish history in what is now Spain and in the Middle East and Asia. So for simplicity sake, I’m asking specifically about western or Central Europe.