Early modern Malta served as a place of transition for those passing between western Christendom, Islamic North Africa and the Near East. But it was above all a Catholic frontier society – a status that the crusading Knights of Malta were eager to maintain. The presence of a Roman Inquisition tribunal ensured that Catholic residents of Malta and Gozo remained faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church; a modicum that was applied to every baptised individual.

The Inquisition was concerned with the Jews particularly because Judaism was perceived as a distorted reflection of the one true Christian religion. As a result, Jews were looked askance upon not so much for what they believed in, but for their rejection of Christ and their denial of Catholic doctrine. These were the defining characteristics of Judaism.

The Jews that passed through Malta between the sixteenth and eighteenth century were few in number. They were in the main forcibly brought to Malta and reduced to slavery. Some managed to be ransomed. Of those that were not ransomed, some chose to convert to Christianity in the hope that life would be more tolerable for them. However, it was exceedingly difficult for neophytes to conceal their true convictions, and this often led to their denouncement in front of the Inquisition tribunal.

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Based on newly discovered Ottoman and Jewish sources it argues that the acquittal of Rhodian Jews is adequately understood only in the context of the Tanzimat and the Sublime Porte’s foreign relations. Contrary to the common view that Ottoman Jews did not experience the impact of the Tanzimat reforms until the mid-1850s, this study shows that their effects were felt as early as 1840. Furthermore, this book offers a window onto life and intercommunal relations in the Eastern Mediterranean during the late Ottoman era.

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