17. In 694 AD, the King of Visigothic Spain announced measures to confiscate Jewish property and seize their children
Perhaps out of fear of the repercussions from mistreating them so cruelly, the Jewish people have long been associated with conspiracy theories. In 694 AD, a period of tolerance for Jews in Visigothic Spain was ended by the antisemitic King Egica (c.610-c.703), who claimed that he had heard of a Jewish conspiracy to overthrow his kingdom involving Iberian Jews and their brethren in North Africa. Farcically, this plot involved a pact with their Islamic overlords, under whose control they actually suffered horribly at times. To defeat the conspiracy, Egica called the 17th Council of Toledo on November, 9, 694.
His complaints had widespread repercussions. Egica banned Judaism, confiscated Jewish property for himself, and enslaved all the Jews in Iberia. Egica also seized all Jewish children and forced them to be baptised. This was all a power-play, for Egica feared Muslim invasion and needed to ensure that he had full control over his subjects in preparation. He achieved this through ensuring unified religious observance (and the free money certainly didn’t hurt), but as has so often been the case in history, the Jewish people were the ones to suffer. 18 years later, Iberia fell to Moorish invaders anyway.
