A memorial stone commemorating the 250 British Jews who went to fight fascism in the Spanish Civil War has been installed at one of the UK’s most historic Jewish cemeteries.
Around 10,000 Jews from 50 countries joined the fight against the Spanish nationalists as fascism began to envelop Europe 90 years ago.
Jews from around the world made up a remarkable quarter of the 40,000-strong foreign fighting force.
The UK sent a battalion of 2,200; the 250 Jews accounted for over ten per cent.
This was at a time when Jewish people only accounted for 0.5 per cent of the UK population.
Jews in the UK were not unfamiliar with the scourge of fascism. At that time London saw the rise of Oswald Mosley and his blackshirts, leading to the Battle of Cable Street on October 4, 1936.
The stone was installed at Lauriston Road Jewish Cemetery, founded in 1788 on the border between Hackney and Tower Hamlets.
Over half of the Jewish people who went to fight were from East London, a fact that informed the location of the memorial stone.
The plaque includes a quote from Joshua 1:9: “Be strong and of good courage,” along with an inscription of its Hebrew translation.
The installation project was organised by AJEX Archivist Martin Sugarman from Hackney, and received funding from the president and founder of the Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation Jerry Klinger.
Lauriston Road was first post-settlement, rural Jewish burial ground for London.
Neither Hackney nor Tower Hamlets are now considered to be rural, but in 1788, the only two existing Jewish cemeteries in the city were in the already-urban Mile End.
To get more news, click here to sign up for our free daily newsletter.