The Absent Jews

<p> For nearly a century it has been a commonplace of Central European history that there were no Jews in medieval Prussia-the result supposedly of the ruling Teutonic Order's attempts to create a purely Christian crusader's state. In this groundbreaking historical investigation however medievalist Cordelia Hess demonstrates the very weak foundations upon which that assumption rests. In exacting detail she traces this narrative to the work of a single minor Nazi-era historian revealing it to be ideologically compromised work that badly mishandles its evidence. By combining new medieval scholarship with a biographical and historiographical exploration grounded in the 20th century <em>The Absent Jews</em> spans remote eras while offering a fascinating account of the construction of historical knowledge.</p>