Benjamin Disraeli: Jewish-born Prime Minister of England

Posted on by Henry Abramson
Benjamin Disraeli. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Benjamin Disraeli. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Baptized at age 12 as the result of his father’s dispute with a synagogue, Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881) rose to prominence as a novelist and politician, serving several times as England’s Prime Minister.  Colorful and flamboyant, Disraeli dismissed his antisemitic critics by emphasizing, rather than downplaying, his Jewish origins.

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Published by Henry Abramson

Henry Abramson serves as Dean of the mighty Avenue J campus of Touro College. A specialist in Jewish history and thought, he is the author of several works, most recently Torah from the Years of Wrath 1939-1943: The Historical Context of the Aish Kodesh. His online lectures in Jewish history are available at henryabramson.com.