British Jewish history within the framework of British history 1840 - 1995

This essay is a context statement in critical defence of my submission for the degree of Ph.D by Published Works in keeping with the requirements of MIddlesex University as laid down in the Guidance Notes dated April 1996. The underlying theme of the submission is that my published works serve to illustrate my belief that it is imperative to locate British Jewish history within the broader framework of British history. Thus, I have not limited my research and writing to one issue, event or section of British Jewish society, rather I have sought to develop a historiographical style which exemplifies the way in which individuals, groups and events, within and beyond the framework of Anglo-Jewry, interface and interact. Historical phenomena do not occur in a vacuum and it is imperative to understand what is taking place beyond the perimeters of ethinicity in order to fully comprehend both immigrant and receiving societies' actions and responses. In my most recent works I have taken this one stage further with the recognition that, in what is increasingly a multi-ethnic society, it is vital both to locate British Jewish history within that of the wider British immigrant/settler experience and to see it as a constituent of specific communities in order that comparisons and contrasts can be made and, where possible, lessons learnt.