Sir Moses and Lady Judith
Sir Moses Montefiore was born in Leghorn,
Italy on 24 October 1784, the eldest son of Joseph Elias
Montefiore and Rachel Lumbroso de Mattos Mocatto. The
family name was derived from the small town of Montefiore,
Italy, the birthplace of Sir Moses' grandparents.
In 1812 he married Judith Barent Cohen and paid a
short visit to Ramsgate during their Kentish honeymoon.
In 1822 Sir Moses rented East Cliff Lodge for a
year, and in 1831 was finally able to purchase it and
offered the use of the grounds to the Duchess of Kent and
Princess Victoria. At this time he also bought a plot of
land on which to erect a Synagogue and the 31 July 1831 the
foundation stone was laid. The building was finished
in 1833. The Synagogue was very import to Sir Moses
and he not only worshipped there whenever he was in
Ramsgate but also made a point of praying there at the
beginning and end of his many foreign journeys. In
1983 a special service was held to mark the 150th
anniversary of the dedication of the Synagogue.
In 1827 the Montefiores made their first journey to
the Middle East. They sailed from Naples to Sicily
and Malta and then to Egypt and Jerusalem. In 1837
Moses was made Sheriff of London and Middlesex and
was knighted by the young Queen Victoria as an expression
of her gratitude for his help with finance. After
completing his year of office Sir Moses returned to Egypt
to seek concessions on the treatment of Jews.
In 1840 Sir Moses went to Damascus and
Constantinople to obtain redress for the cruel persecutions
in the Turkish Empire. In 1846 he visited Russia to
intercede on behalf of Jews in Poland and Lithuania.
Sir Moses and Lady Judith travelled to Jerusalem on
many occasions to bring relief to the poor and distressed,
and built hospitals, schools and agricultural colonies.
Lady Judith was associated with all Sir Moses' good
works and accompanied him on all his foreign tours,
especially refusing to be left behind if she believed him
to be in actual danger. She died on 24 September 1862
and a few months after her burial, a small Mausoleum (a
copy of the Tomb of Rachel near Bethlehem) was built over
her grave.
The foundation stone of the Lady Judith College was
laid on 24 June 1865 and was dedicated on the seventh
anniversary of Lady Judith's death. Special prayers
were to be used on the anniversary of Lady Judith's death
and four special holidays, connected with Sir Moses' work
for Jewish emancipation, were observed.
When Sir Moses died on 28 July 1885, he was buried
beside his wife. The day of the funeral was a day of
general mourning in Ramsgate and many thousands of people
stood in the grounds and fields to pay their last respects.
The Elders of Bevis Marks then assumed responsibility
for the College and in 1896, following internal disputes,
the Elders closed the college. It was re-opened as a
yeshibah (academy) on 2 November 1897. The College
was demolished in 1965.