Publications
Foreigners, Aliens, Citizens
This book about the history of Medway and its Jewish community from 1066 - 1939, written by synagogue committee member and local historian Irina Fridman, has now been published.
The book provides a comprehensive history of one of the largest provincial Jewish communities of Victorian Britain and fills in a gap in both Jewish and local historiography. Starting with the puzzle of the first Jewish community of Rochester in the 12th and 13th centuries, it then proceeds to the aftermath of the Jewish expulsion from the country and the return of the Jewish community to England in the 17th century. This pioneering study concentrates on closely examining the inception and the development of the Jewish community within the religious, social and political landscapes of the Medway towns of Rochester and Chatham throughout the centuries, until the 1930s, just before the Second World War. The book is available on Amazon .
150th Anniversary 2015
2015 was the 150th anniversary of the laying of the Synagogue's foundation stone. Our celebrations included a Collection of Cultures and a Civic Service. Both anniversary events are featured in our blog - see below.
​
A booklet about the history of the synagogue and the community was issued to commemorate this important anniversary, as shown in the image opposite.
Click the button to order the commemorative booklet via this web site.