‘Once-in-a-generation chance’ to honour Jewish victims of Clifford’s Tower massacre

Plans to transform the area around Clifford’s Tower in York have been hailed as a rare opportunity to properly commemorate the city’s 1190 massacre of Jews – one of the darkest chapters in British Jewish history.

York councillors this week approved a £10 million scheme to replace the 298-space Castle Car Park beside the historic tower with new parkland, walkways and a play area. The tower and its mound will remain untouched, but campaigners say the redevelopment should do more to reflect the site’s profound spiritual and emotional meaning for Jewish visitors.

Dr Louise Hampson, a researcher on York’s medieval Jewish community, told councillors the project represented a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” to recognise the area’s extraordinary significance.

“For those that can, climbing the stone steps into Clifford’s Tower is a powerful experience,” she said. “But for those who can’t, there needs to be a way of meeting those needs.”

A previous proposal for a circular commemorative walkway was dropped from the final design, though plans still include a new memorial space with seating and planting near the tower’s entrance. The city is also reviewing the wording on the existing plaque at the base of the mound.

Lilian Coulson, of the York Liberal Jewish Community, urged the council to ensure the redevelopment includes space for reflection and education. “People should be able to learn what happened here and see that York stands against intolerance,” she said.

English Heritage, which manages the site, describes the massacre as “one of the worst antisemitic atrocities of the Middle Ages”. Around 150 Jewish men, women and children died after being trapped by a mob inside the original wooden tower, many choosing suicide over forced baptism or murder. The current stone tower was built some 60 years later.

City of York Council’s finance and major projects lead, Katie Lomas, said the scheme aims to create “a greener, more versatile public space” while being sensitive to the site’s history. Thirty disabled parking spaces will remain under the revised plans.

The redevelopment forms part of the wider Castle Gateway project, linking Clifford’s Tower with the neighbouring York Castle Museum and Crown Court complex at the confluence of the Ouse and Foss rivers.