Privilege given by henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor (1050-1106) to the Jews of Worms and the Town’s Citizens

The privilege exempts the citizens of Worms and the town’s Jews (who lacked citizen status), from paying customs in several cities in the kingdom, as a gesture of gratitude for their support of the king in his war to establish his reign. This exemption aided the financial and commercial activities of the town’s citizens and Jews. Later, in 1090, henry IV gave Worms’s Jews a privilege that put them directly under his patronage and by so, among other things, ensured their financial freedom and legislative autonomy.