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York Castle (of which Clifford's Tower is a part) is a fortification in the city of York, England. The principal remains of the 13th century - 14th century castle are the keep and some of the curtain wall. From its start in 1068 through to the English Civil War, the castle had an eventful history.
In 1068, during the Norman Conquest of 1066-1069, William I had a basic wood motte and bailey castle built at York between the Rivers Ouse and Foss on the site of the present-day York Castle, and placed it under the command of William Malet. The local population soon harassed the castle and to aid in its defence and to strengthen his grip on the North of England, William had a second castle built in 1069 on what is now Baile Hill on the west bank of the Ouse. Later that year, a Danish Viking fleet sailed up the Humber and attacked the castles and the Normans occupying them with the assistance of Cospatrick and a number of locals. The Normans, as part of their attempt to defend themselves, set fire to the houses around the castles, with the unintended consequence that the castles too were destroyed.
Responding to widespread resistance, William ordered all the buildings to be pulled down and all the animals slaughtered in Yorkshire, Shropshire, Cheshire, Staffordshire, Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Derbyshire and County Durham. This Harrying of the North between 1069 and 1070 may have caused over 100,000 human deaths.
The Normans then rebuilt the castles, again in wood. By 1175, King Henry II was able to receive the homage of King William of Scotland in York Castle.
In 1190 the wooden tower of York Castle was the last refuge of the 150 Jewish residents in York. Richard de Malbis (Richard Malebisse) was a debtor of Aaron of Lincoln, an influential Jewish banker of the late 12th century. When a fire broke out in the city of York, de Malbis used the opportunity to incite a mob to attack the home of a recently deceased agent of Aaron of Lincoln named Benedict of York, killing his widow and children and burning the house. Josce of York (Joseph), the leader of the Jewish community of York, obtained the permission of the warden of York Castle to remove his wife and children and the rest of the Jews into the castle, where they probably took refuge in a tower that stood where Clifford's Tower now stands. The mob surrounded the castle and when the warden left the castle, the Jews, fearing the entry of the mob, would not readmit him. The warden appealed to the sheriff, who called out the county militia. The militia laid siege to the tower for several days till on 16 March 1190 the tower caught fire. Several Jews perished in the flames but the majority (including Josce of York and the learned rabbi Yom Tov of Joigny) took their own lives rather than give themselves up to the mob. Those who did surrender were killed, despite being promised their lives. At least 150 Jews died (although some authorities put the figure as high as 500). A plaque on the hill on which the tower stands reads:
" On the night of Friday 16 March 1190 some 150 Jews and Jewesses of York, having sought protection in the Royal Castle on this site from a mob incited by Richard Malebisse and others, chose to die at each other's hands rather than renounce their faith."
The walls of the stone tower still stand, but the roof and central pillar are gone.The king's Lord Chancellor dismissed the sheriff and constable for failing to prevent the massacre and imposed a heavy fine on York's citizens. However, the ringleaders had fled and could not be brought to justice.