February 7 457 – 27 Shevat 4217
Leo I became emperor of the Byzantine Empire. A decree he issued regarding his Jewish subjects set the tone for most of his successors and medieval monarchs elsewhere: “Therefore We … do hereby annul all the old laws enacted with reference to the Hebrews, and We order that they shall not dare to live in any other manner than in accordance with the rules established by the pure and salutary Christian Faith. And if anyone of them should be proved to have neglected to observe the ceremonies of the Christian religion, and to have returned to his former practices, he shall pay the penalty prescribed by the law for apostates.”
The decree refers to Jews who converted in public but were found practicing “the faith of their fathers,” who faced a variety of punishments including loss of estates and possession, loss of the right to transfer property to their heirs and even execution.