(Edward Morgan) The Judengasse, the Jewish ghetto of Frankfurt am Main, Holy Roman Empire, was one of the earliest ghettos in Germany. It existed from 1462 until 1811 and was home to Germany’s largest Jewish community in early modern times. Initially, some 15 families with about 110 members lived in Frankfurt’s Judengasse when they were forcibly removed from the city and relocated to the ghetto by decree of Frederick III in 1462. Frederick III Holy Roman Emperor (1415 – 1493), a member of the Order of the Dragon also a member of the Order of the Garter, and married Eleanor de Aviz, Princess of Portugal, the daughter of Eleanor of Aragon, whose brother, Alfonso V King of Aragon and Naples, was a member of the Order of the Dragon. The central role of Frankfurt’s Jews in Jewish spiritual life is best illustrated in the Rabbinical Conference held in Frankfurt in 1603. Many of the most important Jewish communities in Germany, including Mainz, Fulda, Cologne and Koblenz, sent representatives to Frankfurt for this conference.