The first reactions towards Roma in Western Europe were positive. Roma presented themselves as pilgrims from “Little Egypt”, and were helped, were given food and even given travel money. Roma men were looking for money and food while their wives were working as fortune-tellers.

Around that period, some texts mention that a few Roma stole or had other petty criminal activities. The population soon understood that Roma were not really “pilgrims from Little Egypt”, that their Christian faith was at most superficial. Add to it that they spoke another language, had other traditions and that they were darker than the general population.

Suspicions soon arose regarding their travel documents. In fact, we know now that most of these were copies or even outright forgeries. As a result of all this, in a very short time, the population turned against Roma, tried to expel them or even murdered them.

Evictions and Interdictions

The Holy Roman Empire, issued a decree in 1497, branding Roma as Turkish spies. The Empire expelled Roma the following year and forbade them entry. New decrees in 1500 and in 1501 strengthened this interdiction, forcing many Roma to leave for Poland and for Lithuania.

Switzerland expelled Roma In 1471, and interdiction that lasted officially till 1972. This interdiction must have been pretty inefficient, since cities and cantons kept issuing decrees about Roma. For example, in 1516, the city of Bern issued a decree forbidding the Roma to cross the borders of that canton.

France expelled Roma, issuing laws in 1504 and in 1539 signed by the French King. In Spain, King Ferdinand and his wife Isabella decreed in 1499 that Roma had either to stop to travel through their lands, or had to leave the country within 60 days. Portugal passed similar laws in 1526, 1538 and 1557, ordering the Roma to leave the country.  The 1538 law specified that Roma born in the country should be sent to Portugal’s African colonies and the others expelled.

Holland issued similar decrees in 1544, 1548, 1553 and 1560. The Italian states started expelling Roma in 1524.

Further Migrations

Many Roma chose to move on.

The first Roma arrived in Scotland and England around 1505-1514 and had to pay the King’s administration taxes in order to be allowed to stay. England passed the first anti-Roma law in 1530. Roma had to leave the country within 15 days or face arrest.

The first source mentions the presence of Roma in Sweden in 1512, probably Roma from England. Swedes called them Tattare, a name which has perdured up till now. Roma from England are know to have been in Denmark in 1505. They were expelled from Sweden around 1540 and many of them left for Finland and Estonia, at that time under Swedish domination.

Central and Eastern Europe

The Roma in Eastern and Central Europe fared better than their Western brethren. There was a greater tolerance towards them and a greater need for their work.

In Hungary (at that time encompassing present day Slovakia and Transylvania), one finds records of Roma as early as the mid-XIIIth century, for example as working in King Bela’s army. In Bohemia, some of the mentions might even be earlier, with one possible citation in 1242.

Sources show that Roma in both countries were musicians and smiths. They were in fact weapon-makers. Mathias Corvin made Roma subjects of the crown in 1476, and forbade the nobility to employ them. They were skilled at weaponry, casting cannons and forging sabres, and contributed to the defence of several Hungarian cities against the Ottomans.

In Bohemia and in the Hungarian Kingdom, Roma settled down, with each village and town having local Roma. At that time, Roma were not living in segregated settlements, something that was though off by the Imperatrice Maria-Theresia.

In Lithuania, Roma were granted several privileges, among which, the right to chose their own leader. The Marcinkiewicz family, from the city of Mir in Bielorussia held that position up until the XVIII century. From Poland and Lithuania, Roma travelled up to Latvia. The first known writings about them date from the XVI century. From the Polish Lithuanian Union, they came de-facto to present Day Ukraine, and in Russia proper.

It is important to say that until the XXth century, negative stereotypes against Roma in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, Russia were not prevalent, and there were no repressive measures against them.

Institutionalised Repression

The XVI and first half of the XVII century were extremely bad for Roma in Western Europe and in the Austro Hungarian Empire. There was a brutal and often bloody repression against Roma. The English  “Act for Punishment of Vagabunds” stipulated in 1572 that any Rom older than 14 years had to be whipped and sentenced to hard labour. Roma were also branded with a burning iron. Roma children between 5 and 14 years could be taken by anyone to work in their household.

In various forms this anti-Roma laws stretched as far as into the XIX century: in 1822, the “Vagrancy Act” in effect condemned Roma to 6 month in prison.

France passed similar laws as early as 1666. Without judgement, Roma were to be sent to the galleys. The Roma fled and spread into the large forests in the Vosges and Lorraine. So difficult was their situation that the little food they could find was given to their children. Repression continued in France during the XVII century. Only in 1786, the king invited Roma representatives and was told that the only way for Roma to survive was to steal or beg money and food from the population. Roma life became a little easier after this meeting, although several people had the recurring idea to deport the Roma to French Guyana.

During that period, in Holland literal hunts for Roma took place. in Dutch a “Heidenjachten”. Roma were beaten and murdered like beasts when they fell into their hands. The Roma were not allowed to cross the country’s borders under penalty of whipping and being branded on the left shoulder with a soldering iron.

Strong anti-Roma laws and acts also were enforced in the Germans states.

In 1577, the city of Frankfurt forbade Roma to come into the city with horses and carts as well as to do any kind of work, even so as to be able to feed their families. This act said that all Roma were Turkish spies and that they had come to subvert the Christian Nations. In 1652, Georg I, the Ruler of Saxony, ordered the deportation of Roma from his territories. In 1710, Prince Adolf Friedrich of Mecklenburg-Strelitz followed suit and decreed that all Roma over 25 years had to be canned, branded on their shoulder with a burning iron and expelled in small groups. Should they return, they were to be hanged. Roma women younger than 25 were to do menial work for the population, young Roma were to be sentenced to forced labour and children under ten were to be given to “good Christians”.

During these two centuries, Roma were forced to live in Europe between “heaven and earth”, lived in the woods and had to find ways of subsidence. Needless to say, they also had to steal some of their food and even some money or to follow armies during the thirty years war. It is now known that some Roma followed Wallenstein’s troops and that other went with the Swedish armies.

Travellers

These persecutions are at the origin of the most enduring stereotype about Roma: The nomadic Rom. Reality is simpler: They were forbidden to settle anywhere. In German lands, a patchwork of small states, these states expelled them regularly. So Roma adapted themselves to this new reality and started to become truly travellers.

It is thus the Gadže repression which is at the source of Western Europe perception of Roma, and also created a way of life that is still very prevalent among Sinti and Manouches.

Assimilation

Towards the end of the XVIII century, a new approach of the Roma “problem” was decided upon by the European leaders. The Austrian Imperatrice Maria Theresia was the first one, between 1758 and 1773, to decide to stop the Roma travels in every possible way but not through murdering them. She passed a decree, forcing the Roma to live in but one place, to pay taxes and to work as farmhands. They were not allowed to have horses or carts and had to ask for special authorisation, should they want to leave their village. She later decided that Roma would not be allowed to be called Gypsies (Cigany in Hungarian or Zigeuner in German) but rather had to take the name of “new Hungarians” (ujmagyarok). Roma boys older than 16 were forced to serve in the army. She strengthened these laws by forbidding Roma to wear their traditional garments, to speak their own language – Romanes – and to work in their traditional trades. Roma were forbidden to marry among themselves and Roma children older than 5 had to be given to non Roma families, which were to raise them up. These laws were enforced in all Maria-Therezia’s possessions, in Hungary, Slovakia and the Burgenland.

Similar laws were inflicted upon Roma in Spain: They also had to change their name to New Castillians (Nuevos Castillanos).