Annotation: In 1144, the mutilated corpse of a young apprentice named William was found near the city walls of Norwich in East Anglia. Throughout the city – and soon beyond its borders – there were rumors that the murder was the work of Jews who aimed to desecrate the Christian faith. This event began the history of “blood libel”—accusing Jews of the ritual murder of Christians. In this book, American scholar E.M. Rose explores for the first time the origin of one of the darkest anti-Semitic myths that, over centuries, has come to flourish in popular imagination. The plot of the book unfolds at the intersection of “true crime” and microhistory, rigoruosly recreating the details of the murder of William of Norwich and descriptively reconstructing the socio-cultural context of the 12th century. As the author shows, blood libel was a means that helped royal authorities, the church and the feudal elite to solve many vexing political and economic problems. E.M. Rose is a historian whose expetise lies in medieval history. Rose has taught at a number of U.S. universities, including Johns Hopkins University, Princeton University, and Villanova University.