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A study of the Jewish community in Paris between 1787-1880. Compares the emancipation of the Jews there to the situation in Berlin, Vienna, and London. Emphasizes that for the Jews of Paris, especially after their exemption from the strictures of Napoleon's "infamous" decree in 1808, one month after its promulgation, this was a time of peace and happiness, almost free of antisemitism. The city's Jewish population consequently grew from 500 in 1789 to 40,000 (half of the country's Jews) in 1880. Pp. 161-171 deal with Napoleon's anti-Jewish measures, including the "infamous" decree. Ch. 19 (pp. 263-273) describes the Damascus Affair of 1840 and how it affected Jewish national identity and Paris's standing as a defender of oppressed Jews. Ch. 34 (pp. 449-459) discusses the revival of antisemitism in France after 1880. Concludes that between 1789-1880 French Jews and their institutions, except for the press, ignored the existence of antisemitism and, towards the end of the period, failed to recognize the danger of new, growing forms of the centuries-old hatred.