Edmond Adolphe de Rothschild
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Baron Edmond Adolphe Maurice Jules Jacques de Rothschild or Baron Edmond de Rothschild (30 September 1926 – 2 November 1997) was a French-Swiss banker, the founder of the
Edmond de Rothschild Group The Edmond de Rothschild Group is a financial institution specialized in private banking and asset management. Based in Geneva, the group is family-owned and independent, and encompasses the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations (philanthropic arm), ...
in 1953. His investments extended to vineyards, yacht racing, farming and hospitality. Scion of the
Rothschild banking family of France The Rothschild banking family of France (french: Famille banquière Rothschild) is a French banking dynasty founded in 1812 in Paris (at the time in the First French Empire) by James Mayer de Rothschild (1792–1868). James was sent there from ...
, he was the only son of
Maurice Maurice may refer to: People * Saint Maurice (died 287), Roman legionary and Christian martyr * Maurice (emperor) or Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus (539–602), Byzantine emperor *Maurice (bishop of London) (died 1107), Lord Chancellor and ...
and
Noémie de Rothschild Noémie (or Noemie) is a female name of French origin. Retrieved 21 June 2018 Uncommon variant spellings in French include Noémi and Noëmie (same pronunciation). It is the French variation of the biblical Hebrew name Naomi (), which means "good ...
. He married Nadine Lhopitalier in 1963 with whom he had one child,
Benjamin de Rothschild Benjamin de Rothschild (30 July 1963 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France – 15 January 2021 in Pregny-Chambésy, Switzerland) was a French banker, the owner of the Edmond de Rothschild Group from 1997 until his death in 2021. He was the son of Edmon ...
. He was reportedly the richest member of the
Rothschild family The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jewish family originally from Frankfurt that rose to prominence with Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744–1812), a court factor to the German Landgraves of Hesse-Kassel in the Free City of F ...
until his death in 1997.


Family

The only son of Baron
Maurice de Rothschild Maurice Edmond Karl de Rothschild (19 May 1881 – 4 September 1957) was a French art collector, vineyard owner, financier and politician. He was born into the Rothschild banking family of France. Early life Maurice de Rothschild was born on 19 ...
(1881-1957) and Baroness
Noémie de Rothschild Noémie (or Noemie) is a female name of French origin. Retrieved 21 June 2018 Uncommon variant spellings in French include Noémi and Noëmie (same pronunciation). It is the French variation of the biblical Hebrew name Naomi (), which means "good ...
(née Halphen; 1888-1968), Edmond Adolphe was born into the
Rothschild banking family of France The Rothschild banking family of France (french: Famille banquière Rothschild) is a French banking dynasty founded in 1812 in Paris (at the time in the First French Empire) by James Mayer de Rothschild (1792–1868). James was sent there from ...
. He was the grandson of
Edmond James de Rothschild Baron Abraham Edmond Benjamin James de Rothschild (Hebrew: הברון אברהם אדמונד בנימין ג'יימס רוטשילד - ''HaBaron Avraham Edmond Binyamin Ya'akov Rotshield''; 19 August 1845 – 2 November 1934) was a French memb ...
(1845-1934) and great-grandson of the French branch's founder
James Mayer de Rothschild James Mayer de Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild (born Jakob Mayer Rothschild; 15 May 1792 – 15 November 1868) was a German- French banker and the founder of the French branch of the Rothschild family. Early life James de Rothschild was born ...
(1792-1868). Edmond de Rothschild's family was forced to move from France to Switzerland in July 1940, after Maurice de Rothschild, Edmond's father, was declared a noncitizen. Maurice was part of the 80 members of France's Upper House to oppose the pro-Nazi
Vichy regime Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...
openly, voting against giving full powers to Maréchal
Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), commonly known as Philippe Pétain (, ) or Marshal Pétain (french: Maréchal Pétain), was a French general who attained the position of Marshal of France at the end of World ...
. Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s first marriage was with the
Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...
artist Veselinka Vladova Gueorguieva in 1958. They separated shortly afterwards and the union was dissolved. On June 26, 1963, the Baron married the French actress Nadine Nelly Jeannette Lhopitalier, also known by her stage name as Nadine Tallier, whom he had met in 1960. They had a son, Benjamin Edmond Maurice Adolphe Henri Isaac (1963-2021).


Biography


Banking

Edmond de Rothschild attended the
International School of Geneva The International School of Geneva (in French: ''Ecole Internationale de Genève''), also known as "Ecolint" or "The International School", is a private, non-profit international school based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1924 in the servic ...
. He studied at the
University of Geneva The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centu ...
and at the Faculty of Law in Paris. Shortly after finishing his studies, Edmond de Rothschild joined the
de Rothschild Frères The Rothschild banking family of France (french: Famille banquière Rothschild) is a French banking dynasty founded in 1812 in Paris (at the time in the First French Empire) by James Mayer de Rothschild (1792–1868). James was sent there from ...
bank where he worked for 3 years. In 1953, he founded his first company, La
Compagnie Financière Edmond de Rothschild The Edmond de Rothschild Group is a financial institution specialized in private banking and asset management. Based in Geneva, the group is family-owned and independent, and encompasses the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations (philanthropic arm) ...
, which became his main investment arm. In 1965, he launched Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild, and developed branches in
Lugano Lugano (, , ; lmo, label=Ticinese dialect, Ticinese, Lugan ) is a city and municipality in Switzerland, part of the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino. It is the largest city of both Ticino and the Italian-speaking southern Switzerland. Luga ...
(1968),
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
(1969),
Fribourg , neighboring_municipalities= Düdingen, Givisiez, Granges-Paccot, Marly, Pierrafortscha, Sankt Ursen, Tafers, Villars-sur-Glâne , twintowns = Rueil-Malmaison (France) , website = www.ville-fribourg.ch , Location of , Location of () () o ...
(1989) and
Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
(1992). In 1969, he established the first hedge
fund of funds A "fund of funds" (FOF) is an investment strategy of holding a portfolio of other investment funds rather than investing directly in stocks, bonds or other securities. This type of investing is often referred to as multi-manager investment. A f ...
. In 1961, after visiting a
Club Med Club Med SAS, commonly known as Club Med and previously known as Club Méditerranée SA, is a French travel and tourism operator headquartered in Paris, specializing in all-inclusive holidays. Founded in 1950, the company has been primarily o ...
vacation center in Israel, the Baron decided to settle the business debt of the company, back then on the brink of bankruptcy, and invest in its development. He owned 34% of
Club Med Club Med SAS, commonly known as Club Med and previously known as Club Méditerranée SA, is a French travel and tourism operator headquartered in Paris, specializing in all-inclusive holidays. Founded in 1950, the company has been primarily o ...
(around 10 million francs worth of shares) which was listed in the
Paris stock exchange Euronext Paris is France's securities market, formerly known as the Paris Bourse, which merged with the Amsterdam, Lisbon, and Brussels exchanges in September 2000 to form Euronext NV. As of 2022, the 795 companies listed had a combined market ...
in 1966. He acquired a major stake in the
Bank of California The Bank of California was opened in San Francisco, California, on July 4, 1864, by William Chapman Ralston and Darius Ogden Mills. It was the first commercial bank in the Western United States, the second-richest bank in the nation, and considered ...
in 1973, for $22 million, establishing it as a holding company for his investments in the United States. He kept his share of the company until 1984, year he sold it at three times its original value to
Mitsubishi Bank was a major Japanese bank that served as the main bank for the Mitsubishi conglomerate/''keiretsu''. It merged with The Bank of Tokyo in 1996 to form The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi (now MUFG Bank). The bank's operations date to 1880, when Mitsubi ...
. In 1976, he was approached by the French businessmen
Vincent Bolloré Vincent Bolloré (born 1 April 1952) is a French billionaire businessman. He is the chairman and CEO of the investment group Bolloré. As of September 2021, his net worth is estimated at US$9 billion. Early life Bolloré was born in Boulogne-B ...
to back him in rebooting his family business. Edmond de Rothschild joined in and left the
Bolloré Bolloré SE () is a French conglomerate headquartered in Puteaux, on the western outskirts of Paris, France. Founded in 1822, the company has interests in Vivendi, international freight forwarding, oil storage and pipelines in France, solid state ...
saga in 1981. In 1985, he bought 45% of the French flower retailer Monceau Fleurs. His group held this share until 2001. Edmond de Rothschild invested heavily in the Tel-Aviv-based Israel General Bank, contributing to the newly-created State of Israel. He later became president of this institution. After the
Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...
, the Baron contributed to the creation of the Israel Corporation Investment fund when, in 1968, he was invited alongside other wealthy individuals by Israeli Finance Minister
Pinchas Sapir Pinchas Sapir ( he, פנחס ספיר, born Pinchas Kozlowski 15 October 1906 – 12 August 1975) was an Israeli politician during the first three decades following the country's founding. He held two important ministerial posts, Minister of Fin ...
to the so-called Millionaire's Conference. Each guest was asked to invest $100,000 in the creation of the Corporation. He also promoted major projects in the country via the Clali Bank, another of his ventures in Israel, which he sold in 1996. The Baron was President of the Caesarea Development Corporation and of the Israel European Company Isrop (in Luxembourg). He contributed to the creation of the Supreme Court building in
Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. and was the founder of multiple cultural and educational institutions in Israel. In 1982, he acquired a 10% share of his cousin
David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
's new venture,
Rothschild & Co Rothschild & Co is a multinational investment bank and financial services company, and the flagship of the Rothschild banking group controlled by the French and British branches of the Rothschild family. The banking business of the firm covers th ...
. This investment lasted until 2018, after the cousin companies settled a legal dispute over the use of the Rothschild family name. Edmond de Rothschild was also a major shareholder of the Italian bank Banca Tiburtina, and minority shareholder of Banca Privata Solari & Blum in Lugano, Banque de Gestion Edmond de Rothschild in Luxembourg, and the Israel General Bank in Tel-Aviv, as well as investments in
De Beers Consolidated Mines De Beers Group is an international corporation that specializes in diamond mining, diamond exploitation, diamond retail, diamond trading and industrial diamond manufacturing sectors. The company is active in open-pit, large-scale alluvial and ...
. Edmond de Rothschild died of
emphysema Emphysema, or pulmonary emphysema, is a lower respiratory tract disease, characterised by air-filled spaces ( pneumatoses) in the lungs, that can vary in size and may be very large. The spaces are caused by the breakdown of the walls of the alve ...
on 2 November 1997 in Geneva at the age of 71. He was buried at the Château Clarke. His son
Benjamin Benjamin ( he, ''Bīnyāmīn''; "Son of (the) right") blue letter bible: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3225/kjv/wlc/0-1/ H3225 - yāmîn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv) was the last of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob's thir ...
succeeded him at the head of the Compagnie Financière Edmond de Rothschild.


Sailing

At the tail end of the 1960s, Baron Edmond de Rothschild revitalized the family tradition for yacht racing, shifting the focus from motorboats to monohull sailboats. He commissioned six new Gitanas (III to VIII) designed by prominent firms of naval architects. These newfangled ships were successful in competitions such as the RORC races, and the 1965
Fastnet Race The Fastnet Race is a biennial offshore yacht race organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club of the United Kingdom with the assistance of the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes and the City of Cherbourg in France. The race is named after the Fastnet ...
won by the Gitana IV. Being especially fond of larger racing ships, the Baron created the A Class or " Maxi" class, a racing category comprising yachts exceeding 21 m (70 ft) in length. In 2001, his son Benjamin founded the Gitana Team of racing yachts. In 2017, the Gitana Team introduced the 32x23-meter Maxi Edmond de Rothschild (Gitana 17), the offshore racing's first maxi-multihull designed to fly in the open ocean.


Wines, hospitality, nature

In 1973, Edmond de Rothschild bought Château Clarke, a 12th century estate in the
Médoc The Médoc (; oc, label= Gascon, Medòc ) is a region of France, well known as a wine growing region, located in the ''département'' of Gironde, on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, north of Bordeaux. Its name comes from ''(Pagus) Medull ...
region. From 1974 to 1978, he remodeled the abandoned domain and created around 133 acres of vineyards. He was an investor in Domaines Barons Rothschild, which owned
Château Lafite Rothschild Château Lafite Rothschild is a French wine estate of Bordeaux wine, Bordeaux wine, located in Pauillac in France, owned by members of the Rothschild family since the 19th century, and rated as a First Growth under the Bordeaux Wine Official ...
and Chateau Rieussec, and also developed the vineyards of Peyre-Lebade and Malmaison. He also held a major stake in Savour Club, a large mail-order wine business. Days before his death, the Baron published ' in which he recollected his knowledge and experiences in wine production and tasting. Two special accolades were posthumously named in his honor in 1998: the "Baron Edmond de Rothschild Prize for Young Sommeliers" awarded by the Parisian Sommeliers Association, and the "Edmond de Rothschild Prize" for best wine book of the year. Edmond de Rothschild inherited the
Domaine du Mont d'Arbois The Domaine du Mont d'Arbois is a historic luxury hotel in Mont d'Arbois near Megève, Haute-Savoie, France. Established as a private chalet by the Rothschild family in the 1920s, it became a hotel in 1979. History The Domaine du Mont d'Arbois w ...
. In 1960, he bought the Chalet Eve. Three years later, he expanded and renovated the Palace des Neiges and bought the Gervais Chalet. In 1964, he integrated a golf course designed by British golfer Sir Henry Cotton to the domain. In 1979, the chalet was rehabilitated as a hotel and renamed Chalet du Mont d'Arbois. Edmond de Rothschild owned a 4,000-acre land east of
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, acquired by his ancestors during the 18th century, where he established the farm Domaine des Trente Arpents which mainly produced the artisanal cheese
Brie de Meaux Brie de Meaux is a French brie cheese of the Brie region and a designated AOC product since 1980. Its name comes from the town of Meaux in the Brie region. As of 2003, 6,774 tonnes (-13.4% since 1998) were produced annually. Description Brie de ...
.


Philanthropy

Edmond Adolphe de Rothschild gave furniture, tapestries, and paintings to the
Château de Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
. His gifts of the 18th-century French decorative arts pieces to the
Israel Museum The Israel Museum ( he, מוזיאון ישראל, ''Muze'on Yisrael'') is an art and archaeological museum in Jerusalem. It was established in 1965 as Israel's largest and foremost cultural institution, and one of the world’s leading encyclopa ...
in Jerusalem now constitute the Rothschild Room at that institution. He bequeathed an important classical vase (''Le Don de la Vigne'') to the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire of Geneva through a donation carried out by his wife,
Nadine de Rothschild Nadine de Rothschild (née Nadine Nelly Jeannette Lhopitalier; born 18 April 1932) is a French author and former actress. She is the widow of banker Edmond Adolphe de Rothschild, a member of the Rothschild family. Biography Nadine Lhopitalier ...
, in 1998. In France, Edmond de Rothschild supported the children's welfare association ''Œuvre pour la protection des enfants juifs'' (OPEJ), originally founded to aid children of Jewish victims of the
Vichy Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais. It is a Spa town, spa and resort town and in World ...
-era deportations. He became its president in 1969, offering OPEJ the Château de Maubuisson north of Paris (Val d'Oise). Under his guidance, the OPEJ was opened to all children regardless of faith or family background in 1981. Nadine de Rothschild continued this work after her husband's death. The institution has been presided by members of his family ever since. Edmond de Rothschild's grandfather, Baron
Edmond James de Rothschild Baron Abraham Edmond Benjamin James de Rothschild (Hebrew: הברון אברהם אדמונד בנימין ג'יימס רוטשילד - ''HaBaron Avraham Edmond Binyamin Ya'akov Rotshield''; 19 August 1845 – 2 November 1934) was a French memb ...
, had set up the acquisition of lands in
Ottoman Palestine Ottoman Syria ( ar, سوريا العثمانية) refers to divisions of the Ottoman Empire within the region of Syria, usually defined as being east of the Mediterranean Sea, west of the Euphrates River, north of the Arabian Desert and south ...
for Jewish development in the 1800s. In the 1950s, Edmond de Rothschild donated the family's property to the new Israeli State. In 1953, he gave 7,500 acres of the town of
Caesarea Caesarea () ( he, קֵיסָרְיָה, ), ''Keysariya'' or ''Qesarya'', often simplified to Keisarya, and Qaysaria, is an affluent town in north-central Israel, which inherits its name and much of its territory from the ancient city of Caesare ...
to the newly created Caesarea Rothschild Foundation which was co-owned by the Israeli state. The Foundation was tasked with the redistribution of Caesarea's profits to education programs in Israel.


Distinctions

* 1990: Officier of the
Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...
* 1994: Officier of the
Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...


See also

*
Rothschild family The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jewish family originally from Frankfurt that rose to prominence with Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744–1812), a court factor to the German Landgraves of Hesse-Kassel in the Free City of F ...
*
Edmond de Rothschild Group The Edmond de Rothschild Group is a financial institution specialized in private banking and asset management. Based in Geneva, the group is family-owned and independent, and encompasses the Edmond de Rothschild Foundations (philanthropic arm), ...
*
Edmond de Rothschild Heritage The brand Edmond de Rothschild Heritage combines the non-banking lifestyle assets (wine, hotels, restaurants, farming) of the Edmond de Rothschild Group. The brand's origins date back to the creation in 1920 of the Société Française des Hôte ...
* Edmond de Rothschild Foundations


Further reading

* *


References


External links


Edmond de Rothschild Group
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rothschild, Edmond Adolphe French bankers French philanthropists French art collectors French people of German-Jewish descent Edmond Adolphe 1926 births 1997 deaths International School of Geneva alumni Deaths from emphysema