The Rothschild banking family of Austria ( de-AT, Rothschild Bankiersfamilie) was founded by banker Salomon Mayer von Rothschild in 1820 in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in what was then the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central- Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

History

Rothschild family mausoleum, Vienna, 2017

Salomon Mayer had been sent to Austria from his home in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

by his father,

Mayer Amschel Rothschild Mayer Amschel Rothschild (23 February 1744 – 19 September 1812; also spelled ''Anschel'') was a German-Jewish banker and the founder of the Rothschild banking dynasty. Referred to as a "founding father of international finance", Rothschild ...

(1744-1812). Wanting his sons to succeed on their own and to expand the family business across

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, Mayer Amschel Rothschild had his eldest son remain in Frankfurt, while his four other sons were sent to different European cities with the mission of establishing a financial institution to invest in business and provide banking services.

Endogamy Endogamy is the practice of marrying within a specific social group, religious denomination, caste, or ethnic group, rejecting those from others as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relationships. Endogamy is common in many cultu ...

within the family was an essential part of the Rothschild strategy in order to ensure control of their wealth remained in family hands. Through their collaborative efforts, the Rothschilds rose to prominence in a variety of banking endeavours including

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...

government bond A government bond or sovereign bond is a form of bond issued by a government to support public spending. It generally includes a commitment to pay periodic interest, called coupon payments'','' and to repay the face value on the maturity dat ...

s and trading in

bullion Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes fro ...

. Their financing afforded investment opportunities and during the 19th century they became major stakeholders in large-scale

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the econom ...

and

rail transport Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prep ...

ventures that were fundamental to the rapidly expanding industrial economies of Europe. Salomon von Rothschild established S M von Rothschild a banking and investment entity that would be highly successful, playing an integral role in the development of the Austrian economy. In 1836, the bank invested in, and financed the building o the

Nordbahn Nordbahn (german: Northern Railway) may refer to: * Berlin Northern Railway (''Berliner Nordbahn''), a railway line in Germany * Friedrich-Wilhelms-Nordbahn, another railway line in Germany * Nordbahn Eisenbahngesellschaft, a railway company based ...

rail network, Austria's first steam railway. As well, it financed various government undertakings where large amounts of capital had to be raised. In 1822, Salomon von Rothschild was made part of the

Austrian nobility The Austrian nobility (german: österreichischer Adel) is a status group that was officially abolished in 1919 after the fall of Austria-Hungary. The nobles are still part of Austrian society today, but they no longer retain any specific priv ...

when he was awarded the hereditary title of "

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empir ...

" (Baron) by

Emperor Francis II Francis II (german: Franz II.; 12 February 1768 – 2 March 1835) was the last Holy Roman Emperor (from 1792 to 1806) and the founder and Emperor of the Austrian Empire, from 1804 to 1835. He assumed the title of Emperor of Austria in response ...

. In 1929, the family's Creditanstalt was affected by the banking collapse that brought in the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. The Rothschild business empire in Austria was passed down to ensuing generations until the March 13, 1938

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germa ...

of Austria to

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

when the family was pressured to sell its banking operations at a fraction of its real worth. While other Rothschilds had escaped the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

s, Baron Louis was imprisoned for a year and only released after a substantial ransom was paid by his family. This ransom was later used to finance the further murder of Jews seen as "lesser" than the Rothschilds. After Louis was allowed to leave the country, in March 1939, the Nazis placed the firm of S M von Rothschild under compulsory administration. Nazi officers and senior staff from Austrian museums also emptied the Rothschild family estates of all their valuables. Post-war, some of the family's assets were restored to the survivors, but others were not. In 1999, as a result of international Jewish pressure groups along with a determined personal effort by

Bettina von Rothschild Bettina is a female name predominantly found in the Italian and German languages. This name has various interpreted meanings and origins. In Italian, Bettina originated as a diminutive of the names Elisabetta and Benedetta. Benedetta is the Ita ...

, the government of Austria returned some 250 Rothschild art treasures worth more than US$100 million. The artworks, which had been looted by the Nazis and placed in the Kunsthistorisches, the

Albertina The Albertina is a museum in the Innere Stadt (First District) of Vienna, Austria. It houses one of the largest and most important print rooms in the world with approximately 65,000 drawings and approximately 1 million old master prints, as well ...

, the Leopold Museum and other state museums after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, were returned to the eldest surviving heir of two Vienna Rothschild brothers. Further, in 2001, files involving more than 40,000 papers taken from the Rothschild family in Vienna by the Nazis, were voluntarily returned by the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

n government to them from the State Military Archive in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. The Russian government inherited the papers from the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

which obtained the papers during the fall of Berlin during

. The documents are now part of the Rothschild Archive in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. With the 2012 death of Bettina Jemima Looram de Rothschild (1924-2012), the second child of Alphonse Mayer de Rothschild, the Austrian branch has become extinct in the male line, although there are numerous descendants through female lines. The historian Roman Sandgruber assessed in 2018: "The Austrian line of the family occupies a special position. It is the story of a fairytale rise .. to the largest bank of the Habsburg monarchy and a tragic decline in the economic turmoil of the interwar period and in the robbery of the National Socialists".

Philanthropy

The Austrian Rothschilds and members of the other branches in Europe were all major contributors to causes in aid of the Jewish people. However, many of their philanthropic efforts extended far beyond Jewish ethnic or religious communities. They built hospitals and shelters for the needy, supported cultural institutions and were patrons of individual artists. Their donation of works of art to various galleries has been the largest of any family in history. At present, a research project is underway, by The Rothschild Archive in London, to document the family's philanthropic involvements. The business success of the Austrian Rothschilds allowed them to become great patrons of the arts and substantial contributors to philanthropic causes that include a major donation in 1844 to help build a polytechnic institution in

Brno Brno ( , ; german: Brünn ) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic ...

, the Rothschild Hospital built in 1869 by

Anselm von Rothschild Anselm Salomon von Rothschild, baron (29 January 1803 – 27 July 1874) was an Austrian banker, founder of the Creditanstalt, and a member of the Vienna branch of the Rothschild family. Family He was born in the Imperial City of Frankfurt, the ...

, the construction of a Vienna hospital for women in 1892, and the founding of psychiatric institutions in 1898 by

Nathaniel Anselm von Rothschild Nathaniel Meyer von Rothschild (26 October 1836 – 16 June 1905) was a member of the Rothschild banking family of Austria, known as art collector and patron. Life Born in Vienna, he was the fifth child and first son of Anselm von Rothschild (18 ...

Family members

Members of the Rothschild family of Austria include: * Salomon Mayer von Rothschild (1774-1855), founder of the Austrian branch **

Anselm Salomon von Rothschild Anselm Salomon von Rothschild, baron (29 January 1803 – 27 July 1874) was an Austrian banker, founder of the Creditanstalt, and a member of the Vienna branch of the Rothschild family. Family He was born in the Imperial City of Frankfurt, ...

(1803-1874) ***

Mathilde Hannah von Rothschild Hannah Mathilde von Rothschild (5 March 1832 – 8 March 1924) was a German-Jewish baroness, composer and patron. Life and career Mathilde von Rothschild was born in Frankfurt, the second oldest daughter of Charlotte and Anselm von Rothschild, a ...

(1832-1924) ***

Nathaniel Meyer von Rothschild Nathaniel Meyer von Rothschild (26 October 1836 – 16 June 1905) was a member of the Rothschild banking family of Austria, known as art collector and patron. Life Born in Vienna, he was the fifth child and first son of Anselm von Rothschild (1803 ...

(1836-1905) ***

Ferdinand James von Rothschild Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild (17 December 1839 – 17 December 1898), also known as Ferdinand James Anselm Freiherr von Rothschild, was a British Jewish banker, art collector and politician who was a member of the prominent Rothschild family ...

(1839-1898) ***

Albert Salomon Anselm von Rothschild Albert Salomon Anselm Freiherr von Rothschild (29 October 1844 – 11 February 1911) was a banker in Austria-Hungary and a member of the Rothschild banking family of Austria. Businesses that he owned included Creditanstalt and the North ...

(1844-1911) **** Alphonse Mayer von Rothschild (1878-1942) **** Ludwig (Louis) von Rothschild (1882-1955) **** Eugène Daniel von Rothschild (1884-1976) ***** Jeanne Stuart von Rothschild (1908-2003), wife of Eugène *** Alice Charlotte von Rothschild (1847-1922) *** Frederick John Edmund von Rothschild (2002)

Rothschild properties

All branches of the Rothschild banking family are famous for their art collections and many for their palatial estates.

moved permanently to England to build Waddesdon Manor. In Austria-Hungary, the acquisition of property by branch founder Salomon Mayer Rothschild was especially significant because at the time Jews were barred from the purchase of real estate, except in designated areas. Among the Rothschild properties in Austria were: * Villa Victoria -

Grasse Grasse (; Provençal oc, Grassa in classical norm or in Mistralian norm ; traditional it, Grassa) is the only subprefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region on the French Riviera. In 2017, the c ...

Alpes-Maritimes Alpes-Maritimes (; oc, Aups Maritims; it, Alpi Marittime, "Maritime Alps") is a department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the Italian border and Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

* Enzesfeld Castle - Enzesfeld-Lindabrunn,

Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...

Palais Rothschild Palais Rothschild refers to a number of palaces in Vienna, Austria, which were owned by members of the Austrian branch of the Rothschild banking family. Apart from their sheer size and elegance, they were famous for the huge collections of valu ...

- the name of several properties in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, all of which were confiscated following the

* Schloss Rothschild - Reichenau an der Rax, Lower Austria * Rothschildschloss - Waidhofen an der Ybbs, Lower Austria * Schillersdorf Castle -

Šilheřovice Šilheřovice (german: Schillersdorf, pl, Szylerzowice) is a municipality and village in Opava District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,600 inhabitants. It is part of the historic Hlučín Region. Geography ...

Czech Silesia Czech Silesia (, also , ; cs, České Slezsko; szl, Czeski Ślōnsk; sli, Tschechisch-Schläsing; german: Tschechisch-Schlesien; pl, Śląsk Czeski) is the part of the historical region of Silesia now in the Czech Republic. Czech Silesia is, ...

References

External links

The Rothschild Archive
- an international centre in

for research into the history 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 Fr ...

.
The Musical Associations of the Rothschild Family
by

Charlotte Henriette de Rothschild Charlotte Henriette de Rothschild (born 28 November 1955) is a British soprano, specialising in the recital and oratorio repertoire, who is a member of the Rothschild banking family of England. Biography The second daughter of the four childre ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rothschild Banking Family Of Austria Austria Jewish-Austrian families Austrian noble families Austrian Ashkenazi Jews Jews and Judaism in Vienna Banking in Austria Businesspeople from Vienna