Rothschild Banking Family Of Naples
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Rothschild banking family of Naples () was the Neapolitan (and later Italian) branch of the
Rothschild family The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish noble banking family originally from Frankfurt. The family's documented history starts in 16th-century Frankfurt; its name is derived from the family house, Rothschild, ...
. It was founded by Carl Mayer von Rothschild (1788–1855), who was sent to the
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies () was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1861 under the control of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon, Bourbons. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by popula ...
from
Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
in 1821.
Endogamy Endogamy is the cultural practice of marrying within a specific social group, religious denomination, caste, or ethnic group, rejecting any from outside of the group or belief structure as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relatio ...
within the family was an essential part of the Rothschild strategy in order to ensure control of their wealth remained in the family's hands. Through their collaborative efforts, the Rothschilds rose to prominence in a variety of banking endeavors including
loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...
s,
government bond A government bond or sovereign bond is a form of Bond (finance), bond issued by a government to support government spending, public spending. It generally includes a commitment to pay periodic interest, called Coupon (finance), coupon payments' ...
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 from ...
. Their financing afforded investment opportunities and during the 19th century, they became major stakeholders in large-scale
mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...
and
rail transport Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
ventures that were fundamental to the rapidly expanding industrial economies of
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
. By 1820, N M Rothschild & Sons bank was already operating successfully in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, de Rothschild Frères in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, and S M von Rothschild in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
,
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
where Salomon Mayer von Rothschild became a powerful ally of Austria's Prince Klemens Metternich. In March 1821, in support of King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, the Austrian army entered the Sicilian Kingdom and occupied Naples. This event opened the door to the Rothschild interests and Carl von Rothschild was sent to Naples where he established C M de Rothschild & Figli to operate as a satellite office to the Rothschild banking family of Germany headquarters in Frankfurt am Main.


Elevation to Austrian nobility

In 1822, the five Rothschild brothers at the head of the family's banks in various parts of Europe were each granted the hereditary title of '' Freiherr'' (
baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...
) in the Austrian nobility by Emperor Francis I of Austria (formerly Francis II, the last
Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...
). As a result, some members of the Rothschild family used the nobiliary particle ''de'' or '' von'' before their surname to acknowledge the grant of nobility.


Involvement in finance and industry

Carl von Rothschild developed a good working relationship with Luigi de' Medici, the "Direttore della Segreteria di Azienda del Regno di Napoli" (Finance Minister), and his operation became the dominant banking house in Naples. As a result of Carl's success, the Rothschilds had a substantial banking presence in England and three other major European capitals, giving the family considerable influence and an advantage over their competitors. During the winter of 1826, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, future
King of the Belgians The monarchy of Belgium is the Constitutional monarchy, constitutional and Inheritance, hereditary institution of the monarchical head of state of the Kingdom of Belgium. As a popular monarchy, the Belgian monarch uses the title king/quee ...
was a guest of Carl von Rothschild at his villa in Naples. In 1829, he was appointed consul-general of Sicily at Frankfurt and in January 1832 the
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
ish banker was given a ribbon and star of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George at a ceremony with the new
Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
, Gregory XVI. The bank, C M de Rothschild & Figli, arranged substantial loans to the
Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...
and to various Kings of Naples plus the Duchy of Parma and the
Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany (; ) was an Italian monarchy located in Central Italy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1860, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In the 19th century the population ...
. However, in the 1830s, Naples followed
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
with a gradual shift away from conventional bond issues that began to affect the bank's growth and profitability. During the second half of the 1840s, the business evidenced no growth and was only marginally profitable. The year 1855 was one of considerable change for the Rothschild family with the death of the head of both the Naples and German branches. Of the three sons of Carl von Rothschild, the eldest, Mayer, and the youngest surviving son, Wilhelm, succeeded their childless uncle Amschel Mayer von Rothschild in Frankfurt while the middle son reluctantly agreed to run the Naples branch. The succession negotiations were marked by considerable rancor as cousin Anselm von Rothschild, the then head of the Rothschild banking family of Austria, disagreed with the decision and Adolphe felt he had been unfairly treated.


Closure of the Naples branch

The end of the Naples branch began when revolution broke out and
Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
captured Naples on September 7, 1860, and set up a provisional government. Because of the family's close political connections with Austria and France, was caught in a delicate position. He chose to take temporary sanctuary in
Gaeta Gaeta (; ; Southern Latian dialect, Southern Laziale: ''Gaieta'') is a seaside resort in the province of Latina in Lazio, Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is from Rome and from Naples. The city has played ...
with the Bourbon king Francis II of the Two Sicilies but the Rothschild houses in London, Paris, and Vienna were not prepared to financially support the deposed king. With the ensuing
unification of Italy The unification of Italy ( ), also known as the Risorgimento (; ), was the 19th century Political movement, political and social movement that in 1861 ended in the Proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, annexation of List of historic states of ...
and the mounting tension between Adolf and the rest of the family, after forty-two years in business, the Naples house closed in 1863. Mathilde Hannah von Rothschild (1832–1924) of the Austrian branch of the family, who married Wilhelm Carl von Rothschild of Naples/Frankfurt, founded and endowed the as a public institution. In 1901, at the time of the closure of the Rothschilds' Frankfurt office, family discussions took place concerning the disposition of the records of the Naples house. Alphonse James de Rothschild opposed the idea of preserving the documents in the Rothschild Library in Frankfurt and eventually it was agreed that all the Naples office records be destroyed. The brothers Mayer Carl and Wilhelm Carl von Rothschild had only daughters (ten in total) and with the 1935 deaths of Emma Louisa de Rothschild (daughter of Mayer Carl) and Adelheid de Rothschild (daughter of Wilhelm Carl), the Neapolitan branch went extinct in the male line. All branches of the Rothschild banking family are famous for their art collections and a number for their palatial estates. Because the Naples branch was run by just two family members, father Carl Mayer von Rothschild, and son Adolphe, the only great property they occupied there was the Villa Pignatelli at Riviera di Chiaia with a spectacular view of
Mount Vesuvius Mount Vesuvius ( ) is a Somma volcano, somma–stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes forming the Campanian volcanic arc. Vesuv ...
, acquired in 1841.


Family members

Members of the Rothschild family of Naples include: * Charlotte von Rothschild (1819–1884) * Carl Mayer von Rothschild (1788–1855) * Bina Rothschild (1902–1965)


See also

*
Rothschild family The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish noble banking family originally from Frankfurt. The family's documented history starts in 16th-century Frankfurt; its name is derived from the family house, Rothschild, ...
* Rothschild banking family of Austria * Rothschild banking family of England * Rothschild banking family of France


References

* ''The Rothschilds; a Family Portrait'' by Frederic Morton. Atheneum Publishers (1962) (1998 reprint) * ''The Rothschilds, a Family of Fortune'' by Virginia Cowles. Alfred A. Knopf (1973) * ''A History of the Jews'' by Paul Johnson (1987) HarperCollins Publishers * ''Rothschild: The Wealth and Power of a Dynasty'' by Derek Wilson. Scribner, London (1988) * ''House of Rothschild : Money's Prophets: 1798-1848'' by
Niall Ferguson Sir Niall Campbell Ferguson, ( ; born 18 April 1964)Biography
Niall Ferguson
. Viking Press (1998) * ''The House of Rothschild (vol. 2) : The World's Banker: 1849-1999'' by Niall Ferguson. Diane Publishing Co. (1999) * ''Charlotte and Lionel: A Rothschild Love Story'' by Stanley Weintraub. (2003) Free Press, London


External links


The Rothschild Archive
- an international cente in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
for research into the history of the
Rothschild family The Rothschild family ( , ) is a wealthy Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish noble banking family originally from Frankfurt. The family's documented history starts in 16th-century Frankfurt; its name is derived from the family house, Rothschild, ...
.
The Musical Associations of the Rothschild Family
by Charlotte Henriette de Rothschild {{Rothschilds 19th century in Naples Neapolitan families Jewish Italian history Jewish-Italian families 1935 disestablishments in Italy