The Speyer family is a prominent

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family of German descent. It can be traced back to Michael Isaac Speyer (1644–1692), who had briefly been the head of the Jewish community in

Frankfurt am Main 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 1691–92. The family originates from

Speyer Speyer (, older spelling ; ; ), historically known in English as Spires, is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in the western part of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the r ...

in Palatinate, hence the surname. In the late eighteenth century, the Speyers were the wealthiest Jewish family in Frankfurt, well above 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, ...

Business activities

The patriarch of the family, Joseph Lazard Speyer, took over the ''Ellissen'' bank, inherited from his wife Jette Ellissen, and renamed it to ''J. L. Speyer-Elissen'' in 1818. When their son, Lazard Joseph, got to the helm of the family business in 1838, the name was changed to Lazard Speyer-Ellissen. In 1837 Lazard Joseph's brother Philipp left Frankfurt am Main for

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and established there in 1845 Philipp Speyer & Co. (after Philipp´s death in 1876 renamed Speyer & Co.). His brother Gustav (1825–1883) joined him to set up Philipp Speyer & Co. but in 1861 Gustav formed Speyer Brothers 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 ...

. Early to realize the potential in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, the Speyer family was one of the top five issuers of

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and Mexican railroad securities by the 1870s, their nearest rivals being Kuhn, Loeb & Co. and J.P. Morgan & Co. The London branch of the Speyer business, Speyer Brothers, was liquidated in 1922, when Gustav´s son

Edgar Speyer Sir Edgar Speyer, 1st Baronet (7 September 1862 – 16 February 1932) was an American-born financier and philanthropist. Barker 2004. He became a British subject in 1892 and was chairman of Speyer Brothers, the British branch of the Speyer fam ...

left the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

for the United States. The Frankfurt branch, Lazard Speyer-Ellissen, was dissolved in 1934, shortly after the ''

Machtergreifung The rise to power of Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919, when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He quickly rose t ...

'', the coming into power of the

National Socialist German Workers' Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

. The Frankfurt family home, the prominent Villa Speyer, was taken away by the

National Socialist Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was frequen ...

s in 1938. In 1938, James Speyer retired and decided to close Speyer & Co. in New York rather than let his name continue with the remaining partners. Therefore, the last of the three Speyer banking branches was liquidated in 1939. The Speyer family belonged to Frankfurt’s patrons and made considerable foundations to support science and scientific education. Their funds provided the basis for the

University of Frankfurt am Main Goethe University Frankfurt () is a public research university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealthy and active liberal citizenry of Frankfurt ...

Family tree

*Joseph Lazard Speyer (1783–1846), married to Jette Ellissen **Lazard Joseph Speyer (1810–1876), married his cousin Therese Ellissen (1808-?) in 1832 *** (1835–1902), banker, married (1844-1909) in 1869 **** Alfred Julius Speyer (1871–1927) *** Jaques Robert Speyer (1837-1876), married Sophie Emilie Cassel (1843-?) ** Philipp Speyer (1815–1876), emigrated to the

in 1837 and established in 1845 the New York branch, Philipp Speyer & Co. (1876 renamed Speyer & Co.). Married in 1850 Charlotte Stern (1824-1906), daughter of Jacob Samuel Hayum Stern (1780-1833), the founder of the Bank

Jacob S.H. Stern Jacob, later known as Israel, is a Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions. He first appears in the Torah, where he is described in the Book of Genesis as a son of Isaac and Rebecca. Accordingly, alongside his older fraternal twin brother E ...

. ***Helene Therese Speyer (1857–1898), married Paul Meyer (1844–1925), a German railway manager *** Anna Emilie Speyer (1861–1940), married 1885 (1856–1931), member of the

Vorstand In German corporate governance, a ''Vorstand'' is the executive board of a corporation (public limited company). It is hierarchically subordinate to the supervisory board (''Aufsichtsrat''), as German company law imposes a two-tier board of d ...

of the

Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (, ) is a Germany, German multinational Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. ...

** Gustav Speyer (1825–1883), followed his brother to the US, joined Speyer & Co. in 1845 and set up Speyer Brothers 1861 in

***

James Speyer James Joseph Speyer (July 22, 1861 – October 31, 1941) was an American banker based in the city of New York. Speyer was a well-known figure on Wall Street and the firm of Speyer & Co. was well respected. It closed in 1939. Speyer was actively i ...

(1861–1941), senior partner at Speyer & Co. since 1899, married to Ellin Lowery (1849–1921) ***

(1862–1932), moved to London in 1887, married to Leonora von Stosch (1872–1956) *** Hanna Louise Speyer (called Lucie, 1870–1918), married 1892 Eduard Beit von Speyer (nobled in 1910, 1860–1933), cousin of

Alfred Beit Alfred Beit (15 February 1853 – 16 July 1906) was an Anglo-German gold and diamond magnate in South Africa, and a major donor and profiteer of infrastructure development on the African continent. He also donated much money to university ed ...

(1853–1906) **** Herbert Beit von Speyer (1899–1961) **** Erwin Eduard von Speyer (1893–1914) **** Hedwig Johanna Henriette von Speyer (1896–1966) ****

Ellin Anna von Speyer Ellin may refer to: * Abby Ellin, American author and journalist * Doug Ellin (born 1968), American screenwriter and director * Everett Ellin (1928-2011), American museum official, art dealer, engineer, lawyer, and talent agent * Percy Ellin (1884- ...

(1903–1983)

Business activities

Family tree

References

Further reading