Kings and Prime Ministers sought his advice and bow to him for loans and investments. Vast lengths of railroads and landscapes transformed by rising factories came as a result of his confidence. James Mayer de Rothschild commanded great respect within the banking world of his time driving forward France’s industrialization. How did he achieve it without holding office nor leading armies?
Early Life of James Mayer de Rothschild
Born on August 15, 1792, James originally came to this world as Jacob Meyer Rothschild in Grünes Schild (Green Shield) house in Frankfurt. The youngest of the 10 children of family patriarch Meyer Amschel Rothschild, he grew up amidst a combination of discrimination and affluence. His upbringing brought him in the background action in a fight against Napoleon Bonaparte.
The young Jacob Rothschild grew up in Frankfurt, a center of trade and finance, but also discrimination and anti-semitism. Frankfurt treated Jews negatively, confounding this community in a ghetto dubbed Judengasse or Jew’s alley. In this rapidly overcrowding area, the early Rothschilds emerged.
The Rothschilds traced their origins in the 17th century getting their name from their ancestral house called Zum Rote Schild or Red Shield. Naming houses became a small entertainment for Jewish families amidst the prejudices. Meyer Amschel Rothschild decided to be one of the best Jewish businessman in the area.
By the time of Jacob’s birth in the 1790s, the family enjoyed prosperity. Mayer Amschel served as an agent of the local Landgrave Wilhelm XI of Hesse. He operated a successful business in the wholesale trade of wool, cotton, and flour. When the War against Revolutionary France began, the business boom.
The wealth and the family business shaped Jacob. Money bought him good basic education and he learned finance and business management from his father and his brothers, groomed to be representatives of the family’s enterprise. Soon, the Rothschild brothers spread their wings across Europe.
By 1811, Jacob found himself in Paris. Only 19 years old, he helped his brother Nathan in purchasing species and bullions to secretly finance Wellington’s army in Spain. The anti-Napoleon activity continued well into the Battle of Waterloo when the Rothschild heard the news of allied victory first before the British government. By 1817, the Habsburg Emperor made them nobles and Jacob changed his name to James Mayer.
James and his brothers then relocated to different capital cities of Europe representing the House of Rothschild. Nathan operated the London house, Solomon in Vienna, Carl in Naples, and finally James in Paris. Each invested into various enterprises within their respective countries.
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| Mayer Amschel von Rothschild |
Personal Life
James Mayer de Rothschild lived as a man with a purpose, his family and fellow brethren Jews. In 1820, he established his house and built connections for business purposes. He made sure to represent the House of Rothschild well in the French capital.
In the early 1820’s James spent his time in Vienna. He and his brother Solomon became close acquaintances and financial advisors to the influential Chancellor of the Austrian Empire, Clemens von Metternich. In 1822, Metternich honored James with the title of Consul General of the Hapsburg Empire to France. He returned to France with a title and also a wife.
On July 11, 1824, James married his niece, Betty, daughter of Solomon who headed the Vienna branch. Their wedding became a grand spectacle with celebrations moving from different opulent chateaus. The marriage resulted in 9 children, part of the third generation of Rothschild bankers, including Alfonse and Gustav.
On the sideline of his work as a banker, he enjoyed culture. His art collecting hobby began in 1818 when he first bought the La Laitiere by Jean-Baptiste Greuze. He also hosted at his home artist and writers with the likes of Frederic Chopin, Honore de Balzac and Gioachino Rossini.
Besides artists and art dealers, James busied himself in improving the welfare of his brethren Jews. For centuries, Europe frowned upon Jews targeting them for persecution due to animosity that dated back as far as Jesus Christ. James and his brothers used their wealth and contacts to push for Jewish rights and protect them from pogroms as much as they could.
Such use of the secret of James Mayer de Rothschild. Besides prudence in investment, James adhered to Varys from Game of Thrones view: “Influence grows like a week. I tended mine patiently.” James built networks and connections in government allowing him access to the corridors of power and influencing policy decisions.
So much so, the Rothschild even influenced peace and war. Besides contacts, he also handled a lot of informants who delivered information to him whether business or political matters. This allowed the Rothschilds to be updated and on top of things.
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| Betty von Rothschild |
Banking Business
The Rothschild provided several services to governments. Besides economics, they also had diplomatic use. Eventually, it turned the Rothschilds, and for Paris, James, a towering Tywin Lannister-like figure.
A network of family, informants, and acquaintances across Europe made the Rothschild a diplomatic asset. They served as backdoor negotiators delivering sensitive messages between different governments or parties. For instance, James used his network in Spain to assist a French intervention in 1820. Most importantly, the Rothschilds forged a strong image of go-to financiers and investors for governments.
They displayed this multiple times even after the fall of Napoleon in 1815. In 1820, James financed the French intervention in Spain. In 1830 and 1834, he provided loans to King Louis-Philippe’s government, who in gratitude, elevated him to the rank of Grand Officer of the prestigious Legion of Honour. Indeed, James Rothschild embodied the prediction of Jacques Laffitte in 1830 when Louis-Philippe came to power, “from now on, the bankers will rule.”
Post-Napoleon witnessed James establishing his foundations. He started a family and built a reputation of a reliable contact and banker. But James’ biggest legacy lay in his ventures with railroads.
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| Louis-Philippe, the King of the French |
James Rothschild and Railroads
The 1820s witnessed the start of railroads of France. Despite public criticisms, James listened to reliable advice and decided to bet on this technology. It set him to become a major contributor to the railroad industry and France’s industrialization.
France saw its first railroad being laid in 1827. It stretched for 18 km. from Saint-Étienne and Andrezieux in Loire. A horse-drawn wagon traversed the line initially but a steam-powered locomotive replaced it. It received mixed reviews.
By the start of the 1830s, the public frowned upon railroads. One newspaper spread fear about the technology stating:
The fire from the engine would set forests and crops on fire. The noise of the trains would make the neighboring country house and properties uninhabitable, and drive mad the cattle pasturing in the vicinity of the railway.
Respectable politicians and intellectuals looked down upon it like Adolphe Thiers who wrote, “We must give the Parisians this as a toy, but it will never carry a passenger or a parcel.” While fear and underestimation prevailed on one side, another composed of men who looked to the future.
Railroads found supporters within the government and followers of a school of thought called Saint-Simonism. Saint-Simonism placed science and technology at its core and believed that industrialists would lead the future. Followers of this thought included men like Michel Enfatin, Casimir Periere, who would serve in the government of Louis-Philippe, and one Emil Pereire.
Rothschild pondered and thought deeply about railroads. Eventually he decided to invest in railroads due to 2 things. Firstly, articles written by Emil Pereire about the virtues of railroads impressed James. Secondly, his older brother Nathan and Solomon both praise the marvel of the technology. Due to a 19th century financial influencer and family, James placed his bet on railroads.
James Rothschild financed several big railway ventures. In 1833, with the same Emil Pereire as his chief engineer, together they built a line connecting Paris and Versailles on the right bank of the Seine. The venture, however, turned sour in 1839, due to losses brought by stiff competition with a parallel line operated by Achilles Fould.
The next venture became a success and even consequential to France’s industrialization. In 1846, James won a concession to operate the Northern Railway Line connecting the whole of Northern France and Belgium. The railway allowed the entry of cheaper coal to power French industries contributing to the growth of the iron industry.
James’s next major investment went to the Eastern Railway. He invested in 1837 and it connected Paris and Strasbourg. The line reached the town of Forbach near the Prussian industrial center of Saar. Hence, a crucial industrial trade traversed the line and even contributed to the growth of the French cotton industry.
Despite controversies, James listened to advice of trusted shrewd relatives and invested in the rising railroad industry. Ultimately, his investments contributed to the industrialization of France, stimulating growth in trade, iron, and cotton industries. Although he basked in profits, his key investments made him a target of criticisms and rivalry.
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| Station of Saint Étienne and Andrézieux |
Trials and Tribulations
Financing the regime of Louis-Philippe made Rothschild a target, especially when the 1848 Revolution shook Europe. The whole family went into crisis mode with most of its members facing problems respectively with James included. It became worse when a relative of Napoleon, who they helped to defeat, came to power in Paris.
Due to a ban on banquets, Paris erected barricades and deposed Louis-Philippe triggering the 1848 Revolution. Austria, Naples, and Prussia soon followed the trend of turmoil. For James, being part of the establishment, he feared for his and his family’s life contemplating fleeing to Belgium.
He decided to stay, observe, and protect his estate, while sending his family away to England for safety. He felt a sigh of relief when one of his acquaintances before, making use of old contacts, Michel Goudehaux, received the position of finance minister. But his hope disappeared when Goudehaux resigned in disgust of the spending plan of the home minister Alexander Auguste Ledru-Rollin.
Rothschilds suffered from extortion on a massive scale with Ledru-Rollin. He paid Ledru-Rollin hundreds of thousands of Francs after receiving from the individual a threat of hundreds of men looting and vandalizing the Rothschild estate. Eventually, Rothschild found hope again when his previous connections came to power, until Louis Napoleon came.
James dreaded the rise of Louis Napoleon, the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte who the Rothschilds helped to defeat. Each upward step Louis Napoleon took shot an arrow to James’ heart. It culminated in 1852 when Louis Napoleon became Napoleon III under the Second French Empire.
Rothschild treaded carefully during this era. Napoleon did bring some good economic policies especially with railroads. The lesser Napoleon consolidated railway companies to make it efficient and profitable. It allowed Rothschild to expand his railway companies.
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| Napoleon III |
On the other hand, James’ position as top banker of France came under attack. Louis Napoleon wanted to rely less on Rothschild and instead supported another financial institution called the Credit Mobilier. Credit Mobilier included several bankers that sought to compete with Rothschild like Achilles Fould as well as the brothers Isaac and Emil Pereire, the same Emil Pereire hired by James in the 1830s.
Credit Mobilier financed most of Napoleon’s ventures both in France and abroad. From stakes in Mexico and Egypt, Credit Mobilier spread their reach. Besides Rothschild’s position as the state’s financial backer, the institution also competed for control of railroads across Europe. The battle between Rothschild and Credit Mobilier reached high intensity filled with race for concessions, backstabbing, and betrayals. A clash of France’s banking titans.
While besieged in the financial world, James and the whole house faced abuse and demonization from the public. Newspapers depicted the Rothschilds as powers behind the throne and kingmakers. Pamphlets spread vile against the family. When a railroad accident happened in 1846 taking the lives of 37, James received overwhelming attack.
Writers pretending to be representative of James turned things worse. They used ridiculous titles such as Reply by Rothschild, the First King of the Jews, to Satan the last King of Slanderers. Some of them did it with malice while others hoped for rewards from the Rothschild.
In the end, despite the tremendous intensity of criticism and demonization, James opted to ignore the comments of both his detractors and defenders.
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| James Mayer de Rothschild, c. 1860 - 1868 |
Last Years
The 1860s became the twilight years of James Mayer de Rothschild. He luckily lived seeing the end of the ranging competition and not witnessing the destruction of Paris. He left a legacy of the power of money in a new industrial economy.
In the 1860s, the competition between the House of Rothschild and Credit Mobilier reached its conclusion. As many of Napoleon III’s ventures turned into disaster, Credit Mobilier overstretched its resources and accrued massive losses. By late 1860s, Credit Mobilier ceased to be a viable financial institution.
Things died down when Napoleon III and Achilles Fould visited James Mayer Rothschild in his estate in 1862. A sign of submission to the might of the House of Rothschild. Achilles Fould died in 1867 while the Pereire Brothers retired.
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| 1862 Caricature of Napoleon begging to James Rothschild |
Though triumphant, James faced the reality of mortality. By 1868, he suffered from gallstones. Eventually, the titan financier of French Industrialization, James Mayer Rothschild passed away on November 15, 1868.
James’ passing became a grand affair headed by his capable successors Alphonse and Gustav. These 2 brothers successfully stirred the house away from total disaster when the Franco-Prussian War raged and left France defeated. The House of Rothschild in France remained a key player in the French economy much to the strong foundations set by James Mayer Rothschild.
See also:
Bibliography:
Books:
Henderson, W.O. The Industrial Revolution of the Continent (Germany, France, Russia), 1800 - 1914. Chicago, Illinois: Quadrangle Books, 1961.
Corti, Count E.C. Trans. by Brian and Beatrix Lunn. The Reign of the House of Rothschild. New York, New York: Cosmopolitan Book Corporation, 1928
Websites:
“James Mayer de Rothschild (1792-1868)” Rothschild Archives. Accessed on January 24, 2025. URL: https://family.rothschildarchive.org/people/31-james-mayer-de-rothschild-1792-1868
"Mayer Rothschild." Encyclopedia of World Biography. . Encyclopedia.com. (January 8, 2025). https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/mayer-rothschild
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