James Mayer de Rothschild

James Mayer de Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild (15 May 1792 – 15 November 1868), born Jakob Mayer Rothschild, was a German-French banker and the original founder of the French branch of the Rothschild family.

Life and work

James de Rothschild was born in Frankfurt-am-Main, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. He was the fifth son and youngest child of Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744–1812) and Guttle Schnapper (1753–1849). Mayer sent each of his five sons to a prominent European commercial centre in order to found branches of the family banking empire; de Rothschild therefore moved to Paris in 1811 and in 1817 expanded the family banking empire to the city, opening De Rothschild Frères.

An advisor to two kings of France, he became the most powerful banker in the country and following the Napoleonic Wars, played a major role in financing the construction of railroads and the mining business that helped make France an industrial power. Along the way, he added to his fortune with investments in such things as the importation of tea and the wine industry. A strong-willed and shrewd businessman, James de Rothschild amassed a fortune that made him one of the richest men in the world. Although his papers have never been disclosed, evidence suggests that in today's money, James de Rothschild's personal fortune (not including the wealth of his other family members) must have been at least five times the fortune accumulated by Bill Gates.