Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild

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The Right Honourable

The Lord Rothschild

OM, GBE, FRCA, Hon FKC, Hon FBA
Great coat of arms of Rothschild family.svg
Born
Nathaniel Charles Jacob Rothschild

(1936-04-29) 29 April 1936 (age 82)
Berkshire, United Kingdom
NationalityBritish
CitizenshipUnited Kingdom
EducationFirst in history
Alma materEton College
Christ Church, Oxford
OccupationBanker
Known forRothschild banking family of England
Height1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Title4th Baron Rothschild
Spouse(s)Serena Dunn
(1961-2019)
ChildrenHannah Mary (b. 1962)
Beth Matilda (b. 1964)
Emily "Emmy" Magda (b. 1967)
Nathaniel Philip Victor James (b. 1971)
Parent(s)Victor Rothschild, 3rd Baron Rothschild
Barbara Judith Hutchinson
AwardsSee List

Nathaniel Charles Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, OM, GBE, FRCA, Hon FKC, Hon FBA (born 29 April 1936) is a British investment banker and a member of the prominent Rothschild banking family. He is also honorary president of the Institute for Jewish Policy Research.[1]

Early life[edit]

Born in Berkshire, England.[2][3] he is the eldest son of Victor Rothschild, 3rd Baron Rothschild by his first wife Barbara Judith Rothschild (née Hutchinson). His father was born into a Jewish family, while his mother converted to Orthodox Judaism when they married.[4] Rothschild was educated at Eton College and then at Christ Church, Oxford, where he gained a First in history, tutored by Hugh Trevor-Roper.[5]

Business career[edit]

From 1963 Rothschild worked at the family bank N M Rothschild & Sons in London, before resigning in 1980 due to a family dispute. The chairmanship of the bank had passed from his father, who had chosen to follow a scientific career and had lost control of the majority voting shares, to his cousin Sir Evelyn Robert de Rothschild, and Jacob felt that his aspirations would be thwarted. He sold his minority stake in the bank, but took independent control of Rothschild Investment Trust (now RIT Capital Partners plc), an investment trust listed on the London Stock Exchange.[5]

After resigning from the bank in 1980, Jacob Rothschild went on to found J. Rothschild Assurance Group (now St. James's Place plc) with Sir Mark Weinberg in 1991.[6] In 1989, he joined forces with Sir James Goldsmith and Kerry Packer, in an unsuccessful bid for British American Tobacco.

Rothschild is Chairman of RIT Capital Partners plc, one of the largest investment trusts quoted on the London Stock Exchange with a net asset value of about £2 billion.[7] He is Chairman of J Rothschild Capital Management, a subsidiary of RIT Capital Partners plc.[8] He is also a Member of the Council for the Duchy of Cornwall for HRH The Prince of Wales[9] and a member of the International Advisory Board of The Blackstone Group.[10] He also retains many other venture capital and property interests.

From November 2003 until his retirement in 2008, he was Deputy Chairman of BSkyB Television[11] and until 2008 he was a Director of RHJ International.[12]

Oil interests[edit]

In 2003 Rothschild came under scrutiny when Russian oil industrialist Mikhail Khodorkovsky's shares in YUKOS passed to him under a deal they concluded prior to Khodorkovsky's arrest.[13][14]

In November 2010, an undisclosed entity affiliated with Rothschild purchased a 5.0% equity interest in Genie Energy, a subsidiary of IDT Corporation, for $10.0 million.[15] In 2013, Genie Energy was granted exclusive oil and gas exploration rights to a 153-square mile area in the southern part of the Golan Heights.[16]

Connections[edit]

Eythrope Pavilion, the home of Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild

From his headquarters in St James's Place in London, Jacob Rothschild has cultivated clients, business associates and friends who have extended his interests beyond the normal scope of a banker. He maintains personal and business links with Henry Kissinger.[17]

His country estate has been a venue for visiting heads of state including Presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. Margaret Thatcher received French President François Mitterrand there at a summit in 1990. He hosted the European Economic Round Table conference in 2002, attended by James Wolfensohn, former president of the World Bank, Nicky Oppenheimer, Warren Buffett and Arnold Schwarzenegger.[18]

Personal life[edit]

In 1961, Rothschild married Serena Mary Dunn, a granddaughter of the Canadian financier Sir James Dunn, and they have four children. Lady Rothschild died in 2019.

  • The Honorable Hannah Mary Rothschild Brookfield (22 May 1962). She married William Brookfield in 1994 and they were divorced. They have three daughters:
    • Nell Tomaka Brookfield (21 September 1994)
    • Clemency Ruth Brookfield (1 June 1997)
    • Mary Esther Rose Brookfield (29 December 1998)
  • The Honorable Beth Matilda Rothschild Tomassini (27 February 1964). She married Antonio Tomassini in 1991 and they were divorced. They have three children:
    • Jacob Ferdinand Fulvio Tomassini (25 May 1992)
    • Edoardo Philip James Tomassini (9 June 1994)
    • Tess Anna Jude Tomassini (6 October 1996)
  • The Honorable Emily "Emmy" Magda Rothschild Freeman-Attwood (19 December 1967). She married Julian Freeman-Attwood on 25 June 1998. They have two daughters:
    • Ivy Antarctica Freeman-Attwood (16 April 1999)
    • Lily Tibet Freeman-Attwood (12 February 2002)
  • The Honorable Nathaniel Philip Victor James Rothschild (12 July 1971).[19] He married Annabelle Neilson on 13 November 1995 and they were divorced in 1997.

He commissioned the 2015 RIBA Award winner Flint House[20] on the Waddesdon Manor estate in Buckinghamshire, UK. Rothschild donated the property to the Rothschild Foundation which manages the rest of the estate for the National Trust.

Philanthropy[edit]

Jacob Rothschild has played a prominent part in Arts philanthropy in Britain. He was Chairman of Trustees of the National Gallery from 1985 to 1991, and from 1992 to 1998, chairman of the National Heritage Memorial Fund. From 1994 to 1998, and at the invitation of the Prime Minister, he was chairman of the British National Heritage Lottery Fund responsible for distributing the proceeds of the National Lottery to the heritage sector, an influential post which oversaw the distribution of £1.2 billion in grants.

In the past, he has also been a Trustee of the State Hermitage Museum of St Petersburg (retired 2008);[21] a Trustee of the Qatar Museums Authority (retired 2010);[22] Chairman of the Pritzker Prize for Architecture (2002–2004);[23] Chairman of both the Gilbert Collection Trust and the Hermitage Development Trust, Somerset House;[21] a Trustee and Honorary Fellow of the Courtauld Institute, Somerset House;[24] and a Fellow, Benefactor, and member of the Visitors' Committees of the Ashmolean Museum Oxford (retired 2008).[25] In 2014, he received the J. Paul Getty Medal "for extraordinary achievement in the fields of museology, art historical research, philanthropy, conservation and conservation science".[26]

The central courtyard of Somerset House, London.

He was especially active in the project to restore Somerset House in London, for which he helped secure the Gilbert Collection and ensured the long-term future of the Courtauld Institute of Art. As a private project, he carried out the restoration of Spencer House, one of the finest surviving 18th century London townhouses, adjacent to his own offices.[27]

In 1988 he inherited from his aunt Dorothy de Rothschild, the Waddesdon and Eythrope estates in Buckinghamshire, and began a close association with Waddesdon Manor, the house and grounds which were built by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild in the 1880s and bequeathed to the National Trust in 1957 by his cousin, James A. de Rothschild. He has been a major benefactor of the restoration of Waddesdon Manor through a private family charitable trust and, in an unusual arrangement, has been given authority by the National Trust to run Waddesdon Manor as a semi-independent operation.[28] The cellars at Waddesdon Manor house his personal collection of 15,000 bottles of Rothschild wines dating as far back as 1870.

Open to the public, Waddesdon attracts over 300,000 visitors annually and has won many awards over the last 15 years, including Museum of the Year Award and Best National Trust Property.[29]

In 1993 he joined with John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover to set up the Butrint Foundation[30] to record and conserve the archaeological site of Butrint in Albania, close to his holiday home on Corfu.[31] Today, Jacob remains Chairman of the Butrint Foundation.[32]

Jacob Rothschild has also followed the Rothschild family's charitable interests in Israel and since 1989 has been the chairman of Yad Hanadiv, the family foundation which gave the Knesset and the Supreme Court buildings to Israel. He is also president of The Rothschild Foundation (Hanadiv) Europe,[33] and Patron and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Rothschild Foundation.[34] In addition, he is Honorary President of the Institute for Jewish Policy Research.[1]

Furthermore, he has served as a Member of the Arts & Humanities Research Board, set up by the British Government, is an honorary fellow of the British Academy and a Trustee of the Prince of Wales’ Prince’s Charities Foundation.[35]

In the past, he has been a Member of the UK Main Honours Board, (retired 2008); Chairman of the Honours Committee for Arts and Media (retired 2008); Trustee of the Edmond J Safra Foundation (retired 2010); and a Member of committee of the Henry J Kravis Prize for Creative Philanthropy (retired 2010).

Honours and awards[edit]

In United Kingdom[edit]

In the United States[edit]

  • The Hadrian Award from the World Monuments Fund - 1995
  • The Classical America – Arthur Ross Award 1998
  • The Iris Foundation Award – the BARD Institute 1999
  • The Centennial Medal of the American Academy in Rome - 2002
  • The Kennedy Center's International Committee Lifetime Achievement Gold Medal in the Arts Award 2006
  • Royal Oak Foundation "Timeless Design Award"
  • The J. Paul Getty Medal 2014

In Continental Europe[edit]

In Israel[edit]

  • The Sir Winston Churchill Award (2004)
  • The Weizmann Award (50th Anniversary of the State of Israel)
  • Honorary degree from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
  • Honorary fellowships from City of Jerusalem and the Israel Museum, the Commonwealth Jewish Council Award.

Styles of address and arms[edit]

Styles of address[edit]

  • 1936–1937: Mr Jacob Rothschild
  • 1937–1990: The Honourable Jacob Rothschild
  • 1990–1998: The Right Honourable The Lord Rothschild[a]
  • 1998–2002: The Right Honourable The Lord Rothschild GBE
  • 2002–: The Right Honourable The Lord Rothschild OM GBE
  1. ^ Although The Lord Rothschild is a baronet, by custom the post-nominal of "Bt" is omitted, as Peers of the Realm do not list subsidiary hereditary titles.

Coat of arms[edit]

Ancestry[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Institute for Jewish Policy Research: About us". Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  2. ^ https://successstory.com/people/nathaniel-charles-jacob-rothschild
  3. ^ https://www.berksandbuckslife.co.uk/people/100-influential-berkshire-and-buckinghamshire-men-1-4242595
  4. ^ Perry, Roland (1994). The fifth man. Sidgwick & Jackson. p. 48. ISBN 978-0283062162.
  5. ^ a b Rose, Kenneth (2003). Elusive Rothschild: the Life of Victor, Third Baron. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 978-0-297-81229-6.
  6. ^ Peippo, Kathleen (2000). "St. James's Place Capital, plc". International Directory of Company Histories.
  7. ^ RIT Capital Partners Archived 25 August 2004 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "J Rothschild Capital Management Limited: Private Company Information". Bloomberg Businessweek. New York, NY: Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  9. ^ "Duchy of Cornwall - Management and Finances". The Official Website for the Duchy of Cornwall]. Cornwall, UK: Duchy of Cornwall. 15 November 2011. Archived from the original on 22 August 2007. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  10. ^ "International Advisory Board". New York, NY, USA: Blackstone Group. Archived from the original on 19 December 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  11. ^ "Rothschild to act as BSkyB buffer". The Guardian. 3 November 2003. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  12. ^ "RHJ International SA". 14 August 2008. Missing or empty |url= (help)
  13. ^ Arrested oil tycoon passed shares to banker, The Washington Times, 2 November 2003. Accessed 27 July 2010.
  14. ^ "Russian tycoon 'names successor'". BBC News. 2003-07-14. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
  15. ^ PRELIMINARY INFORMATION STATEMENT OF GENIE ENERGY LTD., Jerusalem Post. 22 November 2010. Accessed 12 February 2011
  16. ^ Kelley, Michael (22 February 2013). "Israel Grants First Golan Heights Oil Drilling License To Dick Cheney-Linked Company". Business Insider. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
  17. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 November 2006. Retrieved 15 November 2007.CS1 maint: Archived copy as title (link)
  18. ^ McGinty, Stephen (25 September 2002). "Is Arnold the running man?". The Scotsman. Retrieved 30 June 2007.
  19. ^ The Rothschild Foster Trust: "The descendants of Charles Rothschild" Archived 7 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 27 September 2012
  20. ^ "Flint House". architecture.com. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  21. ^ a b "Interview in the magazine Russian Journal". Interview with the Director. St. Petersburg, Russia: Hermitage Museum. 4 July 2011 [2004]. Archived from the original on 27 June 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2011. Originally published in 13 January 2004 Russian Journal
  22. ^ "Lord Rothschild named trustee in Qatar". Artshub. England, UK: ArtsHub Holdings P/L. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  23. ^ "The Pritzker Architecture Prize - Jury". Madrid, Spain & Los Angeles, CA, USA: The Pritzker Architecture Prize. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  24. ^ Swallow, Dr. Deborah. "The Courtauld Institute of Art : Newsletter Spring 2008 - From the Director". The Courtauld Institute of Art. London, UK: The Courtauld Institute of Art. Archived from the original on 21 November 2010. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  25. ^ Annual Report of the Visitors of The Ashmolean Museum - August 2006—July 2007 (PDF) (Report). Oxford, England, UK: Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology. 14 January 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  26. ^ Victoria Talbot, 'Second Annual J. Paul Getty Medal Goes to Lord Rothschild', The Beverly Hills Courier, July 25, 2014, Volume XXXXVIIII Number 30, p. 21 "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2014.CS1 maint: Archived copy as title (link)
  27. ^ "Home - Spencer House". Spencer House. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  28. ^ Rachel Spence (12 May 2012). "Art, chez Rothschild". Ft.com.
  29. ^ Hurmalainen, Risto (6 October 2009). "British Castles, Stately Homes and Houses". Castles of the World. Archived from the original on 25 December 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  30. ^ "The Butrint Foundation". Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  31. ^ "Butter beans and bacon with quaffing wine ... inside Corfu's Chateau Rothschild". Mail Online. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  32. ^ "Contact and trustees: 1135705 - THE BUTRINT FOUNDATION". London, UK: Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  33. ^ "Contact and trustees: 1083262 - ROTHSCHILD FOUNDATION (HANADIV) EUROPE". London, UK: Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 10 December 2011.[not in citation given] for President, confirmed for Trustee
  34. ^ "Contact and trustees: 1138145 - THE ROTHSCHILD FOUNDATION". London, UK: Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 10 December 2011.[not in citation given] for Chairman, confirmed for Trustee
  35. ^ "Contact and trustees: 1127255 - THE PRINCE OF WALES'S CHARITABLE FOUNDATION". London, UK: Charity Commission for England and Wales. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  36. ^ "No. 56746". The London Gazette. 8 November 2002. p. 13557.
  37. ^ "No. 54993". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1997. p. 8.
  38. ^ Fellow: Rt Hon Lord Jacob Rothschild - website of the British Academy
  39. ^ Senior Fellows- website of the Royal College of Art
  40. ^ Two new Honorary Fellows for King's - website of King's College London
  41. ^ Kidd, edited by Charles; Collins, David Williamson ; assistant editor: Lydia (2000). Debrett's peerage and baronetage : comprises information concerningthe Royal Family, the peerage and baronetage. London: Debrett's Peerage Limited. p. 1435. ISBN 9780333545775.CS1 maint: Extra text: authors list (link)
  42. ^ "President Nishani awards British Lords Rothschild and Sainsbury the "National Flag Medal"". Institution of the President of the Republic of Albania. Retrieved 3 October 2016.

External links[edit]

Peerage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Victor Rothschild 		Baron Rothschild
1990–present 		Incumbent
Heir apparent:
Nathaniel Philip Rothschild
Baronetage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Victor Rothschild 		Baronet
(of Tring Park)
1990–present 		Incumbent
Heir apparent:
Nathaniel Philip Rothschild
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jacob_Rothschild,_4th_Baron_Rothschild&oldid=882215695"