James Armand (Jimmy) de Rothschild (1878-1957)
You are here: / Rothschild family papers / French family papers / James Armand (Jimmy) de Rothschild (1878-1957)
James Armand Edmond (Jimmy) de Rothschild was the eldest child of Edmond de Rothschild of Paris, where he was born, in the house on rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, on 1 December 1878. During three years at Cambridge University, he developed his Rothschild tastes, particularly horse racing and golf, further. He subsequently became a successful racehorse owner. On 25 February 1913 he married Dorothy Pinto and the couple divided their time between a house in Park Street, London, and an apartment on the Champs Elysées in Paris. In 1922, Jimmy inherited Waddesdon Manor and Eythrope from his cousin Alice and he and Dollie settled into this new career, becoming involved with the political and social life of the area.
Military and political service
After war service, during which time he visited Palestine and saw something of his father's achievements there, he applied for British citizenship. Jimmy sat in the House of Commons as Liberal MP for the Isle of Ely from 1929 to 1945, and was considered one of the wittiest members in the House. He was also Deputy Lieutenant for the City of London. During the Second World War, when Jimmy was Joint Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Supply, the Waddesdon estate became home to a group of Jewish refugees from Frankfurt. Jimmy became more involved with the new Jewish state, liquidating his father's PICA organisation and making available in his will the funds to establish Yad Hanadiv. He died at Waddesdon Manor on 7 May 1957.
Archive sources
The Rothschild Archive London holds very fewe papers of James and Dorothy de Rothschild. The Archive, Waddesdon Manor (the grand country estate inherited by James from Alice de Rothschild holds papers from this branch of the Rothschild. See The Archive, Windmill Hill, Waddesdon Manor »
James Armand de Rothschild, publications 'A Miscellany of Studies in Romance Languages and Literatures', 1932
000/2973, 1 volume
A miscellany of studies in Romance Languages & Literatures (W. Heffer Cambridge 1932). eds. James A. de Rothschild and Mary Williams. With a preface by and James A. de Rothschild and Mary Williams. Presented to Leon E. Kastner, Professor of French Language and Literature at the University of Manchester. The volume contains Forty-nine essays on the literature and philology of the Romance languages, covering a broad geographical and chronological range, by scholars from across Europe.
James Armand de Rothschild, invitation from the Zionist Organization of America, 1921
000/2913/4, 1 item
Invitation from the President & Officers of the Zionist Organization of America to a reception in honor [sic] of Major James de Rothschild' [James Armand de Rothschild (1878-1957)] in the Grand Ball room of the Hotel astor, Broadway and 44th St, 18 January 1921.
James Armand de Rothschild, artefacts, 'Knesset' commemorative medallion, 1966
000/778/1, 1 item
Commemorative silver medallion struck to commemorate the opening of the Knesset in 1966. The medallion features on one side cameo portraits of Edmond and James de Rothschild, and on the other facades of Knesset, and scenes of building work. By P. Voncze. Upon his death, in 1957, James de Rothschild had bequeathed a sum of money to fund the building of a Jewish Parliament House, the Knesset.
James Armand de Rothschild, artefacts, 'Knesset' commemorative medallion, 1966
000/1137/1, 1 item
Commemorative bronze medallion struck to commemorate the opening of the Knesset in 1966. The medallion features on one side cameo portraits of Edmond and James de Rothschild, and on the other facades of Knesset, and scenes of building work. By P. Voncze. Upon his death, in 1957, James de Rothschild had bequeathed a sum of money to fund the building of a Jewish Parliament House, the Knesset.
James Armand de Rothschild, sundry horseracing artefacts, c.1910; c.1935
000/1991/1; 000/2350, 3 items
James Armand de Rothschild, horseracing artefacts: During three years at Cambridge University, James developed his Rothschild tastes, particularly horse racing and golf, further. He subsequently became a successful racehorse owner; his 33-1 runner Bomba won the Ascot Gold Cup in 1909.
- Cigarette cards featuring jockey in French Rothschild racing colours and the horse ‘Laughing Mirror', owned by James Armand de Rothschild;
- Jockey's Cap in 'Rothschild Gold', by Hermès of Paris. Inside name tag of 'Baron J de Rothschild'. Presumed worn by a jockey racing under the colours of James Armand de Rothschild.
James Armand de Rothschild, prospectus for the facsimile edition of 'The Rothschild Miscellany', c.1988
000/414, 1 item
Prospectus for the Facsimilie edition of The Rothschild Miscellany, published by Facsimile editions, London, in Association with the Israel Museum, c.1988. The Rothschild Miscellany was commissioned by Moses ben Yekuthiel Hakohen in 1479. It is a lavishly executed Hebrew manuscript. The complete history of the Miscellany is somewhat of a mystery. From 1832 to 1855 the manuscript was in the Solomon de Parente collection in Trieste. It was later sold to the Rothschild family in Paris and remained there until it was stolen during the Nazi occupation and reappeared after the war in New York when, in May 1950, the Berlin bookseller Hugo Streisand, offered it for US$5,000 to the Jewish Theological Seminary. Alexander Marx, the Seminary's librarian, recognised it as stolen from the Rothschilds and returned it to them in London. James de Rothschild was persuaded by Mordechai Narkiss, director of the Bezalel Museum in Israel, that a manuscript of such importance was a national treasure and therefore belonged in Israel. In 1957, on hearing of Narkiss' illness, James de Rothschild sent it as a gift to Jerusalem.