Fondation Rothschild, Paris
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Baron James de Rothschild (1792-1868) established a foundation in Paris in 1852, of which the first manifestation was the construction of a hospital on the rue Picpus. Between 1852 and 1860, the hospital accommodated 8,000 patients, and patient numbers increased steadily in the following decades. The scope of activities of the Fondation Rothschild was extended by the Rothschild brothers Alphonse (1827-1905), Gustave (1829-1911) and Edmond (1845-1934) in 1904. In addition to healthcare, the Fondation objective was to improve the material condition of workers, and the Fondation built six tenement blocks on the roads named Marcadet, Bargue, Belleville, Popincourt and Lamblardie, which consisted of 1,200 apartments and 160 commercial sites. The building materials used meant that the exterior had a less forbidding appearance than many similar projects. The buildings had excellent sanitary provisions and communal services, the later ones benefiting from educational provisions, a dispensary, and an electricity supply.
Archive sources
The Archive hold a very few original archive sources relating to the Fondation Rothschild and L'hôpital Rothschild Paris. Sundry brochures published by the Fondation Rothschild give information about its history and development, see La Fondation de Rothschild Hopital, 1850-1937 (La Fondation Rothschild, 1937), La Fondation de Rothschild 1852-1952 (100th anniversary history( (La Fondation Rothschild, 1952) and Fondation Rothschild 130 ans de Solidarité (130th anniversary history) (La Fondation Rothschild, 1982).
Papers relating to the Fondation Rothschild, rue Picpus, including Statutes of the Fondation Rothschild, 1911, correspondence, minutes and agreements, press cuttings and papers concerning the formal transfer of funds to the housing charity Oeuvre des Loyers will be found in the Lafite Papers (file OC 161).
Papers concerning the Rothschild Hospital, Paris, including a list of services and departments offered by the hospital; statistics of those treated at the hospital, 1919; lists of expenses, 1919; and reports on the facilities and departments of the hospital including photographs of nurses, laboratories, operating theatre, wards, and patients, 1916-1936 will be found in the Moscow Papers (58 series) (file 58-1-645).
In 2012, the Bibliothèque nationale de France held a major exhibition on the life of Baron James de Rothschild, see the chapter ‘De la solidarité communautaire à l’action sociale: La philanthropie des Rothschild en France de 1840 à 1918’ in the exhibition catalogue, Les Rothschild en France au XIXe siècle ed. Claude collard and Melanie Aspey (Paris: Bibliothèque nationale de France, 2012) for more information about the Fondation Rothschild, Paris.
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, social housing, secondary sources, 'L'Illustration Journal Universel', 1904
000/1391, 1 item
L'Illustration Journal Universel dated 2 July 1904 No. 3201. This issue includes an article on a donation of 10 million francs by the Fondation Rothschild to be used to build housing for workers. The article includes illustrations of Alphonse, Gustave and Edmond de Rothschild.
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, social housing, secondary sources, designs and plans, 'L'Architecture', 1905
000/2322/2, 1 item
Elevation and plan of unexecuted design for social housing by the Fondation Rothschild, rue de Prague, Paris, by MM André Ventre and Léon Besnard. Reproduced in L'Architecture, Supplement No.36, 1905. The final design was chosen through an architectural competition meant to inspire ideas, with significant prize moneys for the winners but no guarantee of their concepts being realised. The design finally chosen was by Augustin Adolphe Rey, the house architect of the Fondation Rothschild, Paris 1905-1907.
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, social housing, secondary sources, designs and plans, 'L'Architecture aux Salons', 1906
000/2709, 2 items
Reproductions of drawings of proposed buildings for the Fondation Rothschild, rue de Prague, Paris: Two large plates from the portfolio L'Architecture aux Salons (Editions Guérinet, Paris, 1906).The buildings were not constructed to this design; the final design was chosen through an architectural competition meant to inspire ideas, with significant prize moneys for the winners but no guarantee of their concepts being realised. The design finally chosen was by Augustin Adolphe Rey, the house architect of the Fondation Rothschild, Paris 1905-1907.
- Plate 27: Elevation: 'Facade sur la rue Prague. M Wilfrid Bertin - Project: Rothschild Foundation. Construction a l'usage des Ouvriers'. (Construction for the use of the Workers)
- Plate 28: Plan: plan du Rez du Chausee. M Wilfrid Bertin - Project: Rothschild Foundation. Construction a l'usage des Ouvriers'. (Construction for the use of the Workers)
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, social housing, secondary sources, designs and plans, 'The International Studio', 1906
000/2395, 1 volume
The International Studio, An Illustrated Monthly Magazine of Fine Applied Art, No.110, Vol XXVIII, April 1906, (New York: John Lane Company, The Bodley Head: 1906). This issue includes an article on 'The Rothschild Artisan's Dwellings in Paris Designed by Augustin Rey, described by H.Frantz.' Includes 19 illustrations and floor plans.
These were the buildings built by the Fondation Rothschild in Paris to house workers, the final design by Augustin Adolphe Rey, the house architect of the Fondation Rothschild, Paris 1905-1907 being chosen through an architectural competition meant to inspire ideas, with significant prize moneys for the winners but no guarantee of their concepts being realised.
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, Hôpital Rothschild, postcards, c.1910
000/2477, 000/2942/8, 2 items
Postcards of the Hôpital Rothschild (Rothschild Hospital), in the rue Picpus, Paris.
- postcards of the Hôpital Rothschild (Rothschild Hospital), in the rue Picpus, Paris, c.1910
- Unused postcard with black and white image of doctors, nurses and staff standing of the steps of the entrance to a building, ‘Paris – Rue Picus Hopital Rothschild, Entrée des Consultations’, c.1910.
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, brochures and other printed material, 1937; 1952, c.1980-2005
000/2465, 1 folder
Copies of brochures and other printed material concerning La Fondation de Rothschild:
- La Fondation de Rothschild Hopital - Hospices - Orphelinat - Sanatorium, 1850-1937,. An illustrated booklet detailing the history and services provided, 1937 [photocopy];
- La Fondation de Rothschild 1852-1952 (illustrated book - 100th anniversary history, 1952);
- Fondation de Rothschild Presentation des deux nouvelles unites da la Fondation mise en service au cours du premier trimestre 1982 (illustrated brochure for two new units of the Fondation opened in 1982);
- Fondation Rothschild 130 ans de Solidarité (illustrated book - 130th anniversary history, 1982);
- Fondation de Rothschild La Maison de Retraite-Geriatrie (illustrated brochure for the Rothschild Fondation retirement home, 1980s);
- Fondation Alphonse de Rothschild. la Maison de Convalescence de Chantilly (illustrated brochure for convalescent home in Chantilly, 1980s);
- Fondation Adolphe de Rothschild. Livret D'Accueil (illustrated 'Welcome booklet', 1980s);
- Fondation de Rothschild La Maison de Retraite-Geriatrie (illustrated brochure for the Rothschild Fondation retirement home, 1990s);
- Fondation Rothschild & Institut Alain de Rothschild, 150 ans de solidarité d'innovation et de creation (illustrated booklet - 150th anniversary history, 2002);
- Fondation Opthalmologique Adolph de Rothschild (large desk diary for 2005 (blank), early pages list departments and services, 2005).
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, photographs, 2006
000/1638, 1 digital folder
Fondation Rothschild, Paris, photographs, c.2006: a samll colection of modern digital phtotographs of the Fondation Rothschild, Paris, and the surroundign area, taken by staff of the Archive.