Rothschild Banking Family of Naples - Involvement in Finance and Industry

Involvement in Finance and Industry

Carl von Rothschild developed a good working relationship with Luigi de' Medici, the "Direttore della Segreteria di Azienda del Regno di Napoli" (Finance Minister), and his operation became the dominant banking house in Naples. As a result of Carl's success, the Rothschilds had a substantial banking presence in England and three other major European capitals, giving the family considerable influence and an advantage over their competitors. During the winter of 1826, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, future King of the Belgians was a guest of Carl von Rothschild at his villa in Naples. In 1829, he was appointed consul-general of Sicily at Frankfurt and in January 1832 the Jewish banker was given a ribbon and star of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George at a ceremony with the new Roman Catholic Pope, Gregory XVI.

The C M de Rothschild & Figli bank arranged substantial loans to the Papal States and to various Kings of Naples plus the Duchy of Parma and the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. However, in the 1830s, Naples followed Spain with a gradual shift away from conventional bond issues that began to affect the bank's growth and profitability. During the second half of the 1840s the business evidenced no growth and was only marginally profitable.

The year 1855 was one of considerable change for the Rothschild family with the death of the head of both the Naples and German branches. Of the three sons of Carl von Rothschild, the eldest, Mayer, and the youngest surviving son, Wilhelm, succeeded their childless uncle Amschel Mayer von Rothschild in Frankfurt while the middle son Adolf reluctantly agreed to run the Naples branch. The succession negotiations were marked by considerable rancor as cousin Anselm von Rothschild, the then head of the Rothschild banking family of Austria, disagreed with the decision and Adolf felt he had been unfairly treated.