James Armand de Rothschild (1878-1957)
James managed to enlist successively in three armies: the French, the Canadian and the British. He ended the war as an officer in the British Army, serving in Palestine as a major in the 39th Battalion, The Royal Fusiliers (part of the Jewish Legion) under General Allenby and was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
Henri de Rothschild (1872-1947)
In Paris, Henri, a trained medical doctor and automoibile enthusiast, designed and built ambulances and took them to the Front. While in charge of the military hospital at Soissons, he invented a portable burns unit for use in battle zones. After the war, in 1919 he became one of the founders of the Curie Foundation.
Robert de Rothschild (1880-1946)
Robert had a highly decorated wartime career. Mobilised at the outbreak of war in August 1914, he spent the early part of the war attached to the 8th Division British Expeditionary Force as an interprete. His home of Laversine Park was turned into a military hospital where his wife Nelly (1885-1945) nursed the wounded. the year 1918 bought intensive front line action for Robert, in the Battle of the Lys and later the Third Battle of Picardy. When the armistice was reached in November 1918 Robert was with the 133rd Division at Chimay, Belgium. He was fully demobilised on 21 January 1919. During his service he had been awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur. The Rothschild Archive, London holds the photographic collection of Robert de Rothschild, the majority of which was created during his military service.
