Map of Frankfurt, 1845. The Rothschild family can trace their orgins back to the 1450s in Frankfurt.
The Rothschilds in Frankfurt
Mayer Amschel Rothschild (1744-1812), was born in Frankfurt, a major centre of trade. In 1757, with the help of relatives, he secured an apprenticeship at the banking firm of Simon Wolf Oppenheimer in Hannover before returning to his brothers' business in Frankfurt in 1763. He became a dealer in rare coins, and in 1769 gained the title of 'Court Agent', managing the finances of Wilhelm I (later Wilhelm IX), Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel. In 1810, he renamed his firm M A Rothschild und Söhne, establishing a partnership with his sons.
The Frankfurt Judengasse
In the eighteenth century, the Jews of Frankfurt were required to live apart from the Christians in a single narrow lane called the Judengasse, or Jews' Alley, under strict regulation. The 'Rothschild' family surname was derived from the house where a Rothschild ancestor lived, under the sign 'zum Roten Schild' (at the Red Shield). On August 29, 1770, Mayer Amschel married Gutle Schnapper, and the following year, she gave birth the first of their ten children. By 1784 the family had moved to larger house in the Judengasse, the House at the Green Shield, which later became a ‘Rothschild’ museum. The area suffered major destruction during the Second World War, and reconstruction has left no visible signs of the Judengasse in the Frankfurt of today.
