Lionel Walter Rothschild (1868 - 1937)

Born 8 Feb 1868 in London, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Died 27 Aug 1937 at age 69 in Tring, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom

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Walter Rothschild has Jewish Roots.

Walter Rothschild is Notable.

Biography

Lionel Walter Rothschild was born in London on 8 February 1868 as the son and oldest of three children of Nathan and Emma Rothschild. His father was the first Jew to serve as a peer in the United Kingdom. He was a member of the wealthy Rothschild family.

As a young boy, Walter dreamed that he would own a zoological museum, and he collected insects and other animals as a hobby. While on a hunt near Tring, Walter was dragged off his horse and assulted by workmen, which he later attributed to antisemitism.

As a young adult, Walter attended the university at Bonn before attending Magdalene College at Cambridge for two years. After his studies, he went into the banking business for financial studies.

In 1889, as part of a family tradition, Walter reluctantly went to work at N M Rothschild & Sons. It was evident that Walter did not have any interest in finance, and by 1908, he left the financial institution. To compensate, Walter's parents established a zoological museum.

Although Walter never married, he did have several mistresses as well as an illegitimate daughter, Olga.

At its largest, Walter's museum possessed about 3 million specimens, the largest owned by a private individual. Walter had several species, including Rothschild's giraffe, named for him.

In politics, Walter served in the Parliament at Aylesbury from 1899 until retiring in 1910. Despite his ill health, he served in the British military until 1909.

Walter was also active in Zionism and he worked with others to formulate the draft declaration for a Jewish state in Palestine. He received a letter, now known as the Balfour Declaration, from Arthur Balfour on 2 November 1917.

Walter inherited the title of Baron Rothschild from his father in 1915. In his own right, he was also Baron de Rothschild by warrant in 1932. Walter passed away in Tring on 27 August 1937. As he had no legitimate children, his titles passed to his nephew Nathaniel Mayer Victor Rothschild.

Sources

• Karl Marx Family Tree
• Wikipedia contributors. "Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild." Wikipedia. Accessed 22 Jul 2017.