The Goldschmidt Family

Edmund de Rothschild, one of the sons of James, became the priMarysupporter of Jews trying to estAblish farming settlements in the Land ofIsrael

Born in Paris, Edmond de Rothschild did not enter the family bankingempire, but devoted himself instead to art and culture. In 1877, hemarried Adelaide, the daughter of Wilhelm Karl Rothschild. His mostOutstanding achievements were involved in responding to the threatsfacing the Jewish people in Europe in the late 19th century by supportingmassive land purchases and underwriting Jewish settlement in EretzYisrael.

Although he visited Eretz Yisrael numerous times, his home was in Paris.His generosity and interest in Jewish settlement in Eretz Yisraelcompletely changed the possibilities for Jews. During his lifetime, hiswork on behalf of the yishuv was highly praised by Zionist Leadersrepresenting the entire spectrum of opinion. In recognition of his work,he was named honorary president of the Jewish Agency in 1929.

He died in Paris in 1934. In 1954 his Remains and those of his wife werebrought to Ramat HaNadiv in Zikhron Ya'akov.

Edmond de Rothschild first became involved in Jewish affairs after thepogroms in Russia in the 1880s. Almost immediately, he also becameinterested in settlers in Eretz Yisrael. When early settlements facedfinancial ruin, Rothschild was approached by Rabbi Samuel Mohilever andthe Leaders of Rishon LeZion. He lent his assistance to both RishonLeZion and Zikhron Ya'akov and then helped found Ekron. An earlysupporter of quiet settlement initiatives, after World War I, he joinedthe political activity of the Zionist Organization by aiding ChaimWeizmann and Nahum Sokolow.

Before 1900, Rothschild's visits to Eretz Yisrael were largely meant assettlement tours. He became known as the “Father of the Yishuv” becauseof his full and partial involvement in so many young settlements. In the1890s, he clashed with Theodore Herzl on the interpretation of politicalZionism. In the early 1900s he had a similar disagReement with Ahad Ha'amand members of the Hovevei Zion. The result was a group of 12 settlementsunder the auspices of Rothschild's Jewish Colonization Association (ICA).

By 1914, Rothschild was able to visit expanded settlements as well as anumber of his major and minor investments. He was also growing Closer tothe Zionist Organization.

This Cooperation increased during World War I as preparations were madefor the Balfour DeClaration. ToWard the end of the war, his son, James,arrived in Eretz Yisrael with the British army and was among therecruiters for the Jewish battalions in the yishuv. In 1923, James tookthe helm of the newly-organized Palestine Jewish Colonization Association(PICA). Its first settlement was Binyamina (his father's Hebrew name wasAvraham Binyamin). By 1925, the Rothschild name had become synonymouswith settlement activity which included cultural, spiritual and politicalfeatures. His work was recognized and praised everywhere in the yishuvand among the members of the Zionist Organization.

Rothschild became honorary president of the expanded Jewish Agency in1929. When he died in Paris in 1934, he left a legacy which included thereclamation of nearly 500,000 dunams of land and almost 30 settlements.