Amschel Moses Rothschild

Amschel Moses Rothschild († October 6, 1755 in Frankfurt am Main ) is one of the ancestors of the Rothschild family . His fourth son is Mayer Amschel Rothschild , who is considered to be the founder of the Rothschild dynasty.

Amschel Moses Rothschild worked in the Judengasse in Frankfurt as a simple money changer who occasionally also traded in silk. In 1749, his property was worth a total of 1,375 guilders . He was one of the poorer Jews in the Frankfurt ghetto. His family's residence was the rear building at Pfanne (Judengasse 188), to which his ancestors had moved in 1664. The old residence was a house in the southern part of Judengasse, which was called Zum Roten Schild , which was built by Isaak Elchanan in the 16th century . As is often the case, the family derived their last name from the name of the house. The name Rothschild was retained when the family moved to the northern part of Judengasse.

Amschel Moses Rothschild and his wife Schönche had eight children. However, only five survived childhood. Up to the age of thirteen, the sons visited one of the several Chadarim in Frankfurt's Judengasse. It is unusual that Amschel Moses Rothschild sent his fourth son to the Talmud school in Fürth. The reason for this is not certain, as there was also a very respected rabbinical school in Frankfurt . It is possible that, unlike in Frankfurt, secular subjects were also taught in Fürth.

Amschel Moses Rothschild died on October 6, 1755 during a smallpox epidemic .

literature

• Amos Elon : The First Rothschild. Biography of a Frankfurt Jew. Reinbek 1999, ISBN 3-499-60889-8 .