Betty Lambert

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Betty Esther Charlotte Laure Lambert (born March 22, 1894 in Brussels ; † October 29, 1969 in Genthod ) was the daughter of Léon Lambert (1851-1919), baron and financier from Brussels, and Zoé Lucie Betty de Rothschild from Paris . Betty Lambert represents the fifth generation of the Rothschild dynasty, whose founders were Mayer Amschel Rothschild (until 1902 Meyer) and Gutle Schnapper . She herself was active as an escape helper during World War II .

family

From Brussels and Paris

Betty Lambert had the three siblings Claude Cécile Jenny Betty Adèle Lambert (1884–1971; married to Jean Stern ), Henri Louis Samuel Philippe Gustave Lambert (1887–1993; married to Johanna von Reininghaus, 1899–1960) and Renée Eléonore Juliette Lambert ( 1899–1987, married to Paul-André Jean Marie Aimé de Becker Rémy, 1897–1953, divorce: 1938; long-term life partner: Erich von Goldschmidt-Rothschild (1894–1987)).

With Erich's brother, Rudolf Max Freiherr von Goldschmidt-Rothschild (1881–1962), a third cousin and also a fifth generation, Betty was moved to Frankfurt am Main at the age of 17 by her grandfather Gustave de Rothschild and her father Léon Lambert in 1911 married. Her father-in-law was Maximilian von Goldschmidt-Rothschild .

From Brussels via Frankfurt to Thun

Betty Lambert gave birth to her first son in Frankfurt in 1913: Ferdinand Wilhelm Maximilian Gustav von Goldschmidt-Rothschild (1913–1976, first name: Bubbles), 1917 Alexis Karl Erich Rudolf von Goldschmidt-Rothschild (1917–1997). After the end of the First World War , she separated from Rudolf with a divorce, which was carried out in 1921 to the Swiss baron and Bernburger Johann-Jakob (Jean-Jacques) Arthur Alfons of the Bonstetten family (1897-1975) in London at the end of 1921 marry.

Life

Campagne Bellerive in Gwatt near Thun

As Baronne de Bonstetten she bought 1922 Campagne Bellerive in Gwatt , one in the southern neighborhood in the city of Thun located Bernese patrician -Landsitz with a park (today Bonstetten / Bonstettengut,) including Seeanschluss and direct views of the Bernese Oberland mountains. Jean-Jacques von Bonstetten's father, Ulrich Walther Maximilian Baron von Bonstetten (1867–1949), and his wife Caroline Madeleine Boissier (1874–1934, divorced since 1915) acquired this summer residence on Lake Thun in 1898. In 1923 Betty Lambert gave birth to her daughter Ynes de Bonstetten (1923–2012). It also financed all renovation work and conversions on the Bellerive Campagne as well as the purchases of land and buildings. In the summer of 1930 she chased away her husband, a dandy and gambler. The divorce was declared final on April 27, 1933.

Hub against Nazi Germany

After Hitler took power in 1933, the confiscations and forced sales of property from Betty Lambert's family, relatives and friends began in Germany and soon in Belgium, France and Austria . Over the years, Betty Lambert's “Gwatt” became a well-known address in her circles and for people on the move , for diplomats and US-protected secret service people. The baroness used her network skillfully , helped with money, signatures and contacts and acted as a silent hub against the Nazi dictatorship . Your guest book from 1937 to 1960 contains around 1200 signatures. Among the guests were the refugee helper Eduardo Propper de Callejón , the secret service chief Allen Welsh Dulles , Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly , as well as the actress Greta Garbo , the artist Marc Chagall , the French novelist Romain Gary and Alexander von Stauffenberg .

Escape to Switzerland

Rudolf and his three siblings still alive, Albert Maximilian (1879–1940), Lucy (1891–1977) and Erich (1894–1887), escaped to Switzerland in 1938, where they established a new life for themselves in exile. During the war years, Betty Lambert's first son Ferdinand von Goldschmidt-Rothschild married Isotta von Wangenheim (1921–2001) in 1941 and her daughter Ynes in 1942 with Gérald Cramer, (1916–1991) in Thun. 1947 married Betty Lambert's second son Alexis von Goldschmidt-Rothschild Jacqueline Louise Solange de Graffenried-Villars (1927-2002). Betty Lambert had a total of seven grandchildren and several great-grandchildren.

Post-war years

Betty Lambert "Madame, la Baronne", as she was called by the servants and residents in the Gwatt, sold the Bellerive Campagne to the city of Thun and the canton of Bern for CHF 7.5 million at the end of 1960 . The country estate, popularly known since then as the “Bonstettengut” and “Bonstettenpark”, was and is often called “Schlösschen”. The park has been open to the public since 1962. In 1972 the three-wing system received heating, which made it usable and habitable all year round. The Thun region music school has been rented there since 1976.

Trivia

The writer Franziska Streun from Thun has dealt with the life of the Brussels Lambert and Paris Rotschild descendants in her novel The Baroness in the Tresor .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bonstetten Park . About Thun, sights, Bonstettenpark. Website of the city ​​of Thun .
  2. ↑ published 2020 by Zytglogge Verlag , ISBN 3-72965041-6
  3. ↑ Books . Website Franziska Streun
personal data
SURNAME Lambert, Betty
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Lambert, Betty Esther Charlotte Laure (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Belgian-Swiss nobleman and escape helper
DATE OF BIRTH March 22, 1894
PLACE OF BIRTH Brussels
DATE OF DEATH 29th October 1969
Place of death Genthod