The House of Rothschild: Volume 1: Money's Prophets: 1798-1848 by Ferguson Niall (1999-11-01) Paperback Paperback

I have degrees in economics and mathematics and first started reading the House of Rothschild Vol.1 as a borrowed book from the library. After re-reading the House of Rothschild for the third time I decided it was time to buy my own hardcover edition, which I did. This is an uncanny and remarkably descriptive book on the incredible depth of economic understanding that the Rothschild Family exhibits and applies to the real world. The author Niall Ferguson has a refined style of writing so even long descriptions of various political and economic situations are interesting and entertaining. I also enjoyed the highlights of Rothschild wit, as for example beckoning a high ranking nobleman to, when Nathaniel was too busy to look up from his desk and had offered him a chair, to take TWO chairs when the nobleman felt slighted, I love this story. I am now reading Vol 2 and it so far has the same high caliber style of writing and depth, thanks Niall for writing these great books.

I have herd good things about this booking hence the purchase of it, I am looking forward to reading it for my self in conjunction with The House of Rothschild Volume 2.

Interested in economic history? You will learn a great deal about the early development of the modern banking system (1790-1850 approximately) from this book. Not to mention the development of government fiscal and monetary practice. That is all to be expected, and the book delivers. But I was surprised, and interested, to find so much information about the position of Jews throughout Europe during the period, especially in the early chapters. Of course I had some general knowledge of the legal restrictions they faced, but now I have a much clearer picture. In Frankfurt, the place of origin for the Rothschilds, Jews were subjected to severe legal handicaps. How in the world did so many become doctors, scholars and bankers? I'm familiar with the ideas about how Jews turned in these directions because they had no other economic outlets. But as individuals, they also had to bring integrity, hard work and sheer grit. In addition to a simmering sense of outrage I came to admire these people a whole lot.

Excellent book, well researched. I only wish that it explained more patiently, to the layperson, how the different investment vehicles worked.

Loaded with history, a must for those who want to understand international finance, Niall Ferguson is an extremely knowledgeable writer.

good book

This thorough, long, and orderly history of the Rothschild banking dynasty is a deeply traditional business history text. It's full of coherent details, narrated clearly. There are thousands of footnotes, and a huge bibliography. As reference material, I'm sure it's flawless. It's obvious that the author accomplished his goal. But I wished for one meal described, one suit of clothes worn, one grand (or not-so-grand) apartment described. Alas, none of this is included in this story. Pitifully few tidbits flesh out this text. It's business history set against a background of world history, but neither the motivations nor the humanness of the Rothschilds is part of the picture. Ultimately, it disappoints.

very pleased with the purchase

The title of this book is "The House of Rothschild: The World's Banker, 1849 - 1998". Unfortunately this title does not really cover the subject. It's not really until the final chapter that we finally get into the period just after World War II.With the book being published in 1998 I expected something more up to date. But almost everything after 1940 is covered in just one cursory chapter: the epilogue. And this tells us very little. It's almost like a narration of s series of balance sheets and profit and loss statements!For example, I read in  The Synagogue Of Satan - Updated, Expanded, And Uncensored  by Andrew Carrington Hitchcock that Amschel Rothschild (then 41) was killed in a Paris in April 1996. Surely this story could have been included in the book! (According to Hitchcock's book, Rupert Murdoch tried to suppress the story, or claim that Amschel died of a heart attack. But I always knew you couldn't trust the Murdoch press, even before the phone-hacking scandal.)Even some of the major deals are only covered in a few lines I suspect the reason for this is that many of those deals reflect the more recent ones - and they are bad for the public. We don't want people to know that they are being stolen from, do we?Ferguson seems to suggest that the Rothschild now have little to no power in financial circles. But we know that is not true. They are sucking us dry even more than ever! After all, have you ever seen a flea trying suck blood from another flea? The Synagogue Of Satan - Updated, Expanded, And Uncensored

A detailed excellent account of the family's history, its growth and partial decline to its survival into the 21 century, with a description of its financial role in the 19th century in building Europe and of the family members and their contributions. Some of the financial descriptions were too complicated to follow, which is why I did not award a fifth star. But then I am not an accountant or banker.