The Rothschilds: Scapegoats or Secret World Dominators?

For centuries, one name has echoed through the halls of power and wealth. Rothschild, a family whose rise from humble beginnings in the 18th century would shape the financial world and leave its mark on history. But what if the story of the Rothschilds isn't as straightforward as it seems? From the depths of the transatlantic slave trade to the heart of revolutions, from the battlefields of two world wars to the geopolitical struggle over the Middle East, the Rothschild family stands accused of playing a role in nearly every major global conflict and political upheaval. But how deep does their influence really go? Were they simply powerful financiers or did they orchestrate events behind the scenes? Did their wealth and connections shape history or is there more to the story than meets the eye? This investigation will peel back the curtain to uncover the true extent of the Rothschilds legacy. What's the truth behind their involvement in shaping world events? Let's try and find out. Hello, I'm Mike Joberg, Marine Corps veteran and filmmaker and we will try to answer these questions on today's episode of Forgotten History. Meyer Amschel Rothschild is the first Rothschild of historical significance. Born in 1744 in the Jewish ghetto of Frankfurt, Germany in what was then the Holy Roman Empire. He trained as a banker and coin dealer under the Oppenheimer banking family in Hanover. Around the 1760s he established a small business in Frankfurt dealing in rare coins and currency exchange. It was there that Meyer developed a reputation as an expert in rare coins and historical currency. His coin dealings brought him into contact with wealthy noblemen and collectors including Crown Prince Wilhelm of Hesse-Cassel. Meyer's integrity, expertise, and ability to source rare high-quality coins helped him build a relationship of trust with Wilhelm. Soon he became the court banker of Prince Wilhelm who was one of the wealthiest nobles in Europe at the time. Hesse-Cassel was insanely wealthy due in part to leasing soldiers, Hessian mercenaries to Britain during the American Revolution. That capital had to go somewhere and Meyer helped move, store, and protect a significant portion of it. Meyer would soon have unprecedented access to royal finances and contracts. When Napoleon invaded and Wilhelm was forced to exile in 1806, he entrusted Meyer with the safeguarding of his fortune. Some estimates say it was between three and four million gold at the time, billions by today's standards. Meyer not only protected it, he invested it, growing the funds and using them to expand the Rothschild's operation across Europe through his sons. Meyer Amschel raised his sons to be interconnected but geographically dispersed bankers forming a tight-knit international financial network. His first son Amschel Meyer stayed in Frankfurt to run the original house. Solomon Meyer went to Vienna, Nathan Meyer London, Karl Meyer Naples, and James Meyer Paris. Each son opened a branch in a European capital, giving the Rothschilds unmatched transactional reach. But what set them apart? Well, they communicated using private couriers and coded letters, allowing near instant updates across countries, decades ahead of other financial networks. They dealt with entire nations, not just individuals, financing armies, governments, and infrastructure. Their ability to move funds across borders faster than anyone else allowed them to outmaneuver rivals and control capital flows, especially during wars. There is no evidence that the Rothschilds owned slave ships, plantations, or directly traded slaves. However, there is credible evidence of indirect financial involvement through banking services to slave-related industries, by financing compensation for slave owners, and business dealings with entities profiting from slavery. In 1833, the UK passed the Slavery Abolition Act, freeing enslaved people across the British Empire. But instead of compensating the enslaved, the British government paid 20 million pounds, about 17 billion today, to slave owners. To do this, the British Treasury took out a massive loan from two banks, NM Rothschilds & Sons and the Barings Bank. Nathan Meyer Rothschild's firm underwrote and profited from the loan that paid the British slave owners for their loss of property. So while they didn't manage slaves themselves, the Rothschilds profited from the system's dismantling, by financing the government that paid reparations, not to the enslaved, but to the enslavers. Also, the Rothschilds banks in London, Paris, and Vienna were deeply embedded in sugar, cotton, and the tobacco trade. Colonial plantations and commodity finance for goods produced by enslaved labor. West India merchants, plantation owners, and related companies banked with firms like NM Rothschilds who provided credit and insurance services. Britain and France's wealth from the 1700s and early 1800s was inseparable from slavery. Any bank handling government funds, shipping insurance, or colonial investments was almost inevitably entangled. Truth is, they never owned a slave ship. They never branded a man with an iron. But in the boardrooms of London and the offices of European kings, they moved money. Money that fueled empires built on human lives. And when slavery ended, they cashed in again. By the time World War I broke out, the Rothschilds banking dynasty was well-established across Europe. Their influence was significant, but not centralized. Each branch operated independently, although they shared information and occasionally cooperated. Their power was waning compared to the 1800s, but they were still deeply embedded in government finance, infrastructure, and war bonds. In Great Britain, London Rothschilds Bank had long-standing ties to the British Treasury. During World War I, they were involved in managing war debt and coordinating international loans, particularly from the United States to the UK. Rothschilds helped in organizing British war bonds, which were crucial in funding the massive military effort. Lord Rothschild was on several government advisory boards during the war. Rothschild's agents were involved in foreign currency exchanges, vital to Britain's purchasing of war materials. In France, the Paris Rothschilds, under Edward Rothschild, worked closely with the Bank of France and the French government. They played a role in securing capital for the war, including helping to stabilize the franc and managing of state loans. France's war effort relied heavily on borrowed money, and the Rothschilds' connections were crucial. Rothschild's banks were instrumental in facilitating war bonds, especially for wealthy investors and foreign governments. They helped structure loan packages and sometimes underwrote securities to ensure Allied governments had the liquidity to keep fighting. Their reach extended to neutral countries like Switzerland and the US, helping transfer funds across borders while avoiding diplomatic complications. A popular claim is that the Rothschilds funded both sides of World War I to profit from the war. However, there is no credible evidence they financed Germany or the Austro-Hungarian Empire during the war. In fact, the Vienna branch of the Rothschilds Bank suffered during the war and never recovered its pre-war influence. By the time the First World War exploded across Europe, the Rothschilds were no longer kingmakers, but they were still bankers to the kings. From London to Paris, their banks helped finance the Allied war machine with bonds, loans, and influence. But contrary to the legends, there is no record of them playing both sides. The reality is less theatrical, but still powerful. As the war raged, another document passed quietly between Britain and the Rothschilds, a letter that would change the Middle East forever. What was the Balfour Declaration? It was a letter issued on November 2, 1917, from the British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Lord Walter Rothschild. The purpose? To state British government support for the establishment of a national home for the The letter stated, His Majesty's government view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country. So who was Lord Walter Rothschild? He was a British zoologist and a member of the Rothschild's banking dynasty, a prominent Zionist figure in the UK and a liaison between the British government and the World Zionist Organization. Though he did not write the declaration, but was chosen as the recipient, indicating the Rothschilds' high standing and influence in Zionist and British circles. But what was the strategic context of the Balfour Declaration? Britain was embroiled in a brutal war and needed to shore up support from Jewish communities, particularly in the United States, Russia before the Bolshevik Revolution, and Jewish financiers and influencers in Europe and America. The declaration was a diplomatic play to win favor with Zionist Jews who could sway political opinion or finance. Chaim Weizmann, a chemist and political leader, worked for years to get Britain back to Zionist aims. The Rothschilds, especially Walter and Edmund, supported Zionist colonies in Palestine since the 1880s. Britain anticipated the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and wanted to secure influence in the Middle East. Palestine was of strategic importance, especially as a corridor to India and the Suez Canal. The Balfour Declaration laid the groundwork for the British mandate in Palestine from 1920 to 1948, during which Jewish immigration increased. It became a foundational document for the Zionist movement and eventually the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. It also ignited deep opposition from Arab leaders and sowed seeds for the Arab-Israeli conflict. In the middle of the First World War, a one-paragraph letter changed the course of history. It wasn't sent to a king, president, or general. It was sent to a Rothschild. And it wasn't just a promise. It was the beginning of a geopolitical firestorm that still burns today. The Balfour Declaration made the Rothschilds' name more than just a symbol of banking power. It made them a symbolic gatekeeper to the Jewish homeland. In November of 1917, the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, overthrew Russia's provincial government, which had replaced the Tsar earlier that year. The outcome was the establishment of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, which later became the USSR. Pre-1917, the Paris and London Rothschild branches had financial dealings with the Russian Empire, primarily in banking like the Baku oil fields, railroad infrastructure, and government bonds. It held significant Russian government debt and was connected to the Franco-Russian alliance in the 1890s, which involved large loans to the Tsar's regime. So, before the revolution, the Rothschilds were firmly invested in the imperial Russian economy, but not the revolutionary movement. When the Bolsheviks seized control, they repudiated all Tsar's debt. The Rothschilds and other European banks lost enormous sums of money. There's no record of the Rothschilds having communication, deals, or influence with Lenin's inner circle. The Bolsheviks nationalized all foreign-owned assets, including banks, mines, and railroads. The Rothschilds were financially harmed, not helped by the revolution. So, where did the Rothschilds-Bolshevik conspiracy come from? There are two main sources. First, Jacob Schiff and Kuhn and Loeb & Co. Jacob Schiff, of German-Jewish descent, ran Kuhn, Loeb & Co., a New York investment bank. Schiff publicly opposed the Russian Tsar due to programs against the Jews and supported revolutionary causes, including some financial aid to anti-Tsarist movements. But Schiff was not a Rothschild, but his firm had connections with European banking dynasties, including the Rothschilds, through past dealings. This loose association is often distorted into the Rothschilds funded the Bolsheviks, which is a leap without evidence. Early 20th century anti-Jewish tracks and Russian immigrant propaganda blamed Jewish bankers for communism. Rothschild's name was a natural target due to their fame, wealth, and Jewish identity. Also, the infamous Protocols of Zion played a role in linking Jewish financiers to world domination narratives, widely used by both Nazi Germany and Soviet dissidents later. First published in Russia in 1903, likely by Tsar's secret police, used extensively in anti-Semitic propaganda, including Nazi Germany and Stalin's USSR, and others. However, in 1921, journalist Philip Graves of the Times London discovered that much of the Protocols was plagiarized almost verbatim from an earlier book, Dialogue in Hell Between Machiavelli and Montesquieu, 1864, written by Maurice Jolly, a French satirist and political critic of Napoleon III. It had nothing to do with Jews. It was about political manipulation. Graves published multiple side-by-side excerpts showing how the Protocols had lifted entire passages, word for word, from Jolly's work, replacing Napoleon III with the Jews or elders of Zion. That discovery alone discredited the Protocols permanently in the academic world. The Protocols referenced political events and structures that did not exist at the time it was supposedly written. It used language and ideology lifted from the late 19th century European politics, not ancient Jewish texts or meetings. No records or evidence ever surfaced of any such elders of Zion meetings or organizations. Russian dissidents, including early critics like Sergei Nihilist, who helped publish it, admitted it was fake or couldn't verify its origin. After World War II, international tribunals and historians examined the document and confirmed it was a deliberate forgery used for political manipulation. The Protocols weren't a revelation. They were a copy-paste job. 19th century political satire turned into a weaponized lie. And while they claimed to expose a Jewish conspiracy, what they actually revealed was how easily fear and fiction can be turned into propaganda. By the 1930s, the Rothschild's banking empire was still influential but no longer at its 19th century peak. In 1938, following the Anschluss, the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany, the Nazis seized the Vienna Rothschild's bank and imprisoned Baron Louis von Rothschild for over a year. He was released only after a massive ransom was paid, a portion of which was funded through secretive international negotiations. The Nazis confiscated the family's banks, art collection, real estate, and personal assets. In 1940, when Germany invaded France, the Rothschild's bank was seized by the Vichy regime, working in collaboration with the Nazis. Members of the family fled to the U.S. and Switzerland, including Guy de Rothschild, who later returned to rebuild the bank after the war. Properties such as the Chateau de Frières and their art collection were looted by a Nazi task force responsible for cultural theft. The British Rothschild's London branch remained intact and active, working closely with British governments on financing war efforts, currency stabilization, and international loans. They were also involved in intelligence circles and helped facilitate financial matters related to wartime diplomacy and resistance funding. Lord Victor Rothschild worked for MI5, Britain's domestic intelligence service. He was part of the Cambridge Apostles and played a real role in British counterintelligence. Ironically, he was falsely accused decades later of being a Soviet spy, but no proof was ever found. The Rothschilds, especially in Britain, funded efforts to help European Jews escape Nazi territory. They were active supporters of Zionism and helped fund Jewish settlements in the British Mandate Palestine. They also contributed to resettlement efforts for Jews in the U.S., U.K., and Switzerland. There is no historical evidence supporting the idea that the Rothschilds funded both sides. Orchestrators of World War II were profited from war deaths. These claims come from Nazi and fascist propaganda and were debunked after the war. They weren't pulling the strings, they were running for their lives. The Rothschilds lost their banks, their homes, and their freedom under Hitler's regime. Baron Louis Rothschild was imprisoned. Their assets were looted. In France and Austria, their empire was dismantled. If they had power in World War II, they certainly weren't using it to start a war, they were trying to survive it. And while the London branch kept Britain's financial gears turning, the myth that the Rothschilds funded both sides of war is just that, a myth born in the furnaces of Nazi propaganda. The idea that the Rothschilds still control global finance like a puppet master is way out of date. Today, they're wealthy, powerful, and influential in niche sectors, but they are not the hidden rulers of the financial world. Estimated net worth in 2024? There is no publicly known consolidated figure because the Rothschilds' wealth is spread across generations, companies, and trusts. They privatize most of their financial businesses to keep out of the public spotlight. Best conservative estimates $400 to $500 billion across all Rothschilds' branches, trusts, and assets combined. That's massive, but not world-controlling, and it's nothing compared to Apple's $2.8 trillion market cap, BlackRock, which has $10 trillion, and the Saudi Royal Family, estimated to have a $1.4 trillion net wealth worth. Current Rothschild banking entities as of 2024? Rothschild & Co., based in Paris and London, specializes in mergers and acquisitions, wealth management, and private equity. Clients include government corporations and ultra-high net worth individuals. Still considered to be one of the most respected boutique investment banks in the world. The truth? The Rothschild family does not own or control any central bank. They do not own the Federal Reserve. They may have institutional relationships, like providing advisory or bond underwriting, but no governance control. The Federal Reserve is governed by a board of governors, appointed by the U.S. President. Bank members own shares, but those are non-transferable, non-tradable, and come with no ownership rights in the corporate sense. So what's the final analysis? The Rothschilds today are ultra-wealthy, multi-generational financiers, active in private banking, wealth management, and advisory roles. Still powerful in certain European financial sectors, but they are no longer a monolithic dynasty controlling global currency or dictating world events. Their power is niche, not totalitarian. Do they still control central banks? This is the core claim for many conspiracy theorists, that the Rothschilds control central banks like the Federal Reserve, IMF, World Bank, etc. What's clear is that their influence is real, but the legend around them may say more about us, our fears, our assumptions, and our need to find someone to blame than it does about them. So were the Rothschilds architects of global power, or just wealthy scapegoats, caught in the crossfire of history? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you for watching Forgotten History. Please like, share, and subscribe. If you have any comments or show ideas, we'd love to hear from you. Thanks again.